Essential+Question+3-French+and+Indian+War-E.G.

The Seven Year's War lasted from 1756-1763 in the American colonies, causing England's national debt to skyrocket. During the long and exhausting days of war, it was the upturned economical status that ultimately drove a wedge between the colonists and England. King George III was devoted to taxing the colonists to recover from the enormous debts of war. The French and Indian War left a lasting impression that smothered the king by piling debts on his shoulders and caused the disgusted colonists to feel distant and averse to British rule.

The first thing on the colonist's minds when the Seven Year's War was the land of the Ohio River Valley. This disputed land was the reason for the colonists to go to war. When the war came to an end, many colonists were excited to settle across the Appalacians to conquer this new land and expand the way Englishmen are supposed to. This hope was put off by Pontiac's Rebellion for the next eighteen monthes. After this point, King George III placed into effect the Proclamation of 1763 which forbid any colonist from settling west of the Appalacians. The colonists were naturally outraged after spending seven years fighting and dying for this land, just to have the king take it away from them.

The debts of war also pressured the king to enrage the colonists even more with taxes. It made perfect sense to the king that since the English citizens had paid taxes during the time of war, the colonists should pay taxes for after-war debts. The king did this easily with various taxes on sugar and stamps. He made the colonists house soldiers instead of paying for the soldiers room and board out of pocket. George controlled the colonists trade so they could only trade with England. He also went as far as installing the Writs of Assistance which made it legal for British Officers to search anything they liked without warning. This made sure the Colonists were not smuggling in goods purchased from France or Spain. The colonists were infuriated by this. They were not getting equal treatment as Englishmen, nor were they allowed to run independently as an English colony away from the Homeland. Instead of uniting against a common enemy, the two groups of people were drawn apart, each leaving each other furious and estranged.