The Boston Tea Party was a political protest by the Sons of Liberty in Boston, Massachusetts on December 16, 1773. The citizens of the colonies felt cheated due to the lack of representation in Parliament which caused unfair taxes colonists could not do anything about. In their opinion, they were British citizens as well and deserved the same rights given to those back in the mother country and to not have “virtual representation” where members of Parliament were chosen to speak for those across the sea instead of an election to decide who holds their seat in office. Therefore, when a shipment of highly overpriced tea, due to taxes, docked at the harbor, the Sons of Liberty paraded in dressed as American Indians and in a matter of three hours …show more content…
According to "Report of the Boston Tea Party, Boston Gazette", the pre-Boston Tea Party time was one of great tensions between not only the colonists and the citizens and crown back in Britain, but also with the loyalists who resided in the colonies and wanted to remain loyal to the monarchy. Those who wanted to break away showed extreme loathing towards loyalists and in many cases caused physical and emotional harm to them and loved ones, such as the case of Ann Hulton whose brother was tarred and feathered not just once, but twice, the second time in front of his parents. In a mezzotint attributed to Philip Dawe, the image depicts the Bostonians forcing scalding tea down the throat of John Malcolm, a customs official in retaliation against the taxes imposed by the British government, the liberty tree, and the Boston Tea Party taking place in the background. Officials representing the British Monarchy in any form were loathed and often were the targets of what the British viewed as terrorist attacks but, in the eyes of the colonists, were mere displays of their willingness to retaliate. The outbursts of aggression only served to further divide them and fed the fire that led to war. The colonists explored their own levels of revolution and rebellion against Britain and its followers. The concept of freedom from a king and crown was a new one to …show more content…
When the Sons of Liberty raided the three boats The Eleanor, The Beaver, and The Dartmouth, they dressed as American Indians they had met. This disguise could have been simply a ruse as to avoid detection and remain anonymous or it could be deeper, it could have been the colonists freeing themselves of the title dictating them as British citizens and taking on the title of “Americans”. When the time came to fight the battles in the American revolution, being post- Boston Tea Party, the colonists’ knowledge of the land came as a huge advantage seeing as how the British soldiers had to navigate unfamiliar terrain and were at a loss in that aspect, and though they did have a better arsonal, the colonists prevailed in the end. After the entire American Revolution, colonists kept their understanding of Being from Britain and being loyal to a monarchy their whole lives, colonists were more or less at a loss when it came to the idea of breaking away from the crown and forming a government with no single leader, which did not work out very well but they did later create a democratic form of government, all because they encountered new
In 1773 Samuel Adams led a group of colonists on three ships and did something that made a monumental impact to kickoff the American Revolution. It is known as The Boston Tea Party. It is believed that the group of colonists did it because they were afraid that if tea landed the colonists would give in to the British tax. In 1773 the British passed the Tea act which allowed the East Indian Company to ship tea right to the colonies. This made the colonists very enraged but mostly the salesmen and shops owners because it would cost them heaps of money.
On October 7, 1763,King George III announced a proclamation that forbid people from settling in the Appalachian Mountains. That way he hoped to calm down the indians who had fought against him during the Seven Years' War. Britain punished the \colonists by closing the port of Boston and putting in place a sequence of laws called the Intolerable Acts because of the Boston Tea Party. They also placed troops in the city to ensure the peace and to make sure that there were no more “Intolerable Acts” On Paper Yes, i do think that the boston tea party was a turning point between the relationship of the british and the colonists.
Conflicts happened because of the competition for power and expansion between a nation, or an empire. An example of this is in the book when it was talking about the Boston Tea Party in December 16, 1773. The British Government wanted to keep its power over the colonies and that ultimately lead to conflicts, revolts and war. “The British government responded in March 1774 by declaring the port of Boston closed until the East India Company had been compensated for its losses. This was the first of the so-called Coercive Acts--a series of laws passed in 1774 in which the British attempted to assert their authority over the colonies but instead succeeded only in enraging the colonists further ultimately prompted the outbreak of the revolutionary
Have you ever heard of taxation without representation? It means to be taxed without any say in the manner. This act caused us peaceful colonists to become fight back in self defense. I am a vandal and I know that us destroying over $1,000,000 worth of tea was an act of patriotism.
On the cold night of December 16, 1773, the Sons of Liberty dumped about forty-six tons of British tea into the Boston Harbor, destroying the boxes and turning the water brown; however, this was not a violent protest. Many of them did not want any damage to be done to the three ships carrying the tea, the last of which had just arrived that morning. During the entire event, only a few people got injured. Most of the protesters were unharmed and cooperated with each other to protest against the British government, although one man was caught stealing the tea they were supposed to be destroying, and another was knocked unconscious by a falling box of tea. Despite those mistakes, most colonists supported the Boston Tea Party, and it had a great effect on what was yet to come.
