Digital Learning Commons: American Revolution: No Taxation Without Representation

Resources

The Earliest Appearance of “No Taxation without Representation” (so far)
Historian J.L. Bell investigates the origin of the revolutionary rallying cry, "No Taxation without representation."

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Bell, J.L. “The Earliest Appearance of "No Taxation without Representation" (so far).” Boston 1775, 23 Dec. 2012, boston1775.blogspot.com/2012/12/the-earliest-appearance-of-no-taxation.html.
On The Day: “No taxation without representation!”
Blog entry from the National Constitution Center about the 1765 Sales Tax and its ramifications on the colonies, leading, in part, to the American Revolution.

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NCC Staff. “Https://Constitutioncenter.org/Blog/250-Years-Ago-Today-No-Taxation-without-Representation/.” National Constitution Center, 7 Oct. 2016, constitutioncenter.org/blog/250-years-ago-today-no-taxation-without-representation/.
The Townshend Acts
Overview of a series of acts, known as The Townshend Acts, and their effect on the colonists.

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“The Townshend Acts.” Boston Tea Party Ships and Museum, www.bostonteapartyship.com/the-townshend-acts.
What we get wrong about taxes and the American Revolution
“No taxation without representation” — the rallying cry of the American Revolution — gives the impression that taxation was the principal irritant between Britain and its American colonies. But, in fact, taxes in the colonies were much lower than taxes in Britain. The central grievance of the colonists was their lack of a voice in the government that ruled them.

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Deaderick, Jen. “What we get wrong about taxes and the American Revolution.” Making Sen$e, Public Broadcasting Service, 26 Dec. 2016, www.pbs.org/newshour/making-sense/what-we-get-wrong-about-taxes-american-revolution/.

Primary Sources

The Sugar Act, 1764
Full-text of King George III's Sugar Act on the American Colonies.
The Stamp Act, 1765
Full-text of King George III's Stamp Act on the American Colonies.

Highly Recommended | Primary Source | Multimedia

Infographic | Digital Maine Library | College Level

Dig deeper and search the Digital Maine Library databases for the names and vocabulary below.

Benjamin Franklin	Samuel Adams	John Hancock
James Otis, Jr.	Charles Townshend	Sir Francis Bernard
King George III	Sons of Liberty	Sugar Act
Stamp Act	The Malcolm Affair	Declaratory Act
Townshend Acts	Tar and Feathering	Writs of Assistance

Databases

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Podcasts

Revolutions - The Stamp Act
After the French and Indian War, the British Ministry started levying new taxes on the colonies. The colonists were not amused.

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Duncan, Mike. “The Stamp Act.” Revolutions, 16 Feb. 2014, www.revolutionspodcast.com/2014/02/018-the-stamp-act.html.
Revolutions - The Townshend Acts
After the failure of the Stamp Act, Parliament passed a new set of taxes known as the Townshend Acts. The colonists continued to not be amused.

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Duncan, Mike. “The Townshend Acts.” Revolutions, 23 Feb. 2014, www.revolutionspodcast.com/2014/02/019-the-townshend-acts.html.
The Stamp Act, Sons of Liberty & British Troops in Boston (25 minutes)
The American Revolution didn't happen overnight, nor did it happen without the help of "radical" freedom fighters like the Sons of Liberty, but how exactly did it start and why were the colonists angry enough to rebel against one of the largest world powers of the time?

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“The Stamp Act, Sons of Liberty & British Troops in Boston.” American Military History, 4 July 2015, https://www.stitcher.com/show/american-military-history-podcast/episode/the-stamp-act-sons-of-liberty-british-troops-in-boston-40849191.

Highly Recommended