The American and French Revolutions were deeply motivated by economics. Before the Revolution, the British colonies in America were thriving. Colonists paid few taxes and could participate in national economic activities, as long as they adhered to the Navigation Act, an act that required “that all commerce within the empire be conducted on ships built, owned, and largely operated by citizens British. Certain listed goods, exported or imported from the colonies, were to be shipped through England regardless of the final port of destination.” (Baack) His motherland, however, was not similar. England's debt had nearly doubled due to the victory over France during the 7 Years' War and was frantically looking for a way out. Unfortunately for the colonists, Mother had decided to put the responsibility on them to fix the problem since British citizens already paid significantly higher taxes. Some taxes established for the British colonies included the Stamp, Sugar and Tea Act. All taxes were repealed following the boycott in most colonies, with the exception of the tax on tea. In response, the Patriots organized the Boston Tea Party, in which they would throw crates full of tea overboard at Griffin's Wharf. The American Revolution had begun. Likewise, aid to the patriots in the American Revolution had also skyrocketed France's debt to 50% in 1788. Inflation quickly hit the working class and the price of bread, a staple in the common kitchen , it had become ridiculous. Rather than cease frivolous spending at the Palace of Versailles, the king's resolution was to tax the nobility, who in turn argued, like the American colonists, that they could not be taxed without representation. (French finance... halfway through..., had a solution to the problems at hand. Bibliography Baack, Ben. "The Economics of the American Revolutionary War." EH.net. Ed. Robert Whaples Np, February 1, 2010. Web. March 30, 2011. Belloc, The French Revolution: Arden Library, 1979. March 30, 2011. SparkNotes 2011. .Tignor, Robert, Jeremy Adelman, Stephen Aron, Stephen Kotkin, Suzanne Marchand, Gyan Prakash, and Michael Tsin Worlds Together Worlds Apart 2. New York, London: WW Norton & Company,. 646-47 "Inflation and the French Revolution: The Story of a Monetary Catastrophe".. 2011. .