The British Parliament passed the Stamp Act affecting the American colonies in 1765.
The law required many printed materials in the colonies to carry a tax stamp. Newspapers, legal documents, licenses, pamphlets, playing cards, and other paper products were among the materials affected. It was the first direct internal tax imposed by Parliament on the American colonies.
Colonial opponents objected that they were being taxed by a legislature in which they had no elected representatives. Protest groups such as the Sons of Liberty organized demonstrations, and colonial assemblies issued formal objections. The slogan “no taxation without representation” became closely associated with this resistance.
Parliament repealed the Stamp Act in 1766, but it simultaneously passed the Declaratory Act, asserting its authority to legislate for the colonies. The controversy therefore ended one tax dispute without resolving the larger constitutional conflict that later contributed to independence.