Portfolio: Essay 2

Patriots vs. Loyalists: North Carolina

My life is being controlled everyday by people that I’ve never even met. I used to have rights. I used to have freedom. I don’t have any of that anymore. This is my life in an American colony, a life with no power or independence. American colonists are being controlled by England. Although most of the royal government has never been to any of the colonies, they act like they know everything that is going on in North Carolina when they don’t. They don’t know the struggles that we have day after day, then they decide to add even more problems to the ones we already have. Our colony, along with all the other colonies, has repeatedly sent petitions to the King of England asking him to change what he has done. We have sent him requests asking him to lower or get rid of taxes, to change the laws he has imposed upon us, and to get rid of the soldiers he has placed in our colony. All of our petitions have been ignored by him and by Parliament. What gives Parliament the right to take advantage of us and take away everything that we have built up for ourselves? They have no right at all. We need to stop them before they destroy us. England's actions, specifically military presence, taxes, and laws, have forced my fellow patriots and I in North Carolina to work against them.

Parliament angered many people in North Carolina when they decided to place soldiers of the British Army here without our consent. Parliament claimed it was for our protection and to keep the peace, but there are no problems here that haven’t always been there. The British Army’s presence is doing more harm then good because they aren’t protecting us from anything. North Carolina colonists are even being forced to house the soldiers and provide them with food. The only reason they are here is so that they can see what kinds of anti-England, or patriot, activity is going on so that they can report back to the King of England. The army killed many of us when we were trying to protect ourselves from attacks against them. “George Washington said, ‘To be prepared for war is one of the most effectual means of preserving peace’” (Walter 1). We know that their presence here is only the first step, something bigger and more deadly is coming. We need to ready ourselves now so that we will be ready for war when the time comes. North Carolina representatives have constantly written to the King and to Parliament asking them to remove the soldiers from our colony as well as the other nuisances they’ve created for us, such as the taxes he has imposed upon us. Our petitions to him have all gone unanswered. The King has never, nor I think will ever, listen to us. All the other colonies have tried seeking reason within the King as well, with the same result. Parliament refuses to lower taxes for us.

British Parliament has created unfair taxes for the colonies, which now restrict what we can and cannot do. They are taxing North Carolinian colonists for the silliest things such as tea, stamps, and products that are coming to us from other countries. In 1764, Parliament created a new tax called the Sugar Act. This raised taxes on all goods being imported to North Carolina, such as molasses and sugar. Not only did Parliament raise taxes, they created new ones. The Stamp Act was created by Parliament in 1765. This act placed a tax on all British paper goods coming here. All the taxes we are paying are going directly back to England to pay off the debt they accumulated during the French and Indian War. “North Carolina taxes…included dues to the Crown and taxes levied by Parliament” (Kay, Marvin). All of this has created much animosity in patriots living in the colonies. The tension between North Carolina and England is growing more everyday. We have always believed, and will always believe, that we should not be taxed without are consent. They are taking away our independence and everything we stand for. Not only did the Parliament produce new taxes, they have also taken away some of our rights and laws.

-----England has gone power hungry over how controlling they have become of North Carolinian colonists by creating outrageous laws. These laws that Parliament created took away some of our most essential rights. They were created so that England would have even more dominance over us. “Statues have been passed for extending the jurisdiction of courts of admiralty and vice-admiralty beyond their ancient limits” (Declaration of the Causes and Necessities of Taking Up Arms). Parliament thinks that just because we don’t live on the same land as British citizens living in England, we don’t deserve the same rights. One right that has been taken away from us is the right to trial by jury. If someone in North Carolina were to be charged with a crime, they would be sent to England to stand trial. Before England made this law, the accused would be tried by a jury of their peers in their own colony not complete strangers in England. Parliament is interfering in our government process. They have put in officials that they want who they know will never favor us and will always go with what England would want. These favored officials ruin our right to a fair and unbiased trial. “The wary, uneasy equilibrium within society degenerated into violent disorder…destroyed lower-class autonomy and became too harsh, excessively vindictive, or patently unjust” (Crow, Escott 375). The King has also allowed criminals to walk free without punishment because he put them in North Carolina. This has put all of us in danger and annihilates our right to safety and security. England doesn’t treat us like subjects; they treat us like objects and slaves. This directly violates our right to freedom as British citizens. There is too much corruption within our government system. We are never treated fairly because everything is always favoring the British Parliament. How can we continue to serve England when we know we are nothing more than slaves for them?

It is England’s fault that so many people within the North Carolina colony have turned against them. For years, they have done nothing that would benefit us. All they’ve done is create laws and taxes without our consent. They have taken away our rights and our liberties. Our growing resentment of England’s treatment of us could ultimately only have one end result: war. "The American Revolution was our first civil war, pitting neighbors against neighbors and splitting families apart" (Raphael). The colonies have been split into two categories, patriot and loyalist. Loyalists are the people who are against us, they are against everything that we as patriots stand for and love everything that Britain stands for. In North Carolina, who you support usually depends on where you live. The area in North Carolina that I’m living in is very patriotic, as is most of the colony. A large area of the colony, however, is neither patriot nor loyalist. Both sides are heavily contesting this neutral area because we both want to be the more predominant group in North Carolina. There is also a small portion of the colony that is loyalist, however, living in the lands surrounding this area are patriots. North Carolina will never back down against England. We know that we do not deserve this treatment and would be better off ruling ourselves. Even if we lose, the fight against England will never die down. It will continue until we get what we want. As Patrick Henry says, “Give me liberty or give me death!” (Henry 1). In other words, we would rather die than continue living the way we are.


Works Cited:

1. Crow, Jeffrey J., Escott, Paul J. "The Social Order and Violent Disorder: An Analysis of North Carolina in the Revolution and the Civil War." The Journal of Southern History. Vol 52. Issue 3. August 1986. pg 375. 13 Nov 2008 <>.

2. "Declaration of Independence.” The Avalon Project Documents in Law, History and Diplomacy. Lillian Goldman Law Library. July 4, 1776. 13 Nov 2008 <>.

3. "Declaration of the Causes and Necessities of Taking Up Arms." The Avalon Project Documents in Law, History and Diplomacy. Lillian Goldman Law Library. 15 Nov 2008 <>.

4. Henry, Patrick. "Give Me Liberty or Give Me Death." Lillian Goldman Law Library March 23, 1775 15 Nov 2008.

5. Kay, Michael, L., Marvin. "The Payment of Provincial and Local Taxes in North Carolina, 1748-1771." The William and Mary Quarterly, Third Series Vol 26. Issue 2. April 1969. pg 218. 16 Nov 2008 <>.

6. Raphael, Ray. A People's History of the American Revolution. First Edition. New York: Harper Perennial, 2002.

7. Walter Jr., Alonzo J. "Preparing for a Generation of Peace." December 31, 2003. 13 Nov 2008 <>.
8. "Declaration and Resolves of the First Continental Congress." The Avalon Project
Documents in Law, History and Diplomacy. Lillian Goldman Law Library. October 14, 1774. 21 Nov 2008 <>.