The Sugar Act, also called the The American Revenue Act of 1764, extended a tax on sugar and molasses that was not being paid by American merchants to the British government. This tax extended to other items including fabric, coffee, and wine. To enforce the tax the British sent more of the Royal Navy to America. The merchants in American resisted and this became one of the reasons for the American Revolution. At the time the British tried to enforce the extension of The Sugar Act, the American colonies were already experiencing an economic downturn. One aspect of The Sugar Act was that Americans were not allowed to produce paper money. American merchants purchased more abroad than they sold abroad, so they were already in the grip of a trade imbalance. Because they could not pay with American currency, they had to buy things with British pounds sterling. The Sugar Act presents the British point of view that the American colonists are subjects of Great Britain and as such as expected to abide by British laws and dictates. They present the tax as necessary, and consider it is fair because the colonists are protected by the British Navy and other British military regiments. The wording in the British Sugar Act mentions fraud repeatedly, and is accusatory. The British were aware that the American colonists do not want to pay taxed and import export fees. This document is putting the colonists on notice that the fraud, which has occurred in the past, will no longer be tolerated. The complaint the colonists issued in response to The Sugar Act was "Our Trade Is Most Grieviously Embarrassed.” This was intended to make the British understand the hardships imposed by The Sugar Act. This document, written from the American point of view, accuses Great Britain of neglect. Additionally, it asserts that British merchants have received a lot of revenue because of colonial trade. The colonists claim that this system has been beneficial to both American colonists and the British, therefore it should not be altered. The Sugar Act and all it entails, according to the colonists, will disrupt the profitable trade of sugar products and other trade. Additionally, it will unsettle seaports and shipping. The colonists’ perspective is that the increased British naval presence in the colonies that aims to enforce the Sugar Act is a threat to use military force against civilians. While it is understandable that Great Britain needed to raise money and sought to do so by taxing the American colonies, the use of the Royal Navy to enforce collection was wrong and guaranteed to cause rancor. As the colonists point out, using the military to threaten civilians is disgraceful. It is unfair to assault non-military residents in order to collect taxes and enforce laws. This leads to corrupt practices by the military and the threat of martial law. Soldiers and warriors are the only legitimate targets for military aggression, and then only if they are attacking or threatening to attack. Confronted with violence it is not surprising that the colonists reacted with a grievance and eventually retaliated with violence. The Sugar Act put the American colonists on notice that they needed to prepare to defend themselves. The Sugar Act made them aware that danger was coming in the form of the British military, as a result they prepared for Revolution.
Works Cited
Massachusetts Historical Society. “The Sugar Act.” 2008. Internet Resource. <masshist.org/revolution/sugar.php>
