Hi all, this is my first post and I apologize if this is the wrong board for the question.
From what I've read on this site, the American Revolution was a crisis war for the colonies, but not for England. My question is, why wasn't it? The War of the Spanish Succession ended in 1714, so England in 1775 corresponds to the US in 2006 -- just entering the crisis period. Have I misunderstood the theory, or is there another factor going on?
American Revolution
Re: American Revolution
From what I know of the War of Spanish Succession (which isn't alot), Great Britain was never in much danger during it. There was no threat of invasion and little chance the continent would be united under a hostile empire. They could send troops or stay out of it, as they chose. I would have to look at economic data, social trends, and new laws to determine where their Crisis was in time. I would look more toward Ireland and Scotland for sources of tension. The Act of Union in 1706 and official name change to "Great Britain" is a sure sign of early-High reorganization.
The American Colonies "reset" their timeline in the early 1600's as new colonists arrived. They would have to leave any idealism behind quickly and take on the attitude of Civics to survive. Their children would turn out like Artists or Prophets depending on how successful their colonies were. The American Crisis of the late 1600's is murky and unnamed. The 13 colonies were each separate from each other with different characters but each dependent on England. Hawthorne's poem "The Grey Champion" is about the Crisis attitude and the first attempt to assert colonial solidarity against the British during the Glorious Revolution. King Philip's War and the Salem Witch Trials are also signs of the Crisis climate.
But, a sure sign of what turning the British were in is demonstrated in the ferocity, unity, and competence the British fought the Napoleonic Wars as opposed to the American Revolution. There's a reason the center of London is called "Trafalgar Square." The Battle of Trafalgar was their Crisis Climax. They took the threat of naval invasion very seriously.
The War of Spanish Succession affected the Spanish (obviously), French, Germans, Dutch, and Austrians much more. The Napoleonic Wars were their next Crisis, the Revolutions of 1848 their Awakening Climax, and the Franco-Prussian War their next Crisis Climax. England benefited from their vast Empire and used it as a "pressure-relief valve" resulting in an extremely mild "Victorian Crisis" exported to Africa and India. At least, that's my theory.
The American Colonies "reset" their timeline in the early 1600's as new colonists arrived. They would have to leave any idealism behind quickly and take on the attitude of Civics to survive. Their children would turn out like Artists or Prophets depending on how successful their colonies were. The American Crisis of the late 1600's is murky and unnamed. The 13 colonies were each separate from each other with different characters but each dependent on England. Hawthorne's poem "The Grey Champion" is about the Crisis attitude and the first attempt to assert colonial solidarity against the British during the Glorious Revolution. King Philip's War and the Salem Witch Trials are also signs of the Crisis climate.
But, a sure sign of what turning the British were in is demonstrated in the ferocity, unity, and competence the British fought the Napoleonic Wars as opposed to the American Revolution. There's a reason the center of London is called "Trafalgar Square." The Battle of Trafalgar was their Crisis Climax. They took the threat of naval invasion very seriously.
The War of Spanish Succession affected the Spanish (obviously), French, Germans, Dutch, and Austrians much more. The Napoleonic Wars were their next Crisis, the Revolutions of 1848 their Awakening Climax, and the Franco-Prussian War their next Crisis Climax. England benefited from their vast Empire and used it as a "pressure-relief valve" resulting in an extremely mild "Victorian Crisis" exported to Africa and India. At least, that's my theory.
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