Townshend Acts
1767
What were the Townshend Acts?
- Series of Acts passes by Parliament, which include:
- Revenue Act of 1767
- Indemnity Act
- Commissioners of Customs Act
- Vice Admiralty Court Act
- New York Restraining Act
- Purpose: keep judges and governors loyal to Great Britain by paying them more, regulate trade, punish New York for not following the earlier Quartering Act, and establish that it was acceptable for Parliament to tax the colonists.
How did the Colonists respond?
- opposition became widespread
- John Dickinson published "Letters from a Farmer in Pennsylvania" to declare that the taxes being imposed were unconstitutional.
- The resistance of the colonies called for occupation of Boston by British troops
- Eventually resulted in the Boston Massacre of 1770