Boston Tea Party

The Boston Tea Party was a protest that happened on December 16, 1773, in the town of Boston, in the British colony of Massachusetts. A protest is an action taken to show disagreement. During this event, a group of colonists boarded British ships and threw large amounts of tea into Boston Harbor. The protest was directed against British laws that taxed tea sold in the colonies.

At the time, the American colonies were ruled by Great Britain. The British government passed several taxes to raise money. One of these was the Tea Act of 1773. A tax is money that people must pay to the government. The Tea Act allowed the British East India Company to sell tea directly to the colonies, but the tea still had a tax. Many colonists opposed this because they had no representatives in the British Parliament to help decide these laws.

The protest was organized by a group called the Sons of Liberty. This group included people such as Samuel Adams and other local leaders. On the night of the protest, about 60 men dressed as Native Americans. This disguise helped hide their identities. They boarded three ships named the Dartmouth, the Eleanor, and the Beaver. These ships were carrying tea from Britain.

The men broke open 342 chests of tea and dumped the tea into the water. A chest was a large wooden box used to carry goods. The tea was destroyed, but other property on the ships was not damaged. The event lasted several hours. British officials watched, but no one stopped the protest. No one was hurt during the event.

The British government reacted strongly to the Boston Tea Party. In 1774, it passed laws called the Coercive Acts. These laws were meant to punish Massachusetts. One law closed the port of Boston until the tea was paid for. Another law reduced local self-government. These actions increased tension between Britain and the colonies.

The Boston Tea Party became one of several events that led to the American Revolutionary War. The war began in 1775, less than two years later. Colonies began to work together more closely after the protest. Meetings such as the First Continental Congress were held to discuss how to respond to British rule. The Boston Tea Party remains an important event in the history of colonial America.