o The French-Indian War (1754 – 1763) ended formally with the Treaty of Paris, signed in Under the terms of the agreement, France was effectively driven out of Canada, leaving Britain the dominant North American power. o British Parliament, in order to appease Native Americans and to avoid further trouble, issued the Proclamation of 1763, which forbade British colonists from settling on Native American territory. o The Proclamation of 1763 angered Americans intensely: during the French and Indian War, they had believed they were fighting, at least in part, for their right to expand and settle west of the Appalachians. o French and Indian War had left Britain in desperate situation financially. So the British Parliament needed to restock the Treasury. Led by the British Prime Minister George Grenville, Parliament began leving heavier taxes on British subjects, especially the colonists.

o The Sugar Act, also known as the American Revenue Act, was a revenue-raising act passed by the British Parliament in April, 1764 o 1764 Act that put a three-cent tax on foreign refined sugar and increased taxes on coffee, indigo, and wine. o Ship captains were required to maintain detailed manifests of their cargo and the papers were subject to identification before anything could be unloaded from the ships.

o In 1765, Parliament passed the Quartering Act, which required residents of some colonies to feed and house British soldiers serving in America. o It further stated that if there was not sufficient space for the soldiers in the barracks, then local inn keepers would have to put up soldiers and provide them with their basic needs.

o In 1765 the British enforced another tax on her colonies – this was called the Stamp Act. o It was a tax that was imposed on every document or newspaper printed or used in the colonies. The taxes ranged from one shilling a newspaper to ten pounds for a lawyers license. o Everything a colonist needed to was taxed. o The income was to be directed to pay the cost of defending the colonies.

o The American public responded to the Stamp Act with an anger: They said ‘NO TAXATION WITHOUT REPRESENTATION’. o It meant that in order to be taxed by Parliament, the Americans rightly should have actual Parliamentarians seated and voting in London. o Delegates from nine colonies met in New York at the Stamp Act Congress, where they created a plea to King George III and Parliament to repeal the Stamp Act. o Finally, after the King indicated that he supported the repeal, the Stamp Tax was repealed

o In 1767 the Townshend Acts was imposed – it was a series of taxes on all goods imported into the United States. o The Townshend Acts further worsened the relations. o Other colonists took their protests to the streets: In Boston, a patriot group called the SONS OF LIBERTY erected “liberty poles” to hang images of tax collectors. o Homespun clothing became popular as colonial wives, or DAUGHTERS OF LIBERTY, refused to purchase British cloth.

o To prevent serious disorder that was being created by the Townshend Acts, Britain dispatched 4,000 troops to Boston in o The soldiers’ presence in the city only made the situation worse as the Americans resented it o Tensions mounted until March 5, 1770, when a protesting mob clashed violently with British, resulting in the death of five Bostonians. o This tragic incident came to be known as the BOSTON MASSACRE. o This incident, along with domestic pressures from British merchants suffering from colonial non-importation agreements, convinced Parliament to repeal the Townshend Acts.

Boston massacre 1768