The Stamp Act: Similarities Between Patriots And Loyalists

The taxation of the colonists was very important to what would eventually be the American Revolution. The people of the colonies were finally united, though they have not called for an army to be made or haven’t talked about independence, they are starting to come together, and make their differences blur.

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

By suddenly ending “salutary neglect”, the British Parliament had, unknowing, prompted the beginnings of the Americans' grievances. Though not much protest occurred in response to the Proclamation (most colonists moved West anyways), the Act itself would set a precedent for Americans' sense of anxiety. The first direct tax on the American colonies, the Stamp act, contributed significantly to the beginnings of pre-Revolutionary unity. With the rallying battle cry, “No taxation without representation”, the American colonists proceeded to call together the Stamp Act Congress. Not only was this event significant due to the fact that it was another group meeting, automatically signifying at least some unity, but major proponents of Revolution, such as Samuel Adams, started new efforts towards uniting colonists against Britain, such as the Sons of Liberty. The following several years, though not marked with tremendous amounts of unification, definitely contributed to a growing sense of anxiety and oppression amongst the American colonists. With more direct taxes such as the Tea Acts, Coercive Acts, and Quartering Acts. Grievance after grievance, the number of “unreasonable” British actions inevitably forced the Americans into a dilemma. While some colonists, such as Richmond Henry Lee, equated such acts to the British desire to “ruin” the colonies, others, such as Mather Byles, believed that a radical

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.

After the victory towards French in the Seven Years War, the political and social relationship of the colonists and Great Britain had shifted to a different direction. The colonists began to think of themselves as Americans. At that time, The British government felt that the colonies had become quite independence, and they wanted their colonies to start paying tax in order to help England pay the national debt. Not only were Americans forced to pay direct taxes, but they were also obliged to involve in strict regulatory acts such as Sugar Act and Currency Act. Sugar Act (1764) strongly affected American’s trading in which their oceanic vessels and cargos could be inspected by the British Navy and might be confiscated if the paper and the goods that being transported were in disagreement. Currency Act (1764) restricted colonial governments to print their own paper money. These two acts put some colonists in anger but they were not enough to result in civil disorder until the Stamp Act was passed. The reason that the colonists resisted government authority with the passage of the Stamp Act (1765) was because the Stamp Act collected taxes in all type of papers including newspapers, playing cards, licenses, and stamps. This outraged many colonists especially the educated and

The massive debt of the French and Indian war was a very big struggle for Great Britain and the massive debt will start the revolutionary war. The massive debt happened right after the French and Indian war. Great Britain was 122 million pounds in debt. That is why they tried to tax the colonies. The taxes were called acts. This payed off part of the debt but the taxing didn't come to a pleasant end for Great Britain.

     There was another by-product of the war for Britain; her national debt more than doubled during the course of the conflict. At a time when Britain was starting to bend beneath the weight of the debt, it was only a matter of time before parliament looked to the colonies to help shoulder some of the price incurred in their defense. The Sugar and Stamp Acts were the first of many measures to tax the colonists. The Townshend Duties and the Tea Act would follow. While these measures outraged the colonists because of their monetary implications, it was the constitutional implications brought on by the Acts that were most offensive to the colonists. Until after the Seven Years War, the colonists had been left to essentially tax themselves. Now the colonists had a rallying cry, as they deplored the idea of no taxation without representation. In 1765 the Stamp Act Congress was held, and in a bid of utter defiance the representatives agreed that the colonial legislative assemblies alone had the right to tax the colonies. Parliament repealed the Stamp Act, but only after agreeing to pass the Declaratory Act, which informed the colonies that Britain did in fact have the right to legislate for the

     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.

There were several acts that were passed without the consideration of the colonists that would force them to pay a ridiculous amount of taxes to the British mainland. One of these acts was named the Stamp Act, which was enacted in 1765, forced the colonists to pay a tax on every piece of printed paper that they used. This would include legal documents, license, commercial contracts and newspapers in the tax. This tax mostly effected the wealthier and influential of the colonists and would force them to unite in opposition. There were several other acts that would be passed that would force the colonists to pay undue taxes to the British, such as the Quartering Act and the Tea

