Date
 1650-1700’s
What it did
 It directed the flow of goods between England and
the colonies.
 Colonial merchants who had goods to send to
England could not use foreign ships. Even if those
ships offer cheaper rates.
 They also prevented the colonists from sending
certain products, such as sugar or tobacco, outside
England’s empire.
Colonial Response
 Some colonist ignored
these laws and began
smuggling.
 Controls on trade
would later cause even
more conflict between
the American colonies
and England.
Date
 1763
What it did
 It declared that the Appalachian Mountains
were western boundary for the colonies.
 The proclamation acknowledged that Native
Americans owned the lands on which they were
then residing.
 White settlers in the area were to be removed.
Colonial Response
 Although the end of the
French and Indian War
brought peace for the
first time in many years,
the Proclamation created
friction.
 More conflicts would
soon arise between
Britain and the colonies
in north America
Date
 1765
What it did
 Placed a tax on almost all printed material in
the colonies-everything from newspapers and
pamphlets to wills and playing cards.
 All printed materials had to have a stamp, which
was applied by British officials.
 Because so many items were taxed , it affected
almost everyone in the colonial cities.
Colonial Response
 Patrick Henry
persuaded the Virginia
House of Burgesses to
take action against the
Stamp Act.
 The Sons of liberty
took to the streets to
protest the Stamp Act.
Date
 1765
What it did
 The Sons of Liberty were colonial patriots
fighting for freedom who sometimes hurt and
killed innocent people.
 Some of their tactics were the same as terrorists.
 Not only did the Sons of Liberty oppose the
Stamp Act, they also were involved in causing
rebellion during the Townshend Acts and the
Tea Act
Colonial Response
 People in other cities
also organized Sons of
Liberty groups.
 Throughout the
summer of 1765,
protesters burned
effigies representing
unpopular tax
collectors.
Date
 1765
What it did
 The Stamp Act was Repealed and Parliament
passed the Declaratory Act.
 Which stated that Parliament had the right
to tax the colonies “in all cases whatsoever”.
 They also had the right to make decisions for
the colonies.
Colonial Response
 Although many in
Parliament felt that taxes
were implied in this
clause, some other
Parliament members
and many of the
colonialists did not.
 Many of the colonists
were busy celebrating
their political victory to
notice that the
Declaratory Act.
Date
 1765
What it did
 Parliament passed the Quartering Act to
address the practical concerns of such a
troop deployment.
Colonial Response
 The cost of expenses for an
army was no small matter for
the colonial assemblies. In the
past when an attack by a
foreign power was imminent,
they usually responded with
the necessary appropriations.
 In the mid-1760s most
colonists no longer feared the
French. Many had concluded
that the soldiers were present
for the purpose of assuring
American compliance with
unpopular programs drafted
in England.
Date
 1776
What it did
 Parliament passed a set of laws that taxed
only imported goods.
 The goods, however, included basic itemssuch as glass, tea, paper, and lead-that the
colonists had to import because they did not
produce them.
Colonial Response
 By this time the colonists
were outraged by any taxes
Parliament passed. They
believed that only their
representatives had the
right to levy taxes on them.
 The colonists responded
by bringing back the
boycott that had worked so
well against the Stamp Act.
The boycott proved to be
even more widespread this
time.
Date
 1770
What it did
 A fight broke out between townspeople and soldiers. The
angry townspeople moved through the streets, picking up
any weapons they could find. They pushed forward toward
the customshouse on King Street.
 As the crowd approached, the sentry on duty panicked and
called for help. The crowd responded by throwing things.
“Fire you bloodybacks, you lobsters,” the crowd screamed.
“You dare not fire.”
 After one of the soldiers was knocked down the nervous
and confused redcoat did fire. Several shots rang out,
killing five colonists.
Colonial Response
 Colonial leaders used news
of the killings as
propaganda against the
British.
 Samuel Adams put up
posters describing the
“Boston Massacre” as a
Slaughter of innocent
Americans by bloodthirsty
redcoats. An engraving by
Paul Revere’s powerful
image strengthened antiBritish feelings.
Date
 1773
What it did
 The tea act gave the East India Company the right to ship
tea to the colonies without paying most of the taxes usually
placed on tea. It also allowed the company to bypass
colonial merchants and sell its tea directly to shopkeepers
at a low price.
 On December 16, a group of men disguised as Mohawks
and armed with hatchets marched to the wharves.
 At midnight they boarded the ships and threw 342 chests
of tea overboard. An event that became known as the
Boston Tea Party.
Colonial Response
 Word of this act of
defiance spread
throughout the
colonies.
 Men and women
gathered in the streets
to celebrate the
bravery of the Boston
Sons of Liberty.
Date
 1774
What it did
 The Coercive Acts were very harsh laws intended to
punish the people of Massachusetts for their
resistance.
 They closed the Boston Harbor until the
Massachusetts colonists paid for the ruined tea.
 This Action prevented the arrival of food and other
supplies that normally came by ship. It also took
away certain rights of the Massachusetts colonists.
Colonial Response
 Parliament planned to isolate
Boston with these acts.
Instead the other colonies
sent food and clothing to
demonstrate their support for
Boston.
 The colonists maintained that
the Coercive Acts violated
their right as English citizens.
These including the rights to
no quartering of troops in
private homes and no
standing army in peacetime
without their consent.