The Stamp act was an act passed by the parliament in 1765 to tax the colonists on all paper that was used. Like many of the other acts imposed by Britain on the colonists around this time period, the main goal of the Stamp act was to pay off the debt that the British had acquired from fighting the 7 Years War. Even though the stamp act did not cost that much to the colonists, it set a common idea that taxes were imposed by the British just to raise revenue for the government. This angered the colonists and sparked a lot of the conflict between the British government and the colonists. Before these acts taxes had been used by the government to regulate trade and commerce but because of these acts the colonists saw that the taxes were just used to make money. There was active resistance to the stamp act when the Virginia House of Burgesses adopted resolutions to the act created by Patrick Henry. These resolutions stated that parliament did not have the right to tax the colonies unfairly and that the colonists could only be taxed by taxes approved by their House of Burgesses. The Virginia House of Burgesses was dissolved due to the Governors disapproval of the resolutions.
Historical Figures
- Patrick Henry
- Francis Fauquier
Significance
This act was one of many that infuriated the colonists against Britain and sparked rebellion that led to the American Revolution. These acts made colonists believe that they were being taxes without being represented and so the whole system was unjust and unfair. This mindset brought on by the acts imposed by the parliament is the same mindset that drove the Revolutionary War and thus the Stamp act was a key part of the antecedent to the war.
Artifact
Sources
"A Summary of the 1765 Stamp Act." Colonial Williamsburg. The Colonial Williamsburg Foundation, n.d. Web. 8 Nov. 2015.
"Stamp Act." History.com. A&E Television Networks, n.d. Web. 08 Nov. 2015.
"The Stamp Act, 1765." The Stamp Act, 1765. THE GILDER LEHRMAN INSTITUTE OF AMERICAN HISTORY, n.d. Web. 08 Nov. 2015.
Links
http://www.history.org/history/teaching/tchcrsta.cfm
http://www.history.com/topics/american-revolution/stamp-act
https://www.gilderlehrman.org/history-by-era/road-revolution/resources/stamp-act-1765
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