Ruling the Colonies: The British Acts in the Colonies

 

By the end of the French and Indian War, the British Empire was rapidly expanding through the “unexplored” regions west of the English colonies. The Seven Years War had proved to be a costly victory for the British crown; the win over France had put England into severe debt and had spread the British military even thinner. The war had also given the English colonists a new sense of identity; the British government had not rushed to help fight in North America during the war and as a result began to colonists view themselves as being independent from British. Many colonists were unhappy with the lack of gratitude shown by the crown for the sacrifices they had made during the war. The colonist’s new found identity and the weakened condition of the British Empire created a recipe for tension that was potentially explosive.

 

The British government passed a series of acts in order to replenish the debt ridden treasury and to control the expansion of the colonists living in the English colonies. These laws were passed through by the King with little input from the colonial assemblies. Some of the more notable acts are listed below:

 

 

Proclamation of 1763

Townshend Revenue Act

Sugar Act

Stamp Act

Declaratory Act

Intolerable Acts or Coercive Acts

Quartering Act

Boston Port Act

Administration of Justice Act

Massachusetts Governing Act or the Massachusetts Bay Regulating Act

 

Your task:

Collect information on each of the acts listed. You must create a Powerpoint presentation of your chose to display the following information below.

For each act, you need identify the following information:

·         The year(s) that the act was passed (1 point)

·         A BRIEF summary of act.  (10 points)

·         The British rational for passing the act (What were the reason(s) that the British government passed the law) (4 points)

·         The effect the British hoped the law would have on the colonies (This is your opinion. Think about what the British hoped the colonists would do as a result of the law being passed)  (3 points)

·         What sources did you use? Remember to include a bibliography. (2 points)

 

You will have two class periods to work on this and a drop day. The PowerPoints must be emailed to me by Thursday, October 11th.