The British Constitution: Colonies' Rebellion Origins

The American Revolution (1763-1783) was a conflict between Great Britain and its North American colonies that resulted in the independence of the colonies and the formation of the United States of America. One of the main grievances of the colonists was the imposition of taxes by the British Parliament without their consent, which they argued violated the British Constitution. This principle, known as No Taxation without Representation, was a significant factor in the growing tension between the colonies and Great Britain, ultimately leading to the revolution. The colonists also objected to other acts imposed by the British, such as the Mutiny Act, the Tea Act, and the quartering of troops in the colonies, which they saw as a symbol of oppression and a threat to their liberties. These events fueled anti-British sentiment and led to the colonies' rebellion, with the ultimate goal of establishing a constitutional republic based on self-governance and the rule of law.

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Taxation without representation

The phrase "No Taxation Without Representation" is a political slogan that became synonymous with the American Revolution and the colonists' struggle for independence from Great Britain. The slogan, which first appeared in a London newspaper in 1768, expressed the colonists' belief that any taxes imposed on them by the British Parliament were unconstitutional and a denial of their rights as Englishmen.

The American Revolution, which took place between 1763 and 1783, was a period of colonial resistance and reform. The British had imposed various acts and duties on the colonies, including the Stamp Act, the Townshend Duties, and the Sugar Act, which imposed taxes on items such as paper, paints, glass, tea, and molasses. These acts were met with resistance and protests from the colonists, who felt that they were being taxed without their consent.

The colonists argued that only an elected legislative body had the legitimate power to tax them. They rejected the British concept of "virtual representation," which stated that all English subjects enjoyed representation in a Parliament that considered the interests of everyone when formulating policies. The colonists saw "virtual representation" as a cover for political corruption and irreconcilable with their belief in self-governance and consent of the governed. They believed that any attempt to tax them without their consent violated the British Constitution and their natural rights as granted by God.

The phrase "No Taxation Without Representation" became a powerful symbol of the colonists' grievances and their desire for self-governance. It was a generational slogan that had been used in Ireland prior to the American Revolution and was fully adopted by the American colonists by 1765. The slogan continues to be used today by those who want to have a say in how they are taxed, reminding people of the importance of the consent of the governed.

The Stamp Act

The purpose of the tax was to pay for British military troops stationed in the American colonies after the French and Indian War (known as the Seven Years' War in Britain). However, the colonists had never feared a French invasion and contended that they had already paid their share of the war expenses. They suggested that the tax was actually a matter of British patronage to surplus British officers and career soldiers, who should be paid by London.

Opposition to the Stamp Act was not limited to the colonies. British merchants and manufacturers pressured Parliament because their exports to the colonies were threatened by boycotts. The act was repealed on 18 March 1766, but Parliament affirmed its power to legislate for the colonies "in all cases whatsoever" by also passing the Declaratory Act 1766.

The Townshend Duties

The Townshend Acts, also known as the Townshend Duties, were a series of measures passed by the British Parliament in 1767. They were named after Charles Townshend, who sponsored them. Townshend was the head of the treasury in Great Britain and wanted to exert more control over the colonies. The Acts consisted of four acts:

• The first act, often called the Townshend Duties or the Revenue Act, imposed direct revenue duties on goods imported into the colonies, including taxes on lead, glass, paper, paint, and tea. These taxes were levied on imports, so the British considered them "external" taxes, but the colonists failed to understand the difference between external and internal taxes.
• The second act, the Suspension of the New York Assembly Act, prohibited the New York Assembly from conducting any further business until it complied with the financial requirements of the Quartering Act (1765) for the expenses of British troops stationed there.
• The third act established a strict machinery of customs collection in the colonies, including additional officers, searchers, spies, coast guard vessels, search warrants, and a Board of Customs Commissioners at Boston, financed by customs revenues.
• The fourth act, known as the Indemnity Act, was aimed at helping the East India Company compete with smuggled Dutch tea. It lowered commercial duties on tea imported to England by the East India Company and refunded the duty on tea exported to the colonies.

In March 1770, Parliament decided to repeal the Townshend Duties (on everything except tea), but before word of the repeal reached the colonies, five Bostonians were killed in a clash with British troops, an episode known as the Boston Massacre. The incident was publicized by local leaders as a symbol of British oppression, and it further heightened tensions between Great Britain and the colonies in the lead-up to the American Revolutionary War.

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The Tea Act

The East India Company was struggling financially, partly due to rampant tea smuggling into the colonies, with approximately 86% of all tea in America being smuggled Dutch tea. The Tea Act sought to address this by granting the company a monopoly on tea sales in the colonies and allowing it to directly ship tea to North America without paying duties in Britain. This undercut the prices of smuggled tea, encouraging colonists to purchase the company's tea, which still carried the Townshend tax.

The Townshend tax, imposed in 1767, was a significant grievance for the colonists, who saw it as a violation of their rights and a form of oppression. The tax remained in force even after most other Townshend Duties were repealed in 1770. The Tea Act, by facilitating the sale of taxed tea, implicitly affirmed Parliament's right to tax the colonies. This was a direct challenge to the colonists' belief in self-government and their rejection of taxation without representation.

The provisions of the Tea Act sparked organised opposition from colonists, including merchants, smugglers, and artisans. This resistance culminated in the Boston Tea Party on December 16, 1773, where colonists boarded tea ships and dumped their cargo overboard. This act of protest was praised by many as a bold statement against parliamentary taxation, further escalating tensions that ultimately led to the American War of Independence in 1775.

The Intolerable Acts

• The Boston Port Act: This act closed the port of Boston until restitution was made for the tea destroyed during the Boston Tea Party.
• The Massachusetts Government Act: This act replaced the elected local government in the colony with an appointed one, enhancing the powers of the military governor.
• The Administration of Justice Act: This act protected British officials charged with capital offences during law enforcement by allowing them to be tried in England or another colony.
• The Quartering Act: This act provided arrangements for housing British troops in American dwellings, reviving the anger that colonists had felt towards an earlier Quartering Act in 1765.

The Quebec Act, which was passed in the same parliamentary session, is sometimes included as one of the Intolerable Acts. This act expanded the territory of the Province of Quebec, which appeared to void the land claims of the Ohio Company. It also guaranteed the free practice of Catholicism, the majority religion in Canada, which was seen by the overwhelmingly Protestant colonists as an establishment of the faith in the colonies.

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