The Boston Tea Party

753 Words2 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Puritans on salem witch trials

“Boston had been the ringleader in all the riots, and had at all times shown a desire for seeing the laws of Great Britain attempted in vain in the colony of Massachusetts Bay,” European leader Lord North said as he heard news of what happened at Massachusetts Bay, which later came to be called the Boston Tea Party, an event in which angry colonists threw British tea over the harbor in protest of British rule and their harsh taxes on their goods (Luke 53).
The events before and after the Boston Tea Party, such as the vandalism of British property, the Boston massacre, and the colonists’ rebellious organizations were a major influence to the American Revolution because they were signs of revolt in the colonies, because they angered Britain, and because they united the colonies.
When the British signed the Tea Act onto the colonies, the rebellious organizations, the vandalism of British property, and the Boston Tea Party were signs of uprising in the colonies. Patriots feathered and tarred British officers, and they attacked British officers with insults, rock, eggs, and snowballs (Krull 28, 29 and 31).
After the British signed the Quartering Act, anger filled the colonists: The British were taxing goods without the colonists’ input. “No taxation without representation,” became a common slogan for the colonists (Lukes 10). Stephen Johnson, an angry colonist, said, “Why not tax us for the light of the sun, the air we breathe and the ground we are buried in?” (Lukes 35).
When the Quartering Act came into place, colonists obviously felt deprived of rights (Lukes 35). They were also enraged by the Boston Massacre, a bloody event in which jumpy, British officers killed five colonists (Krull 34).
Some colonists went to extreme measu...

... middle of paper ...

...re Loyalists, men who were loyal to Britain, but most were Patriots or Radicalists (Lukes 55).
In conclusion, the Boston Tea Party, the Boston Massacre, and the Sons of Liberty are a key reason the colonists declared war and began the American Revolution. The events caused the American Revolution because they were acts of rebellion, the British reacted angrily to them, and because it unified the colonies.

Works Cited

Kindig, Thomas. “The Sons of Liberty.” Independence Hall Association. 4 July 1995.
On-line. Internet. 26. Jan. 2014. Available http:www.ushistory.org/declaration/related/sons.htm.
Knight, James E. Boston Tea Party: Rebellion in the Colonies. New Jersey: Troll Associates, 1982.
Krull, Kathleen. What Was the Boston Tea Party? New York: Grosset and Dunlap, 2013.
Lukes, Bonnie L. The American Revolution. San Diego: Lucent Books, 1996.

Show More
Related

  • Boston Tea Party Dbq

    263 Words  | 1 Pages

    Many people believe that the Boston Tea Party arose just because of the Tea Act that came into play in 1773, but in-fact, this major statement arose from two issues surrounding the British Empire in 1765. The first of the issues was that the British East India Company was at risk of going under and the Parliament was finding ways to bring it back. The second issue was that there was a continuing dispute about the extent of the Parliament’s authority. Many colonists believe that the Parliament went overboard with their power and the people were concerned about the future. Attempting to resolve these two major issues, the North Ministry only worsened the problem and produced a showdown that would eventually result in revolution.

    Read More

  • How Did The Boston Tea Party Lead To The American Revolution

    706 Words  | 2 Pages

    The soldiers were trialed for murdered but were found innocent. Afterwards, a group of men formed named The Sons of Liberty. The Sons of Liberty lead protest in Boston. A key event leading to the revolution was the Boston Tea Party. The Boston Tea Party was a protest lead by the Sons of Liberty. The group of men dumped the imported tea and further eroded the relations with Britain. After the Boston Tea Party, the colonist refused to drink British tea. As stated in Tom Gage’s Proclamation, “Whereas the rebels hereabout, Are stubborn still, and still hold out; Refusing yet to drink their tea, In spite of Parliament and me” Furthermore, the British were becoming annoyed by the colonists actions. Therefore, the British passed the Intolerable Acts. The Intolerable Acts, as the name predicts, made the colonists furious. The British had passed the Intolerable Acts precisely to punish the Massachusetts colonist. The Acts consisted of the Massachusetts Bay closing, until tea was paid for, and a new Quartering Act, The new Quartering Act allowed British Troops to be stationed in private homes if necessary. Also, it gave power to the crown to elect all officials in

    Read More

  • How Did The Tea Act Affect The American Revolution

    856 Words  | 2 Pages

    “The American Revolution was a beginning, not a consummation”. This famous quote by Woodrow Wilson accurately shows how the American Revolution impacted the views of society on its country. When referring to this separation from Britain as a beginning rather than a finish it shows unity and the start of something great. When the American Revolution is discussed there are a plethora of affecting aspects that are thought of as important roles. One of these many factors that changed the American Revolution was the Tea Act of 1773. The Tea Act altered the American Revolution by affecting the Boston Tea Party and the unity in the colonies.

    Read More

  • The British and the American Colonists: Tension Prior to Revolutionary War

    1033 Words  | 3 Pages

    When the colonies were being formed, many colonists came from England to escape the restrictions placed upon them by the crown. Britain had laws for regulating trade and collecting taxes, but they were generally not enforced. The colonists had gotten used to being able to govern themselves. However, Britain sooned changed it’s colonial policy because of the piling debt due to four wars the British got into with the French and the Spanish. The most notable of these, the French and Indian War (or the Seven Years’ War), had immediate effects on the relationship between the colonies and Great Britain, leading to the concept of no taxation without representation becoming the motivating force for the American revolutionary movement and a great symbol for democracy amongst the colonies, as Britain tried to tighten their hold on the colonies through various acts and measures.

