Four Acts, sponsored by Lord Charles Townshend, and passed by the British parliament to raise customs revenues from the north American colonists to pay for the costs of British military defence and British administration. Duties were imposed on lead, glass, paint, paper and tea. British colonies had until this time raised local taxes for the support of their local assemblies, so the Townshend Acts were seen as part of an attempt by the British crown to make the colonists pay for an administration which would be administered according to London interests. The Acts also insured that colonial officials, including governors and judges, would receive their salaries directly from the Crown. Finally, a new army of custom officials was created t…

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Citation: Editors, Litencyc. "Townshend Acts". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 01 February 2010 [https://staging.litencyc.com/php/stopics.php?rec=true&UID=4188, accessed 23 November 2024.]