Primary Sources
The Declaration of Rights and Grievances (1765)The members of this congress, sincerely devoted, with the warmest sentiments of affection and duty to His Majesty's person and government, inviolably attached to the present happy establishment of the Protestant succession, and with minds deeply impressed by a sense of the present and impending misfortunes of the British colonies on this continent; having considered as maturely as time would permit, the circumstances of said colonies, esteem it our indispensable duty to make the following declarations, of our humble opinions, respecting the most essential rights and liberties of the colonists, and of the grievances under which they labor, by reason of several late acts of Parliament.
1st. That His Majesty's subjects in these colonies owe the same allegiance to the crown of Great Britain that is owing from his subjects born within the realm, and all due subordination to that august body, the Parliament of Great Britain. 2d. That His Majesty's liege subjects in these colonies are entitled to all the inherent rights and privileges of his natural born subjects within the kingdom of Great Britain. 3d. That it is inseparably essential to the freedom of a people, and the undoubted rights of Englishmen, that no taxes should be imposed on them, but with their own consent, given personally, or by their representatives. 4th. That the people of these colonies are not, and from their local circumstances cannot be, represented in the House of Commons in Great Britain. 5th. That the only representatives of the people of these colonies are persons chosen therein, by themselves; and that no taxes ever have been or can be constitutionally imposed on them but by their respective legislatures. 6th. That all supplies to the crown, being free gifts of the people, it is unreasonable and inconsistent with the principles and spirit of the British constitution for the people of Great Britain to grant to His Majesty the property of the colonists. 7th. That trial by jury is the inherent and invaluable right of every British subject in these colonies. 8th. That the late act of Parliament entitled, "An act for granting and applying certain stamp duties, and other duties in the British colonies and plantations in America, etc.," by imposing taxes on the inhabitants of these colonies, and the said act, and several other acts, by extending the jurisdiction of the courts of admiralty beyond its ancient limits, have a manifest tendency to subvert the rights and liberties of the colonists. 9th. That the duties imposed by several late acts of Parliament, from the peculiar circumstances of these colonies, will be extremely burthensome and grievous, and, from the scarcity of specie, the payment of them absolutely impracticable. 10th. That as the profits of the trade of these colonies ultimately center in Great Britain, to pay for the manufactures which they are obliged to take from thence, they eventually contribute very largely to all supplies granted there to the crown. 11th. That the restrictions imposed by several late acts of Parliament on the trade of these colonies will render them unable to purchase the manufactures of Great Britain. 12th. That the increase, prosperity, and happiness of these colonies depend on the full and free enjoyment of their rights and liberties, and an intercourse, with Great Britain, mutually affectionate and advantageous. 13th. That it is the right of the British subjects in these colonies to petition the king or either house of Parliament. Lastly, That it is the indispensable duty of these colonies to the best of sovereigns, to the mother-country, and to themselves, to endeavor, by a loyal and dutiful address to His Majesty, and humble application to both houses of Parliament, to procure the repeal of the act for granting and applying certain stamp duties, of all clauses of any other acts of Parliament whereby the jurisdiction of the admiralty is extended as aforesaid, and of the other late acts for the restriction of the American commerce. |
Americanus (1765) by Joseph GallowayAt a time when almost every American pen is employed in placing the transactions of the Parliament of our mother country is the most odious light, and in alienating the affections of a numerous and loyal people from the royal person of the best of sovereigns; permit, however unpopular the task, through the impartial channel of your paper, to point out the impudence and folly of such conduct, and to give a brief and true state of the facts included in the dispute between Great Britain and her colonies. From whence the cool and unprejudiced may form a right judgment of the motives of her late [recent] conduct, and of the impropriety and rashness of the method that is taken to prevail on her to alter or repeal her measures.
