An independence referendum was held in Liberia on 27 October 1846. The result was 52% in favour, with independence being declared on 26 July 1847. The American Colonization Society (ACS) had established the colony of Liberia in 1817, with an appointed governor. The British did not acknowledge Liberian customs as the colony was not independent, and during the mid-19th century there were continuous clashes between Liberian government and British merchants from Sierra Leone over payment of taxes, with the merchants arguing that the country had no right to impose taxes. Following independence, a constitution that had been agreed on 26 July 1847 was approved in a referendum in September. Background In the United States, there was a movement to resettle free-born blacks and freed slaves, in Africa, believing blacks would face better chances for freedom in Africa than in the United States where their rights were still restricted. The American Colonization Society (ACS) was founded in 1816 in Washington, D.C. for this purpose, by a group of prominent politicians and slaveowners. Most African-Americans, who were native-born by this time, wanted to work toward justice in the United States rather than emigrate. The ACS, supported by prominent American politicians such as Abraham Lincoln, Henry Clay, and James Monroe, believed repatriation of free African-Americans was preferable to widespread emancipation of slaves. Similar state-based organizations established colonies in Mississippi-in-Africa and the Republic of Maryland, which were later annexed by Liberia. Colonizationists used their position to influence other former slaves to return to Africa. These individuals believed that "they could create their own version of the United States beyond the borders of a white republic." In 1822, the ACS began sending African-American volunteers to the Pepper Coast to establish a colony for African-Americans. By 1867, the ACS (and state-related chapters) had assisted in the migration of more than 13,000 African-Americans to Liberia. These free African-Americans and their descendants married within their community and came to identify as Americo-Liberians. Many were of mixed race and educated in American culture; they did not identify with the indigenous natives of the tribes they encountered. They intermarried largely within the colonial community, developing an ethnic group that had a cultural tradition infused with American notions of political republicanism and Protestant Christianity. They knew nothing of the indigenous cultures, languages or animist religion. Encounters with tribal Africans in the bush often developed into violent confrontations. The colonial settlements were