Living With the Redcoats: Anglo-American Response to the Quartering Acts, 1756-1776

Abstract

The purpose of this paper is to explore the nature and language of Anglo-American opposition to quartering from the start of the French and Indian War in 1756 to the Revolutionary War in 1776. This paper will also attempt to demonstrate the shifting focus of Anglo-American arguments against the quartering of troops over these two decades. Quartering of troops in private homes and defraying the cost of quartering were the prevalent concerns of Anglo-Americans during the French and Indian War. Then, the Quartering Act of 1765 significantly changed the perception of Anglo-Americans toward quartering of troops as a matter of illegal taxation. Lastly, the unfolding events in 1768 and onwards, in Boston, marked a turning point as the fear of a standing army in peace time redefined Anglo-American opposition to the quartering of redcoats. The significance of Anglo-American opposition to the Quartering Acts paled in comparison to other colonial grievances that stemmed from taxation issues, but it was important enough to finds its place in the Declaration of the Independence and in the Third Amendment of the federal constitution.