6. Townshend Act

Question 1

Townshend Act and Duties

Answer 1

A new raft of taxes were implemented in another attempt to collect much-needed revenue for the British treasury, known as the Townshend Duties (1767-1768)
* Townshend passed through Parliament resolutions for taxing several articles, such as glass, paint, paper and tea, on their importation into America, which he estimated would produce the (then considerable) sum of £40000 for the English treasury
* Resistance in the colonies re-emerged because of the imposition of these external taxes, which were met by widespread boycotts by the general public and the nonimportation of most British products by traders and merchants.

Question 2

Stading Army Danger

Answer 2

• Large numbers of British Army soldiers and British Navy sailors moved into Boston and New York to police British laws.
• Sons of Liberty strove to discomfort the British troops wherever they could.
• Frequent fights between locals and soldiers
• Low pay for soldiers = increased tensions
• The presence of Britain’s standing army was a crucial factor in the cause and aftermath of the Boston Massacre in 1770, the Coercive Acts in 1774, the Battle of Lexington-Concord in 1775 and subsequent Revolutionary War and the formation of America’s own Continental Army.

Question 3

Circular + Letters from a farmer

Answer 3

• In 1768 Samuel Adams penned the Massachusetts Circular Letter and John Dicki and John Dickinson wrote the first of 12 essays published between 1767 and 1768: Letters from a Farmer.
• Publicly declared the Townshend Duties to be unconstitutional, as the colonists were not directly represented in the British Parliament.
• Parliament had no right to tax them against their consent. The catch cry of the Stamp Act – ‘No taxation without representation’ – re-emerged.
• More British troops were sent to Boston to maintain public order and to enforce compliance with the Townshend Duties.
• Front-line British troops bore the brunt of poor British management and public policy.
• For colonists this was a rationalisation of their fears regarding standing armies and tyranny