What was the Townshend Act of 1767?
Townshend Acts. To help pay the expenses involved in governing the American colonies, Parliament passed the Townshend Acts, which initiated taxes on glass, lead, paint, paper, and tea.
Who introduced the Townshend Act?
Charles Townshend
Charles Townshend, Chancellor of the Exchequer, sponsored the Townshend Acts. He believed that the Townshend Acts would assert British authority over the colonies as well as increase revenue. Townshend went further by appointing an American Board of Customs Commissioners.
What was the main purpose of the Townshend Act?
The Townshend Acts would use the revenue raised by the duties to pay the salaries of colonial governors and judges, ensuring the loyalty of America’s governmental officials to the British Crown.
What was the aim of the Townshend Acts?
Overview. The Townshend Acts, passed in 1767 and 1768, were designed to raise revenue for the British Empire by taxing its North American colonies. They were met with widespread protest in the colonies, especially among merchants in Boston.
What was the main reason for the Townshend Acts?
Townshend Acts, 1767, originated by Charles Townshend and passed by the English Parliament shortly after the repeal of the Stamp Act. They were designed to collect revenue from the colonists in America by putting customs duties on imports of glass, lead, paints, paper, and tea.
Why did the Townshend Acts anger the colonists?
Because colonists had opposed the direct tax imposed by the Stamp Act, Townshend erroneously believed they would accept the indirect taxes, called duties, contained in the new measures. These new taxes further fueled the anger regarding the injustice of taxation without representation.
Why was the Townshend Act unfair?
The Americans thought the Townshend act was unfair because they were not represented in the British Parliament so they could not get a vote or a say in the voting. From June 15 – July 2, 1767.
What was the outcome of the Townshend Act?
It lowered commercial duties on tea imported to England by the East India Company and gave the company a refund of the duty for tea that was then exported to the colonies. Compensating for the loss of revenue brought about by the Indemnity Act was another reason for the imposition of the Townshend duties.
Why was the Townshend Act repealed?
The Townshend Acts were repealed in 1770 because of the reaction the colonists had. They boycotted British goods and rioted. The British government sent in troops, leading to the Boston Massacre in 1770, where five colonists were killed by British soldiers as the soldiers tried to quell a riot.
How did the Townshend Acts end?
In March 1770, most of the taxes from the Townshend Acts were repealed by Parliament under Frederick, Lord North. However, the import duty on tea was retained in order to demonstrate to the colonists that Parliament held the sovereign authority to tax its colonies, in accordance with the Declaratory Act 1766.
Why did the Townshend Act anger the colonists?
Why was the Townshend Act important?
The Townshend Acts would use the revenue raised by the duties to pay the salaries of colonial governors and judges, ensuring the loyalty of America’s governmental officials to the British Crown. However, these policies prompted colonists to take action by boycotting British goods.
What happened as a result of the Townshend Acts?
The resentment over the Townshend Acts divided American colonists into patriots and loyalists. The subsequent boycotts and protests forced the British government to send and quarter more troops in American cities like Philadelphia, New York and Boston.