The issues of Customs and duties Flashcards
What industry did New England colonies economy rely on? Middle colonies(I.e. Pennsylvania)? Southern colonies?
What Christian group were most settlers?
What was the difference between farm labourers in the colonies & those in England?
Were there many cities? Where did most people live?
Was there a sense of being ‘American’ before the 1770s? What did people belong to?
Was there strong political participation?
What role did Colonial assemblies have?
How did they overstep their position in the 1760s?
-New England colonies were farmed by small farmers and had an extensive fishing industry.
-The Middle colonies like Pennsylvania were important for wheat.
-The Southern colonies were dominated by tobacco and were farmed with slave labour.
-Most settlers were Protestants.
-Most farm labourers owned the land, unlike in England where they rented.
-There were few cities and the ones that did exist were small. Most settlers lived on farms.
-There was no real sense of being American before the 1770s and people belonged to their retrospective colonies.
-YES. The level of political participation was much greater than in Britain. There was a fairly wide franchise electing colonial legislatures who dealt with money bills and public spending. Each colony had a governor.
-Colonial assemblies were meant to raise revenues and create local legislation but had overstepped their position during the 1760s as they petitioned against new taxes.
What treaty following the Seven Years War drove France out of most of North America?
What year was this treaty established?
What would the American territories need to defend itself from French revenge attacks or Native America threats?
How much men did Britain decide was needed permanently?
What was the issue they had for funding this?
What was the colonial view regarding tax? Where did they feel money should be spent?
-The Peace of Paris ended the Seven Years’ War in 1763 and drove France out of most of North America.
-The American territories would need a defence force to repel French revenge attacks and attacks from Native Americans.
-Britain decided that 10,000 men were needed permanently.
-Britain racked up massive debt during the war and felt that the colonists should pay for their own defence.
-The colonial view was that the only way to tax the colonies was through the legislatures and the money should be spent locally, not for the good of the Empire.
What influenced colonist opposition to taxes? What did John Locke argue abour revolution? What rights did he argue every human should have?
Who wrote the pamphlet Common Sense?
When was it released?
What did it convince American’s?
-The colonists’ opposition to the taxes came from enlightenment thought about the contract between rulers and the ruled.
-Locke argued revolution was not just a right but also an obligation at times.
-Locke stated every person must have the right to ‘property, liberty & life.’
-Thomas Paine. 1776
-It convinced American’s that it was the right time to break away from British rule.
Before the King where was initial opposition directed to? Later?
What were agents of the Crown tasked with custom collections faced with as colonists’ position grew?
Which city saw the centre of protests during the 1770s? Why did Americans not take political action?
-Initial opposition was directed at the King’s ministers but then later George himself.
-Agents of the Crown tasked with customs collection faced obstruction more and more as the colonists’ position got stronger and stronger. Many were tarred and feathered.
-Boston.
-Americans were not represented in parliament so could only protest.
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Why was the residence of Custom Officials in America after 1763 highly contested? Where were smugglers now trialed?
What was the Sugar Act of 1764? What did the assemblies do in response?
What was the Quatering Act of 1765? Whose assemblies refused?Why?
How did London respond?
What was the Stamp Act of 1765?
-Customs collected had previously been delegated to relaxed officials who did little to stop smuggling as they had no interest in it. From 1763, customs officials were resident in America.
-Smugglers were also to be tried in naval courts rather than by lenient juries in civilian courts.
-The Sugar Act of 1764 actually halved the duty on imported sugar but brought enforcement of the tariff. The assemblies petitioned London about this law.
-Quatering Act 1765; Colonial assemblies were required to quarter British troops.
-New York’s assemblies refused because army headquarters were stationed there causing the greatest burden.
-Was suspended by London until it complied. Preventing their assembly from taking any political action.
-The Stamp Act 1765; Official documents were to be marked by a revenue stamp. The law was vigorously opposed and the Sons of Liberty organised mob activity in Boston. Britain repealed the act in 1766 but passed the Declaratory Act.
When were the Townshend duties introduced? By Who?
What goods had duties introduced to them because of it?
By 1767 how did Colonists view new tariffs?
What did the Massachusets assembly do in response? How many other assemblies endorsed this?
-The Townshend Duties were named for the British Chancellor who introduced them in 1767.
-Duties were introduced on glass, wine, china, lead, paper and tea.
-The colonists had accepted parliament’s right to regulate trade but by 1767 they saw any new tariff as taxation.
-Massachusetts’ assembly published denunciation and seven others endorsed this.
What happened at the Boston massacre? When was it?
What did colonists do after?
Why did the War of independence not happen following this event?(Townshend duties?) (loyalist population?)
In addition to loyalism what else divided the colonists?
How did the ideas of John Locke add to this? (Property)
Were the Townshend Duties repealed because of the Boston Massacre?
-On 5th March 1770, a small detachment of troops guarding customs House in Boston fired into protestors, Five were killed, including the leader of the protest Crispus Attucks.
-Hundreds gathered to give those who died a proper funeral.
-Despite this, the Boston Massacre did not make war inevitable;
-Britain repealed the Townshend duties last minute.
-20% of the population were loyalist. 1/3 neutrals. 45% were patriots.
-Religious and social class backgrounds.
-John Locke’s idea of rights to property were not relatable for those of a lower class background who were not in ownership of any property.
-NO. These were repealed by chance.
Although Britain repealed the Townshend duties what commodity remained taxed?
Did the Boston Massacre change the fundamental British position of taxing the colonies?
What groups tended to be patriots? Loyalists?
When were the years of calm?
What did the patriots use these years to do?
What was set up in 1771?
-Tea.
-NO. The fundamental British position that the colonists could be taxed hadn’t changed.
-Patriots=The Virginia planter elite
-Loyalists=southern back-country farmers, New York Anglicans, Scots, Dutch and Germans.
-‘Years of calm’ from 1770 to 1773.
-Committees of Correspondence were set up from 1771 and all but two colonies had joined them by February 1774.
