This we apprehend annihilates our Charter Rights to govern and tax ourselves.”
– Samuel Adams, on the Sugar Act, 1764
”To Thomas Hutchinson he was the “Grand Incendiary.” Others have dubbed him the “Father of the American Revolution.” Samuel Adams came to prominence during the Stamp Tax crisis.
Samuel Adams by John Singleton Copley
Adams is dressed simply befitting his democratic values and Puritan ancestry. He points to the 1691 province charter. Adams alleged many British violations of the charter particularly its provisions for taxation. He also holds instructions from Boston Town Meeting to its delegation in the General Court. The original charter is on display in the Commonwealth Museum Treasures Gallery.
- Museum of Fine Arts, Boston
Samuel Adams
He preferred to be called Samuel, or Mr. Adams, not the more diminutive “Sam.” Yes, he inherited a malt business but Adams was no businessman. Th at is not to say that he was impractical. He had a genius for organization and propaganda. Adams craft ed arguments to appeal to each segment of the population and developed innovative methods to spread his message from Boston, to other Massachusetts towns, to the thirteen American colonies, and London itself.
A Theory of the Case
Most people did not like taxes but Samuel Adams put the issue into a moral context. “Taxation without representation”
was not merely unpleasant but a denial
of self-government. People who had no
role in making decisions for themselves
were reduced to the status of slaves.
Adams saw that British eff orts to stop
dissent would further erode rights.
Admiralty courts in Halifax – trying
violations of the Sugar and Stamp Acts –
undermined the tradition of trial by jury.
Royal governors dismissed unruly legislatures elected by the people. Adams
predicted that British troops would be
called in one day.
Taxachusetts?
In the seventeenth century Massachusetts had the highest taxes among the American colonies. An interest in education was one reason. In a world historic experiment, the Puritan government mandated the establishment of public schools. People approved taxes through town meeting or through representatives elected to the “General Court.”
- Commonwealth Museum Treasures Gallery