Britain was beginning to notice that they were not receiving as much money as they needed to pay off the costs of the French and Indian War henceforth, Britain authorized the colonists to pay a new tax. Everyone had to buy a tax stamp to put on their important papers. Newspapers had to be printed on special stamp paper that cost extra money. This act was called the Stamp Act. Many of the colonists were Furious about the new taxes.The American colonists were arguing that they had to contribute money and supplies in their own defense during the war by providing for the British soldiers. Not surprisingly, the 1991.Americans acted negatively to the Stamp Act. Because of thi,s men formed groups called “The Sons of Liberty”. These groups met in secret and they vowed to fight for what they believed was right. One night, The Sons of Liberty and some of the colonists decided to run Tax Collectors out of town, so they refuse to pay the tax or buy stamps.In the end, British decided to end the Stamp Act. After all, no one could collect the duties if no tea, glass, or paint was imported. After that, the people reacted to the Townshend Acts and the selfishness of the Customs Commissioners by organizing yet another boycott (Garrity,

[ 1 ]. Hollitz, John. Thinking Through the Past: A Critical Thinking Approach to U.S.

The colonists did not mind the taxes as much because some of the items that were taxed were unnecessary, however they did mind that the British were using their power as an excuse to tax the people for no reason (controlling them). The people’s money was not used in a useful matter, it was used for nothing, just extra money for the British to have. “The raising of revenue… was never intended… Never did the British parliament, (until the passing of the Stamp act) think of imposing duties in America for the purpose of raising a revenue. The Townshend Acts claim the authority to impose duties on these colonies, not for the regulation of trade… but for the single purpose of levying money upson us.” (Document 2). The British just decided one day to just tax the colonies for no reason and the people had no say in it. Also, the British soldiers would come to Boston and take the Boston colonists jobs. Men and women would lose their jobs because the British would take it away from them, they were stealing people’s jobs. The British were taking their money and now their jobs after all the colonists did for them in the French and Indian war. That is not fair for them to run the people like that and it had to be

The colonists felt that the Seven Years War wasn’t their fight and that Britain shouldn’t be taxing them without their equal share of saying. The Virginia Resolves, written by the Virginia House of Burgesses, stated the rights of the citizens of Virginia to have a say in their taxes. Following the Townshend Acts of 1767, the American colonists began expressing their rights of “No Taxation Without Representation”. The Virginia House of Burgesses believed they had the right to dictate their own taxes upon Virginia and that it shouldn't be dictated by Britain (Doc 2). This reflects the viewpoint of many colonists, who believed that the taxes imposed upon them were unfair without a say in the council in which the taxes are created. Samuel Adams, the leader of the Boys of Liberty, a group of boycotters and the ones behind the Boston Tea Party, wrote upon the ideas that the colonists had the rights to decide who governs them according to the natural rights of man. His goal was to persuade the colonists against the tyranny of Britain and realize that they could govern themselves without the taxation of England (Doc 3). This use of propaganda illustrates the tendencies of colonial leaders to promote liberty and natural rights and change the colonists ideas on freedom and tyranny. The thought of how much money could be made without British taxation motivated many colonists as well. When the colonists realized that their income could increase by double, they rallied behind the side fighting for freedom and realized how much better off they would be without a British shadow looming overhead (Doc 6). The largest motivator to get Patriot support and to keep the soldiers determined was Thomas Paine’s philosophical papers published on the benefits of a Patriot victory. Thomas Paine speaks of the greater benefits achieved from a difficult task and

Those who chose to stay with Britain, the Loyalists, did not consider unfair taxes and regulations good reasons for rebellion. Some loyalists lived in relative isolation and had not been part of the wave of discontent that turned many Americans against Britain. Others expected to win the war and wanted to regain favor with the Britain. The Patriots, on the other hand, were colonists who supported the war for independence. They believed that British rule had become unbearable. The Patriots were determined to fight the British until American independence won. Both were colonists control by British, want to regain there favor from British, and were considered unfair taxes. I would be a Patriot because I want to fight the British to regain our independence from Britain. So that we don't have to face rule that are unbearable and pay unfair

Thomas Hutchinson, chief justice and lieutenant governor of Massachusetts, despite his goal to prevent passage of the dreaded Stamp Act, was violently hated by the people of Boston. In the middle of dinner on August 26, 1765, the most violent mob in the history of America attacked the mansion of Governor Hutchinson. If he and his family had not fled the table and escaped their home, they might not have lived through the ordeal. But, why would an angry Boston mob ransack the home of man who wanted to better the lives of the people?