Topic 3.3 Taxation Without Representation

Parliament

• the British government — colonists pointed out that they could not directly elect representatives to the Parliament so they could not consent/oppose British actions

The Sugar Act (176)

• also known as the Revenue Act of 1764, placed duties on foreign sugar and certain luxuries

• supporters of this act wanted to regulate the sugar trade and to raise revenue

The Quartering Act (1765)

• required the colonists to provide food and living quarters for British soldiers stationed in the colonies

The Stamp Act

• enacted by Parliament in 1765 required that revenue stamps be placed on most printed paper in the colonies, including all legal documents, newspapers, pamphlets, and advertisements

• was placed in an effort to raise funds to support British military forces in the colonies

• first direct tax — collected from those who used the goods — paid by people in the colonies

• later repealed in 1766 when Grenville was replaced by another prime minister

Patrick Henry

• a young Virginia lawyer who spoke for many when he stood up in the House of Burgesses to demand that the king’s government recognize the rights of all citizens — including the right not to be taxed without representation

James Otis

• initiated a call for cooperative action among the colonies to protest the Stamp Act

Stamp Act Congress

• formed by representatives from nine colonies who met in New York in 1765

• resolved that only their elected representatives had the legal authority to approve taxes

Sons and Daughters of Liberty

• a secret society organized for the purpose of intimidating tax agents

• members destroyed revenue stamps, and tarred and feathered revenue officials

Boycotting

• the most effective protest against the Stamp Act

• colonists boycotted British imports, not purchasing anything of British origin

Declaratory Act (1766)

• asserted that Parliament had the right to tax and make laws for the colonies “in all cases whatsoever”

• led to renewed conflict between the colonists and the British government

The Townshend Acts

• enacted new duties by the Parliament in 1767 to be collected on colonial imports of tea, glass, and paper

• revenue would be used to pay crown officials in the colonies

• allowed for the search of private homes for smuggled goods

writ of assistance

• a general license to search anywhere

• all that an official needed to conduct a search

John Dickinson

• emphasized the idea that taxation without representation should be rejected and was a violation of an essential principle of English law

Letters From a Farmer in Pennsylvania

• written by John Dickinson

• argues that Parliament could regulate colonial commerce, but if it wanted to tax colonists, it had to have the approval of assemblies that included colonial representatives

Massachusetts Circular Letter

• jointly written by James Otis and Samuel Adams in 1768

• urged the colonies to petition Parliament to repeal the Townshend Acts

Lord Frederick North

• became the new prime minister, and urged Parliament to repeal the Townshend Acts because it damaged trade and generated very small revenue

Boston Massacre

• in March 1770, a crowd of colonists harassed the guards (British troops who protected custom officials) near the customs house, to which the guards fired into the crowd, killing five

Crispus Attucks

• among the five killed in the Boston Massacre

• later became a symbol for the antislavery movement

Samuel Adams

• denounced the shooting incident as a “massacre” and used it to inflame anti-British feeling

Committees of Correspondence

• initiated by Samuel Adams in 1772; spread the view that British officials were undermining colonial liberties

• regularly exchanged letters about suspicious or potentially threatening British activities

The Gaspee

• a British customs ship that had caught several smugglers

• in 1772 the ship ran aground off the shore of Rhode Island, to which a group of colonists disguised as American Indians ordered the British crew ashore and set fire to the ship

Tea Act of 1773

• passed by Parliament in 1773 which made the price of the company’s tea—even with tax included—cheaper than that of smuggled Dutch tea

• passed in hopes to help the British East India Company out of its financial problems

• many colonists still refused to buy tea b/c it would recognize Parliament’s right to tax the colonies

Boston Tea Party

• a shipment of East India Company tea arrived in Boston harbor but found no buyers - a group of Bostonians, mostly artisans and laborers, disguised as American Indians, boarded the British ships, and dumped 342 chests of tea into the harbor

• colonists had mixed opinions, as some viewed it as a defense of liberty, while others recognized the destruction of private property

Intolerable Acts

• a series of punitive (harsh) acts enacted by the British government leaving the colonists outrage

The Coercive Acts (1774)

• there were four Coercive Acts directed mainly at punishing the people of Boston and Massachusetts and bringing them under control

The Port Act

• closed the port of Boston, prohibiting trade in and out of the harbor until the destroyed tea was paid for

The Massachusetts Government Act

• reduced the power of the Massachusetts legislature while increasing the power of the royal governor

The Administration of Justice Act

• allowed royal officials accused of crimes to be tried in Great Britain instead of the colonies

The Quartering Act

• was expanded to enable British troops to be quartered in private homes. It applied to ALL colonies

Quebec Act (1774)

• established roman Catholicism as the official religion of Quebec

• set up a government without a representative assembly and extended Quebec’s boundary to the Ohio River

• colonists were angered as they viewed the Quebec Act as a direct attack, since it took away lands that New York, Pennsylvania, Virginia, Massachusetts, and Connecticut claimed along the Ohio River