Stamp Act 1765

March 22nd, 1765. News spread like wildfire after the colonists heard that the British Parliament had issued a new tax on the American people. Initially passed on February 17th, 1765, the Stamp Tax was not given Royal Assent, or made an official law by the passing of the British Parliament, until March 22nd, 1765. The Stamp Act was put into place by Britain shortly after The Seven Years’ War: a battle between the British and the French over land. After the bitter war left Britain in crippling debt, Parliament needed to find ways to regain financial stability in their country. They hoped that placing a tax on official documents in the American colonies would eventually produce enough revenue to pay off their war debts. Although the Stamp Act
They could not start riots yet, as the tax was not going to commence until November 1st, 1765. Every colony had stamp officers, so the colonists found a way to begin rebelling without breaking the law. They decided to go to each of the stamp officers and stress the importance of doing away with the Stamp Act. If the officers refused, the colonists would mob them until they forcefully surrendered. Riots soon began and spread all throughout the colonies: Boston, Pennsylvania, Virginia, and many of the others. Some colonists hated the idea of the Stamp Act so much they even disrespected their lieutenant-governor and destroyed his household items. These acts were all in advance to the taxing. Once the Stamp Act began, it was a lot worse than one could ever
A colonial agent was an official representative arising out of whatever colony they were from. One specific colonial agent, Benjamin Franklin, decided that this ruckus was not needed in the colonies. He spoke in front of the House of Commons, along with many other British merchants, to say that if anymore of the behavior that was occurring continued, the thirteen colonies would basically be the thirteen colonies of chaos. Since the colonists were infuriated about the Stamp Act and became so rebellious, the British were not trading as well as they had before the tax was put on. After the House of Commons realized that the Stamp Act had done them no good, it was repealed in February 1766. Although the Stamp Act had finally passed, the American colonists were still unsure of Britain’s mindset. The colonists were still upset that Britain could tax them without representation. The British thought that since they repealed the Stamp Act, the colonists would retreat and everything would go back to the way it was, however this was not the case. The colonists held to their belief that it was not right to be taxed without having a say. This conflict eventually led up to the Revolutionary War, or the American War of