Causes of the American Revolution- Part 2 Student News

Repeal of the Stamp Act After massive protests, the Stamp Act was repealed At the same time, Britain passed the Declaratory Act, declaring that the colonies had the right to be taxed, “in all cases whatsoever”

Why Were Colonists Opposed to British Taxation? Colonists asserted that Britain had no right to tax the colonies because there was no colonial representation in Parliament (the British legislature that created and passed laws)

Townshend Acts 1767 The British national debt became a critical issue in British politics An import tax was passed on items such as glass, lead, paint, paper, and tea The goal of the tax was to raise revenue in order to pay the national debt

Protesting the Townshend Acts The Sons of Liberty threatened to demolish the homes of tax collectors The Sons of Liberty also encouraged colonists to boycott British goods until the taxes were repealed

British Troops Sent to Boston To protect British officials from violence, 2 regiments of British soldiers were sent to Boston They camped in the middle of town and became a visible symbol of the colony’s clash with the king

Boston Massacre 1770 A dispute between a young apprentice and a British guard escalated into a riot, in which soldiers fired into the crowd killing 5 Bostonians The Sons of Liberty named the event, “The Boston Massacre” in order to create sympathy for the patriot cause

Townshend Acts Repealed The colonial boycott of British goods began to hurt the British economy All of the Townshend Acts were repealed, except for a small tax on tea

Tea Act 1773 Gave a British company, The East India Tea Company, a monopoly on selling tea in the colonies The tea would be offered at a lower price than foreign tea, with a hidden tax included

Boston Tea Party Ships loaded with British tea were sent to Charleston, NY, Philadelphia, and Boston (The shipments were never unloaded) 200 men boarded the ships in Boston and dumped over 300 chests of tea into the harbor in front of a cheering crowd

Intolerable Acts After the Tea Party, Britain retaliated with 4 laws meant to punish the people of Boston Port of Boston would remain closed until the money was repaid Massachusetts government was disbanded

3. Any trial involving British soldiers could be relocated to Canada or Britain 4. British troops could be housed in unoccupied buildings

First Continental Congress In order to discuss a coordinated response to the Intolerable acts, delegates from 12 colonies met in Philadelphia The delegates agreed to meet again at a later date if necessary