Made up of shopkeepers, tradesmen, and artisans, they called themselves “the Loyal Nine.” Little is known about them because their illegal operations were carried out in absolute secrecy.
One such group of protesters was founded in Boston. The Bostonians Paying the Excise-man, or Tarring and Feathering, by Philip Dawes | Public domain image, courtesy of Wikimedia Commons People began protesting, both with legislative outlets in colonial government, and with public demonstrations. The 1765 Stamp Act inflamed colonial opposition. The colonists were angry, asserting that, as they had no representation in Parliament when the Act was passed, it violated their rights as English citizens.
The Sons of Liberty was an organization born out of rebellion to the Stamp Act.įollowing the French and Indian War, England sought to alleviate war debts by establishing a tax on the colonies.
