Moral Justification
The founding fathers and the colonists in the era of independence had many reasons to morally justify proclaiming independence and waging war with Great Britain. In the early 1760s, colonists were very loyal to King George III. Ideas of independence would have been absurd and irrational to an average colonist. They thought of themselves as British citizens and abided by the same laws and principles of England. In addition, the colonists greatly aided England in the Seven Years’ War which started in 1756. Many colonials at this time had pride in belonging to the most powerful country in the world. For more than a century, England had a “hands-off” policy towards her colonies in America. However, the British parliament started in 1763 to impugn the colonies’ basic rights. Tensions escalated further between the colonies and England as time went on until the colonists declared their independence from the tyrannical British rule.
There are many examples of how the British encroached upon the rights and privileges of the colonies. It first started with the proclamation of 1763 which prohibited colonists from moving west of the Appalachian Mountains. This took away their natural rights of property and the pursuit of happiness. In 1764, parliament went on to pass the Sugar Act which raised duties on imported goods such as sugar, molasses, textiles, coffee, and more. This act violated precedence in that it raised revenue to support the British deficit from the French and Indian War, and other economic hardships in England. It also violated colonists’ rights in that it was passed without consent of the colonists. They were receiving taxation from Britain without any representation in Britain. The Sugar Act although an indirect tax, caught the attention of many colonists as unjust treatment from the crown. People such as Samuel Adams and James Otis started to write letters and articles informing people of how the crown was infringing upon colonial rights. Samuel Adams in retaliation of unjust taxes started the first boycott on British luxuries which was called a “non-importation agreement.” Boycotts, letters, articles, grassroots movements, town meetings, and much more helped unite the colonies against the British. England also passed the Currency Act in 1764 which prohibited colonists from printing currency. This hindered colonists’ rights in that they had to take out loans from the British and pay high interest rates. Currency was scarce and colonial businesses were harmed. Relentlessly in 1765, parliament passed the Stamp Act which required government-issued stamps on all legal documents, newspapers and printed materials in the colonies. This is the emergence of the first direct tax on the colonies. The Stamp Act greatly took away the rights of colonists. This Act was another more severe example of taxation without representation. Its purpose was to raise revenue in England. The Stamp Act ignited a large reaction from the colonies. Adams’ boycott idea spread to the other colonies and was widely supported in order to show England that the colonies would not stand for these wrong Acts. Opposition to English laws was wide-spread and greatly increased in the colonies during this time. The Sons of Liberty threatened and intimidated stamp officials which caused many stamp collectors to resign. In other cases, violence was used to encourage resignation. In effect, the Stamp Act proved useless in the colonies. Legislatures in the colonies met to use their right civil rights to repeal the taxes. However, British appointed governors shut down legislature attempts of getting rid of the Stamp Act. This violated civil rights. Consequently, in 1766 parliament passed the Declaratory Act which went into effect the day that the Stamp Act was repealed. The Declaratory Act stated that Britain has the power to regulate and tax the colonies in any way that it seems fit. This takes away their powers and freedom to consent to be governed. It also shows that England greatly supports taxation without colonial representation. Furthermore, in June 1767 parliament passed the Townshend Acts which imposed more duties and taxes on the colonists’ goods such as; paper, tea, glass, lead, and paints. The Townshend Acts also placed strict customs officials in the colonies to dampen smuggling efforts. This violated colonists’ rights in that they received more taxation without representation and revenue for Great Britain was being taken from the colonies. Also their freedom of trade was being infringed upon. The Townshend Acts caused reason for colonial assemblies to petition to the king and initiated more boycotting. Boycotts became very effective in pressuring English merchants to appeal to parliament on behalf of the colonies. The British economy greatly struggled because of the large scale boycotts initiated by the colonies. In July 1768, Governor Hutchinson dissolved the colonial court in Boston because the legislature would not accept the Townshend Acts. Hutchinson also arranged for two regiments of British soldiers to come to Boston to protect British officials. This took away the power and rights of the use of legislatures in the colonies, and it allowed the stationing of troops in a time of peace. The colonists’ natural rights continued to be violated by England. On March 5, 1770 the Boston Massacre occurred. A group of citizens were throwing snow balls at British soldiers, and the soldiers opened fire on the crowd killing three and wounding two. This is an example of Britain taking away the natural right of life from Boston citizens. The Boston massacre greatly angered colonists, especially colonists in Boston. In response to the Tea Act in 1773 which gave the East India Tea Company a monopoly on tea sales; we see the iconic Boston Tea Party. On December 16, 1773 Bostonian men dressed as Indians dumped 342 crates of tea into the Boston harbor, because the colonists were boycotting British tea. This enraged the British and the consequence was the Coercive Acts. The Coercive Acts completely shut down the Boston harbor, stripped Boston of any self governing, and provided that royal officials did not need to be tried in the colonies. In response to the Intolerable Acts, and in order to protect their lives, liberties, and property, the colonists’ delegates met as the first continental congress. They discussed the train of abuses that England was placing on the colonies and discussed plans to take action. This congress helped further unify the colonies against Great Britain. Later in 1775, the British attack in the first military battle of the revolutionary war. It was named “the shot heard around the world” or the battle of Lexington and Concord. The colonists tried to keep the peace with England through the olive branch petition claiming loyalty to King George III. However, it was denied by the king and war commenced between the colonies and the most powerful nation in the world. The Continental Congress met on July 4, 1776 and adopted the Declaration of Independence. This Heavenly inspired document made the colonies their own sovereign Nation. It lists the abuses from King George III and greatly details the reasons for justifying Independence.
The founding fathers and the colonists could morally justify independence for many reasons. First, the colonists had guaranteed rights of normal Englishmen. However, Britain on multiple occasions that are previously mentioned, breaks these rights and installs tyrannical government and law over the colonies. Secondly, British officials greatly exerted control over colonial affairs which takes away the colonists’ civil rights which makes colonial government powerless and their votes meaningless. The colonists did not give consent to be taxed by Great Britain. The colonies were constantly taxed without representation which takes away their political power. Without political power and natural rights, colonists could easily become enslaved by the British. This would mean to be deprived of every right, including life, liberty, and property. The founding fathers were justified because the British kept standing armies in times of peace, which attacked colonists multiple times. Colonists were denied trial by jury which is unjust and takes away the right of a fair trial. Colonists were forcefully impressed into the British army taking away their freedom. The British quartered troops in colonists’ homes depriving them of property rights. The British took away the charters of the colonies which deprives them of their governmental protection. In conclusion, the colonists are morally justified because England waged war on colonists, plundered their seas, destroyed their towns, cities, and the lives of many colonists. Colonists were unjustly stripped of their God given rights, as well as other crucial rights. The colonists were extremely justified for declaring independence from the tyrannical British.
