The French and Indian War and the Rise of Colonial Protests

Vocabulary flashcards covering the economic policies, key conflicts, and legislative acts that defined British-Colonial relations between $$1763$$ and $$1776$$.

Mercantilism

An economic theory where colonies benefit the mother country (England) by providing gold, silver, foodstuffs, and raw materials, while serving as a market for manufactured goods.

Navigation Acts ($1651$)

Laws requiring all colonial trade to be on English ships, mandating that goods destined for Europe pass through English ports to pay taxes, and limiting the sale of key raw materials like tobacco and sugar only to England.

Salutary Neglect

The unofficial British policy during most of the $1700s$ where trade laws, such as the Navigation Acts, were not strictly enforced.

French and Indian War

A conflict from $1754$ to $1763$, also known as the Seven Years' War, fought between Great Britain and France (along with their respective Indian allies) for control of the Ohio River Valley.

Treaty of Paris ($1763$)

The negotiated settlement ending the French and Indian War that forced France to turn over Canada to Great Britain and surrender claims to all land east of the Mississippi River, except New Orleans.

Proclamation of $1763$

A British law issued after the French and Indian War prohibiting colonists from settling west of the Appalachian Mountains to prevent further conflict with Native Americans.

Pontiac's War

A $1763$ uprising led by Chief Pontiac of the Ottawa Nation involving a coalition of Native Americans attempting to drive British and colonial families out of the Ohio River Valley.

Sugar Act ($1764$)

A law that imposed a tax on the importation of molasses and established vice-admiralty courts to prosecute smugglers.

Vice-Admiralty Courts

Special military courts used to try suspected smugglers without a jury, presided over by a panel of military officers instead of civilian judges.

Stamp Act ($1765$)

A direct tax on every document or newspaper printed in the colonies, ranging from $1$ shilling to $10$ pounds, which had to be paid in hard currency.

Committees of Correspondence

Organizations created by colonial assemblies, starting in Massachusetts, to efficiently communicate and coordinate protests against British policies with other colonies.

Stamp Act Congress

A meeting of colonial delegates organized in New York to draft formal petitions of protest to Parliament regarding unfair taxation.

Sons of Liberty

A protest group organized by Samuel Adams in Boston that used political theater, effigies, and sometimes violence to oppose the Stamp Act.

Daughters of Liberty

An organization of colonial women who supported boycotts of British goods by producing "homespun" cloth in their houses.

Townshend Acts ($1767$)

A series of tax laws that expanded the Customs Service and created more Admiralty Courts to enforce trade regulations, leading to renewed colonial protests.

Tea Act ($1773$)

A law designed to expand the British East India Company's tea monopoly by offering imported tea at a reduced price in the colonies.

Intolerable Acts

A series of punitive laws passed by Parliament to punish Massachusetts for the Boston Tea Party, which included closing the Boston Port and suspending the colonial government.

Quartering

A provision of the Intolerable Acts that allowed for the housing and feeding of British soldiers in the private homes of colonists.

What was the French and Indian War?

A war from 1754–1763 between Great Britain and France and their respective allies over control of North American territory, especially the Ohio River Valley. 

Who won the French and Indian War?

Great Britain won.

What did the Treaty of Paris of 1763 do?

It ended the French and Indian War. France gave Canada and most of its land east of the Mississippi River to Great Britain. 

Why did the French and Indian War actually make relations between Britain and the colonies worse?

Colonists felt that they had contributed greatly to Britain’s victory but were then hit with new restrictions and taxes. This increased resentment toward Britain. 

Why did Britain begin taxing the colonies more after the war? 

Britain had accumulated a huge amount of war debt. The French and Indian War more than doubled Britain’s national debt, so Parliament wanted the colonies to help pay for the costs.

What was the Proclamation of 1763?

A law that prevented American colonists from settling west of the Appalachian Mountains. 

Why did colonists dislike the Proclamation of 1763?

