Boston Tea Party

Research Paper
Boston Tea Party 1773
Most people have heard about the Boston Tea Party.   When American's dumped British Tea in Boston Harbor in 1773.   But not everyone understands the importance of it, and why the Tea Party is still remembered today. Imagine you are a merchant in Boston selling imported goods from England with a high tax on them, when three ships come in with 342 chests of tea without planning to pay the middleman tax. That's how it was for many merchants in Boston. The government's lack of support, and the newly passed Tea Act, only kindled more resentment towards the British from the colonists. The Boston Tea Party was a catalyst that precipitated the Revolutionary War.
In 1763 King George III and his government were still celebrating their win in the French and Indian war. When the excitement subsided, they came to the realization that they may have won the battle, but lost the war with their economy. This dramatic action stemmed from a running controversy over Parliament's power to raise revenue by placing duties on imports into America. Colonists protested “taxation without representation,” but Parliament retained the duty on tea as a symbol of its taxing authority.
In 1773 England had control over a tea company called the British East India Company, which was about to go belly up and England had too much tea left over. In order to prevent the company from going broke they decided to impose the Tea Act of 1773. This act made it where the British tea importers could sell directly to the colonists eliminating the middle man. By doing so it drove the cost of Tea down but also it puts many colonial merchants out of jobs. The British now had a monopoly over the tea industry and the colonists were not happy.
The British sent over several ships with tons of tea to Boston, New York, Philadelphia, Charleston and South Carolina.   When arriving in Charlestown the ship was allowed to dock but never allowed to unload their goods, the ship stayed... [continues]

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