It is a truth too universally known that the people of England are involved in a debt under which they struggle with the utmost difficulty. From its enormity many judicious persons have predicted the ruin of the nation. Foreign powers rely on it as the only foundation of their hopes of reducing the British dominions. The protection of America has, in no small degree, contributed to this burden of the mother country. To the large sums of money that have been expended from the English treasury and the parental care of a British Parliament, we in a great measure owe our present freedom from Indian barbarities, popish cruelties and superstition. . . . . . . The preservation of America is of the utmost importance to Great Britain. A loss of it to the British crown would greatly diminish its strength, and the possession of it to any other nation would give an increase of wealth and power totally inconsistent with the safety of Britons. If then the power of protection is rightfully and solely vested in the crown; If America is of so much importance to her mother country; and if it is just and reasonable that she should contribute towards her own defense, so essential to her own and the happiness of Great Britain, will any be so absurd as to deny the reasonableness, the necessity, of the crown’s having some certainty that she will pay her proportion of aids when requisite and demanded. . . . . . . It is a proof of the greatest infatuation [delusion] to conceive that we can bully the British nation, now at peace with the whole world, and possessed of strength which the united powers of France and Spain could not subdue. Let us then convert our idle threats into dutiful remonstrances [petitions]. Reveal to them the poverty of our circumstances, and rectify the false representations which they have received of our wealth. Show them our incapacity to pay the impositions which they have laid upon us without more freedom of commerce and a circulating medium to carry on that commerce. Tell them that, should they make a thousand acts of Parliament to oblige us, we cannot give what we have not, and what they prevent us from procuring for want [need] of a due attention to our circumstances. And tell them our incapacity to pay the debt already due to the British merchants, our inability to take off [trade in] their future manufactures, and the impossibility of our contributing to the wealth, power and glory of our mother country, unless she will relax her present measures, which so essentially affect her own as well as our welfare. |
Primary Source Analysis
In comparing these two sources, the Declaration of Rights and Grievances and Americanus were both made in response to the Stamp Act in 1765. The Declaration of Rights and Grievances clearly shows an opposition to Stamp Act resembling that of the Patriots, while Americanus shows support for the Stamp Act, resembling the viewpoint of a loyalist.
These differences may have existed in that there were a majority of people that supported American independence from Britain, represented by the Patriots, and a minority that viewed the act of independence as treason and unjust for Britain, represented by the Loyalists. The main reason for the divide of loyalists and patriots was the Proclamation of 1763, in which ended salutary neglect by Britain in America, where the settlers were unable to move westward and grow as a country, as believed by supposed Patriots.
The Declaration of Rights and Grievances states many complaints against the enactment of the Stamp Act, in which the main reason that would continue to be used for independence from Britain was "That the only representatives of the people of these colonies are persons chosen therein, by themselves; and that no taxes ever have been or can be constitutionally imposed on them but by their respective legislatures", where the settlers in America believed they were taxed without representation from their country, thus leading to the boycott of British goods (Stamp Act Congress, 1845). This gives a perspective on the time period in that taxes were suddenly applied to America after the French-Indian War, thus signifying the end of salutary neglect of Britain in America, and that many responses to such taxation through the Stamp Act were negative, and would continue to be negative in succeeding acts of taxation by Britain, thus leading to the American Revolution to finally gain independence and remove the taxes imposed on them. The other complaints in The Declaration of Rights and Grievances relate to the effect the Stamp Act has on the rights of the individuals, property, and economy: "That the increase, prosperity, and happiness of these colonies depend on the full and free enjoyment of their rights and liberties, and an intercourse, with Great Britain, mutually affectionate and advantageous, "(Stamp Act Congress, 1845).
Contrasting to this idea, Galloway tries to justify the Stamp Act in which he says:
If America is of so much importance to her mother country; and if it is just and reasonable that she should contribute towards her own defense, so essential to her own and the happiness of Great Britain, will any be so absurd as to deny the reasonableness, the necessity, of the crown’s having some certainty that she will pay her proportion of aids when requisite and demanded. (Galloway 1765)
Galloway is essentially explaining that it is America's duty to supply Britain with money through taxes to pay war debts after the French-Indian War, as Britain supposedly protected America from the conflict. Another quotation that furthers emphasizes the importance of helping Britain is "To the large sums of money that have been expended from the English treasury and the parental care of a British Parliament, we in a great measure owe our present freedom from Indian barbarities, popish cruelties and superstition," (Galloway 1765). This quotation also explains the importance of helping Britain pay its debts through taxes, in which Britain supposedly saved America from the influence of the Native Americans. Americanus gives a perspective in that there was a minority that had supported Britain in applying the Stamp Act to America, as they feel that they should pay back for the protection that Britain has granted America, and possibly to avoid the act of treason. However, such Loyalists were often viewed as unpatriotic by the Patriots, and even considered enemies in the American Revolution as the Loyalists opposed the Patriots' resolve.
