jan 1, 1773 - Boston Tea Party

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Throughout this extended time period, Colonists continuously boycotted tea imported from Britain as a result of Britain keeping laws that taxed tea in attempts to display their right to impose these kinds of taxes. Since the boycott was virtually eliminating all revenue sourced from tea, the Parliament decided to undercut smuggled Dutch tea so that regardless of the tax, it would be cheaper than Dutch tea (this way the British could enjoy some sort of income from tea in the colonies). However, by Colonists paying for British tea again, they were basically conceding to the idea that Britain could tax freely. So, they didn’t. One day in 1773, a large shipment of tea entered the Boston harbor. Without any people to sell to, the tea stayed on the ship for an extended period of time. During this period of time, Bostonians disguised as Native Americans hoarded the ship, chucking 342 crates of tea into the harbor. Many saw this action as a representation of the Colonists’ push for freedom, but others believed that they went too far on this one, compromising a significant amount of money.

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