The Differing Perspectives of the Patriots and Loyalists Essay

The stamp act was the first tax ever to be imposed on a domestic product. The stamp act was literally a “stamp” that was placed on all goods made of paper. Everything that was paper including newspapers and anything else that was published, all documents, and even playing cards were required to be stamped. Any paper products with this stamp were subject to taxation. The stamp act caused a large uproar among the colonists. Soon, anyone selling products with stamps on them became the victims of fear mongering. Groups of thugs would break the knee caps of anyone they saw selling stamped products in an attempt to end the sale of stamped items. In addition, these groups of thugs would physically harm anyone who they thought to be an employee of the British government, thus making British government employment a very undesirable occupation. The colonists complained persistently to the British about the stamp act, and when the British did not respond, the colonists accused Britain of being oppressive and taking advantage of

The years of 1763-1765 were truly defining moments for colonist of the colonies, soon to become the United States of America. ‘’War! War! This is the only way!” American Colonist shouted,as they took to the streets proclaiming defiance of British rule. “We as a people shall fight for our freedom and have victory.No more shall we continue to let others control our countries and give our money to a monarch who has no concern for our right’s, dedication that was put forth to help fight and respect us as loyal subjects.We must fight for our freedom!” When American colonist waged war it proved to be the only way for the colonies to become free from Britian. In turn, the colonist were justified in breaking away from England because of: The

These stamps were required on bills of sale for trade items, and on various types of commercial and legal documents, anything from playing cards to diplomas to marriage licenses. Grenville claimed that the Stamp act was needed in order to help defray the cost of keeping British troops stationed in the colonies in order to protect them. To the colonists this was an invalid answer, because the French were out of North America, and they no longer needed protection. Instead, this Act was viewed as a tax solely to make money for England: "A right to impose an internal tax on the colonies, without their consent for the single purpose of revenue, is denied..." (Document B). Also, anyone that disobeyed these laws was tried in the admiralty courts, were juries were not allows, and you were guilty until proven innocent. In response, the colonists formed the Stamp Act Congress, in which the members drew up a statement of the rights and grievances of the colonists to send to the king, however it was ignored by England. Instead, they started a steady boycott of British goods. It is after this that the colonists realized that they were being used by England, and began their cry of "no taxation without representation!" Parliament had thought that it was making easy money off of the colonies; instead it had started the fire of rebellion burning, and the Stamp Act was soon repealed.

The Stamp Act was an important act introduced by the British Prime Minister George Grenville that was then passed in March 1765 by the British Parliament. The purpose was to raise money for national debt of Britain after the Seven Years War and Parliament needed means to help fund expensive costs of keeping troops inside the colonies. The act levied a tax on legal documents, almanacs, newspapers, and nearly every other form of paper used in the colonies. The British Government felt that the colonies were the primary reason of the military presence and should pay a portion of the expense. The American colonies did not take kindly to this matter.

The revolutionary movement divided the colonies into Patriots and Loyalists. Loyalists were colonists loyal to the British, while the Patriots were in support of the American Revolution. The Patriots began boycotting goods imported from Great Britain, and substituting them with homemade goods and cheap inferior goods. The merchants in the colonies were frustrated and could not sell their goods. Both Britain and the merchants lost profits due to this change. The importation of British goods was later banned in the American colonies. Merchants were being forced to sign documents denying the importation of British goods. Merchants whom refused to sign these documents were sent to the gallows to be tarred and feathered. Additionally, Loyalists were coerced by the patriots into supporting the American Revolution or they would be lynched in the gallows. Some loyalists who refused ran away with their families to Great Britain for fear of being killed. Such actions of people in the colonies frustrated the British and led to the Revolutionary war.

Most were outraged and spoke out against the injustice such as in the speech by Patrick Henry when he states, “We can under law be taxed only by our representatives. We have no representatives in the British Parliament...The Stamp Act is against the law. We must not obey it...King George is a tyrant” (Document 1). Speeches like this inspired the patriots to rise up and take action against the law. Many smuggled goods such as newspapers and letters while others made propaganda against the British. Colonists began protesting publicly and called much attention to the problem facing the colonies which the British did not like at all. The colonists showed so much revolt against the tax that the British Parliament repealed it only a year after it was passed. That battle had been won by the colonists but the war was yet to

The American colonists reacted with a secret organization called the Sons of Liberty who were supposed to intimidate the agents who collected the taxes. The colonists then made the Stamp Act Congress, who passed a document that claimed all American colonists are equal to all other British citizens. They thought it was unfair since they didn’t have a place in the British Parliament and protested “no taxation without representation!”

