Some, such as Samuel Adams, began to call for independence because Parliament had exceeded its authority. Meanwhile, Americans increasingly imported goods illegally which caused British merchants and manufacturers to lose business. When the Stamp Act was to be officially implemented, on November 1, 1765, all stamp agents sent over from England had been intimidated into resigning their posts. Street mobs, calling themselves the Sons of Liberty, destroyed royal offices in Massachusetts and New York. Representatives from nine colonies drafted a petition calling for the repeal of the Stamp Act. Firstly, the Stamp Act was the first attempt to directly tax the colonies, and while the Sugar Act of 1764 had put tariffs on Molasses imports - the Stamp Act. In 1765, the Massachusetts General Court organized opposition to the Stamp Act. Opposition to the Stamp Act was universal. Many believed the troops were sent over to suppress freedoms Americans had enjoyed. Colonists wondered why troops were being sent to America after the French and Indian War. The bill was passed on February 17, approved by the Lords on March 8th, and two weeks later ordered in effect by the King. A motion was offered to first read petitions from the Virginia colony and others was denied. On March 24th, Parliament passed the Quartering Act which required Americans to provide housing and provisions to British soldiers. The Stamp Act On February 6th, 1765 George Grenville rose in Parliament to offer the fifty-five resolutions of his Stamp Bill. The Stamp Act required Americans to purchase tax stamps for any printed documents including newspapers, legal documents, marriage licenses and more. To make matters worse, Parliament passed the Stamp Act on March 22, 1765. American colonists argued that they should not be subjected to taxes unless they had elected representatives in Parliament. To raise the money, the Stamp Act of 1765 imposed taxes on almanacs, legal documents, newspapers, playing cards in fact, every kind of printed paper. For the first time, as the Virginia House of Burgesses asserted, the famous words, “no taxation without representation” were uttered. American colonists were enraged by the Sugar Act because they did not think they should be taxed in the same way British residents were. Unlike previous taxes, this tax was enforced and accused smugglers were prosecuted. The Sugar Act imposed new duties (taxes) on American commodities such as sugar, molasses, textiles, coffee and indigo.
Parliament enacted the Sugar Act in 1764. In fact, Prime Minister William Pitt nearly bankrupted Parliament to pay for fighting a war overseas.
The French and Indian War proved extremely expensive.