Sugar Act Definition

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Sugar Act
The Parliament of Great Britain passed The Sugar Act on April 5, 1764. It was created so that they could collect revenue from the British colonies and from America. Imported sugar and molasses were taxed. This negatively affected New England’s rum production.
Sugar Act Definition (h2)
In the 1700s it was highly lucrative to manufacture rum and this would mean great profits for Britain via taxation. Consequently they decided to create the Sugar Act and enforce it in their colonies. Sugar is used to make molasses and in turn, molasses is used to make rum. Sugar is grown on the West Indian sugar plantations. The Molasses Act has it is known, was entrenched in The Navigation Act of 1733. Therefore the significance of the Sugar Act is that it tapped into an area of great earnings and significant growth at that time. Purpose of the Sugar Act (h2) The purpose of the Sugar Act was to get the people in America and the other British colonies, to buy their sugar from Britain; as a result they created unfair sugar taxes and policies on West Indian sugar aimed at the Americas. The effects of the Sugar Act made sugar from that area more expensive. Nonetheless, this law was not fully supported or enforced. Due to the Salutary Neglect, another British policy, many officials ignored it and the trade violations. With increased British military controls, the British government was able to lower the sugar taxes thresholds from six pence to three pence per gallon.
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British admiralty courts were established and a judge ruled over all presiding concerning trade violations. These cases were no longer escalated to the colonial courts. During this time a lot of traders who previously existed, now because violators of the law. Therefore the hidden purpose of the Sugar Act was to shut down any other trade routes outside of those for the British maritime trade. That meant trade routes from the Spanish, the French and the Dutch colonies to New England. Any violators saw their goods seized and the full arm of the law at their backs. Bribery was prevalent during this time; so too was intimidation and corruption has many people did all they can to extricate themselves from this unfair sugar taxes and practices, which was laid out by Britain. England wanted to dominate the trade market, as a result they also taxed other food and beverages like cambric, …show more content…
The term American Revenue Act can also be used interchanging for the Sugar Act or the American Duties Act. During 1607-1763, the Salutary Neglect was an English policy that existed. It allowed many violations of the sugar laws, whether through smuggling or bribing customs officials.
There was much resentment on the side of the colonists in the West Indies and America. They had huge financial disadvantages, because of the Sugar Act. Many agreed that the effect of the Sugar Act was detrimental to all the colonies. Revolts and uprisings occurred as the seeds of dissension were sown and widespread. In terms of the colonist’s reaction to the Sugar Act, Colonial America was on the brink of revolt, but the sugar laws were more heavily enforced in the West Indies and more meticulously imposed. Eventually America got their independence from British rule after Declaration of Independence from Great Britain and American Revolutionary War

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