II.

British Colonial Control

A number of events led to the Declaration of Independence. The British-American triumph in the French and Indian War (1754-1763) was particularly significant because it not only caused France to lose its North American empire, but also led to changes in Britain’s relationship with its own colonies.

After the war, the British government decided to reorganize its overseas empire. The country was heavily in debt because of war expenses; it needed money and felt that the colonies should pay a share of the defense of the colonies. In addition, the British found it difficult to maintain control over the American colonies without a more centralized administrative system in North America. During the French and Indian War, several colonies had refused to cooperate fully in the war effort when their own borders were not immediately at risk. Smuggling was also so rampant that the American customs service cost the British more money to run than it earned in revenue.

The British government decided to maintain a 10,000-man army to protect the colonies from Native Americans and from any new French threat. The army could also help to maintain British authority in the distant colonies. Parliament ordered the customs office to collect the taxes levied on imports, usually called duties, more efficiently and passed the Sugar Act in 1764 ) and the Stamp Act in 1765 to raise revenue in the colonies to pay for one-half of this army. The rest of the money was to come from the British treasury. These laws made economic sense to the British, who did not see them as direct threats to American liberty.