Why Did Thomas Paine Question The British Authority To Rule In Common Sense?
| The Short & Quick Answer:
1. Reason One: The English authority had been exploiting the 13 colonies so much in order to enrich Great Britain. 2. Reason Two: For a long time, the British Parliament had been imposing such bad laws on the 13 colonies, completely against the colonists’ interests. Examples, Sugar Act (1774), Stamp Act (1765), Townshend Acts (1767), Tea Act (1773), Intolerable Acts (1774), etc. 3. Reason Three: The British authority arrogated the colonies’ local leader’s power over operating their local administration. For example, in 1774, through the Massachusetts Government Act, they did something similar to this. 4. Reason Four: Even the British authority created such rules, which provoked their royal officials to commit crimes against colonists. It threatened them with losing their life, liberty, and ways to pursue happiness. One of the main laws was the Administration of Justice Act. 5. Reason Five: King George became arrogant because he demanded the people of Boston say sorry to him for the Boston Tea Party; even after knowing that not all the colonists were involved in that incident. 6. Reason Six: Again, King George III and the Parliament became so arrogant over their capability that they even refused to accept peace negotiation proposals sent by the Second Continental Congress. For example, the rejection of the Olive Branch Petition of 1775. Seeing these mistakes from the British side, Thomas Paine realized that soon the Empire of Great Britain would lose all the 13 colonies. That’s why he suggested them to rule the colonies with common sense rather than arrogance. Read the following to understand better. |
So, why did Thomas Paine question the British authority to rule the 13 colonies using common sense?
Do you have the answer to this interesting question?
Okay, if you haven’t, I will answer this question.
Description – Thomas Paine’s Question Over Common Sense
In simple words, Thomas Paine wanted to mean that the British Parliament and King George III had been ruling the 13 colonies of the North American continent without paying any proper attention to the colonists’ interests.
Similarly, he believed, Great Britain doesn’t know nor try to understand the American colonists’ necessities.
According to Thomas Paine, whatever rules and regulations the British authorities created and applied to the colonies, they were only for the benefit of the British Empire, not for the people of those 13 colonies.
He blamed King George III and the Parliament for considering the 13 colonies only as a source of wealth & money, not as an eternal part of England.
And therefore, the situation arrived that the people here were getting highly rebellious against British authority.
Probably, he wanted to mean, the happenings were all for authority’s lack of proper common sense in their ruling system.
Because of this reason, Paine also started supporting the independence of the 13 Colonies from their mother country, even after he was an English man.
What Was The Common Sense of Thomas Paine?
Common Sense was a pamphlet, which was published by Paine anonymously on January 10th, the year 1776.
Although Thomas Paine himself was a British citizen, he highly supported the revolutionary war for America’s independence.
Via the Common Sense pamphlet, he encouraged American colonists to get freedom from Great Britain.
There he explained the natural rights of human beings, which included life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.
Even going one step further, he said that the war against autocratic British rule means the war with the support of God.
For these reasons, still today, Paine is remembered as one of the founding fathers of the United States of America.
Let me tell you another interesting fact – Common Sense is one of the highest-selling books (or 47-page pamphlet) in American history.
Facts About Common Sense Pamphlet
1. Common Sense pamphlet is one of the highest-selling books in the United States history that is still in great demand.
In the United States, it is still printed in high quantities.
2. Thomas Paine’s Common Sense Pamphlet was highly influenced by the ideas of the Enlightenment period.
Also, this is the main reason why he supported the independence of the 13 colonies, even after he was born in England.
3. Paine’s pamphlet, Common Sense, sold over 500,000 within a short time after it was published.
His writing greatly influenced American colonists to join the Revolutionary War.