The Stamp Act was passed by the British Parliament on March 22,1765. It was a taxation on any piece of paper like, legal documents, playing cards, newspapers, etc, and once payed it got a stamp put on it. The reason for the act was to help pay the debt of the Seven Years’ War (French and Indian War). This act affected all the colonists from the wealthy to the poor. What affected the colonists the most was that they had to pay in silver coins and silver was very difficult to find in the colonies. Like the Sugar Act many colonist protested violently and nonviolently. One violent protest was “harassing” tax collectors by destroying their homes and threatening them. A nonviolent protest was boycotting British goods hoping for the act to be repealed.

When James Otis said “No Taxation without Representation”, the thirteen colonies followed. His idea led to one of the most significant revolutions of all time. The taxation started with the Navigation Acts that eventually led to Stamp Act, then the Intolerable Acts. British Parliament taxed the colonies without a personal embodiment and as the Parliament continued taxing the colonies, they resisted and this resistance led to the American Revolutionary War. The continuous taxation of the colonies affected the way that the majority of the colonists felt about the British and about King George III. There were many laws thrust upon the colonists and some include the Molasses Act of 1733, the Sugar Act of 1764, the Stamp Act, the Townshend Acts,

To the people of England, this act was one of the significant act as the Parliament had been collecting tax money from the colonists for everything. Moreover, the colonists are required to put tax stamps on many documents such as newspapers and letters. But the colonists did not want this act to happen as they had to pay more tax which must be in the British currency. “The act was passed by parliament on March 22, 1765 and it became effective on November 1, 1765” (Tindall and Shi, 193). This act came to practice to assists the troops of England and for keeping American frontier safe. This act was not a practical act because the colonist had curiosity in parliament only to eradicate stamp act.

The Stamp Act affected everyone by placing taxes on every printed document. This included newspapers, almanacs, pamphlets, deeds, wills and licenses. Britain was receiving ten times more from the colonies, and America took notice. It was an obvious attempt by England to get money from them without their approval. This made them feel hopeless until Patrick Henry spoke out on May 1765, to the House of Burgesses. Henry claimed that Americans had equal rights as the British, such as the right to be taxed by their own representative; Virginia shouldn't have to pay any taxes not given by the Virginia Assembly, and anyone who opposed the (soon called), Virginia Resolves was an enemy to the

The stamp act was a tax put on American colonies by Britain.The tax was placed on all sort of printed materials including newspapers,magazines,and legal documents.It was called the stamp act because American colonists were supposed to buy paper from Britain that had a stamp on it to show that they had paid the tax.The money from the taxes was used to be used to help pay the costs of defending and protecting the American frontier near the Appalachian Mountains.Colonist thought that the tax was to help raise money for Britain.Colonist did not want to pay something that won't benefit them but will benefit Britain.

On February 17, 1765, the Stamp Act was inaugurated by the Parliament of Great Britain. The Parliament thought it was requisite to pass the Stamp Act due to debts from the French and Indian War, or the Seven Years’ War; Britain had a national debt of 140,000,000 British pounds after the war was concluded. Consequently, the British Parliament passed the Stamp Act, which got many of the colonists agitated. The reason being was because they stated that they had no voice in the government, and this is often phrased as “No taxation without representation.” Furthermore, the Stamp Act declared nearly all paper goods which were printed in the colonies to be taxed; except for books, any printed document, such as the newspaper, legal documents, licenses,

On March 22, 1765, the Stamp Act was established by the British Parliament. In this act all of the American Colonists were taxed. They were taxed on every single piece of printed paper that they used. For example, legal documents, Ship’s papers, licenses, newspapers, other publications and even playing cards. The money that was collected helped pay the costs of defending and protecting the American frontier. The American frontier was located in the Appalachian Mountains with over 10,000 troops. Unlike other Acts, the Stamp Act cost very little. Previously when people were taxed to control mass trading, not to raise revenue The Stamp Act on the other hand was very offensive to the colonist because instead of controlling trade,

Upon hearing of the colonists treason, King George III had stated “Many of these unhappy people may still retain their loyalty, and may be too wise not to see the fatal consequence of this usurpation, and wish to resist it, yet the torrent of violence has been strong enough to compel their acquiescence, till a sufficient force shall appear to support them.”