The Stamp Act probably angered more American colonists than any earlier tax. Under this law, the colonists had to buy a British stamp for every piece of printed paper they used. That meant they would be taxed for every piece of newspaper, every document, even every playing card. The colonists refused to pay. Colonial assemblies approved resolutions suggesting that the British Parliament had no right to tax the colonies at all. Some colonists were so angry that they attacked British stamp agents.
Historians say the main reason the colonists were angry was because Britain had rejected the idea of 'no taxation without representation'. Almost no colonist wanted to be independent of Britain at that time. Yet all of them valued their rights as British citizens and the idea of local self-rule. They considered the Stamp Act to be the worst in a series of violations of these rights.
The American colonists refused to obey the Stamp Act. They also refused to buy British goods. Almost one thousand storeowners signed non-importation agreements. This cost British businessmen so much money that they demanded that the government cancel the Stamp Act. Parliament finally cancelled the law in seventeen sixty-six. The colonists immediately ended their ban on British goods.
But the same day that Parliament ended the Stamp Act, it approved the Declaratory Act. This was a statement saying the colonies existed to serve Britain, and that Britain could approve any law it wanted. Many American colonists considered this statement to be illegal.
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2013-11-25
2013-11-25
2013-11-25
2013-11-25
2013-11-25
2013-11-25