The Primary Cause of the American Revolution Was Rooted in Economic Self-Interest

On April 19, 1775, the first shots, the “shots heard round the world,” were fired in

Lexington. These gunshots were the opening shots of the famous American Revolution. England

had been situated in the Americas for over a hundred and fifty years and had maintained a

dominant establishment. So why was there a revolution? There were multiple causes of the

American Revolution; however, a primary reason for the revolution was for economic self-

interest.

Leading up to the American Revolution, there were plenty of occasions were England

provoked the Colonies. The beginning of economic despair for the colonies, started with the

Navigation Acts. These acts restricted colonial trade and secured all profit mostly for England

itself. These acts alone were not the only reason the colonies broke away. Later came the Sugar

Acts, which placed a high tax on sugar, as well as protected British trade with the colonies by

putting a halt to smuggling sugar and molasses from other nations. Along with that, came the

Currency Act. This act required the halt of all circulating paper money and the issuing of new

money. One of the most upsetting acts to the colonies was the Stamp Act. This act put a tax on

all legal documents, and the colonists viewed this as a direct attempt to raise revenue without

colonial consent. The colonists pushed for independence, because England was not allowing

colonial economies to flourish. The colonists felt the acts to be “taxation without representation.”

The Prohibitory Act was appointed to make the colonies incapable of operating, by shutting

down all ports, and bringing