Britain’s House of Commons decided to cut their taxes by one-fourth and proposed to make up for the loss by passing the Revenue Act of 1767. Townshend drew a plan that put taxes on glass, lead, paint, paper, and tea entering the colonies. Though it only raised 37,000 pounds, compare to the 500,000 pound pay cut in the treasury department, Townshend duties was very effective in arousing political dispute that had laid inactive since the withdraw of the Stamp Act. The revolution was growing strong and would finally be established after an incident in Boston in
Leading up to the American Revolution in 1775 there were several events and turning points in the late 1760s that the colonists executed which marked a change from simple protesting the British parliament to the beginning of the American Revolutionary War leading to American independence. The Boston Tea Party occurred on December 16th, 1773. It is often considered a key turning point towards the start of the American Revolution. According to document A, a group of male colonists disguised as Mohawk Indians boarded tea ships in the Boston Harbor and dumped massive tea chests into the water. The point of this was to show Britain that the colonists will not continue to follow the British Parliament and be forced to but Britain’s goods.
The Revolutionary War: Why was it fought and was it preventable? Many believe that the trouble started brewing in 1763 at the end of the French Indian War but in all truth the colonist first started feeling discontent with the passing of the Navigation laws in 1650. This law stated that all goods flowing to and from the colonies could only be transported in British vessels. It was aimed to hurt rival Dutch shippers. This law kept money in the empire but hurt the pockets of the wealthy colonists mercantilist that depended on the shipping trade.
However, the many taxes passed by the British Parliament hindered their progress, upsetting the colonists. One of the first significant taxes was the Sugar Act of 1763, enacted by the british parliament, which added a tax to sugar bought by the colonists. This tax enraged the colonists because they enjoyed the use of sugar and they didn’t want to have to pay more for it. The colonists, in response, began to smuggle sugar and other goods. The british, in response to the smuggling, set up a court without a jury present and the presumption was that the colonists were guilty.
The Townshend Acts In 1767 Charles Townshend who was the chancellor of the exchequer, created the Townshend Acts . The Townshend Acts were approved by British Parliament on June 26-June 2, 1767 and were repealed April 12, 1770. Charles Townshend proposed the program in order to raise 40,000 pounds a year so that the English parliament could cut the british land tax and this would also raise money to pay for the salaries of governors and judges. Some of the things that the Act taxed were paper, oil, lead, glass, and tea that went into American ports. Townshend knew that his program would be controversial in the colonies, but he argued that, "The superiority of the mother country can at no time be better exerted than now."
They raised taxes from 10-50% and starved the populace to get the maximum profits. Nevertheless, the company continued to suffer financially, and influenced Parliament to pass the Tea Act in 1773 to lift import duties on tea shipped to the American colonies, which ultimately lead to the American War of Independence in April 1775. John Hancock was a merchant, statesman, and prominent Patriot of the Revolution. He served as president of the Second Continental Congress and was the first and third Governor of Massachusetts. Hancock began his political career in Boston as a protégé of Samuel Adams, an influential local politician, though the two men later became estranged.
Wendy Warner Intro to American Government William Schweers February 7, 2012 “Tea Party” The name “Tea Party” is a reference to the Boston Tea Party, a protest by colonists who objected to a British tax on tea in 1773 and demonstrated by dumping British tea taken from docked ships into the harbor. Some commentators have referred to the Tea in “Tea Party” as the backronym “Taxed Enough Already”. The Tea Party movement is a political movement in America aimed at clearly communicating to Washington its displeasure with government spending. The Tea Party movement has no central leadership, but is composed of a loose affiliation of national and local groups that determine their own platforms and agendas. The Tea Party movement has been cited as an example of grassroots political activity, although it has been described as an example of astroturfing.
John Hancock and other New England traders protested the Sugar Act because they had made money by importing French molasses without paying duty. The Sugar Act placed tariffs on sugar, coffee, wines and other things imported into America in substantial amounts. Those who were found or accused of violating the sugar act were tried before the British Naval officers in vice admiralty courts. John Hancock was a merchant who had a business of importing French molasses. He and other New England traders were upset with the Sugar act because they originally made their money importing their goods without paying the tax.
Chapter 4 Summary The War for Independence The Stirrings of Rebellion The heavy costs of the French & Indian War convinced the British government that additional revenues should be raised from the American colonists Parliament, persuaded by Prime Minister Grenville, passed the Stamp Act in 1765, the first tax levied directly on the colonists, on their goods and services (previous taxes had been duties, or tariffs, on imports) Special stamped paper was required for documents and paper items, including pamphlets and newspapers, affecting everyone Many colonists lost respect for British authority and anger rose against the King and Parliament The Sons of Liberty, an organization formed by Samuel Adams and others, harassed British officials and protested against the tax
“Don’t fire unless fired upon, but if they mean to have a war, let it begin here.” - John Parker. Revolution is a dynamic process whose consequences no one can anticipate. The American colonies in 1765 were surprised by the new taxes that were being presented from the Parliament. This caused a rebellion that lead to a complete separation from Great Britain that once the colonistshad loved because of their powerful government that viewed them as equals and largely left alone to do what they wanted. Little over a decade, conflict began to occur with the British and Patriots in the Spring of 1775 in Massachusetts.