History 105-10: Analysis of the American and French Revolutions

This essay provides a comparative analysis of the American and French Revolutions, examining their respective causes, key events, and impacts. The American Revolution, spanning from 1775 to 1783, is depicted as a war driven by the British colonies' resistance to British restrictions and evolving into an international conflict involving nations like France, Spain, and the Netherlands. The analysis emphasizes the unified front against Britain due to shared interests. Conversely, the French Revolution (1789-1799) is attributed to social, political, and economic frustrations among the French populace, including issues of land ownership, political representation, and the country's financial strain following its involvement in the American Revolution. The essay underscores the importance of informed governance and citizen empowerment, while also acknowledging the limitations of the sources in providing specific regional details within France.

Running head: HISTORY
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HISTORY 2
The American Revolution
1. Summary
The American Revolution took place between 1775 and 17831. The war involved the Great
Britain’s colonies and Britain itself. The genesis of the American Revolution was the Britain’s
attempt to impose restrictions to its colonies in North America. The two groups had agreed on
the salutary neglect policy. However, the British took advantage of the scenario and started
exercising more powers against the colonies. When the war began in 1778, it was a civil war
taking place around the British Empire. Consequently, as the days gone by the war translated to
an international conflict. Many other nations joined the fight. For instance, France entered the
war in 1778, and Spain found its way to the battle in the following year2. There are other
countries such as the Netherlands, which supported the British colonies. Netherland too found
itself fighting against Britain. However, the forces against Britain were many which forced it to
surrender in Yorktown. Its colonies formed the United States of America.
2. Analysis
The American Revolution was a war of interest3. Several countries had united to fight a common
enemy, Britain. After Britain had colonized the countries in North America, it controlled
everything that those countries would do. However, the action did not go well with the nations.
1 Gould & Onuf. Empire and Nation: The American Revolution in the Atlantic World. JHU Press,
2015.
2 Middlekauff. Why men fought in the American revolution. In Revolutions in the Western
World 1775–1825(pp. 3). Routledge, 2017.
3 Gould & Onuf. Empire and Nation: The American Revolution in the Atlantic World. JHU Press,
2015.

HISTORY 3
They came to together to fight for their interest. Consequently, there other countries that were
also against Britain, they supported the colonies. The primary goal of this information is to
inform the historians of some of the factors that lead to the conflict of nations against nations.
Consequently, the weakness of these sources is that they are not giving specific names and the
number of colonies that ganged up against Britain.
The French Revolution
1. Summary
The French Revolution took place between 1789 and 17994. The war did not involve many
activities until 1789 when it reached its climax. Like any other revolution that took place in the
world, the causes of the French revolution were also general. However, some of the known
reasons for this revolution were the disagreement between educated locals and the Europeans.
Many people had acquired the necessary knowledge, business, and lands. Consequently, these
people did not officially own the things they had because of the lack of title deeds5. The business
people who owned property were fighting to get the full ownership of their plots, which would
involve getting title deeds. Another issue is poor political representation where few people
occupied the legislative seats for an extended period.
2. Analysis
The primary cause of the French revolution is because of the frustration of the citizens
politically, socially and economically. Many people did not feel that they are enjoying the fruits
in their own country. The idea is that citizens have the power to change their country. France’
4 Doyle. The Oxford history of the French revolution. Oxford University Press, 2018
5 Stammers. The Coming of the French Revolution. Macat Library, 2017.

HISTORY 4
action to engage in American Revolution left it in a challenging situation. It spent most of its
resources to finance the war6. The country’s leadership could not provide quality services to
people because of financial constraints. The intended audience for the information is to the
country’s leadership. The government should make wise decisions in governing the country.
However, the challenge of these pieces of information is that they are not clear on the most
affected regions in France.
6 Doyle. The Oxford history of the French revolution. Oxford University Press, 2018.

HISTORY 5
References
1. Doyle. The Oxford history of the French revolution. Oxford University Press, 2018.
2. Gould & Onuf. Empire and Nation: The American Revolution in the Atlantic World. JHU
Press, 2015.
3. Middlekauff. Why men fought in the American revolution. In Revolutions in the Western
World 1775–1825. Routledge, 2017.
4. Stammers. The Coming of the French Revolution. Macat Library, 2017.