Final answer:
The Sugar Act of 1764 was a British law that revised duties on imports to the American colonies and expanded the jurisdiction of vice admiralty courts. It aimed to curb smuggling and raise revenue following the Seven Years War, but was controversial for infringing upon the rights of colonists, contributing to rising tensions that led to the American Revolution.
Step-by-step explanation:
The Sugar Act of 1764, also known as the Revenue Act, was a significant piece of legislation imposed by the British Parliament on the American colonies. It revised duties on imports such as sugar, coffee, tea, and wine. The act reduced the duty on imported molasses from six pence per gallon to three, which was intended to discourage smuggling and encourage colonists to buy molasses from British territories instead of the French West Indies.
Notably, the Sugar Act expanded the jurisdiction of vice admiralty courts, which handled matters of maritime law without juries. This alteration was controversial as it was seen by some colonists as a violation of their rights as Englishmen, namely the right to a trial by jury. Colonists like James Otis argued that acts like the Sugar Act deprived them of their essential rights as British subjects, including the right to assess their own taxes. Despite lowering the tariff on sugar, the act increased enforcement of imperial laws and ended the profitable sugar and slave trade with non-British West Indies, leading to increased tension between the colonies and Great Britain.
The impetus behind the Sugar Act was to raise revenue following the Seven Years' War, but many colonists saw it as an unjust taxation imposed without their consent, further straining the relationship between Britain and the American colonies and setting the stage for future acts like the Stamp Act and the Townshend Duties, and eventually the American Revolution.