The 13 Colonies: Necessary Or Justified?

“When the people fear their government, there is tyranny; when the government fears the people, there is liberty.” said Thomas Jefferson, the principal author of the Declaration of Independence and later third president of the United States. The thirteen colonies were under the rule by the mother country, Great Britain, until on July 4th, 1776, 56 people with an age range of 26 - 70 years of age. The colonists of the thirteen colonies should have declared their independence because they were taxed without representation, their rights were violated, and they were not allowed to settle in land past the Appalachian Mountains.. Although taxes help the British government, they taxed the colonists without representation and consent. First off, acts like the stamp act taxed colonists without their consent. This is reason why colonists boycotted items that were taxed like newspapers or glass. Secondly, “‘No parts of [England’s colonies] … can be taxed without their consent … every part has a right to be represented.’”. This quote from The Rights of the British Colonies means that whoever is being taxed should be represented in the decision. Taxation without representation is wrong. …show more content…
To start off, acts as the Coercive Acts, also known as the Intolerable Acts to colonists, denied the colonists’ right to hold town meetings. The list goes on. Then, some would ask the question when will we reach their breaking point. “Will it be when we are totally disarmed and when a British guard shall be stationed in every house?”. This quote by Patrick Henry, Virginia lawyer and former Governor of Virginia, speaks about the Intolerable Acts that allowed things like forcing colonists to house British soldiers in their house. Forcing people to house others and banning town meetings are