PRELUDE TO CONFLICT
The causes of the American Revolution have been much discussed by many historians. Generally, they amount to Great Britain's post Seven Years War economic and political policies. Below are some of the important events: 1. On 10 February 1763 the Treaty of Paris was signed by Great Britain, France, and Spain to end the Seven Years War (known as the French and Indian War in America). To pay for the cost of the War the British government would impose taxes on the American colonists. 2. On 2 October 1763 King George III issued a Royal Proclamation which established a boundary in the Appalachian Mountains at the Eastern Continental Divide and prohibited settlement beyond it. This upset American colonists who wanted westward expansion. 3. Greater enforcement in 1763 of the Navigation Acts (1651, 1660) that aimed to promote the self - sufficiency of the British Empire by restricting colonial trade to England and decreasing dependence on foreign...