School projects

What if the American Revolution didn't happen? - Thought experiment

The Revolutionary War, which occurred during the late 1700s, is about the colonies in North America fighting for freedom from Great Britain, but what if the American Revolution didn't occur? What if there was no United States? In this essay (thought experiment), I will analyze the possible outcomes if the American Revolution didn't happen at the time that it did, and the difference it would make in the history of America.

First and foremost, I believe that if the revolution had not occurred, the United States' economic and industrial dominance would have been weakened to a lesser amount, because early motivations for economic independence - such as the War of 1812 - would have been weakened during the industrial revolution. Slavery would have been abolished sooner if other colonies had expressed support for the idea, deterring the South from initiating an armed rebellion. If there were no revolt and subsequent conflicts with the French and Spanish for supremacy and other reasons, the declaration line would be removed, as the threat of these other powers would diminish and the King might allow more expansion.

However from a different perspective, and assuming the reason the revolution never happened is that the colonists' grievances were addressed, I think we'd see a much larger Canada today, still associated with Britain but made independent later, more peacefully. Maybe there would also be a much larger Mexico if Britain continued to prevent colonial expansion.

What if the British just gave the colonists representation to go with their taxation? In my opinion, the American Revolution would probably certainly have occurred. The revolt was sparked by more than just a levy on tea. In 1763, for example, the British government barred settlers from going west of the Appalachians, as well as from acquiring land or forming arrangements with Native Americans; only the British were authorized to do so. The British had neglected the colonies for many years, treating them as if they were, well, colonies. Tea wasn't the only product in the United States that was subjected to excessive and arbitrary taxes, but it was the tipping point. You could argue that if Britain had given the colonies representation, they would have received better treatment in general and there would have been less yearning for independence, resulting in no revolution. A merciful empire, on the other hand, might not have been very good at building an empire in the first place, so its hold on the colonies would have been much weaker, and independence would have come relatively quickly and peacefully.

So to summarize, I think that the American Revolution is unavoidable. If the American Revolution of 1776 had failed, there would probably have been another revolution in North America some decades later. Obvious at it is, the outcome would be much, much different, as there would be no Thomas Jefferson, or Alexander Hamilton, or George Washington and all the key players, but regardless, with the way Britain was treating the colonies and other revolutions that might have happened that could inspire the colonists, the American Revolution is inevitable.

Notes: ALEXANDER HAMILTON, MY NAME IS ALEXANDER HAMILTON! AND THERE'S A MILLION THINGS I HAVEN'T DONE BUT JUST YOU WAITTTT JUST YOU WAITTTTTTT!!