Was The Boston Massacre Really a Massacre?

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On March 5, 1770, an event occurred in Boston, which consisted of British troops shooting upon colonists. People refer to this as a massacre, but they only look at one side of the story. The Boston Massacre in 1770 was not really a massacre, but a mutual riot (Boston Massacre History Society). British soldiers went to America to keep the people of Boston in order. However, the soldier's presence there was not welcomed by the Bostonians and this made things worse (Boston Massacre History Society). The British had to fire their guns because the Bostonians were antagonizing the soldiers, which caused five people to die. The Bostonians made the soldiers feel threatened so in turn they acted in self-defense. The British soldiers and their Captain had to go through a trial, to prove they were not to blame for what had occurred. The Boston Massacre came about because the British troops came into town and tried to enforce the Townshend Act, which placed a tax on tea, paper, glass and some other products from England (History.com). The people of Boston hated this idea and rapidly started to rebel. At this point people believed that the British were the first to start the confrontation, but they were wrong. The colonists started the riot. The colonists started throwing things at the soldiers, such as snowballs, sticks and rocks (Rebecca Beatrice Brooks). The leader of the British, Captain Thomas Preston, gave an order to his soldiers not to fire, but his words were not clear and all the soldiers fired into the crowd. (The Coming of the American Revolution). There were five recorded deaths. One of the people that died was a man of black or Indian race named Crispus Attacks (History.com). The British troops arrived in Bosto... ... middle of paper ... ....com. A&E Television Networks, n.d. Web. 24 Apr. 2014. "Boston Massacre Historical Society." Boston Massacre Historical Society. N.p., n.d. Web. 02 Apr. 2014. "The Boston Massacre." Ushistory.org. Independence Hall Association, n.d. Web. 02 Apr. 2014. Brooks, Rebecca B. "The Boston Massacre." History of Massachusetts. N.p., 10 Nov. 2011. Web. 22 Apr. 2014. DiCanio, Teddi. "Boston Massacre Trials; 1770." Great American Trials. 2002. Encyclopedia.com 2 Apr. 2014. "History of Massachusetts." History of Massachusetts. N.p., n.d. Web. 02 Apr. 2014. Kelly, Martin. "The Boston Massacre - American Revolution and the Boston Massacre." About.com American History. N.p., n.d. Web. 22 Apr. 2014. Linder, Doug. "An Account of the Boston Massacre of 1770 and Subsequent Trials." An Account of the Boston Massacre of 1770 and Subsequent Trials. N.p., 2001. Web. 26 Apr. 2014.

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