Sugar Act

Sugar Act

The Sugar Act, also known as the American Revenue Act or the American Duties Act, was a revenue-raising act passed by the Parliament of Great Britain on April 5, 1764. The preamble to the act stated, "it is expedient that new provisions and regulations should be established for improving the revenue of this Kingdom...and...it is just and necessary that a revenue should be raised...for defraying the expenses of defending, protecting, and securing the same." The Act is often viewed as a major trigger of the American Revolution.

Background

The Sugar Act was one of a series of measures by the British government in the wake of the Seven Years' War and its North American theater, the French and Indian War. The British had long regulated the colonial trade through a system of restrictions and duties on imports and exports. The Sugar Act was intended to correct the trade imbalance between Britain and its colonies.

Provisions of the Act

The Sugar Act reduced the rate of tax on molasses from six pence to three pence per gallon, while Grenada, Dominica, and St. Vincent (the "sugar islands") were added to the list of enumerated commodities that could be shipped to the northern colonies. The Act also listed more foreign goods to be taxed including wines, coffee, cambric, and printed calico, and it regulated the export of lumber and iron.

Impact and Reaction

The Sugar Act was met with resistance in the colonies, contributing to the growing American movement towards revolution. The Act was significant because it was the first tax levied on the colonies by the British Parliament specifically intended to raise revenue, rather than regulate trade. The economic burden of the Act fell mostly on the shoulders of the colonial merchants and the distillers of rum.

Repeal and Legacy

The Sugar Act was repealed in 1766 as part of a series of concessions to the colonies by the British government. The issues of taxation and representation raised by the Sugar Act spurred the colonists towards revolution and were a major cause of the American Revolutionary War.