The Townshend Acts were four laws passed by the British Parliament in 1767 imposing and enforcing the collection of taxes on the American colonies. Having no representation in Parliament, the American colonists saw the acts as an abuse of power. When the colonists resisted, Britain sent troops to collect the taxes, further heightening the tensions that led to the American Revolutionary War.
The Townshend Acts
To help pay its massive debts from the Seven Years’ War (1756–1763), the British Parliament—at the advice of Charles Townshend, the Chancellor of the British Exchequer—voted to levy new taxes on the American colonies. Known as the French and Indian War in the United States, the Seven Years’ War had involved virtually every great power of Europe and spanned the entire globe. While it ended French influence in North America east of the Mississippi River, the war also left the British monarchy facing massive debt. Since parts of the war had been fought in North America and British forces had protected the American Colonies from attack, the British Crown expected the colonists to pay a share of the debt. Britain also needed additional revenue to fund the administration of its growing efforts toward global imperialism. Before the French and Indian War, the British government had been hesitant to tax its American Colonies.
Read Full Article »
