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1765, Embossed Revenue Stamped Paper

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Colonial America

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The Hated British American Tax Stamp


1765, Embossed Revenue Stamped Paper, 4d Red, Gem Proof.
Printed on 2.8” x 1.3” thick laid paper. An immaculate printing of a crown, cross arms, and title, “AMERICA,” with “DUTY” on one side and “FOURPENCE” on the other. Scott stamp reference number RM16P. A gorgeous reprint off the original dies example of the type of tax stamp which was intended for use on almanacs.

On March 22, 1765, the English Parliament passed the Stamp Act. All printed materials were taxed and required to bear a stamp: newspapers, pamphlets, bills, legal documents, licenses, almanacs, dice, and playing cards. The cost of the stamps ranged from 1/2 Penny to Ten Pounds, to be paid in silver; it was to go into effect on November 1, 1765.

The American colonists were furious. This was the first direct tax placed on them by the far-away Britain government and they were afraid that this would be just the first of many other taxes. To make matters worse, no one had asked the colonists for their input. King George III felt that he had the right to ask the colonies to bear some of the costs of the French and Indian War, which had been fought between the British and the French from 1754-1763 to decide who would dominate North America. British troops were still stationed in America, and their upkeep was costly; besides, the Americans were the subjects of George III, and he and the British Parliament felt that the colonists should obey and ask no questions.

In the colonies, groups called Sons of Liberty, made up of people who opposed the Stamp Act, were formed in several towns. They burned the stamps and threatened the stamp agents. In Boston, the home of the British-appointed Chief Justice of Massachusetts, Thomas Hutchinson, was burned by a mob, and he and his family barely escaped. On October 7, 1765, nine of the thirteen colonies sent representatives to the Stamp Act Congress in New York City. They passed a resolution to send a petition to King George III and the British Parliament asking them to repeal the Stamp Act. They stated that only the legislatures of the colonies could tax their own residents and that “taxation without representation” violated their civil rights. When the law went into effect on November 1, 1765, the colonists refused to buy the stamps, and business came to a standstill. The road to revolution had begun.

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