By Alex Speck
The Shays' Rebellion, Boston Tea Party, The American Revolution.
America is a country of rebels. Whether they won or not, the people know what they want, and are usually right about parts of their cause. Their are many instances in history where the large group of people feel they are treated unfairly and can not do anything about it due to the top leaders or powers controlling too much. The only way to get what they want is to fight physically, usually with weapons.In the case of Shays' Rebellion the people thought that taxes were way too high. The rebels stormed the Springfield Armory and attempted to steal weapons. This led to the change of a stronger federal government with the implication of the US Constitution and removing the Articles of Federation.
"The tree of liberty must be refreshed from time to time with the blood of patriots and tyrants. It is its natural manure." - Thomas Jefferson
The Boston Tea Party occurred before the Revolutionary War of course being one of the movements to spark the entire action. Stealing tea from the East India Company was an attic to the British Government by the Sons of Liberty to show that the people were unhappy, not that they were just angry vandalists. The American Revolution is the greatest story of rebels in world history. It sparked countless revolutions across the world against tyrants and kings, from right after like the French, to much later like the Russian.
But how do these rebellions start? How can someone promote an idea as powerful as seceding from a nation? Going up against an entire country that has such power can be very intimidating, and these rebels know they have a strong chance of dying or being jailed. During the Continental Congress meetings, the men were worried about how bad it could turn out forming a Continental Army, but because their were many already thinking it, when it came time for the vote it was passed. It turns out that large masses of people talk and once enough people agree that something is wrong it is much easier to gather people for a cause. Many people agreed the English taxing the colonists without giving them a vote was wrong, and felt they needed a change. This is the power of majority influence. Defiance is a major key to rebellions, and it is clear that these rebels had defiance, standing up to the largest empire at the current time. Citations
https://fineartamerica.com/featured/signing-the-declaration-of-independence-john-trumbull.html
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Continental_Army
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shays%27_Rebellion
Good article, I have to wonder if this form of rebellion would be possible today if the same things were happening. Or if it would have the same impact. Honestly it's giving me ideas on where to go with my post.
ReplyDeleteIn certain countries there are problems of unequal rights and dangers to life. These countries are very scrambled compared to colonial US. The dictators in certain areas have probably learned from Britain's mistakes just as the people have learned from the colonist's mistakes. The fights are occurring, but only time will tell.
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ReplyDeleteCan you please elaborate?
DeleteIt is interesting to look at rebellions and compare those of the past that resulted in the birth of the United States, and revolutions in various other countries to what is happening today. We see various groups rising up for various reasons, such as Black Lives Matter, which is exerting a peaceful protest. At the same time, we see other groups such as Antifa being a more aggressive with their opposition. It is intriguing how some groups view violence as the only answer to rebel. Obviously with the colonists, it was not going to happen peacefully and is understandable.
ReplyDeleteHistory seems to repeat itself, so there is no expectation that there are protests even in the United States. We have our inequities here, but do have our equalities, which is something the colonists did not have. I think the reason Black Lives Matter does not use violence is because they simply have the equality, but are fighting for a change that will take much longer than a few laws changed.
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