Taxes and Tension [The Americans]
Great Britain had borrowed so much money during the French and Indian War [Britain fought France for control of the Ohio River Valley and Canada]that it nearly doubled its national debt. King George III,who had succeeded hisgrandfather in 1760, hoped to lower that debt. To do so, in 1763 the king chosea financial expert, George Grenville, to serve as prime minister.By the time Grenville took over, tensions betweenBritain and one colony, Massachusetts, were on the rise.
During the French and Indian War, the British had crackeddown on colonial smuggling to ensure that merchants werenot doing business in any French-held territories. In 1761,the royal governor of Massachusetts authorized the use of thewrits of assistance, a general search warrant that allowedBritish customs officials to search any colonial ship or buildingthey believed to be holding smuggled goods. Becausemany merchants worked out of their residences, the writsenabled British officials to enter and search colonial homeswhether there was evidence of smuggling or not. The merchantsof Boston were outraged.
In 1764 Grenville also prompted Parliament toenact a law known as the Sugar Act.
The Sugar Actdid three things. It halved the duty onforeign-made molasses in the hopes that colonists would paya lower tax rather than risk arrest by smuggling. It placedduties on certain imports that had not been taxed before. Most important, it provided that colonists accused of violatingthe act would be tried in a vice-admiralty court ratherthan a colonial court. There, each case would be decided by asingle judge rather than by a jury of sympathetic colonists.
Merchants and traders claimed that Parliament had no right to tax the colonistsbecause the colonists had not elected representatives to thebody. The new regulations, however, had little effect oncolonists besides merchants and traders.
In March 1765 Parliament passed the Stamp Act. This actimposed a tax on documents and printed items such as wills, newspapers, and playingcards. A stamp would be placed on the items to prove that the tax had beenpaid. It was the first tax that affected colonists directly because it was levied ongoods and services.
In May of 1765, the colonists united to defy the law. Boston shopkeepers, artisans,and laborers organized a secret resistance group called the Sons of Liberty toprotest the law. Meanwhile, the colonial assemblies declared that Parliament lackedthe power to impose taxes on the colonies because the colonists were not representedin Parliament. In October 1765, merchants in New York, Boston, andPhiladelphia agreed to a boycott of British goods until the Stamp Act was repealed. The widespread boycott worked, and in March 1766 Parliament repealed the law.
But in 1767, Parliament passed theTownshend Acts, named after Charles Townshend, the leading government minister. The Townshend Acts taxed goods that were imported into the colony fromBritain, such as lead, glass, paint, and paper. The Acts also imposed a tax on tea, themost popular drink in the colonies. Led by men such as Samuel Adams, one ofthe founders of the Sons of Liberty, the colonists again boycotted British goods.
On March 5, 1770, a mob gathered in frontof the Boston Customs House and taunted the British soldiers standing guardthere. Shots were fired and five colonists, includingCrispus Attucks, were killedor mortally wounded. Colonial leaders quickly labeled the confrontation theBoston Massacre.
Questions:
1- Why did the French and Indian War nearly double Britain’s national debt?
2- What did King George III hope to do?
3- Who was George Grenville?
4- Why had the British cracked down on colonial smuggling (moving goods illegally out of the colonies) during the French and Indian War?
5- Define “writs of assistance”.
6- Why did the merchants of Boston hate writs of assistance?
7- List three facts about the Sugar Act.
8- Why did colonial merchants and traders claim that Parliament had no right to tax the colonists?
9- What was the Stamp Act?
10- How did the Stamp Act differ from other Acts that involved taxation?
11- What was a goal of the Sons of Liberty?
12- What did colonial assemblies declare about Parliament?
13- Why did merchants in New York, Boston and Philadelphia agree to boycott British goods?
14- What did Parliament do in 1766?
15- What did the Townshend Acts tax?
16- What did the colonists do in response to the Townshend Acts?
16- What happened on March 5, 1770?
18- What did colonial leaders label the confrontation?