These differences may have existed in that there were a majority of people that supported American independence from Britain, represented by the Patriots, and a minority that viewed the act of independence as treason and unjust for Britain, represented by the Loyalists. The main reason for the divide of loyalists and patriots was the Proclamation of 1763, in which ended salutary neglect by Britain in America, where the settlers were unable to move westward and grow as a country, as believed by supposed Patriots.
The Declaration of Rights and Grievances states many complaints against the enactment of the Stamp Act, in which the main reason that would continue to be used for independence from Britain was "That the only representatives of the people of these colonies are persons chosen therein, by themselves; and that no taxes ever have been or can be constitutionally imposed on them but by their respective legislatures", where the settlers in America believed they were taxed without representation from their country, thus leading to the boycott of British goods (Stamp Act Congress, 1845). This gives a perspective on the time period in that taxes were suddenly applied to America after the French-Indian War, thus signifying the end of salutary neglect of Britain in America, and that many responses to such taxation through the Stamp Act were negative, and would continue to be negative in succeeding acts of taxation by Britain, thus leading to the American Revolution to finally gain independence and remove the taxes imposed on them. The other complaints in The Declaration of Rights and Grievances relate to the effect the Stamp Act has on the rights of the individuals, property, and economy: "That the increase, prosperity, and happiness of these colonies depend on the full and free enjoyment of their rights and liberties, and an intercourse, with Great Britain, mutually affectionate and advantageous, "(Stamp Act Congress, 1845).
Contrasting to this idea, Galloway tries to justify the Stamp Act in which he says:
If America is of so much importance to her mother country; and if it is just and reasonable that she should contribute towards her own defense, so essential to her own and the happiness of Great Britain, will any be so absurd as to deny the reasonableness, the necessity, of the crown’s having some certainty that she will pay her proportion of aids when requisite and demanded. (Galloway 1765)
Galloway is essentially explaining that it is America's duty to supply Britain with money through taxes to pay war debts after the French-Indian War, as Britain supposedly protected America from the conflict. Another quotation that furthers emphasizes the importance of helping Britain is "To the large sums of money that have been expended from the English treasury and the parental care of a British Parliament, we in a great measure owe our present freedom from Indian barbarities, popish cruelties and superstition," (Galloway 1765). This quotation also explains the importance of helping Britain pay its debts through taxes, in which Britain supposedly saved America from the influence of the Native Americans. Americanus gives a perspective in that there was a minority that had supported Britain in applying the Stamp Act to America, as they feel that they should pay back for the protection that Britain has granted America, and possibly to avoid the act of treason. However, such Loyalists were often viewed as unpatriotic by the Patriots, and even considered enemies in the American Revolution as the Loyalists opposed the Patriots' resolve.
Synthesis Article
The First National Bank of America proposed by Alexander Hamilton and chartered in 1791 was created as a means to strengthen national power and create a unified currency, in which still continues today. The effects of a unified currency were similar in that there is no longer separate state currencies that complicated domestic trade and that the currency was enforced by the federal government. However, the motivations for a unified currency were different in the past, than in the present, in which a unified currency was created to remedy the massive war reparations after the Revolutionary War, while a unified currency is still implemented to make domestic exchanges and trade simpler, in which multiple state currencies would complicate the national economy. Reactions to a unified currency were also different in that, in the past, there were mixed reactions, where some believed that it limited the power of the state governments, while in the present, unified currency is widely accepted to make life simpler and make it easier to trade with other countries. The similarity of effects of unified currency tell that state currencies were viewed as unnecessary and that federal government possessed the power to overrule state governments in decisions concerning the economy of the United States as a whole.
