Britain and Its Colonies: Problems, Solutions, Reactions
PROBLEMS
BRITISH GOVERNMENT’S SOLUTIONS
Conflicts between settlers and Native
A) The Proclamation of 1763 prevented
Americans within the colonies and on the
settlement west of Appalachians.
frontier
B) The government stationed 10,000 British
soldiers in the colonies and on the frontier.
Huge debt from the French & Indian War
A) The government tried to prevent smuggling
by allowing soldiers to search colonists’ homes
without warning. In smuggling cases that went
to court, colonists were not allowed jury trials;
their cases were determined by a single British
judge. (Some colonists tried to avoid paying
import taxes by sneaking in, or smuggling,
foreign goods.)
Britain feared the colonists were on the brink of
rebellion. They were concerned about the
boycotts and protests over taxes.
An important British company, the British East
India Company, was facing ruin. The
government wanted to keep the government in
business.
Britain felt it was losing control of the colonies.
Ms. Ellison
COLONISTS’ REACTIONS
A) Colonists were angry over settlement
restrictions.
B) Colonists were distrustful and suspicious of
troops.
A) Colonists were horrified that their homes
could be searched without warning. Colonists
were angry that their basic right to a jury trial
was taken away.
B) The government used money collected from
colonists’ import taxes to support the British
government.
B) Colonists were angry that their taxes were
going to a government that they had not
elected. (Colonists were not allowed to vote for
members of the British government.) “Taxation
without representation is tyranny,” said
colonial lawyer James Otis.
C) The government taxed all printed materials,
from newspapers to playing cards (“Stamp
Tax”).
C) Colonists were angry because Britain
imposed this tax without colonists’ approval.
To protest the Stamp Act, colonists boycotted
British goods.
D) The government taxed imported goods
including basic items like glass, tea, paper,
lead. These items had to be imported because
the non-industrial colonies could not produce
them for themselves.
Revenue (earnings) from these taxes was
used to pay colonial governors. (In the past, the
colonists paid for their governors through taxes
the colonies collected themselves.
D) Colonists were outraged because their basic
necessities were taxed.
E) The government restricted colonial trade.
Only British-owned and –crewed ships could
carry on colonial trade.
Colonists were not allowed to export goods
that competed with British goods, such as wool.
Colonists were not allowed to build iron
plants. This forced colonists to buy heavilytaxed iron from Britain.
700 uniformed British soldiers were sent to
occupy Boston with “muskets charged,
bayonets fixed, colours flying, drums beating
and fifes playing.” The soldiers were poorly
paid, sometimes rude and even violent.
The government gave the company advantages
that allowed it to sell its tea cheaper than any
other tea in the colonies. (For example, the
company did not have to pay most of the taxes
required of other tea merchants.) This gave the
British company a great advantage over
colonial businesses.
A) The government closed Boston Harbor until
the ruined tea was paid for. This prevented the
arrival of food and other necessities that usually
came by ship into Boston.
E) Colonists were angry over crippling trade
and development policies.
B) The government prohibited town meetings.
B) Colonists were outraged that they were not
allowed to gather for meetings.
C) Bostonians were forced to shelter soldiers in
their own homes.
C) Colonists were angry and insulted by the
occupation of their homes by soldiers.
Colonists felt powerless because they had lost
control over their governors – if the colonists
were no longer in charge of paying their
governors, the governors had no reason to work
on the colonists’ behalf.
Tense relations between colonists and soldiers
erupted in the “Boston Massacre.”
Colonists were furious that colonial businesses
were hurt by unfair advantages given to British
businesses. Colonists protested with the
“Boston Tea Party.”
A) Other colonies sent food and clothing to
Boston to demonstrate their support.
Britain and Its Colonies: Problems, Solutions, Reactions
Ms. Ellison
Answer the questions below in language that makes sense to you. Use the stems provided.
1. What two actions did the British government take to reduce conflict between settlers and Native Americans.
The two actions taken by the British government to reduce conflict between settlers and Native Americans
were…
2. What five actions did the British government take to pay off the huge debt from the French and Indian War?
The five actions taken by the British government to pay off the huge debt from the French and Indian War
were…
3. What bothered colonists about the government’s effort to stop smuggling?
What bothered colonists about the government’s effort to stop smuggling was…
4. Why would colonists prefer a jury trial over a judge’s ruling?
Colonists would have preferred a jury trial over a judge’s ruling because…
5. Explain the statement, “taxation without representation is tyranny.”
“Taxation without representation is tyranny” means that …
6. Colonists were not angry about being taxed on all printed materials. Rather, they were angry about what?
Colonists were not angry over taxes on all printed materials. However, they were angry that …
7. What did the colonists do to show their anger over the Stamp Act?
To show their anger over the Stamp Act, colonists…
8. Why were colonists especially angry when items like lead were taxed?
Colonists were especially angry when items like lead were taxed because…
9. Why weren’t the colonists happy that they no longer had to pay the salaries of their governors?
Colonists were not happy that they no longer had to pay the salaries of their governors because…
10. What three trade policies hurt the colonies’ economy (ability to produce, sell, and buy)?
Three trade policies that hurt the colonies’ economy were….