Assertion (A) : The Americans refused to pay taxes imposed by the British Parliament during the American War of Independence. Reason (R) : The Americans had no representation .in the British Parliament.

The American War of Independence was significantly driven by colonial opposition to British fiscal policies. Following the Seven Years' War, the British Parliament imposed various taxes, such as the Sugar Act (1764) and the Stamp Act (1765), to alleviate its financial crisis [c1, t1]. The American colonists refused to pay these taxes, arguing that as British subjects, they could only be taxed by their own elected representatives [t5, t7]. Since the colonies had no representation in the British Parliament, they adopted the famous slogan 'no taxation without representation' [c1, t2]. The British government attempted to justify its authority through the concept of 'virtual representation,' but the colonists rejected this, leading to organized protests, boycotts, and eventually armed conflict [t1, t6]. Thus, the lack of representation was the direct justification and reason for the refusal to pay taxes, making the Reason a correct explanation for the Assertion.

Sources

1. [1] History , class XII (Tamilnadu state board 2024 ed.) > Chapter 11: The Age of Revolutions > Taxes on Sugar and Molasses > p. 153
2. [2] https://www.loc.gov/collections/continental-congress-and-constitutional-convention-from-1774-to-1789/articles-and-essays/timeline/1764-to-1765/
3. [3] https://www.investopedia.com/terms/t/tax_without_representation.asp
4. [4] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/No_taxation_without_representation