Revolutionary War: The American Revolution

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On April 27, 1607, the first group of colonists arrived in North America. In 1775, 168 years after colonial life in America commenced, a war known as the American Revolution began. The reasons for war did not start overnight. They were built over a long period of time, 168 years to be exact. John Adams once stated “What do we mean by the Revolution? The war? That was no part of the Revolution; it was only an effect and consequence of it. The Revolution was in the minds of the people… years before a drop of blood was shed at Lexington.” In this statement, John Adams admits that people had been changing for quite some time before any violence occurred. The American Revolution truly started in 1607 with a colonial change in politics, economy, …show more content…
Great Britain was a monarchy, led by a king who ruled with the help of Parliament, but ultimately made all final decisions. The colonies had more of a democratic outlook on their politics. In 1619, the House of Burgesses was established in Virginia. This was an assembly of representatives for the colony, elected by those who lived in the colony. These representatives, known as burgesses, were able to pass laws, which were sent to England to be approved, to govern their colony as they saw fit (Roark 67). The House of Burgesses indicates a beginning of revolution because colonists are already starting to make their own rules and elect their own leaders. Another instance of democracy in the colonies occurred when the Pilgrims came to America. The Pilgrims came to America in 1620 in hopes to land near the new Virginia colony, but ended up docking much further North, in Massachusetts. There was no one to govern these new settlers, so they created a document called the Mayflower Compact, which essentially stated that the Pilgrims would lead themselves, create their own laws, and follow them accordingly (The Colonial Experience). This is a direct example of how the Revolution had already started, just in 1620. The Pilgrims, at this point, no longer had affiliations with England because they got lost, so they established their own democratic government policies. This indicates that they were breaking away and changing from England as soon as they