What was the background of the protests in 1765
Great Britain fought France in North America and won in 1763. It cost a lot of money to take soldiers and ships from Britain to America. And Britain wanted to keep these soldiers in America permanently, so that required more money.
British Parliament decided to impose taxes on the American colonies in order to provide this money. The American colonists had parliaments of their own and thought that the British Parliament, at the other side of the ocean, had no right to tax them. So when the British Parliament passed the Stamp Act in 1765, the American colonies rose up in protests.
The Stamp Act was an Act passed by the British Parliament in 1765. According to this Act, if anyone in the American colonies wanted to print an important document, he had to do so on a stamped paper.
This special stamp paper was published in Britain and cost more than normal paper. In other words, if anyone wanted to print something, he had to pay a tax to Britain. This included the printing of newspapers, magazines and all kinds of legal documents such as marriage licenses and insurance policies.
The Stamp Act passed by the British Parliament was the main cause of the protests. The Americans believed that the tax imposed through Stamp Act was unjust. They also believed that there was no need to keep so many British soldiers in America and that if they must stay, Britain should pay them out of its own money. Finally, the tax was implemented by the British Parliament in London.
The Americans believed that the British Parliament had no right to tax them and rather, their own legislatures reserved the rights to impose any taxes on the American colonies. American newspapers, magazines, parliaments, politicians and common people from all fields joined this protest.
Most American colonies passed resolutions in their legislatures clearly opposing the Stamp Act. American newspapers and magazines also vigorously opposed the new tax.
People on the streets protested more violently. They organized demonstrations and refused to do any business until the Act was repealed, and in many states, threatened the stamp distributors into resignation.
In some states, the angry mobs vandalized the homes and offices of the British officials, including the local governors. The American people were so angry over the unjust Act that they united in their protests.
This was the first time most of the American colonies had come together so comprehensively on an important matters. And this unity would ultimately lead to American Revolution and Independence.
The Stamp Act became impossible to be implemented in American colonies due to the angry reaction. Stamp distributors resigned their positions and stopped selling stamps.
Americans boycotted the British goods which impacted British merchants and incurred them losses. Ultimately, the British Parliament was forced to repeal the Act in 1766. The Americans realized that they could voice their opinions about their rights and force the British Parliament to listen to their demands.
