The Political Views Of The British Colonies

Many colonists were angered because of high taxes England chose to enforce on them. These taxes were a result of the British participation and victory in the French and Indian war. However, what made the colonists even more angry was the fact that they were being taxed without representation in England’s Parliament. The colonists thought that, in order to be taxed by the British, they should have representation in it. They saw it as unfair to be taxed by a government they had no say in. As Patrick Henry said in his speech made to the Virginia House of Burgesses, “We can under law be taxed only by our own representatives...The Stamp Act is against the law. We must not obey it…” (Doc. 1). Since many colonists thought this taxation broke the law, some of them chose to protest by going to the House of Burgesses, boycotting imports, or simply not paying it in response. This response is justified; if

These stamps were required on bills of sale for trade items, and on various types of commercial and legal documents, anything from playing cards to diplomas to marriage licenses. Grenville claimed that the Stamp act was needed in order to help defray the cost of keeping British troops stationed in the colonies in order to protect them. To the colonists this was an invalid answer, because the French were out of North America, and they no longer needed protection. Instead, this Act was viewed as a tax solely to make money for England: "A right to impose an internal tax on the colonies, without their consent for the single purpose of revenue, is denied..." (Document B). Also, anyone that disobeyed these laws was tried in the admiralty courts, were juries were not allows, and you were guilty until proven innocent. In response, the colonists formed the Stamp Act Congress, in which the members drew up a statement of the rights and grievances of the colonists to send to the king, however it was ignored by England. Instead, they started a steady boycott of British goods. It is after this that the colonists realized that they were being used by England, and began their cry of "no taxation without representation!" Parliament had thought that it was making easy money off of the colonies; instead it had started the fire of rebellion burning, and the Stamp Act was soon repealed.

Huge debts were owed to Great Britain for supplying the colonists with military support and supplies. To pay the dues, there was the establishment of the Stamp Act, the taxation on domestic goods and services. A tax on domestic merchandise brought even more anger to the colonists. The Sugar Act, the Townshed Duties and the Tea Act were also all introduced with the same fundamentals: applying tax on goods whether it be directly or indirectly, domestic or international. “British commercial regulations imposed a paltry economic burden on Americans, who enjoyed a rapid economic growth and a standard of living higher than their European counterparts” (McGaughy). Each act resulted in irritated colonists. Some even retaliated by tarring and feathering certain English tax enforcers living in the colonies.

Beginning in 1764, Great Britain began passing acts to exert greater control over the American colonies. The Sugar Act was passed to increase duties on foreign sugar imported from the West Indies. A Currency Act was also passed to ban the colonies from issuing paper bills or bills of credit because of the belief that the colonial currency had devalued the British money. Further, in order to continue to support the British soldiers left in America after the war, Great Britain passed the Quartering Act in 1765. This ordered colonists to house and feed British soldiers if there was not enough room for them in the colonist’s homes. An important piece of legislation that really upset the colonists was the Stamp Act passed in 1765. This required stamps to be purchased or included on many different items and documents such as playing cards, legal papers, newspapers, and more. This was the first direct tax that Britain had imposed on the colonists. Events began to escalate with passage of the Townshend Acts in 1767. These taxes were created to help colonial officials become independent of the colonists by providing them with a source of income. This act led to clashes between British troops and colonists, causing the infamous Boston Massacre. These unjust requests and increasing tensions all led up to the colonist’s declaration as well as the Revolutionary War.

     The passing of the Stamp Act by Parliament in 1765 caused a rush of angry protests by the colonists in British America that perhaps "aroused and unified Americans as no previous political event ever had." It levied a tax on legal documents, almanacs, newspapers, and nearly every other form of paper used in the colonies. Adding to this hardship was the need for the tax to be paid in British sterling, not in colonial paper money. Although this duty had been in effect in England for over half a century and was already in effect in several colonies in the 1750?s, it called into question the authority of Parliament over the overseas colonies that had no representation therein.

Though both are independent nations, the United Kingdom and the United States now share a close bond, and have even been allies during WWI and WWII in the 20th century. But when the colonies of the United States were under British rule, the relations between the Colonies and Britain were not so friendly. The views on government and taxation between the two became radically different and created a large disagreement between the American Patriots and those loyal to Britain. Cracks began to form in the relationship between Britain and the Colonies, and the differences between the two would inevitably result in the American Revolution.

The French and Indian war caused debts among the British. The British realized that during the war the income from the colonies was insufficient (document F). After the war, the British needed certain ways in which to gain revenue. They imposed taxes on the Colonists. These taxes, in turn, caused a stir among Americans. The Stamp Act was a tax imposed on the colonists without representation (document H). Their liberties as English citizens were being denied. Radical Whigs would go as far to say it

One of the major causes was the Stamp Act in 1765. This was issued by Parliament to tax every piece of printed paper colonists used. Other documents such as newspapers, playing cards and any form of printed publication were also taxed. Money collected by these taxations were used to pay costs of defending the American frontier. Colonists viewed this act of Parliament as means to raise money without legislative approval. ¨Reactions to the Stamp Act included riots and boycotts of British goods. Crowds calling themselves Sons of Liberty prevented stamped papers from being unloaded from British ships.¨ Another organization called the Daughters of Liberty was formed to promote production of homemade cloth, not imported by the British. Nine colonies met in New York City to create a statement in which the Stamp Act would be repealed.

