The Stamp Act, Part 1 | The Shot Heard ’Round the World

The British Parliament imposed the first direct tax on the colonists with the Stamp Act in 1765. The act required payment of a tax on each use of parchment or vellum, such as licenses, publications, and legal papers. Colonists had to purchase a special stamp to comply with the law. Colonists opposed the act, and in Virginia, Patrick Henry presented the House of Burgesses with a list of seven resolves that argued taxes could not be imposed on colonists except by persons chosen to represent them: no taxation without representation. 

As students watch the video, they consider to what extent “taxation without representation” was a significant catalyst for the desire for American freedom.