Multiple Perspectives Psactivity

The British soldiers were anything but loved by the American colonists in the 1770s. They maliciously planned an attack on the soldiers because of their hate. Many townspeople gathered together in effort to strike against the British presence. The men were just doing their job trying to keep order in Boston, but the people still taunted them. The soldiers were being tried for murder because they fired at the people, but those charges should not have existed. The crowd initially attacked the soldiers, not the other way around. It was also dark out so the soldiers did not know of the number of colonist attackers. The soldiers heard the word fire coming from the crowd, confusing the voices with Captain Preston’s. The incident referred to as the

"I heard the word fire and took it and am certain that it came from behind the Soldiers. I saw a man passing busily behind who I took to be an Officer. The firing was a little time after. I saw some persons fall. Before the firing I saw a stick thrown at the Soldiers. The word fire I took to be a word of Command. I had in my hand a highland broad Sword which I brought from home. Upon my coming out I was told it was a wrangle between the Soldiers and people, upon that I went back and got my Sword,” said Benjamin Burdick. This account shows the confusion that was ever-present during the Boston massacre. It also shows that the colonists and the soldiers may have been equally violent during the Boston Massacre.

were dead and more were wounded.” (Document 3) Also as the picture depicts, the Boston men

Several things happened leading up to the massacre itself, which are important to note. The colonists were becoming increasingly frustrated with Britain, which led to political unrest. To counteract this unrest, British troops were sent to Boston, where they arrived on October 1, 1968. Originally, there wasn’t an open resistance to the presence of the troops. Over time, things would change, which can be derived from the events of March 5, 1770. There were two sides: the mob of colonists and the the British soldiers. The colonists ended up attacking a British sentinel, leaving the British captain to call in more soldiers, who were also attacked. Shots were fired by the British, killing a total of 5 and wounding 6

On March 5 1770, a union of colonists gathered at the Customs House where they protested and harassed soldiers standing outside. These colonists were representing The Sons of Liberty, a secret organization aiming to rebel against the British Parliament. There was an abundance of tension between the colonists and Great Britain after new taxes were passed and British troops arrived in Massachusetts to enforce them. After many hours of chanting and protesting a shot was fired; the atrocious event left five men dead. The question society still ponders over 200 years later is what really happened and whose fault was it? The Boston Massacre initiated because of miscommunication; it was not a massacre but a mutual riot.

Beginning on March 5th of 1770, several men grouped around a sort of British redcoats and began to curse at them while throwing snowballs at their frames. This angered the soldiers, and even scared them a little bit as well. In reaction they fired their weapons and watched the patriots fall to the ground. In the description of Paul Revere’s engraving, The Bloody Massacre in King Street states, “When the shooting ended, several people were dead and more were wounded.” This engraving had been sent throughout the colonies, therefore raising awareness of the tragedy that had happened just weeks before. In particular, it made the redcoats look guilty and the colonists to be innocent. This was probably because in the engraving, the patriots were on the ground, injured and defenseless while the soldiers held their guns high, in perfect bodily conditions. Thus giving it its name, the “Boston Massacre.” This gave the colonists the idea that the British were cruel and unjust, which made them want to fight back even

British soldiers patrolled the area. People say the soldiers pounced first, but others beg to differ. This story told as from Revere reveals the dark side of the soldiers. It was MArch, 1770 and another protest had formed this time harassing the soldiers. Then a fire was shot and as from an engraving this was now the “Bloody Massacre.”

On March 5, 1770...The Boston Massacre, known as the Incident on King Street by the British, was an incident on March 5, 1770, in which British Army soldiers shot and killed people while under attack by a lot of colonists. There was not a  massacre on March 5, 1770 in Boston because. According to the sources B,C and D say that the colonists had weapons and they were also attacking in the massacre. The evidence that supports my claims is that in documents B,C,D the colonists are clearly seen with weapons according to the documents with the gazette, it said that the colonists had weapons and were involved in the fight. This supports my own opinion because in document b the colonists are seen with some type of sword or golf club. My second reason

The Boston Massacre, known as the Incident on King Street by the British happened on March 5 1770. A squad of British soldiers were being attacked by a mob. One of the soldiers fired, which caused others to fire. Over all five died all colonists. The event greatly boosted the revolution.

By March 5, 1770, only 600 British troops remained in the city (Zobel, 181). “On Monday, March 5, Boston seemed to be holding its breath” (Lukes, 32). The friction between

“Between the hours of nine and ten o’clock, being in my master’s house, was alarmed by the cry of fire, I ran down as far as the town-house, and then heard that the soldiers and the inhabitants were fighting in the alley… I then left them and went to King street. I then saw a party of soldiers loading their muskets about the Custom house door, after which they all shouldered. I heard some of the inhabitants cry out, “heave no snow balls”, others cried “they dare not fire”. The Boston massacre has been no massacre it was propaganda. The incident that happened March 5th, 1770 in the streets of Boston only killed five people and had six people with non fatal injuries. There were

had thought out their plan carefully. Together they had 4 guns with them when they

In 1770 an extraordinary number of British troops were stationed in Boston. The Colonists didn’t understand why there were so many troops after the war. This added to the already existent tension. The colonists taunted the Red Coats and on March 5, 1770 the colonists threw snowballs resulting a hasty decision by the Red Coats to fire at the colonists. Five colonists were killed and nine were wounded. This night is known as the Boston Massacre.

March 5, 1770 – Boston Massacre – A crowd gathered, “a motley rabble of saucy boys, negroes and mulattoes, Irish teagues and outlandish jack tars” as John Adams called them during the soldiers’ trial.

The Boston Massacre is considered by many historians to be the first battle of the Revolutionary War. The fatal incident happened on March 5 of 1770. The massacre resulted in the death of five colonists. British troops in the Massachusetts Bay Colony were there to stop demonstrations against the Townshend Acts and keep order, but instead they provoked outrage. The British soldiers and citizens brawled in streets and fought in bars. “The citizens viewed the British soldiers as potential oppressors, competitors for jobs, and a treat to social mores”. A defiant anti-British fever was lingering among the townspeople.