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The American Revolution
The 1773 Boston Tea Party was one of many significant events which lead to the declaration of an independent nation, America. This essay will discuss the causes and consequences of the Boston Tea Party including the expenses from the French-Indian war, the Boston Massacre, the Stamp and Sugar Acts of the 1760’s and the way the Boston Tea Party has affected many people at the time and remains to until this present day.
An important long term cause of the Boston Tea Party was the sizeable expenses of the French-Indian War. With Britain holding secure control over America, in an attempt to recoup the costs it tightened the Navigation acts and created two new taxes. The Sugar Act of 1764 enforced a high duty on sugar and banned the import of foreign rum; however it was only to bring in an estimated £45,000 per year. In 1765 the Stamp Act was created, threatening to double the taxes Americans pay to the British. The Stamp Act was the British Government’s first attempt to tax American colonies directly and it fired up a number of influential people including layers and writers. Huge protests broke out working by the slogan “no taxation without representation”, the Americans demanded a say in the control of their country. In October 1765, nine colonies sent a representative to meet in New York City and form what was known as the Stamp Act Congress. The congress criticized the Stamp Act saying it was a violation to their rights and “that no taxes should be imposed on them”. This was a major element, as it was the beginning of American colonies working together to voice their opinions as one and make a difference for the good of their country.
The second significant long term cause was the change of thinking amongst many Americans due to influence from the Sons of Liberty and an increasing number of patriots. After the Stamp Act Congress was formed an increased number of Americans began to think for their selves, some even daring to suggest an independent nation for America, they began to believe that they should have a say in their government and how it was ruled. On 1770 America saw its first martyrs towards an independent nation, a mob of patriots were harassing a bunch of British officials when the British soldiers opened fire causing five of the patriots to drop dead. The change in opinion amongst Americans is an important aspect of the American Revolution, it shocked the British rulers, and as a result they felt the need to once again tighten the reins on their control of America. They did this by introducing the Tea Act of 1773. A short term cause of the Boston Tea Party was the Tea Act imposed by Lord North. Following the Boston Massacre, North withdrew all of Townshend’s Duties except for tea. This was done in an attempt to reduce smuggling by allowing East India Company to sell duty-paid tea much cheaper than smugglers. The Navigation Act stated that tea trading could only be done with the British East India Company; this was to prevent the company from going broke. When three shipments arrived into Boston Harbour full of tea the colonists refused to unload it saying they would not pay extra tax on Tea (1.2 million pounds of which were consumer by American colonists each year). The Boston Tea Party was the first act of defiance against the British Crown which led to many more in the future.
The Boston Tea Party resulted in a number of different outcomes, both good and bad, one of the consequences being the response from Britain- creating the Coercive Acts. Four of the five Coercive Acts were made in response to the Boston Tea Party. The first was the Boston Port Act. Due to the 92,000 pounds of tea dumped in the Boston Harbour the British shut down the port until the damage of the tea had been repaid to the East India Company, this caused protest amongst the colonists as many felt they were being punished for an act that did not commit. The