Boston Tea Party

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Boston Tea Party - by m.ems
The Boston Tea Party is considered to be the boiling point in a series of events leading up to the revolutionary war against the British. When a group of devout colonists, boarded British tea ships and unloaded their cargo into the Boston harbor, America would be changed forever. What was, at first, seen as an act of mischievous rebellion, turned out to be one of the most influential events in America’s revolutionary history. It not only crippled the already struggling British tea industry, but also, and more importantly, united the American people against British taxation and overall oppression. When the British increased taxes in America, the colonists responded with rebellious fury, most notably, the Boston Tea Party, but when Britain lashed back with even more force, it opened the eyes of Americans alike to the oppression they lived under.

For years, the American people opted to buy smuggled tea from Holland instead of paying the extra money on a taxed British tea. Not only was tea cheaper from Holland but many Americans did not want to pay the tax and contribute to British rule. When British Parliament passed the Tea Act in 1773, it allowed them to provide tea to America for cheaper than the smuggled tea. American tea merchants, unable to compete with this new low price, were put out of business. (Jones) This Act infuriated the colonial citizens who felt it unfair to favor their British tea dealers over American ones. In retaliation, Samuel Adams led a group of 150 or so men disguised as Mohawk Indians boarded three British tea ships and proceeded to dump 343 chests of British tea into the ocean. (Cornell) When Bostonians refused to pay for the destroyed property, King George III and Parliament passed the so-called “Intolerable'; Acts. One result was the closing of the port of Boston and forbid public meetings in Massachusetts. Essentially, the Intolerable Acts shut down the Massachusetts government entirely. These acts of oppression sparked the desire for change in American people and were a major cause for the first continental congress, which took steps towards revolution and ultimately liberated the United States.

During the revolutionary process, propaganda was key in spreading revolutionary ideas across America and one of the leading p...

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...nt, the Continental Congress created the Association which called for a complete boycott of all British goods. This step pushed Britain over the edge. They realized that they could no longer control America and moved closer towards war. The Americans did not want a revolution, simply a reprieve from oppressive legislation but as time went on they could also sense an inevitable conflict and continued their efforts in uniting their nation by spreading propaganda and readying their militias.

The Boston Tea Party was one of the most effective pieces of political theatre ever staged. It did so many things for America’s independence; most importantly, the event gave Americans a sense of power and showed them that they could fight back and make a difference. The Tea Party served as the springboard to more revolutionary steps that eventually led to our independence. John Adams said about the event, “There is a dignity, a majesty, a sublimity, in this last effort of the patriots that I greatly admire.'; It was a bold, risky, yet necessary action that legitimately established America as its own nation long before independence was achieved.

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