Continuities & Changes
There were some continuities from the colonial era, such as the slavery of Africans for labor and agriculture in the South, but America had largely changed in technology, work, and exchange from the previous era, rather than stay the same.
Such significant changes were that the North and South were clearly divided, instead of being somewhat divided in the previous era, between the basis of economy, of which were industry and agriculture respectively and that America's economy was no longer directly controlled by Britain, leading to a formation of a new economy under a centralized government, created by the Constitution, after the Articles of Confederation proved to be ineffective with its weak, uncentralized government.
The divisions of the North and South were more clearly divided in that adding to differing geographical conditions, the North had developed a merchant class, as ports were the center of trade, and the South had developed a landowner hierarchy, in which disputes over the American economy as a whole start to arise, including issues of tariffs and commercial vs agrarian. As mentioned, America's economy was no longer directly controlled by Britain, which allowed them to create a separate government, therefore a separate economy, and provided free reign for the American government to establish a different economy with its own laws.
Such significant changes were that the North and South were clearly divided, instead of being somewhat divided in the previous era, between the basis of economy, of which were industry and agriculture respectively and that America's economy was no longer directly controlled by Britain, leading to a formation of a new economy under a centralized government, created by the Constitution, after the Articles of Confederation proved to be ineffective with its weak, uncentralized government.
The divisions of the North and South were more clearly divided in that adding to differing geographical conditions, the North had developed a merchant class, as ports were the center of trade, and the South had developed a landowner hierarchy, in which disputes over the American economy as a whole start to arise, including issues of tariffs and commercial vs agrarian. As mentioned, America's economy was no longer directly controlled by Britain, which allowed them to create a separate government, therefore a separate economy, and provided free reign for the American government to establish a different economy with its own laws.
Image of Revolutionary/New Nation Era
This picture of the Boston Tea Party pertains to work, technology, and exchange in that America is developing a separate economy from Britain by boycotting and dumping the tea imported into America, shown by the picture above, resulting in the removal of Britain in direct economic affairs in America and different motivations for work within the United States, in which such motivations were to create goods for themselves, rather than for another country (Cooper 1789). This best encapsulates the time period as it represented one of the first steps America took in developing a separate identity, therefore a separate economy, from Great Britain, where they developed a newfound economy after the creation of a strong, centralized government from the Constitution after the Revolutionary War.
Sources Cited:
Boston Tea Party Painting:
Cooper, W. D. (1789). Boston Tea Party. Library of Congress. Retrieved from https://www.loc.gov/exhibits/british/brit-2.html#obj4
Americanus:
Galloway, J. (1765). Americanus [Collection] Retrieved by: http://americainclass.org/sources/makingrevolution/crisis/text3/stampactresponse1765.pdf
Picture of The Declaration of Rights and Grievances
Johnson, W. (1765). Declaration of Rights and Grievance. Retrieved From:
http://www.loc.gov/exhibits/creating-the-united-states/revolution-of-the-mind.html#obj12
The Declaration of Rights of the Stamp Act Congress Transcript:
Stamp Act Congress (1845). Journal of the first Congress of the American Colonies, in opposition to the tyrannical acts of the British Parliament. (pp. 27-29). Retrieved from http://www.constitution.org/bcp/dor_sac.htm
Cooper, W. D. (1789). Boston Tea Party. Library of Congress. Retrieved from https://www.loc.gov/exhibits/british/brit-2.html#obj4
Americanus:
Galloway, J. (1765). Americanus [Collection] Retrieved by: http://americainclass.org/sources/makingrevolution/crisis/text3/stampactresponse1765.pdf
Picture of The Declaration of Rights and Grievances
Johnson, W. (1765). Declaration of Rights and Grievance. Retrieved From:
http://www.loc.gov/exhibits/creating-the-united-states/revolution-of-the-mind.html#obj12
The Declaration of Rights of the Stamp Act Congress Transcript:
Stamp Act Congress (1845). Journal of the first Congress of the American Colonies, in opposition to the tyrannical acts of the British Parliament. (pp. 27-29). Retrieved from http://www.constitution.org/bcp/dor_sac.htm