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These were a series of laws that the English Parliment set on the American Colonist. They were to sell all raw materials to England, even though they could get better prices elsewhere in Europe -
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The Declaratory Act of 1766 was passed by the British Parliament to assert its full authority to make laws and tax the American colonies "in all cases whatsoever". It was enacted at the same time Parliament repealed the unpopular Stamp Act, but while colonists celebrated the repeal, the Declaratory Act was a significant power play that heightened tensions and set the stage for future conflicts. -
The Townshend Acts, passed in 1767, were a series of British laws that imposed duties on goods like glass, lead, paint, paper, and tea imported into the American colonies. The acts aimed to raise revenue to pay for British officials' salaries and assert parliamentary authority, but they led to significant colonial protests and boycotts, contributing to the growing tensions that eventually led to the American Revolution. -
The Boston Massacre was a deadly 1770 confrontation in which British soldiers fired into a hostile crowd in Boston, killing five colonists and wounding six others. This incident, which occurred amid escalating tensions between colonists and the British army, significantly increased anti-British sentiment and was a pivotal event that propelled the colonies closer to revolution. -
The Intolerable Acts, also known as the Coercive Acts, were a series of laws passed by the British Parliament in 1774 to punish Massachusetts for the Boston Tea Party. They closed Boston's port, stripped Massachusetts of its self-governance, and required colonists to house British soldiers, which fueled colonial outrage and pushed the colonies closer to revolution. The acts were seen by the colonists as a severe overreach of British authority and a direct attack on their liberties. -
The Quartering Act of 1774 allowed British officials to house soldiers in unoccupied buildings, such as inns, public houses, and other structures, when barracks were insufficient. Passed as part of the Coercive Acts, the act also required that officers and soldiers be quartered as the governors directed. While it expanded the government's ability to house troops, it did not require them to be housed in occupied private homes. -
The Administration of Justice Act of 1774 allowed British officials accused of capital crimes in Massachusetts to be tried in another colony or Great Britain, as a response to the Boston Tea Party. Colonists nicknamed it the "Murder Act" because they feared it would allow British soldiers and officials to act with impunity and evade punishment for crimes committed against them. The act was one of the Intolerable Acts, designed to punish Massachusetts and assert British authority. -
The Quebec Act of 1774 was a British law that granted a large territory, now parts of the Canadian Prairies and Midwest, to the province of Quebec. It guaranteed religious freedom for Roman Catholics, restored French civil law, and created a governor and council to govern the territory without an elected assembly. The act aimed to secure the loyalty of the French-speaking population and was a major point of contention for the American colonies, which saw it as a threat to their own expansion.