Townshend Acts
Anna S and Selase B
Description
After passing the Stamp Act and then repealing it, Charley Townshend came to control the British ministry. In 1767 Parliament passed the Townshend Acts, proposed by Charley Townshend. These new regulations taxed things like glass, paper, tea, etc., although less direct than the Stamp Act. It had been hoped that the more indirect way of collecting the taxes, which were to be paid at ports, but the very idea of being taxed angered to the Americans. The money collected from these taxes was to be used to pay the royal governors and judges in America. Feeling constricted by the pesky taxes and frustrated that their money was being used to pay those they disliked, they started to resist. They started smuggling tea and reestablishing non-importation agreements. In 1768 the British brought troops over to the colonies. Overall, the Townshend acts were very unsuccessful, as they didn’t collect any significant amount of money. They were later repealed, although the tax on tea was kept.
Significance
The passing of the Townshend Acts was one of the many causes for the Revolution. England sent soldiers to the colonies to enforce thee Acts. This angered the colonists because it restricted their freedom, and was one of the causes of the Boston Massacre. The acts provided the colonists with something to unite against, as well as set up the basis for the future Tea Act.
Citations
Kennedy, David M., Lizabeth Cohen, and Thomas Andrew Bailey. The American pageant: a history of the American people. 12th ed. Boston: Wadsworth Cengage Learning, 2010. Print.
"Townshend Acts." History.com. A&E Television Networks, n.d. Web. 15 Sept. 2014. <http://www.history.com/topics/american-revolution/townshend-acts>.