On August 26, 1765, a Boston mob violently attacked the residence of Thomas Hutchinson, Massachusetts’s Chief Justice, spurred by the controversial Stamp Act. Hutchinson, an opponent of the Stamp Act in private, was rumored to support it, exacerbating public outrage. The crowd, led by Ebenezer Mackintosh, a local shoemaker and war veteran, looted and nearly destroyed Hutchinson’s home. This incident, the authors argue, highlighted the deep-seated colonial resistance against British taxation and governance, signaling the beginning of widespread political and social upheaval across the Atlantic, known as the Age of Revolution.

This period was marked by the rallying cry of “Liberty” and involved significant challenges to traditional authority. The authors argue this rallying cry laid the groundwork for various independence movements and redefined the concept of liberty in the emerging nations. The riot, the authors also argue, underscored what they see as the unpredictable nature of revolution, revealing local grievances that extended beyond mere opposition to British policy, pointing toward broader conflicts over the distribution of power and rights within society.

The Crisis Begins

The era leading up to the American Revolution began with King George III’s ascent to the British throne in 1760. The aftermath of the Seven Years’ War left Britain in substantial debt and with a vast empire to manage.