What Caused the Boston Tea Party 
One of the many taxes that King George tried to use on the colonists was tax on tea. The colonists loved tea, and many of them wanted to buy their tea from England. On the other hand, the colonists didn’t want to buy it from the East India Company because the tea was very expensive, but the Tea Act forced them to. The colonists didn’t want to be forced to buy their beloved tea from one company. Historians agree with the colonists that the Tea Act was unfair. So, it is no surprise that this is what started the Boston Tea Party.
Planning a Protest
The colonists spent a long time planning their protest against England. They tried to cover every detail of the protest. For example, they planned on dressing like Mohawk Indians to disguise their real identities. Experts think that it was a good idea for the colonists to disguise themselves because it would take longer for the British to figure out who they really were. The colonists also planned on throwing the tea into the Boston Harbor. Even though the Boston Tea Party was secretive an amazing 116 people participated in this act.
Not as Easy as it Looks
As well planned as this act was, historians think it was no walk in the park for the colonists to do. The colonists used the ship's winches to haul 90,000 pounds worth of tea chests one by one onto the deck. Historians estimate that that much tea would cost about 1 million dollars today. That much tea can fill 18.5 million cups of tea! Once on the deck, the colonists broke open the chests and poured the contents into the Boston Harbor. Before the colonists left they swept the deck clean to make sure none of the tea was remaining on the ship.
What Happened After the Party
Paul Revere
Paul Revere was a colonist who took part in the Boston Tea Party. He rode on horseback from Boston to New York to spread the word, it was a journey of three hundred miles. The American poet, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow even wrote a poem about Revere’s famous ride. In the poem, Revere rode from town to town calling out in warning to everyone “the British are coming, the British are coming”. Historians say Paul Revere was a helpful person.
Paul Revere also took an oath so no one would know about his participation in the Boston Tea Party. Later others revealed that Paul was, in fact, at the Tea Party.
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As you might of guessed, the British government did not like what the colonists did one bit! In 1774 the British government responded by passing several harsh measures. For example, forcing the colonists to have soldiers live in their homes. These laws were known, in America, as the Intolerable Acts. Experts think this was a fair way of disciplining the colonists after the Boston Tea Party.
Were the Colonists Successful
You might think the colonists were not successful because of how the British government reacted, but actually they were. The creation of these acts really unified the colonists against British rule. The colonists decided to join together for a meeting. They called this meeting the First Continental Congress and it included people from 12 of the American Colonies.
The Aftermath
Even with all the protesting and punishments that the Boston Tea Party caused, researchers say it really made a big dent in history. If it was not for the Boston Tea Party there would be no Intolerable Acts, Revolutionary War, and Declaration of Independence. All of these events led up to the colonists gaining freedom from the British, and also our freedom. John Adams said, “The die has been cast. The people have passed the river and cut away the bridge….This [ the Boston Tea Party] is the grandest event that has yet happened since the controversy with Britain was opened. The sublimity of it charms me.”
Sources
Cornerstones of freedom
The Boston Tea Party
Boston Tea Party
World Book Student
Ducksters
American Revolution
Boston Tea Party
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Glossary
- Mohawk Indians: A Tribe of Indians
- Tea Act: Made the colonist buy their tea from the East India Company
- Winches: A mechanical device that is used to pull heavy objects
- Protest: A statement or action expressing disapproval
- Opposed: Disapproving or disagreeing
- Unified: To make or become whole
- Disciplining: A punishment to correct disobedience
- Revealed: To give a previously unknown or secret information known to others
