Need to brush up a bit on your Boston history? Consider this brief description of the notorious Boston Tea Party.

What It Was

The infamous Boston Tea Party took place in the year 1773 and was one of the sparks that ignited the American Revolution. And what a spark it was! Kaboom! The Party was a political protest engineered by the residents of Boston, Massachusetts against the British government due to King George III’s decision to tax the American colonies as a way to recoup some of the money lost to the war that had just ended. By these proposed taxes British parliament was also hoping to regain control over the colonies as they inched their way towards independent status.

What Triggered It

A series of actions that took place, including the Stamp Act of 1765, the Townsend Acts of 1767 and the Boston Massacre in 1770 incensed the colonists and strained all relations with Britain tremendously. What really angered them the most was the fact that the government wanted to tax the colonies heavily while not allowing them any government representation. This did not go over well with the people whose public outcry was, “No taxation without representation!” One of the loudest voices among them was a man named John Hancock.

The Tea Act

When word reached Britain that the Boston residents were refusing to pay the taxes, the government decided to retract all of the taxes except for one- a duty on tea remained in place. Parliament thought they were being decidedly clever when in May 1773, they passed the Tea Act, which allowed the East India Company a monopoly on importing tea to America. They also reduced the duty that the colonies would be required to pay for the imported tea. They assumed that everything would go smoothly with this arrangement, knowing full well that tea was a very important part of everyday life in the colonies.

They were wrong. The people were not happy with the arrangement at all.