Why did the Patriots want independence?
People in the Americas felt they weren't being treated fairly by the British. They were being taxed without any say or representation in the British government. Soon cries for "liberty" were being heard throughout the colonies. The patriots wanted freedom from British rule.
The Patriots were those colonials who were growing weary of British rules and policies, especially when they had no say in how these laws would be made or implemented. They strived for freedom from a tyrannical royal government, often led by Royal Governors who suppressed any utterance of rebellion.
Patriots supported the cause of liberty and independence for the colonies, which meant active support of the war effort. Most Patriots had religious commitments that prevented them from joining a side, even though it made them unpopular.
More specifically, patriots fought the revolution in order to: 1) become an independent nation; 2) create a new system of self-governance; 3) claim equal rights for all citizens and establish the rule of law required for that to be meaningful; 4) gain independent membership in the European state system; and 5) rid …
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- In the 1600s and 1700s, Europeans came to North America looking for religious freedom, economic opportunities, and political liberty.
- Massachusetts.
- Many colonists wanted to separate from Great Britain and form a new country.
- George Washington was born in Virginia on February 22, 1732.