What Caused the Boston Tea Party?
The Boston Tea Party was a protest held in December 1773 in the Boston harbor, in which Americans threw British tea containers into the sea in protest of Britain’s unfair rule of the American colonies.
Historical Background
The tension between the Britain and the American colonies began when the Seven Years War between Britain and France ended in 1763. Britain, already in debt from the war, imposed heavy taxes on the colonies to ease its fiscal burden. In response, the American colonials were outraged that they were not given any representation in Parliament, yet had to pay higher taxes.
Stirring Up the Colonists
British troops were sent to control the increasingly rebellious American colonies, and Parliament submitted even more stringent measures to tighten its grip. Parliament passed the Tea Act of 1773, which placed severe restrictions on the trade of tea between the colonies and Britain.
This was the last straw for colonists, who viewed the Tea Act as one of Britain’s most repressive laws aimed toward controlling the colonies. Following the move, many of the colonists began voicing their opposition to British rule, and doing so in increasingly defiant ways.
The Boston Tea Party
The culmination of this dissent came when the colonists organized what would become known as the Boston Tea Party. On December 16th, 1773 the so-called Indian Sons, a group of colonists wearing traditional Indian clothing and war paint, boarded ships carrying East India Company tea and threw 342 chests of tea into the sea.
The Aftermath
The Boston Tea Party was the spark that ignited the American Revolution, a revolution inspired by the belief that citizens should be represented in the government and treated fairly under the law.
In response to the event, Britain imposed the Coercive Acts, which in turn pushed the colonists to form an organized resistance that eventually lost Britain its control over the colonies and led to the revolutionary victory of the Americans.
Key Takeaways
- The Boston Tea Party was a protest held in December 1773 in which Americans threw British tea containers into the sea in protest of Britain’s unfair rule of the American colonies.
- The tension between Britain and the American colonies began when Parliament imposed heavy taxes on the colonies following the Seven Years War.
- The Tea Act of 1773 was one of the most oppressive laws and served as the last straw for the colonists.
- The Boston Tea Party was the spark that ignited the American Revolution and led to a revolutionary victory of the Americans.