The Boston Massacre took place after British soldiers were antagonized and became fed up. The soldiers opened fire and in the end eleven men were hit and five of them died. This stoked the flames of fury in the British colonies. One colonist said, “The fatal fifth of March, 1770, can never be forgotten. The horrors of that fateful night are but too deeply impressed on our hearts” (Document 6-2). People could not accept this terrible treatment from Britain any longer. Colonists took the opportunity to protest when news of the Tea Tax spread throughout the colonies. It was seen as “an insidious plot to trick Americans into buying the duties tea” (Roark 142). On the last day to pay the duties for British tea, around 150 men dressed as indigenous people dumped every last ounce of tea into the Boston Harbor. It was a political demonstration that showed the British that their taxes would not be tolerated. The protestors “rowed them [the boats] into those parts of the harbor wherever the tea was visible, and by beating it with oars and paddles, so thoroughly drenched it, as to render its entire destruction inevitable…” (Document 6-3). The goal to make a point was successful, but it came with intense repercussion, which the colonists also rebelled against. In summary, tensions between the British and their colonists were caused by Britain’s unsavory actions, primarily
In the late 1760s, America was dominated completely by Britain. England viewed the colonies as meek and expected obedience towards whatever arbitrary law or tax that was thrown at them. The taxation tyranny fueled a group of men, known as the Sons of Liberty. Also known as tea-partiers, the group of men were viewed as radicals for their paramount dumping of over 300 chests of tea into the Boston Harbor on December 16th, 1773. The Boston Tea Party defined the independence that the colonists were struggling for. Without this event, an act of defiance this crucial may have never occurred and the colonies may have never have found the strength to become a sprawling, thriving nation. Ultimately, many more revolts, riots and boycotts led to the Revolutionary war. The Boston Tea Party was the trailblazer that induced combat and bloodshed, but the colonists couldn't deal with the oppression any longer. The anti-British uproar made the colonies look stronger and more unified. The dumping of the tea was a turning point in America’s relationship with England. The stand The Sons of Liberty, and the colonists, took showed that “The Land of Liberty” was becoming a strong force to be reckoned with on their
“Children planted by our care, nourished up by our indulgence and protected by our arms” I believe that the Sons of Liberty were heroes, not fanatics. They did things that started the revolution which in turn, made America. Even though to some people the actions they took were wrong, they did the things they did for good reasons. If it wasn’t for the Sons of Liberty, America wouldn’t exist right now.
Revolution. With tensions rising due to a long list of taxes issued from Parliament in
The Boston Tea Party has created many myths over the years, the number one being that this act was applauded and celebrated by all the patriots (Raphael). “The morning after the event John Adams wrote to his friend James Warren, ‘The Dye is cast’” (Raphael). Symbolizing that there is no turning back at this point, the future is most probably certain for some sort of conflict between both opposing countries. The Boston Tea Party was not peaceful, but rather an act of vandalism against the British crown. There are parallels and similarities to modern day conflicts and riots as seen in Ferguson, Missouri following the police shooting Michael Brown; This sparked days of civil unrest and rioting in the area and around other cities in America. Another example is ‘Occupy Wall Street’ and the standoff between millennials and the big banks of Manhattan; there the protests brought the city to a
The Boston Tea party helped repeal tax on tea and made a stand on the British. But was it necessary? When thinking of the Boston Tea party, tea being dumped into a river or an ocean comes to mind. But there is so much more than that. The questions that should come to mind are; was it necessary, who and how it was organized, what effects did it have on the British East India Company and on the United States.
In the novel, Defiance of the Patriots: The Boston Tea Party and the Making of America, the author Benjamin L. Carp gives an incredibly in-depth description of the events of the Boston tea party. In the Introduction, Carp argues that the “party” was not a singular event, but rather a catalyst for the impending Revolution. He presents each chapter as a new aspect of the event while offering primary sources, letters, newspapers, and magazines as compelling evidence. Each chapter is focused on a very specific topic and perfectly leads to the next. Carp gives the reader a concise layout of context, causes, proceedings, and the aftermath of this rebellious show of resolve and determination. By giving the reader the political and cultural
In 1775 there was much friction between the American colonist and the British Crown. Britain was becoming increasingly jealous of the American prosperity and feared the growth of the colonies. Britain began to increase taxes and regulations on the colonists, which they resented. This lead to several confrontations including the Boston Massacre and the Tea Party. The British believed that they needed to take decisive action to put a stop to these confrontations and assert the Crown’s authority. One line of thought was to remove the
The Boston Tea Party was a political protest that took place on December 16, 1773 in Boston Harbor in Boston, Massachusetts. The Sons of Liberty led by Samuel Adams, dressed as Mohawk Indians destroyed an entire shipment of tea sent from the East India Company by throwing chests full of tea into the Boston Harbor. George Hewe’s, an eyewitness of the event writes in his journal, “In about three hours from the time we went on board, we had thus broken and thrown overboard every tea chest to be found in the ship, while those in the other ships were disposing of the tea in the same way, at the same time.” (Hewes). The Sons of Liberty, a secret group formed by the 13 colonies to protect the rights of the colonists, protested in opposition of the Tea Act implemented on May 10, 1773. The Tea Act was an act placed by the British Parliament in order to raise revenue for Great Britain that required tax on
Although the birth of the modern-day Tea Party movement is, “…still under debate... the actual credit for the idea of the Tea Party [and influence for the modern-day movement, dates] all the way back to the ‘Sons of Liberty’…” and the occurrence on the Boston Tea Party on December 16, 1773 (Teaparty911.com). The Boston Tea Party was key event in the American Revolution. Many supporters for American Independence came to the port, where a shipment of tea had just arrived from England, and they disguised themselves and dumped all of the tea as an act of rebellion. While modern party supporters haven’t taken an action this drastic yet, one of the most common beliefs of the start up of the movement, is when, “…in 2009… thousands of conservative activists held rallies… to protest potential tax hikes, government bailouts, and health care reform legislation…” (Tea Party Movement). Some tea party activists went as far as accusing President Obama of not being a US citizen and a socialist.