Two acts passed by the British Parliament on British North America include the Stamp Act and the Townshend Act, which caused the Boston Massacre. These two acts are the most significant acts passed by the British Parliament as they played a pivotal role in the American Revolution. The Stamp Act and the Townshend Act were turning points in North America’s quest for independence. The Stamp Act was passed to help the British government replenish its finances and pay off war debt after the seven years of war with France, which was costly and led to severe financial losses (Skalenko, 2020). Furthermore, part of the revenue from the Stamp Act was purposed to support the British army to ensure peace between the colonists and the Native Americans.
The Stamp Act required the colonists to pay for a seal or official stamp whenever they bought paper items. However, the effects of this Act did not favor the British government as the Act outraged the American colonies, who immediately protested against it and established a secret society known as the Sons of Liberty (Skalenko, 2020). The Townshend Act caused the Boston Massacre, which infuriated the colonists. The Boston Massacre had a negative effect on the British as it had a major impact on their relationship with American colonists, which resulted in riots and tension between the British soldiers and the colonists (Brown, 2020). This roused the American colonists, who were already wary of British rule to fight for independence.
The Declaration of Independence was fundamental to the development of the American Revolution as it contained the grievances the American Colonists had against the British king. It also outlined the arguments used by the colonists as to why they wanted to be free of British rule (Corbett et al., 2015). The declaration also stated crucial ideals such as equality and liberty and analyzed the American colonists’ motivations for independence.
References
Brown, K. E. (2020). Remembering the Boston Massacre Trials at 250: John Adams and the Common-Law Tradition. Social Education, 84(2), 83-88. Web.
P. Scott Corbett, V. J. (2017). U.S. History. Samurai Media Limited.
Skalenko, N. (2020). William Livingston and the Stamp Act Crisis of 1765. The Macksey Journal, 1(1), 21902. Web.