Stamp+Act

=Stamp Act=



After the the horrendous Seven Years War being fought for control over America, Britain was entirely and utterly indebted up to its neck. Britain had no money and no way to rebuild themselves economically and militarily. At this point, the colonies were loyal to Britain and satisfied with Britain's just and fair ruling of the colonies, but the inactment of the Stamp Act of 1765 was the first step to ignite colonial opposition toward Britain. Britain argued that it fought the war for the sake of the colonies, to preserve them and protect them from the terrorizing French, and that in return they should do their part in rebuilding their mighty mother country. The colonies saw it another way. They saw it as Britain's first leg-in to utterly and totally dominating the colonies. They knew that they had to take action.

The Stamp Act put a tax on a tax on 54 everyday ordinary items, some of which were: legal documents, newspapers, pamphlets, playing cards, and other materials. The colonists reacted with anger and frustration when ever they were to come across a stamp collector in the colonies. The colonists used violence and assault as a means of protest to get make their point to Britain. The most popular form of viloence was the tar and feathering of the stamp collectors. Stamp collectors were drven from towns by angry mobs, many of which got on the next ship back to Britain and refused to return. The colonists felt the kick of the act in the sense that in Britain, the people were only to pay 2 of British currency where as in the colonies they were expected to pay 10 of British currency. This caused a further wave of resentment of Britain that would never really be upheld. The rebels most popularly responsible for these riots were the Sons of Liberty, but Britain, however, sprang back with its own Committees of Correspondence in an attempt to quell the rioters.

As a final attempt to repeal the tax, nine of the colonies met in a Stamp Act Congress in New York in October of 1765. They sent a petition called the Declaration of Rights and Grievances to King George III explaining all the woes of this tax and how it will not be stood for. Parliament repealed the tax later that spring.

Pre-Revolutionary Control Historical Context