“Taxation without Representation”

Treaty of Paris and Hubertusburg

The war in North America had been mostly over since 1760, while the battle continued in Europe and the West Indies for another 3 year.  The official conclusion of the French and Indian war in America occurred with the signing of the Treaty of Paris on 10 February 1763.  This was followed shortly by the end of the European theater and Seven Years’ War with the Treaty of Hubertusburg on 15 February 1763.  The latter treaty mainly effected Prussia and Austria, while the former reestablished traditional territories for France, Spain, and Great Britain in Europe. The most significant change, however, was the emergence of the British as the new dominate power in the world and the Acts of Parliament that would lead to a revolution.

British Expansion

The Treaty of Pairs greatly expanded British holdings in the new world, which would come back to later play a significant role in the American victory during the American Revolution.  By the end of the war, Great Britain had expanded it’s holdings in the West Indies (the Caribbean) specifically those islands they had taken from the Spanish.  They had also acquired French Canada and Acadia which the French gave to the British in exchange for keeping their sugar colonies in the West Indies.  French Canada and Acadia primary consisted of French-speaking Roman Catholics.  Beginning in 1755 the British had already initiated the deportation of Acadians from the area, many of whom relocated to New Orleans, assuming it would continue under French authority, founding the Cajun population.   This relocation resulted in new territory for British immigrants.

Seeds of Discord

Pontiac’s War

The first major consequence came the same year the war ended.  A loose confederation of Native American tribes, primarily located around the Great Lakes region, and the areas of Illinois and Ohio country, rose up in opposition to British postwar policies.  As a result of the war, the Royal Proclamation of 1763, which was already under consideration, was hurried through the British Parliament, not only to help settle the government of newly acquired French colonies, but also in the hopes of stemming off any future Native American uprising, by declaring everything west of the Appalachian Mountains, as unsettelable.  It’s possible this proclamation contributed to colonial resentment in America.

A bankrupt State – the Acts of Parliament

After nearly 200 years of continuous war, Great Britain had a vast number of career soldiers who were members of well connected families.  When faced with the choice of disbanding the military, Parliament instead decided to maintain 10K British regulars in the colonies. The American Colonists maintained that there were no foreign threats on the continent and further, that they had always defended themselves against hostile Indians.

As a result of the 7 years war, Great Britain found itself in massive debt, nearly double that prior to the war, leaving the crown nearly bankrupt.  This debt would have lasting consequences, and while the victory ushered in a period of expansion for the British Empire, as with many similar events in history, it also contained the seeds of its ultimate demise as we will see with the following Acts of Parliament.

1764 Sugar Act

Back in 1733, Parliament had passed the Molasses act, however it was never effectively enforced and rampant smuggling resulted in the colonist mostly avoiding the tax.  With the tax set to expire in 1763 and in response to the massive debt, under the guise that the colonist should pay for the continued protection by the crown,

“it is expedient that new provisions and regulations should be established for improving the revenue of this Kingdom … and … it is just and necessary that a revenue should be raised … for defraying the expenses of defending, protecting, and securing the same.”

on April 5, 1764, Parliament passed the Sugar Act with the goals of enforcement of new duties on common items such as lumber, sugar, and molasses, in order to maximize revenues.  Unfortunately, this tax arrived in the colonies during an economic depression, also a result of the war.  An interesting side effect, a trade deficit was growing between the West Indies and the colonies threatening the value of colonial currency.  The economic impact of the tax began to incubate the spirit of resistant among the colonies.  This tax created an unfair trade war between the American colonies and the now prosperous British West Indies.  Samuel Adams and James Otis became outspoken protesters against the tax.  Through their influence, small, sporadic, and isolated acts of protest, including a group of Boston Merchants refusing to import British luxury items, and a movement to increase colonial manufacturing began to occur in the colonies.  The Sugar act was replaced by the Revenue Act of 1766 which reduced the tax on molasses to one penny per gallon.

1765 Quartering Act

In order to maintain the 10K British regulars stationed in the colonies. Parliament passed the Quartering Act of 1765, requiring the colonies to provide food and accommodations or housing for the soldiers.

1766 Stamp Act

The same year the Sugar act was replaced by the Revenue act, Parliament passed the Stamp Act.  The Stamp Act was created to generate funds to help maintain the British forces station in the American colonies.  This Act required many printed materials in the colonies be produced on stamped paper produced in London.  While the Sugar Act resulted in small protests, the Stamp Act was widely unpopular.  This lead many colonial merchants and landowners to creation of the Committees of Correspondence and later the Son’s of Liberty.

Andrew Oliver was best known for his official responsibility for implementing the provisions of the Stamp act.  In order to intimidate Oliver, an effigy of him was hung in a tree, later known as the liberty tree.  The effigy was then removed, paraded, in funeral procession, to the Town house, and later to Oliver’s house.  There it was beheaded and burned along with Oliver’s Carriage house and stables.  Oliver resigned the next day.

