Writers and Editors War Tax Protest

Tax resistance, the practice of refusing to pay taxes that are considered unjust, has probably existed ever since rulers began imposing taxes on their subjects. It has been suggested that tax resistance played a significant role in the collapse of several empires, including the Egyptian, Roman, Spanish, and Aztec.

Many rebellions and revolutions have been prompted by resentment of taxation or had tax refusal as a component. Examples of historic events that originated as tax revolts include the Magna Carta, the American Revolution, and the French Revolution.

This page is a partial list of global tax revolts and tax resistance actions that have come to the attention of Wikipedia's editors. This includes actions in which a person or people refused to pay a tax of some sort, either through passive resistance or by actively obstructing the collecting authorities, and actions in which people boycotted some taxed good or activity or engaged in a strike to reduce or eliminate the tax due.

Examples

Before 1500 A.D.

Jewish Zealots, 1st century A.D.

In the 1st century AD, Jewish Zealots in Judaea resisted the poll tax instituted by the Roman Empire. Jesus was accused of promoting tax resistance prior to his torture and execution ("We found this fellow perverting the nation, and forbidding to give tribute to Cæsar, saying that he himself is Christ a King" — Luke 23:2). After the destruction of the temple in Jerusalem in 70 AD, Jews, particularly those exiled to Egypt, refused to pay the still-extant "temple tax" to Rome (which it was using to maintain pagan temples); Rome responded by destroying Jewish temples.

Limoges, 578

In 578 AD residents of Limoges, encouraged by the local clergy, rioted, destroying tax-collecting paraphernalia and threatening the assessor. The government responded harshly, with punishments including torture and crucifixion, though Queen Fredegund later was said to have repented and rescinded the tax.

Peace and Truce of God

In councils organized by the Peace and Truce of God movement, Christian clergy resisted the exaction of taxes against church property by warlords.

Danegeld, 1041

In 1041, residents of Worcester rebelled against the Danegeld being collected by King Harthacnut, and killed two of his tax collectors. Harthacnut responded by burning Worcester to the ground.

Constantinople, 1197

When Alexios III Angelos tried to tax residents of Constantinople in order to come up with money to pay protection money to Henry VI, the people of Constantinople refused to pay, and Alexios was reduced to trying to collect the sum by stripping the ornaments from old tombs.

Florence, 1289

A war tax instituted by the Florentine seigniory in 1288 and increased in 1289 led to mass tax resistance that forced the government to abandon the tax.

Clericis laicos, 1296

In 1296, Pope Boniface VIII issued the clericis laicos, which prohibited secular governments from taxing churches without the permission of the Pope, and prohibited church officials from paying such taxes. Archbishop Robert Winchelsey used this as the basis for his refusal to pay taxes to Edward I of England, and urged the clergy under his direction to do likewise.

Norman anti-tax riots, 1348–51

In Normandy in June 1348, tax resisters attacked the tax collectors of King Philip VI, "pillaging and burning their houses." In August 1351, citizens of Rouen rioted, "destroying 'the counters, boxes, and other objects necessary to make and operate' collection of" a new tax instituted by John II. In 1355, Geoffroy of Harcourt urged residents of Rouen to refuse to pay the hearth tax and allied with Charles the Bad against John II′s taxes.

Wat Tyler′s rebellion, 1381

In 1381, the Peasant's Revolt occurred in England, when Wat Tyler led an uprising over a new poll tax. Tyler marched an army of tens of thousands of peasants from Kent to Canterbury, then to London, beheaded the archbishop, and exacted radical concessions from King Richard II. During the negotiations, Tyler was killed by officers of the King and was publicly beheaded, and Richard II retracted all of the concessions that he had previously made.

French aides uprisings, 1381

In 1381 there was widespread tax rebellion in France.

In Rouen workers in the textile trade gathered in the Old Market, chose one of their own to represent the king, and had this mock king sign acts abolishing the ''aides''. In Paris the collectors′ threat to seize a greengrocer′s still on the Right Bank roused local residents to assemble, shout "Down with taxes!" and chase off the tax collectors.... The rebellion then spread to Caen, where opposition was especially virulent in Amiens. It moved through Orleans and on to Sens, finally reaching Lyons...

Bundschuh movement

The Bundschuh movement was in part a tax resistance movement that encouraged its followers to stop paying tithes to the Catholic Church and taxes. In France, a tithe-payer strike spread from 1529 to 1560 among both Catholics and Protestants.

Flemish revolt against Maximilian of Austria, 1488

The guilds of Bruges (supported by the other Flemish cities) held later emperor Maximilian captive when he heavily disturbed the economy by raising taxes and seigniorage in order to wage war. They negotiated better terms and then released him. He then reneged on the agreement and took his armies back to Bruges in revenge. Bruges lost its administrative functions to the city of Ghent.

16th century

Revolt of the Comuneros, 1520

In Spain, the people of Salamanca in 1520 refused to pay any taxes because of their belief that Charles I was sending the tax money to the Netherlands. They were joined by other towns, which eventually formed the Revolt of the Comuneros.

Amicable Grant revolt in England, 1525

Under the leadership of his chief minister Thomas Wolsey, England's King Henry VIII repeatedly raised taxes and imposed forced loans in the 1520s to pay for his large-scale wars in Europe. Finally the call for an "Amicable Grant" of non-repayable loans in 1525 went too far. Parliament had not voted it, and the English landed and financial elites refused to pay. Passive resistance was widespread and England was on the verge of violent resistance when the program was hurriedly ended. Lack of money ended Henry's plans for an invasion of France, and he took England out of the war with the Treaty of the More on 30 August 1525.

German Peasants′ War, 1524–25

The German Peasants' War of 1524–25 was in part a tax resistance campaign. The rebels vowed to set their own tithes, and said:

The small tithes, whether ecclesiastical