Was The American Revolution Unavoidable?

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Was the American Revolution Unavoidable?

The origin of revolutionary culture in the English colonies can be attributed to several instances and historic events which acted as precursors in rendering the revolution inevitable. The native colonies living under the influence of the imperial British government were striving for independence since there were growing tensions over economic matters and political supremacy. This paper is an attempt to provide an explanation for the origins of some of those factors that chiefly smoothed the grounds for the American Revolution.

During 1676, there was a popular revolt known as Bacon’s Rebellion which was triggered by protests against several Indian raids and the governor’s deliberate and unconcealed favoritism towards his own clans. This rebellion played an instrumental role in demonstrating that the colonists could go to any length for claiming their land against the British. Similarly, the Glorious Revolution of 1688 had a crucial effect on the power dynamics of the 13 colonies inhabiting North America. The motives behind this revolution were highly complex and paved the way for a political democracy while replacing an absolute monarchy. Consequently, this resulted in the inevitable nature of the American Revolution. Following the same line of approach, The Great Awakening also influenced the British colonies in their struggle of acquiring independence from the English monarchy. The Great Awakening is regarded as the first major religious revival of the United States of America. Historical religious moments took place in The Great Awakening and dramatically changed the social fabric and hierarchical order of the common masses CITATION Sto77 \l 1033 (Stout). It can be contemplated that the initial ignition of the Revolution was that many of its leading promoters and contestants had already contravened the limitations of the contemporary social order. The Great Awakening essentially promoted the values and beliefs of nationalism among the British colonies and induced a sense of individual rights which quintessentially mirrored the spirit of the American Declaration of Independence. During the events leading to the American Revolution, many intellectual thinkers and men of substance also contributed greatly to the noble cause. In this regard, John Locke (1632-1704) and Thomas Jefferson (1743-1826) are especially noteworthy as the impact of their works is still felt today. John Locke’s seminal theories, which are colossally renowned, signified the importance of governmental checks and balances that immediately established their niche in the very foundations of the American constitution. Locke specifically pinpointed the importance of the legitimacy of government and propounded that if the American government cannot meet the demands of its citizens at any point in time, the citizens can exercise their right to overthrow the government CITATION Tho19 \l 1033 (Thompson). In the same way, Thomas Jefferson used poignant words and fought the war against British imperialism through his writings and oratory skills. During multiple instances, Jefferson opined that the colonists were free human beings and their struggle for independence was justified on all grounds. Thomas Jefferson is also regarded as one of the founding fathers of the Declaration of Independence and primarily assisted his contemporaries in securing American independence. The ideas of John Locke and Thomas Jefferson are principal to the essence of the American Revolution.

In the course of early revolutionary periods, the tavern culture in colonial America was becoming increasingly popular where people would meet regularly and discuss their outlooks on the fundamental rights and shortly after, these taverns became the breeding grounds for the diminuendos leading to the American Revolution. The New England town meetings conducted during those times can also be regarded as one of the paramount platforms for eliciting the underlying forces of the Revolution among the masses. The town meetings elected and approved representative assemblies which predominantly worked for the betterment of American minorities and preferred the basic rights of a common man. These milestones were practically impossible to achieve under British colonial rule, therefore, the tavern culture, town meetings, and the representative assemblies are also considered as fundamental causes behind the American Revolution.

Works Cited:

BIBLIOGRAPHY Stout, Harry S. ""Religion, communications, and the ideological origins of the American revolution."." The William and Mary Quarterly: A Magazine of Early American History (1977): 519-541.

Thompson, C. B. "John Locke and the American Mind." American Political Thought (2019): 575-593.