British taxes in the Americas began in 1651 starting with the Navigation Acts.
Most of the taxation started because of the war debts of England and the colonists revolts
against the king. The taxes were a way to collect money of goods traded in the Americas
from other countries. Their were several acts passed by the British Parliament to impose
taxes. These acts made colonists angry and caused many disputes. One famous is the
Boston Tea Party incident in Boston Harbor. There many pounds of taxed tea were
tossed into the bay. This was the start of many revolts of colonists against the British.
At first colonists just responded with mixed feelings toward the taxation of goods
coming in to the Americas. Many felt that there should be "no taxation without
representation". The colonists wanted to have a vote in the British Parliament if they were
to be taxed for their goods. This caused bitterness between the colonists and Great
Britain. As result of these tensions rebellions broke out and their were some fatalities.
British Parliament and the king started to worry about a war so they sent more troops to
enforce the taxes and hold back rebellions. This caused more tension and eventually
The first of these Acts passed by Parliament and enforced by the King was the
Navigation Acts of 1651. These Acts stated that:
1. No countries were allowed to trade with the colonies unless the goods
were shipped by colonial or British ships. This was because this offered more jobs for
sailors and made sure the profits went to England.
2. All ships had to have crews that were at least three-quarters English or
colonial. This ensured Britain was keeping the money and that if there were disputes
between countries at that time no one aboard would rebel against the captain.
3. The colonies had to export certain goods to England only. These goods
were: tobacco and sugar and la...