Daniel Shays was a man that fought to protect his views. During the American Revolution, he fought to break away from Britain. He believed that Britain was taking unfair advantage of the colonies with taxes, forced housing of Redcoat soldiers, among other things. After the war, Daniel Shays fought again to protect his views. The Massachusetts government was deep in debt due to the cost of the Revolution. The legislature passed a hefty tax to pay the debt. Daniel Shays believed that the tax was an unfair burden to the farmers in the west. Therefore, in September of 1786, Daniel Shays and his followers tried to prevent the state from imposing the tax. They tried to seize the Springfield arsenal to get weapons for their cause. However, the militia stopped Shays' Rebellion.