They believed they had earned the right to the land because they had fought alongside Britain during the French and Indian War.

Did the Proclamation of 1763 successfully stop westward settlement?

No. Britain had too few troops to enforce it, and colonists largely ignored the law and continued settling in the Ohio River Valley.

What was the Sugar Act of 1764?

A tax on molasses imports. It also created special vice-admiralty courts to try suspected smugglers. 

Why did colonists object to the vice-admiralty courts?

They had no jury. Military officers served as judges, which colonists believed violated their civil rights. 

What was the Stamp Act of 1765?

A tax on printed materials, including newspapers and legal documents, used throughout the colonies. It affected people across colonial society. 

What was the colonists’ main argument against the Stamp Act?

“No taxation without representation.” Colonists believed Parliament had no right to tax them because they had no representatives in Parliament

What was the Committee of Correspondence?

A group created by the Massachusetts Assembly to communicate with other colonies about issues and coordinate responses to British actions. 

What was the Stamp Act Congress?

A meeting where colonial delegates came together to create formal petitions protesting the Stamp Act. 

Who organized the Sons of Liberty in Boston?

Samuel Adams.

How did the Sons of Liberty protest the Stamp Act?

They used protests, effigies, and sometimes violence, including destroying the property of tax collectors. 

How did colonial merchants protest British taxation?

They organized boycotts of British goods. 

Why was the Stamp Act repealed?

Colonial protests, violence, and especially boycotts hurt British merchants and pressured Parliament to repeal the act in 1766.

What were the Townshend Acts?

A series of British tax and enforcement laws passed in 1767. They expanded the Customs Service and created more Admiralty Courts.

Who were the Daughters of Liberty?

A group of Boston women who supported the colonial boycott by making homespun cloth instead of buying British cloth

How did the presence of British troops in Boston affect the situation?

Instead of calming things down, the troops increased tensions and resentment between colonists and Britain. 

What happened to the Townshend Acts?

They were partially repealed in 1770, but the tax on tea remained. 

What was the Tea Act of 1773?

A law designed to strengthen the British East India Company’s monopoly on tea by allowing British tea to be sold more cheaply in the colonies. 

Why did colonists still oppose the Tea Act even though the tea was cheaper?

They believed Britain was trying to get them to accept Parliament’s taxing power by making the tea cheaper. 

What happened during the Boston Tea Party?

In December 1773, members of the Sons of Liberty boarded three tea ships and dumped the tea into Boston Harbor.

Why did Britain pass the Intolerable Acts?

Britain wanted to punish Massachusetts for the Boston Tea Party and discourage other colonies from resisting British authority. 

What happened to Boston’s port under the Intolerable Acts?

Boston Harbor was closed until the destroyed tea was paid for. 

What happened to the Massachusetts government?

It was suspended and placed under the control of the royal governor appointed by the King.

What happened to British officials accused of crimes?

They could be tried in England instead of Massachusetts.

What did the Intolerable Acts allow regarding British soldiers?

Colonists could be required to house and feed British soldiers in their homes. This was called quartering. 

What did the Quebec Act do?

It expanded Quebec’s borders into land that other colonies claimed. 

What was the unexpected result of the Intolerable Acts?

Instead of making Massachusetts submit, the acts unified the colonies against Britain. Colonists feared that what happened to Massachusetts could happen to them too. 

What was the overall cause of rising colonial protests?

After the French and Indian War, Britain tried to increase control and taxation of the colonies to pay its debt. Colonists believed these actions violated their civil rights and their right to representation. 

How did the colonists respond to British policies?

They used petitions, communication between colonies, boycotts, protests, groups like the Sons of Liberty and Daughters of Liberty, and sometimes violence.

How did British attempts to control the colonies contribute to the American Revolution?

Each new restriction or tax increased colonial resentment. Protests and British punishments caused the colonies to become increasingly united against Britain, creating the conditions that eventually led to revolution.