Tighter British Control

Section 1

The Colonists and Britain Grow Apart

• During the French and Indian War, American colonists helped the British defeat the French.

• They thought they had obtained new freedoms.

• Instead, they were given more and more regulations.

Westward Expansion Restricted

• King George III issued many reforms to tighten control over the colonies.

• The first was the Proclamation of 1763.

Westward Expansion Restricted

• The proclamation was meant to maintain peace with the Indians.

• Instead, it angered colonists who hoped to speculate western lands.

• Speculate – buy as an investment

Westward Expansion Restricted

• King George decided to keep 10,000 British troops in the colonies to enforce the proclamation.

• This was expensive.

Westward Expansion Restricted

• Parliament passed the Quartering Act.

• Quartering Act – an act requiring colonists to house British soldiers and give them supplies.

Westward Expansion Restricted

• The colonists feared that Parliament wanted to use the soldiers to control their movement and restrict their freedom.

Parliament Taxes the Colonists

• Britain owed massive debts from the French and Indian War.

• They also needed to pay to protect the American frontier from Indians.

• They needed more income, so they decided to tax the colonists.

Parliament Taxes the Colonists

• 1764 – Parliament passed the Sugar Act, a tax on sugar.

• 1765 – Parliament passed the Stamp Act, a law requiring an official stamp on almost all official documents.

Parliament Taxes the Colonists

• The British thought these taxes were fair.

• The colonists thought:• Parliament had no right to tax

the colonies.

• No tax should be created without their consent.

Colonists Defy Parliament

• The colonists began shouting, “No taxation without representation!”

• Patrick Henry, a member of Virginia’s House of Burgesses called for resistance.

The Colonists Organize

• 1765 – delegates from nine colonies formed the Stamp Act Congress. They sent a complaint to the king.

• This was the first time the colonies united against British policy.

The Colonists Organize

• A secret society called the Sons of Liberty was created to actively oppose the British.

• They attacked customs officials and burned stamps.

• Many customs officials were scared and returned to England.

Colonists Threaten British Profits

• The colonists complaints were bitter and loud.

• The boycott was the most effective form of protest.

Colonists Threaten British Profits

• The boycott was the refusal to buy British goods.

• The tactic worked.

• Even William Pitt sided with the colonists.

Colonists Threaten British Profits

• “The Americans have not acted in all things with prudence and good temper. They have been driven to madness by injustice. Will you punish them for the madness you have caused? My opinion is that the Stamp Act be repealed absolutely, totally, and immediately.”

• - William Pitt

Colonists Threaten British Profits

• Parliament repealed the Stamp Act in 1766.

• The colonists thought they had won…

Colonists Threaten British Profits

• Parliament then passed the Declaratory Act.

• It stated that Parliament had supreme authority to govern the colonies.