As news for the reasons of Andrew Oliver’s resignation spread, violence and threats of aggressive acts increased throughout the colonies as did organized groups of resistance.

The Sons of Liberty

“No taxation without representation”

1767 Townshend Act

In 1767, in violation of natural law, Charter of Liberty, and the British Bill of Rights, the British Parliament passed the Townshend Acts, named after Charles Townshend, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, who proposed the program.

These Acts of Parliament included:

• Revenue Act of 1767
• Commissioners of Customs Act of 1767
• Vice Admiralty Court Act 1767
• New York Restraining Act of 1767

These Acts were intended to raise revenue to help pay the salary of colonial governors and judges, assuring continued loyalty to the crown; to create a more effective means of enforcement; and to punish the colony of New York for failure to comply with the Quartering Act of ’65.  One of the most economically impacting was a Colonial Import Tariffs on Mandatory British Exports.  These Acts proved to be even more unpopular that the Stamp act, leading to colonial resistance led by the Massachusetts House of Representatives.  Parliament responded by sending the HMS Romney, which seized the Liberty, owned by John Hancock, and began impressing local sailors into service.
By Oct 1, 1768, the first of four British regiments began disembarking in Boston.

1770 – The Boston Massacre (or Incident on King Street by the British)

As a result of increasing tension from having so many British Regulars in close proximity of the growing resentment from the Acts of Parliament, in 1770, a mod spontaneously formed to verbally harass a British sentry.  Eventually he was joined by 8 other Regular who were also subject to the verbal assault and the throwing of objects.  In response to the growing threat, the soldiers fired into the crowd, killing 5 and wounding another 6.  The event was used in a  propaganda battle with England by leading patriots Samuel Adams and Paul Revere.  Interesting historical side note, and as evidence that important men were being prepared for what was to come, Henry Knox was in attendance at this event and later John Adams, attending to his fierce defense of justice, acted as defendant for the soldiers and went on to win the case.  John Adams would later write that the “foundation of American independence was laid” on March 5, 1770.

1773 Tea Act

In response to the Boston Massacre and the growing resistance in the colonies, in May of 1773, Parliament passes the Tea Act in order to help reduce the massive amount of tea being held by the British East India Company, by forcing the colonies to purchase the British tea, and undercut the illegal tea smuggling in avoidance of the Townshed duties.  But more importantly, the Tea Act, acted as a demonstration that Parliament was still in control of the colonies.

In direct response to the Tea Act, the Committees of Correspondence evolved into the Son’s of Liberty, which was founded in Dec. 1773.  Later that month, in a protest of the Tea Act, the Son’s of Liberty, dressed as Native Americans and held the “Boston Tea Party”, during which they cast crates of tea owned by the East India Company over board, into the Boston Harbor.

1774 – The Intolerable Acts

In response to the Boston Tea party, Parliament responded, in 1774, with the Coercive or Intolerable Acts of Parliament, a series of 4-5 Acts meant to punish Massachusetts for their rebellion against the previous taxation.

The Boston Port Act

Officially closed the port of Boston on June 1 1774 until the East India Company had been repaid and the king was satisfied order had been restored.

The Massachusetts Government Act

Terminated the colony of MA’s right to self-rule, bringing the colony directly under Parliamentarian control.

The Administration of Justice Act.

Oh the irony!  This Act allowed the Royal governor to order trials take place in Great Britain.  While it stipulated that witnesses were to be reimbursed for travel expenses after the fact, it did not include lost wages.  As such, few witnesses could afford to testify.

The Quartering Act

The first quartering act occurred in 1765 which required colonials to quarter regulars in public houses (inns, livery stables, ale houses, victualing houses, and the houses of sellers of wine and houses of persons selling of rum, brandy, etc) and were required to pay the cost of housing and feeding these troops.  The second came in 1774 which was similar in that it gave the governor the authority to house troops in “other buildings” such as barns, inns, and unoccupied structures, if suitable “crown approved” quarters were not available

1774 The First Continental Congress

The First Continental Congress initially met in Carpenters hall in Philadelphia PA on Sept 5 to Oct 26 1774 in response to the Acts of Parliament, specifically the Intolerable Acts and in solidarity with the colony of Massachusetts at the disbanding of the Massachusetts Assembly.

Historical side note,  Benjamin Franklin had suggested the idea a year earlier.

• The delegates included:
• George Washington
• Patrick Henry
• John Adams
• Samuel Adams
• Joseph Galloway
• John Dickinson
• with Peyton Randolph of Virginia as President

The meeting was to demonstrate unity against the acts of Parliament and to seize control of their own Government.  They formally petitioned the king for redress of grievance.  And they organized and economic boycott of Great Britain.

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