Williamsburg Colonial was originally referred to as the Middle Plantation and the Revolutionary City, although in the beginning, it was just a royal colony that later transitioned into a republic state, with a new self-government. It became a republic after great efforts and debates from extraordinary men such as George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, and Patrick Henry, to name a few, that sought to improve the principles of liberty. The city of Williamsburg underwent several transitioning periods with the first being that it became the capital of the Virginia Colony in 1966. The colony remains important to American history because it is where the contemplation began for freedom and independence, and it is where the ideas of freedom and independence transpired and took shape. More importantly, it is fair to say that from 1699 to about 1780, Williamsburg was the most populous region of the British Colonies in America; it was also the most culturally influential, the center for educational progress, and political events. The events would later shape the government, and the future of the United States of America.

The French and Indian War resulted in a number of acts which angered the colonists. A couple of the major acts used as payment for the war debt were the Sugar Act and the Stamp Act.t The Sugar Act was not as heavily enforced and had a three pence tax it did not affect the occupational life aspect of the colonists as much as the Stamp Act. The Teapot was produced in England between the time of 1766 and 1770 during the time of the Declaratory Acts and the Boston Massacre (Doc 1). Based by the writing inscribed on the teapot it responded to the repeal of the Stamp Act. In addition to the wish for less taxes and British personnel dispatched on the colonies. For many of the colonists the Stamp Act was an annoyance for the basic tools of the paper editors, lawyers, printers and other occupants that relied on documentation for a living to have them taxed. Many acts and tariffs were placed repealed after the repeal of the Stamp Act. Due to the perseverance of the colonists desire for no more taxes, the bond between the

The relations between England and the British North American colonies could always be considered precarious. Prior to 1750 British essentially followed a policy of benign neglect and political autonomy in the American colonies. (Davidson p.97) The colonies were for the most part content with benign neglect policy, relishing in a “greater equality and representative government”(Davidson p.95) within the colonies. Competition among European Imperial nations began to effect British policy toward North America colonies causing rapid shifts from 1750 to 1776. During this period, the British Empire made a series of policy decision that sealed the fate of the British North American

There were a few political issues that affected British North America’s colonies. One issue was political deadlock. This occurs when two parties or colonies cannot agree on a political issue because there are the same number of seats in the legislature. This is called equal representation. To avoid political deadlock, there were a few options. Canada West’s population grew much quicker than Canada East’s. Canada West argued that they should receive more seats in the legislature since they have a larger population. This was called representation by population. Politician George-Ètienne Cartier from Canada East was a supporter of equal representation because all of Canada West spoke English. Only parts of Canada East spoke French. So, giving

The Stamp Act created the Stamp Act Riots. “Colonists protested the Stamp Act, which they believed to be an infringement on their liberties, in a number of ways.” The Colonists protested with riots, threats to the tax collectors, hanging dolls resembling the tax collectors, and burning them. The Boston Gazette published an article describing the severity of these threats, “Early on Wednesday Morning last the Effigy of a Gentleman sustaining a very unpopular Office, viz. that of the Stamp Master, was found hanging on a Tree in the most public Part of Town, together with a Boot, wherein was concealed a Young imp of the D___ represented as peeping out of the Top – ON the breast of the Effigy was a label in the praise of Liberty, and denouncing Vengeance on the Subversion of it – Underneath was the following words, HE WHO TAKES THIS DOWN IS AN ENEMY TO HIS COUNTRY.” With their actions, the colonists were destroying their own towns. Sometimes the threats to the tax collectors were actually played out, especially in the form or

The taxes Britain put into effect greatly upset Colonists. Ways they showed civil unrest was tarring and feathering Englishmen,and harassment from the Sons of Liberty. To start things off, Britain had The Stamp Act, which taxed anything paper related such as playing cards, newspaper, and stamps. This was the few taxes in which the Colonists did not have a say in the matter. According to Document 10, one of the Founding Fathers: John Adams, believe the stamp act to be unconstitutional and that no man should be taxed without consent. The Stamp Act was an example of Colonists being forced to pay off the taxes which is known as taxation without representation. This was one reason why the Colonists should revolt as they were not being represented. Another act that heavily taxed the Colonists was the Townshend Act. Unlike the Stamp Act that only taxed paper goods, the Townshend Act taxed Colonists on every product. According to Document 2 Founding Father: John Dickinson believe the Townshend Acts purpose is to simply levy money upon the

The colonies in America were tired of being under the control of the Parliament; they wanted to break away from Great Britain and have their own independence. During the French and Indian War, King George III spent a lot of money on expensive supplies for his army and colonies. This resulted on him having a lot of debt, and in order for him to pay it off, he came to the conclusion of imposing taxes on the colonies (American Revolution, 2017). The colonies were furious because King George III did this without their consent. The colonists began a boycott of British goods because they did not like being taxed for things they always had for free. Another cause of the war was King George III’s “Intolerable Acts,” it was an act regarding the Boston Tea Party incident, where the colonists threw the tea overboard into the harbor (American Revolution, 2017). The Intolerable Acts was to put the Massachusetts government about entirely under the direct control of the