Independence of the 13 colonies

Currently the largest world power is the United States but until not long ago this country did not exist, being only a british colonies set. The independence of these colonies is a very important historical event, since the revolutionary values ​​that arose from it influenced subsequent liberal revolutions, such as the revolution French. For all this, in this lesson from a TEACHER we are going to talk about causes and consequences of the independence of the 13 colonies.

The 13 colonies was a british colonies set in the eastern part of what we now know as the United States.

All of them were founded between the 16th and 17th centuries, being united by having a very similar political and economic system, although they were independent of each other. That is why there was a spirit of companionship among all, that it would be very important when seeking independence against the United Kingdom.

These 13 colonies were as follows:

• Massachusetts
• New Hampshire
• Rhode Island
• Connecticut
• New York
• Pennsylvania
• New Jersey
• Delaware
• Maryland
• Virginia
• North Carolina
• South Carolina
• Georgia

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The origin of the causes that led these 13 colonies to seek independence can be found in the 7 years war. In this conflict the French and the English clashed due to a series of tensions that had occurred in Europe. But the extension of this war was so wide that it ended up reaching the American possessions, producing a war for the most prosperous territories of the American continent.

The victory went to the United Kingdom but the economic cost was enormous for the British country, reason why it entered an economic crisis. To solve it, the English taxes increased in the 13 colonies, especially in the north, which was not well seen by the population who had already helped the British economically throughout the conflict. Some of the new taxes were totally unfair to the settlers, such as those on sugar and tea, causing a real reaction throughout the area.

At this moment of great tension, the boston massacre, in which British troops stationed in Boston killed a small number of settlers. These deaths started the War of Independence of the United States, which would lead to the independence of the 13 colonies.

For all this we can talk about the following Causes of the independence of the Thirteen Colonies:

• The help of the 13 colonies during the 7 Years' War was not rewarded by the British.
• The new taxes created after the war.
• The remoteness of the 13 colonies from the United Kingdom had created great commercial autonomy, which was affected by post-war taxes.
• The thinking of illustrated, who spoke of equality and freedom, was very well regarded in the American colonies.
• The United Kingdom had many enemies in Europe, all of whom aided the 13 colonies in their independence.
• The Boston Massacre and other similar events increased the tension between the colonies and the United Kingdom.
• The relationship between the 13 colonies had created a spirit of camaraderie, contrary to the sense of remoteness they had with the English.

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To conclude this lesson on the causes and consequences of the independence of the 13 colonies, we must talk about how the end of the war affected the world at the time and in the years after.

In 1783 the War of Independence of the United States ended, being the 13 colonies the great winners of the conflict. The colonies became independent from the United Kingdom and changed their name to the United States, creating a new country with it.

All of this brought with it a great deal of consequences, among which we can find the following:

• The first Constitution in history, which will influence several subsequent independences such as the French one.
• Was the first liberal revolution that it worked, which opened the door to other colonies to try their independence.
• The bourgeoisie took the leadership position of society, being a political system very different from the traditional one.
• The United States stopped seeing its trade blocked by the United Kingdom, becoming an important business partner for the European states.
• Great Britain lost other territories in addition to the United States due to the agreements to end the war, thus ending the first British Empire.
• First decolonization of history.
• It was the first example of Montesquieu's division of powers.

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