King George: What Was His Problem?

Following the Seven Years’ War with France, Britain, burdened by debt, sought to recover its financial losses by taxing the American colonies, beginning with the Stamp Act introduced by British Prime Minister George Grenville. Despite warnings, King George III, only 22 at the time, underestimated the colonies’ adverse reaction; they opposed “taxation without representation.”

In Boston, Samuel Adams and his group, the Sons of Liberty, led a strategic resistance against the Stamp Act by preventing stamp distribution. This group of instigators used civil disobedience, including threats and violence, to intimidate Loyalists and challenge the British government. Their tactics included the public hanging and burning of effigies, like that of stamp agent Andrew Oliver. In doing so, the Sons of Liberty intimidated Oliver, forcing him to publicly resign, after hanging a puppet of him from the Liberty Tree. The Stamp Act’s unpopularity forced King George III to reluctantly repeal it, briefly mending relations. In response, the colonies erected a statue in his honor in New York.

Despite previous resistance, the British government persisted in taxing Americans, leading to the introduction of the Townshend Acts in 1767, which imposed taxes on essential imports like paint, glass, tea, and paper.