Patriotism and Popery: The Quebec Act as a Significant Cause of the American War for Independence

Identifier

112

Author

Allison Maria Heirigs

Date

2018

Document Type

Honors Thesis

Degree Name

Bachelor of Arts

Major

History

Committee Member

Christine Eisel

Committee Member

Scott Marler

Abstract

Anti-Catholic fear and bias was woven into the life of the British North American colonies. It was present in their laws, language, historical consciousness, and social customs. Colonists viewed themselves as fighting a spiritual battle for the salvation of their souls, believing Catholicism encouraged slavery both to tyranny and to Satan. When the British Parliament passed the Quebec Act in 1777, allowing for the continued practice of Catholicism in the newly acquired colony of Quebec, the British North American colonists felt betrayed. They accused Parliament of being in league with the devil and the King of breaking his coronation oath. They believed the act to be part of a larger ministerial plot to enslave them. Long-held anti-Catholic fears and bias were reinvigorated by the Quebec Act of 1774 and contributed to the growth of antagonism towards Great Britain, ultimately culminating the full-scale rebellion of the North American British colonies.

Comments

Undergraduate Honor's Thesis

Library Comment

Honors thesis originally submitted to the Local University of Memphis Honor’s Thesis Repository.

Recommended Citation

Heirigs, Allison Maria, "Patriotism and Popery: The Quebec Act as a Significant Cause of the American War for Independence" (2018). Honors Theses. 68.
https://digitalcommons.memphis.edu/honors_theses/68