On October 19, 1765, Congress drafted the Declaration of Rights and
Grievances to protect British colonists from unconstitutional taxes.
LEARNING OBJECTIVE [ edit ]
Differentiate between the Declaration of Rights and Grievances and the Virginia Resolves
KEY POINTS [ edit ]
The Stamp Act stirred activity among colonial representatives to denounce what they saw as the
disregard of colonial rights by the Crown.
In Virginia, the Virginia Resolves claimed that in accordance with long established British law,
Virginia was subject to taxation only by a parliamentary assembly to which Virginians themselves
elected representatives.
The institutionalized rejection of taxation by the colonists was formed during the Stamp Act
Congress and by the Virginia Resolves.
TERMS [ edit ]
Declaration of Rights and Grievances
The Declaration of Rights and Grievances was a document created and passed October 19, 1765 by
the Stamp Act Congress, declaring that taxes imposed on British colonists without their formal
consent were unconstitutional.
Virginia Resolves
The Virginia Resolves were a series of resolutions passed by the Virginia House of Burgesses in
response to the Stamp Act of 1765.
Stamp Act Congress
The Stamp Act Congress, or First Congress of the American Colonies, was a meeting held between
October 7 and 25, 1765 in New York City, consisting of representatives from some of the British
colonies in North America; it was the first gathering of elected representatives from several of the
American colonies to devise a unified protest against new British taxation.
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Declaration of Rights and Grievances
The Stamp Act stirred activity among colonial representatives to denounce what they saw as
the disregard of colonial rights by the Crown. To protect the rights of colonists, delegates of
the Stamp Act Congress drafted the Declaration of Rights and Grievances, declaring that
taxes imposed on British colonists without their formal consent were unconstitutional. This
was especially directed at the Stamp Act, which required that documents, newspapers, and
playing cards to be printed on special stamped and taxed paper. The Declaration of Rights
raised fourteen points of colonial protest.
In addition to the specific protests of the Stamp Act taxes, it asserted that
Portrait of James Otis Jr.
James Otis was a leading delegate at the Stamp Act Congress.
1. only the colonial assemblies had a right to tax thecolonies (no taxation without
representation),
2. trial by jury was a right,
3. the use of Admiralty Courts was abusive,
4. colonists possessed all the Rights of Englishmen, and
5. without voting rights, Parliament could not represent the colonists.
The Virginia Resolves
In Virginia, a series of resolutions were passed by the VirginiaHouse of Burgesses in
response to the Stamp Act of 1765. The Stamp Act had been passed by the British Parliament
to help pay off some of the debt from its various wars, including the French and Indian War
fought in part to protect the American colonies. The resolves claimed that, in accordance
with long established British law, Virginia was subject to taxation only by a parliamentary
assembly to which Virginians themselves elected representatives. Since no colonial
representatives were elected to the Parliament, the only assembly legally allowed to raise
taxes would be the Virginia General Assembly.
A direct result of the publishing of the Virginia Resolves was a growing public anger over the
Stamp Act. According to several contemporary sources, the Resolves were responsible for
inciting the Stamp Act Riots. Governor Thomas Hutchinson of Massachusetts stated that
"Nothing extravagant appeared in the papers till an account was received of the Virginia
Resolves". Later, Edmund Burke linked the resolves with the beginning of the opposition to
the Stamp Act that would contribute to the American Revolution.
Virginia Resolves
Peter F. Rothermel's "Patrick Henry Before the Virginia House of Burgesses", a painting of Patrick
Henry's "If this be treason, make the most of it! " speech against the Stamp Act of 1765.