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TOWNSEND ACT
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measures passed by the British Parliament in 1767, affecting the American colonies. The
acts were named for their sponsor, the British chancellor of the Exchequer Charles Townshend. The first
measure called for the suspension of the New York Assembly, thus penalizing it for not complying with a law,
enacted two years earlier, requiring the colonies to provide adequate quartering of British troops in the New
World. The second measure, called the Revenue Act, imposed customs duties on colonial imports of glass, red
and white lead, paints, paper, and tea. A subsequent legislative act established commissioners in the colonies
to administer the customs services and to make sure the duties were collected.
The Townshend Acts were tremendously unpopular in America. In response to a published criticism of the
measures, the British crown dissolved the Massachusetts legislature in 1768. Subsequently, the Boston
Massacre occurred in March 1770, when British troops fired on American demonstrators. These events brought
the colonies closer to revolution.
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measures
passed by the British
Parliament in 1767, affecting
the American colonies. The
first measure suspended the
New York Assembly for not
complying with a law requiring
the colonies to provid adequate quartering of British
troops in the New World. The
second measure, called the
Revenue Act, imposed
customs duties on colonial
imports of glass, red and
white lead, paints, paper, and
tea. The Townshend Acts
were tremendously unpopular
in America; the colonists
openly criticized the measures
and held demonstrati
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QUARTERING ACTS
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