Muroski: Enduring Issues Essay: American Revolution

Since the beginning of time, every society has had to address enduring issues with different results. One enduring issue is conflict. Conflict is a serious disagreement or argument between individuals, groups of people, or nations. This issue was apparent during the time period of the American Revolution when British colonists rebelled against the mother country due to the many unfair taxes that were imposed on them. Like all enduring issues, this one has affected and has been affected by people, and continues to be a recurring problem.

Conflict was the most apparent enduring issue present in the events leading up to the American Revolution. After the French and Indian War, the British and the colonists were seething with anger towards each other. For example, any person authorized by a Writ of Assistance was allowed to enter colonists’ houses to search for smuggled goods; if the colonists refused, British officials were allowed to break open doors and chests (Doc. 2).

The colonists were shocked that people could enter their houses at the governor's consent and continuously opposed the Writs of Assistance because they believed the Writs contravened their rights. Another example of conflict between the British and the colonists was the various reactions of the colonists to the acts imposed on them by Parliament. Some acts, such as the Proclamation of 1763 were ignored by the colonists, and many acts, such as the Tea Act and Townshend Acts led to more protests and more conflict between the British and the colonists (Doc. 3). After the Tea Act, which allowed the British East India Company to sell tea directly to colonists, was passed, the colonists became even more outraged because it was only a trick to get to get them to pay the tea tax (Doc. 3). As a result of the Tea Act, the Sons of Liberty threw 342 chests of tea into the Boston Harbor during the Boston Tea Party, costing the British East India Company one million dollars. Furthermore, angry mobs of colonists often ganged up on British tax collectors, tarring and feathering them and making them comical figures in front of whole cities.

The hot tar was either applied to clothes to warn the tax collectors or the skin to severely punish and burn them (Doc. 4). By the time the stamp act was ready to take effect, there were no tax collectors in the colonies. Conflict was a prominent issue during the American Revolution time period. Conflict continues to be an enduring issue, but over time, the solutions have evolved. A good example of this is World War I. The conflict initiated in 1914 after a Serbian nationalist, Gavrilo Princip assassinated the Archduke of Austria-Hungary to end his reign over other countries; one month later, Austria-Hungary declared war on Serbia. Not long after the war started, Germany attacked Belgium and Russia but was well-countered by France and Russia. The strong defense meant prolonged conflict and more casualties.

Another major conflict that arose in World War I was the Russian Revolution. Because Russia used most of its supplies to fight the war, the remaining resources for the rest of the country were limited. This resulted in the overthrowing of the Russian leader and a pause in Russian fighting in the war. Additional conflict turned up between the U.S. and Germany. Although the United States was neutral for the majority of the war, German submarines sunk American warships, merchant ships, and passenger ships. After losing many ships, the U.S. declared war on Germany and added to the conflict.

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