Problems between the colonists and Britain began in 1763. The Americans had fought for the British against France in the French and Indian War. After it spread to Europe, it became known as the Seven Years War.
Britain won the war. France had to give up Canada and all claims to the Ohio and Mississippi Valleys. But the war left Britain with huge debts. Britain wanted the American colonists to help pay for the war. It also wanted them to pay for the British soldiers it kept in the colonies to protect them. So Britain decided to tax the colonists. Although they had the lowest taxes in the British Empire, many colonists felt the British government had no right to tax them. That’s because the colonies weren’t represented in the British Parliament.
