mar 5, 1770 - Boston Massacre
Description:
A brawl between British soldiers and Bostonians. Colonists felt threatened by all the troops being sent to their city, and combined with new taxes and the fact that the colonists had to pay the soldiers' salaries, quite a bit of resentment started to build up between them. It came to a head on March 5, 1770, where a group of hecklers started harassing a British sentry stationed there. Insults were thrown by the Bostonians, which turned to snowballs, which turned to rocks. Meanwhile, an extra eight soldiers showed up to defend the sentry. Without being ordered to, the soldiers fired indiscriminately, killing a total of five Bostonians. One of the victims was Crispus Attucks, considered to be the first casualty of the American Revolution. The soldiers were arrested, but were acquitted after lawyer John Adams convinced the court that they were only acting in self-defense. Nevertheless, Patriot propaganda artists like Paul Revere painted it as an unjustified "massacre" of the peaceful Boston people. This helped lead to further unrest that would cause the American Revolution.
Casualties:
3 Bostonians killed on scene
2 Bostonians died from gunshot wounds later
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