    Read More

  • How did King George III lose his 13 American Colonies?

    1032 Words  | 3 Pages

    By this point, the colonists were beginning to question Britain’s motives towards them. They believed they were being treated like slaves and being used solely for the economic growth of Britain. One night, in 1773, the colonists rebelled against these taxes on their tea. A group of men dressed as Native Americans boarded a ship at Boston Harbor and unloaded three vessels of taxed tea (Boston Tea Party). This event, known a...

    Read More

  • Boston Tea Party

    1412 Words  | 3 Pages

    When the Boston Tea Party occurred on the evening of December 16,1773, it was the culmination of many years of bad feeling between the British government and her American colonies. The controversy between the two always seemed to hinge on the taxes, which Great Britain required for the upkeep of the American colonies. Starting in 1765, the Stamp Act was intended by Parliament to provide the funds necessary to keep peace between the American settlers and the Native American population. The Stamp Act was loathed by the American colonists and later repealed by parliament.

    Read More

  • Boston Tea Party Thesis

    507 Words  | 2 Pages

    The Boston Tea Party was not really a tea party. Instead it was a group of people dressed like Indians with axes dumping tea off three ships to protest British taxes. It took place in Boston Harbor, Boston, Massachusetts on December 16, 1773, from 7:00 P.M. to 10:00 P.M.

    Read More

  • Colonial Rebellion

    1044 Words  | 3 Pages

    That day would happen on March 5th 1770. On this evening, a British guard was patrolling a custom house, some colonists began taunting the soldier and soon a crowd of angry colonists arrived. The British officer decided it would be necessary to call in more troops. Later, around eight soldiers arrived to support the guard, by this time the mob grew to about three hundred people. A colonist kicked one of the soldiers down, and the soldier fired upon the crowd. After a short pause, the other British troop fired on the colonists. Thanks to the press and art of Paul Revere, this event is now known as the Boston Massacre. The Boston Tea Party, one of the most famous events of per-revolution America. The British imposed a tax on all tea and this united the colonists in an agreement against the tax. The Sons of Liberty once again mobbed up and threatened the shop owners to not support the tax. Throughout the colonies, agents of the Tea Act were forced to resign. When this didn't seem to be enough, the Sons of Liberty devised a plan at the liberty tree in Boston. On the night of December 16th a group of men dressed as Mohawk Indians, boarded four British ships carrying tea and dumped it all into the harbor. This tea never landed and therefore this tea was never

    Read More

  • Timeline of Events Leading to the American Revolution

    945 Words  | 2 Pages

    1773- Massachusetts patriots dressed as Mohawk Indians protest the British Tea Act by dumping crates of tea into the Boston Harbor. The British Tea Act was when the British increased the taxes on tea that were shipped to the colonies.

    Read More

  • Essay On The Boston Massacre

    1004 Words  | 3 Pages

    The Boston Massacre was a critical point in American history and fueled the American Revolution. It caused the Royal Governor to evacuate the occupying British troops from Boston. The Boston Massacre united the colonies in their fight for independence which, along with continued propaganda, led to the Revolutionary War.

    Read More

  • How Did The Boston Tea Party Occur

    223 Words  | 1 Pages

    The Boston Tea Party was the British colonies angering the King of Britain in order for them to be represented fairly and not be taxed without it. This was the most disrespectful thing the colonies could do because this messed with the British money and messing with the money of any nation gets them to listen. The king established more acts in return for the colonies disloyalty to him and this further progressed the tension between Britain and the colonies.

    Read More

  • Boston Tea Party

    1245 Words  | 3 Pages

    December 16, 1773, an angry group of protesters snuck upon three British ships carrying tea, and threw over 90,000 pounds of tea into the harbor. However this was not the cause of the revolutionary war, it was multiple things that the British government did to the Americans to provoke them to fight back. Many think it was right what they did to the American colonist, but many know it was wrong and some even consider it to be illegal.

    Read More

  • The Causes of the American Revolution

    493 Words  | 1 Pages

    In 1773, the Tea Act placed taxes on tea, threatening the power of the colonies. The colonies, however, fought back by pouring expensive tea into the Boston harbor in an event now known as the Boston Tea Party. The enraged Parliament quickly passed the Intolerable Acts, shutting down the port of Boston and taking control over the colonies.

    Read More

  • The Boston Tea Party Essay

    1309 Words  | 3 Pages

    The Boston Tea Party affects our lives today because it played a key role that led to America’s Independence. Every right and privilege that you and I enjoy is a result of the bravery and determination of the early colonists. One such stand for justice was at Boston Harbor and the effects of the events that happened as a result of that December morning in 1773 were with us every

    Read More

  • Significance And Significance Of The Boston Tea Party

    747 Words  | 2 Pages

    The Boston Tea Party is a major key event in history that we have learned about throughout our years of education. In simple terms, it is when American’s dumped British tea in Boston Harbor which was the outcome of various chaos. Although, not everyone knows the reason why behind it, the importance, and how radical this event was. It was a radical act by the British colony of Massachusetts against the British monarchy, including the East India company that was the main supplier of Tea (The Boston Tea Party). Like a domino effect, with the previous and future events it led us to be what we are today.

    Read More

More about The Boston Tea Party

Open Document