No Obedience is Due: The Suffolk Resolves of 1774
“No obedience is due from this province to either or any part of the acts above-mentioned, but that they be rejected as the attempts of a wicked administration to enslave America.”
Today in history – September 9, 1774 – from the Suffolk Resolves, drafted by Revolutionary war hero Joseph Warren.
In a series of statements supporting natural rights and a duty to resist violations of the Constitution and the provincial charter, Warren and his colleagues provided a blueprint for responding to the most powerful empire on Earth.
- Declared the Coercive Acts unconstitutional “gross infractions.”
- Held that “no obedience is due” to those acts, and they “may be rejected as the attempt of a wicked administration to enslave America.”
- Called for people to disregard the courts, because they were considered to be under undue influence and were acting as “unconstitutional officers.”
- Urged Sheriffs to stop enforcing the British acts – and called on the people to “support, and bear harmless” all sheriffs and other official who “refuse to carry into execution the orders of said courts”
- Urged people to resolve disputes amicably. And in cases where no resolution was found – to submit to free-market alternatives such as arbitration.
- Recommended tax resistance – until the government was returned to a constitutional foundation.
- Called for a replacement of all militia officers to ensure they were loyal to liberty and the people, rather than the empire.
- Recommended that the people train more regularly and build up the local militia.
- Demanded resignations of government agents and called for a boycott of British goods.
It was a comprehensive rejection of British power – and a practical blueprint for advancing liberty.
The Road to September 9, 1774
For months, Massachusetts had been the center of a growing constitutional crisis. In retaliation for the Boston Tea Party, Parliament passed a series of punitive laws in early 1774, known as the “Coercive Acts” – what many today refer to as the “Intolerable Acts.” These included:
- The Boston Port Act, shutting down Boston Harbor.
- The Massachusetts Government Act, stripping nearly all authority from the colonial legislature.
- The Administration of Justice Act, stripping authority from local courts and authorizing trials to be held in Great Britain instead of Massachusetts.
- The Quartering Act, allowing British troops to take over private buildings.
These measures directly attacked colonial self-government. To resist, patriots relied on the committees of correspondence – first established by Samuel Adams in 1772 – to coordinate action across Massachusetts.
Meanwhile, General Thomas Gage, commander of British forces, believed the way to keep peace was to disarm the colonists. On September 1, his troops seized gunpowder from a Charlestown storehouse. Rumors of war spread instantly, and as many as 20,000 militiamen mobilized. Although no blood was shed, the incident proved that the people were ready – and that further action was necessary.
The Suffolk County Convention was initially scheduled for August 18 but postponed until early September to ensure broader participation. When delegates convened on September 6, Joseph Warren – already known as an influential patriot writer and ally of Samuel Adams – introduced his draft of the Resolves.
Three days later, they were approved unanimously.
From Suffolk to Philadelphia
In one of his lesser-known – but incredibly important – rides, Paul Revere took the passed Suffolk Resolves to Philadelphia, where the First Continental Congress was meeting.
At that point, there was a strong split between the radicals and moderates, but after Revere’s news of the revolution already underway in Massachusetts, the scales were tilted and even moderates like Joseph Galloway were moved in favor.
The next day, September 17, in its first official act, the Congress unanimously endorsed the Suffolk Resolves, word for word.
John Adams recorded in his diary, “This was one of the happiest days of my life. This day convinced me that America will support Massachusetts or perish with her.”
Silas Deane of Connecticut told his wife the Resolves were “applauded to the skies by the Inhabitants of this City.”
In the weeks that followed, other Massachusetts counties adopted similar resolutions, reinforcing this message of noncompliance and resistance. What began as a declaration from one county quickly became the united position of all the colonies.
The Lesson
The Suffolk Resolves were more than words. They declared that unconstitutional acts deserved no obedience, and they provided a real-world strategy of resistance – from noncompliance and tax resistance to boycotts, arbitration, militia readiness, and more.
While the Resolves were local in nature – just one county at first – they had a huge influence.
The reason the Suffolk Resolves are so noteworthy is because they basically declared, at least in Massachusetts, that the war for independence had begun.
With the Declaration and Resolves of the First Continental Congress and the Continental Association which were both passed the following month, the people of Suffolk County knew they weren’t alone.
From non-compliance and tax resistance, to sheriffs refusing to enforce, ignoring the courts, and so much more – we have so much to learn today about how a free people claim their rights rather than waiting for government to do the right thing.
Latest posts by Michael Boldin (see all)