The Colonies and Britain Grow Apart

During the French and Indian War, the British began cracking down on Massachusetts smugglers.

In 1761, the royal governor of Massachusetts authorized the writs of assistance, which allowed the British soldiers to search any ship or building. Because many merchants worked out of their residencies, this allowed the British to search their homes. The merchants of Boston were outraged.

After the war the British sent 10,000 troops to the territories to control Native Americans and the former French subjects.

This was meant to protect the colonies, but the colonists saw this as might against them. Sending these troops cost Britain money, this added to their debt from the war, which had already doubled their national debt.

To lower the debt, King George III hired a financial expert, George Grenville, as Prime Minister in 1763.

Grenville outraged the merchants when he prompted Parliament to enact a law known as the Sugar Act in 1764.

The Sugar Act did three things:

1. It lowered the duty on foreign made Molasses by half (so colonists would not find it profitable to smuggle)

2. It placed duties on certain imports.

3. It strengthened the enforcement of the law for smuggling cases to be held in vice-admiralty court rather than sympathetic colonial court.

This made the colonists angry