Question

Mercantilist policies contributed to the desire of the American colonies to become independent from Britain for all of the following reasons EXCEPT

• A. they restricted the colonies' trade with French, Dutch, and Spanish colonies in America.
• B. they restricted colonial production.
• C. they involved the exercise of British authority over the colonies.
• D. they restricted trade among the different British colonies in America.
• E. they required that colonial goods go through British ports on their way to other countries.

Answer 1

The correct option is D they restricted trade among the different British colonies in America.

The colonies, under the mercantilist policies of Britain, could freely trade with each other, although not with the colonies of other European powers (A). Under the mercantilist economic system, colonies exist for the good of the mother country. To prevent competition with the British, colonial production (B) was restricted by the Iron Act and the Hat Act, and colonial shipping and commerce were restricted by requiring colonial goods to go through British ports (E). These restrictions led to resentment of British authority (C) and contributed to the American colonists' desire for independence.