Edmund Burke Summary

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Edmund Burke Background/ Short Bio: Edmund Burke was born in Dublin, Ireland in 1729 where he was educated at Trinity College. Edmund Burke served in the british parliament from 1765 to 1794 as a member of the liberal whig party. Through the period of his life burk Burke was also an author, political theorist, and philosopher. Burke died in 1797. Edmund Burke’s Views: Virtual Representation: Virtual representation was when the british appointed people to represent the colonies in british parliament for them. In general Edmund Burke viewed this form of representation as “in many cases even better than the actual” as long as those who represented the colonies “[had] some relation to the constituent” (A Letter To Sir Hercules Langrishe). And …show more content…

Burke, along with the american colonies, deeply resented these actions and thus went about dismantling them. Burke thought that instead of Britain forcing taxes on the colonies the colonies ought to be able to tax themselves. Burke said in british parliament in the speech on american taxation “if she has taxable matter in her, to tax herself” (Speech On American Taxation). Burke thought this because he had seen how the coercion that these taxes sought to bring about only resulted in contempt in the eyes of the colonists. The Boston Massacre: Edmund Burke was against the british actions on taxing the american colonies thus when britain took it one step further and killed five colonists in the boston massacre he was greatly outraged and contember the british actions. Burke saw this as even more justification for the colonies to separate themselves from the British Mainland. The Boston Tea Party: In the first place Edmund Burke was against the tea tax that preempted the boston tea party. He saw it as yet another unlawfully imposed tax by the british parliament in which the american colonies had no representation. Thus he supported the rebellious actions taken by the colonists to secure their rights and freedoms. Burke thought that because the government war unruly to them they could revolt against the suppressive British

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