The American Revolution: the Boston Tea Party

The American Revolution: the Boston Tea Party

By Feri Vahabi

​The Boston Massacre took place in 1770. The Revolutionary War was still five years away. In 1770, most colonists did not agree that the Thirteen Colonies should be independent from Great Britain.

For many colonists, independence was a scary idea. The colonists had lived their whole lives under Great Britain's protection and leadership. The British navy protected colonial merchants from pirates. The British army protected colonial settlers from Native Americans. Many colonists were not sure that they could protect and govern themselves without Great Britain.

By coincidence, Parliament repealed most of the Townshend Acts on the day of the Boston Massacre. This news reached the colonies about a month later. To many colonists, the conflict with Great Britain seemed to be coming to an end.

​The protests in the colonies put a lot of pressure on Parliament to repeal the Townshend Acts. The taxes were meant to raise money, but the protests made the taxes expensive to enforce. British merchants also complained to Parliament that the boycotts were costing them money.

By coincidence, the Townshend Acts were repealed on the very same day that the Boston Massacre took place. However, it took many weeks for news of these events to make it across the Atlantic.

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In 1770, the colonies struggled to work together for several reasons.

• There was no unifying government of any kind in the 

  colonies.

   Each town had a local government, and each colony had a colonial government. However, there was no organization to connect the colonies to each other. Many of the political leaders of different colonies colonies had never even met each other!

   

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• Colonists had no easy way to share information over long distances.

   In 1770, there were no phones, television, or Internet. Information could only travel as fast as a person could travel on horseback. Travel was slow, uncomfortable, and often dangerous. Today, a person can fly from Boston to New York in under two hours. In 1770, the trip took at least four 

  days.

• ​The main postal service in the colonies was run by Great Britain.

  If rebellious colonists sent letters through the post, Great Britain might learn who they were and what they were doing.

  The colonists still had one advantage, however. They were closer to each other than Great Britain was to them. It took many weeks for the British government to learn what the colonists were doing.

Multiple Choice

When did the Boston Massacre take place?

• 1765

• 1770

• 1776

• 1783

Multiple Choice

Why did many colonists fear independence from Great Britain?

• They wanted to pay more taxes.

• They were afraid of pirates and Native Americans.

• They did not want to live in America.

• They had never heard of independence before.

Multiple Choice

What happened on the same day as the Boston Massacre?

• The Revolutionary War began.

• The Stamp Act was passed.

• Parliament repealed most of the Townshend Acts.

• The Declaration of Independence was signed.

Multiple Choice

Why did Parliament repeal most of the Townshend Acts?

• The king wanted to make the colonists happy.

• Protests and boycotts made the taxes expensive to enforce.

• The colonists agreed to stop smuggling.

• The British merchants wanted to pay higher taxes.

Multiple Choice

Why did it take weeks for the colonies to learn about events in Great Britain?

• The British government kept it a secret.

• The colonies had no postal system.

• News had to travel across the Atlantic Ocean by ship.

• The colonists did not want to hear from Britain.

Multiple Choice

Why was it hard for the colonies to work together in 1770?

• They had no unifying government.

• Each colony spoke a different language.

• The colonies were too far apart.

• The British controlled everything they did.

Multiple Choice

What was the main way people shared information in 1770?

• Telephones

• Television

• The Internet

• Letters carried on horseback

Multiple Choice

Why was sending letters through the British postal service risky for rebellious colonists?

• The letters were too expensive.

• Great Britain might read the letters and learn their plans.

• The letters took too long to arrive.

• Only British officials were allowed to send mail.

Multiple Choice

What was one advantage the colonists had over Great Britain?

• They were closer to each other than Britain was to them.

• They had a stronger army.

• They had faster ships.

• They had more money than Britain.