Why the American Revolution Came to Be The American Revolution was a major declaration of freedom and individual rights that inspired similar revolutions world wide. It's causes were deep seated and gradually built to open defiance. Some of the long term causes are the Enlightenment changes in thinking, the theory of Mercantilism, the French and Indian War, and England's inability to enforce it's laws.The most important reason for the Revolution was America's change in thinking as a result of the Enlightenment. Political philosophers such as John Locke began saying for the first time since ancient Greece that the government was there to serve the people, not the people to serve the government. If the government failed to serve and protect the people, then the people must change the government. This new way of thinking made the colonists actively involved in their own political systems. They even set up representative assemblies to make their laws. Colonists began to think of it as their right to have a voice in matters from taxes to punishment of criminals. Meanwhile in Britain, citizens were not directly represented and had no hope of being so. The theory there was that each member of Parliament represented all of the British Empire, and not just the region he happened to be from. This division in public opinion led the colonists to be angered when Parliament refused direct representation for the colonies and also tried to implement stricter control on them. The colonists thought that with out direct representation, they should not be taxed or unjustly governed.Another cause for Revolution was the theory of Mercantilism. This was the economic system in which a Mother Country (Britain) starting colonies in other countries. These colonies provide the Mother Country with all the natural resources that it can not provide for itself, and would otherwise have to purchase from other European countries at a higher price. In turn, the Mother...
