Following the French and Indian War, Britain wanted to control expansion into the western territories. The Stamp Act of 1765 was a tax to help the British pay for the French and Indian War. The British felt they were well justified in charging this tax because the colonies were receiving the benefit of the British troops and needed to help pay for the expense. The colonists didn't feel the same, colonial reaction to the Stamp Act ranged from boycotts of British goods to riots and attacks on the tax collectors.
Many colonists felt that they should not pay these taxes,
because they were passed in England by Parliament, not by their
own colonial governments. They protested, saying that these
taxes violated their rights as British citizens.
