The Sugar Act of 1764 was the first of these acts. It imposed a tax on sugar and other imported goods. The Stamp Act of 1765 was even more unpopular. It required colonists to purchase stamps for all sorts of documents, including legal papers, newspapers, and playing cards. The Declaratory Act of 1766 stated that Parliament had the right to make laws for the colonies "in all cases whatsoever." The Townshend Acts of 1767 imposed taxes on a wide variety of goods imported into the colonies.
These acts were all highly unpopular with the colonists. The colonists argued that they had the right to tax themselves, and that the British Parliament had no authority to impose taxes on them. They also argued that the taxes were unfair, because they were levied on goods that were essential to the colonists' daily lives.
The resistance to these acts led to the Boston Massacre in 1770 and the Boston Tea Party in 1773. These events further inflamed tensions between the British and the colonists, and they ultimately led to the American Revolution.
The American Revolution was a war fought between the British and the American colonists from 1775 to 1783. The war ended with the signing of the Treaty of Paris, which recognized the United States of America as an independent country.