What Was The Boston Tea Party?

An 1846 lithograph by Nathaniel Currier showing the Boston Tea Party taking place.

The Boston Tea Party occurred on December 16, 1773, and it was an act of protest by American colonists against British control. During this party—it wasn’t really a party—chests of tea were thrown into Boston Harbor, and it was one of the measures that gave rise to the American Revolution.

Background

Before the Boston Tea Party, the American colonies were under British control. During this time period, the British Parliament passed a lot of legislation that really infuriated the colonists. One such piece of legislation was the Tea Act of 1773, which granted a monopoly to the British East India Company to sell tea directly to the colonies without paying normal taxes. For a time, this cut the price of tea; however, the colonists still had to pay a small import tax, and they saw it as a sneaky method of imposing taxes upon them without their consent.

The colonists did not want to pay taxes without having a voice in their government. They adopted the slogan "No taxation without representation," and they started organizing and protesting against the new laws.

The Tea Ships Arrive

In late 1773, three British East India Company ships loaded with tea sailed into the Boston harbor. These vessels were the Dartmouth, Eleanor, and Beaver. The colonists demanded that the ships sail back to England without unloading the tea, but the British governor of the state at the time, Thomas Hutchinson, didn’t permit the ships to depart with the tea on board.

This is when it began to get tense, and the colonists held meetings about what actions they should take. On December 16, after weeks of debate, a large crowd met together, during which they decided that they would not let the tea be unloaded.

The Night of the Protest

That evening, after the meeting, about 60 men, some of them dressed as Mohawk Indians to protect their identities, went aboard the ships. They worked with speed and silence. They opened 342 chests of tea and hurled the tea into the freezing waters of the Boston Harbor, and they were careful not to harm anything else on the ships. All of this tea dumping was done in about three hours.

The tea was quite expensive—about £9,659, or in today's money, over a million dollars. While it was an audacious action that could get them into a lot of trouble, the point made was clear: the colonists meant business when it came an overreach of British control.

The word of what had happened that night spread the next day. Many in Boston and other colonies were pleased with the event. They considered it a stand against unfair laws. However, not everyone shared this view. Some loyalists, those with allegiance to Britain, were angered because they thought this was an act of vandalism.

The British government was also angered. It viewed the act as an attack upon its authority and retaliated with the passage of the Coercive Acts in 1774, and these laws punished Boston and the colonies. The port of Boston was closed until the tea was paid for, self-government was reduced in Massachusetts, and the civilians and British officials accused of colonial crimes were to be tried.

Impact on the Colonies

The Coercive Acts, which, as mentioned before, was passed as retaliation to the Boston Tea Party, had the unintended effect of solidifying the colonies together. To them, these laws were an attack on all of them, not just Massachusetts. This resulted in the meeting of the First Continental Congress, where representatives from the 13 colonies met in Philadelphia in 1774 to discuss their rights and the course of action against British measures.

The Boston Tea Party also changed the way people thought about independence. Before, many wanted more rights within the British system. However, now, the people started to talk about separating from Britain entirely.

Long-Term Effects

The Boston Tea Party was one of the most important actions in the construction of the American Revolution. It showed just how willing the colonists were to oppose British rule. This effect was realized in the fight for independence, through the writing of important documents like the Declaration of Independence, and in the eventual formation of the United States of America.

The event also became a symbol of resistance and has been celebrated in American history. It is remembered as one of those moments when ordinary people took to the streets for what they believed in, and it influenced future protests and movements for rights and freedom.

Conclusion

The Boston Tea Party was not about tea; it was about representation, control, and the rights of the colonies. It was a direct action against what many colonists saw as an unjust tax. This act of defiance played a major role in the gaining of American independence, showing that sometimes, to make a point, you have to make a mess.