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The American Revolution
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But for colonists, it didn’t matter how a tax was structured. In their
view, no tax was legal unless approved by their own representatives. Other
provisions of the new laws also inflamed the colonists. The vice-admiralty
courts were especially troubling. Like taxation without representation,
the courts violated a basic right guaranteed by England’s constitution:
the right of citizens accused of a crime to a trial by jury.
Rising Tensions
In February 1768, the Massachusetts assembly approved a letter to be sent
to other colonial assemblies. The “circular letter” laid out objections to
the Townshend Acts. It suggested that the colonial legislatures consider
unified action.
That suggestion made British officials nervous. The Massachusetts
assembly was ordered to retract its circular letter. The assembly refused.
The governor of Massachusetts promptly dissolved the assembly.
Tensions simmered. In June, a British warship sent to Boston seized
the merchant vessel
Liberty
on suspicion of smuggling. The
Liberty
was
owned by one of the Massachusetts colony’s most prominent citizens,
John Hancock. Its seizure sparked a massive riot on Boston’s waterfront.
Britain’s secretary of state for the colonies, Lord Hillsborough, responded
to the unrest by dispatching several thousand British soldiers to Boston.
The
redcoats
began arriving on October 1, 1768.
Throughout the 13 colonies, some people refused to buy British products
as a way to protest the Townshend Acts. Merchants in port cities such as
Boston, Philadelphia, and Charleston signed non-importation agreements.
They pledged to stop ordering goods from Great Britain.
As a result of the
boycotts
, British trade with the colonies plummeted.
British manufacturers and merchants felt the pinch. Some grumbled that
Parliament should reconsider its policies. By early 1770, Great Britain
had a new prime minister, Frederick North, who agreed. Lord North
convinced Parliament to repeal all the Townshend duties except the one