Boston Tea Party: A History from Beginning to End

by Hourly History

Discover the remarkable history of the Boston Tea Party...
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On a December night in 1773, in an iconic act of civil disobedience, American colonists dressed as Native Americans boarded a merchant ship laden with tea. They tossed the tea into the Boston Harbor in protest of taxation without representation. Their motivation at the time was not one of a battle for independence; rather, they sought what they viewed as their constitutional right to representation in the British Parliament. While not meant to instigate a revolution, this single protest would eventually lead to an all-out conflagration with Great Britain and the American Revolutionary War. This book tells the story of the rising tensions between the American colonies and Great Britain that would result in what became known as the Boston Tea Party. It also tells of how this act of defiance ignited the passions of American patriots and led to the formation of the United States of America. It’s an example of how one moment in time can lead to historical changes that affect the entire world.

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Genres: History, American History, Historical, Nonfiction

57 pages, Kindle Edition

Published June 27, 2021

About the author

At Hourly History, we focus on publishing history books that are concise, straightforward and take no longer than one hour to read.

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Reviews

[Bren fall in love with the sea. · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a good short read.

There isn't all that much to say about it. It was as it states: a quick history of the Boston Tea party. I read about it in school at length and thought it might be fun to take another die through history.

While I enjoyed it, it did feel like I was back in history class--LOL--and I got a little bored. Sometimes these short reads keep my attention and other times they do not. This was one of the times it did not but it's still a well written book.

[Nihal · Rating 5 out of 5]

A true act of resistance by the American Colonists.

The Boston Tea Party showed resistance against the unfair Tea Tax passed by the British Empire. This party smuggled into the ships coming from the East India Company and threw the tea into the ocean. What came next gave rise to the American Revolutionary War that granted American colonies their long-wanted independence. It is only because of the bold move of the Boston Tea Party that America celebrates its Independence Day 2 centuries later.

This book gave a detailed description of the causes and effects of the Boston Tea Party incident. It is a short yet satisfying read about the Boston Tea Party.

[Dr.J.G. · Rating 3 out of 5]

"“Is life so dear or peace so sweet as to be purchased at the price of chains and slavery? . . . I know not what course others may take, but as for me, give me liberty or give me death.”

"—Patrick Henry"

To those of us who love New England, the last part of that is only the last seal in endearing New Hampshire to one's heart.

And just in case one forgets the relevance, it's on every board welcoming one to the state, as one drives into New Hampshire.
***

"During the 1760s and early 1770s, the East India Company had a deal with Britain to sell its tea in London, and while the British government eventually made a deal to refund the 25% tax the company paid, it was still struggling financially. Part of the problem was that it had to sell the tea for a very inexpensive price given that it was forced to sell it in London even though the tea was ultimately destined for the Americas.

"That meant that the biggest profits went to the British merchants who purchased the tea in London. They were able to impose significant markups in the price, and that, combined with the tea tax that had been part of the Townshend Revenue Acts, meant the American colonists were paying a pretty penny for their tea."

Hence, wealth of Forsytes, of Forsyte Saga?

"The American colonists, however, didn’t rely exclusively on the British tea. They were smuggling the more inexpensive Dutch tea into the colonies to the tune of some 900,000 pounds of tea each year. The British tea was better tasting to the colonists, but they were encouraged to boycott that as a protest against what they considered to be taxation without representation."

Author doesn't explain why Dutch tea wasn't as good, or why "British tea was better tasting to the colonists", whether Dutch imported from China while British had already plantations in India, or Dutch imported poorer quality from China than British did.
***

"Because of the colonial protest, the demand for British tea dropped significantly, and that meant that the British merchants weren’t purchasing as much tea from the East India Company. In fact, a huge surplus of tea had accumulated in the company’s British warehouses. The situation was complicated by war and famine in Bengal which further reduced the company’s revenue from India and weakened its other European markets. Therefore, by 1773, the company was on the verge of financial collapse.

And in response, they ill-treated India?
***

"Benjamin Franklin, among others, suggested that allowing the company to export tea directly to the American colonies would improve the situation. That would mean the company would no longer have to pay the taxes charged in London, and it would eliminate the British merchant middlemen.

"The prime minister of England, Frederick North, was convinced this was an opportunity to solve several problems with one bill. It would help the company financially and reduce the markups in price in the colonies. That would mean that the British tea would be cheaper than the smuggled Dutch tea that many colonists were drinking. The colonists would, he believed, happily pay for cheaper and better-tasting tea, and since the Townshend tea tax was still in place, their willingness to buy the tea and pay the tax would legitimize Parliament’s right to tax the colonies.
***

"Given what was seen as the advantages of passing such legislation, the Tea Act was passed on May 10, 1773. It gave the East India Company the license to export tea directly to North America, thereby eliminating the need to sell their tea at auction in London. It also said that any duties that would have been charged in Britain on tea destined for the colonies and other foreign parts would either be refunded when the tea was exported or not imposed at all. Any merchants receiving the tea in the colonies were required to put up a deposit when they received it.

"Parliament did discuss the possibility of waiving the Townshend tea tax, but Prime Minister North opposed that because those revenues were used for paying the salaries of officials of the Crown who resided in the colonies.
***

"Once all were in agreement, the act was passed, and the East India Company now had the right to ship tea to the main American ports which included Philadelphia, New York City, Charleston, and Boston. Those merchants who received the tea in these ports and then made arrangements for its resale were typically favored by the local governor appointed by the Crown in South Carolina, Massachusetts, and New York. In fact, Massachusetts governor Thomas Hutchinson was part-owner of the company that was chosen to receive the tea shipped from the East India Company to Boston."

They didn't see this mix of roles as inappropriate, to say the least?

Therein superiority of caste system of India over those of other cultures!
***

"With this arrangement, the British government was able to successfully undercut the price of the less flavorful Dutch tea that the colonists were smuggling in. While the Crown had hoped this would resolve the question of its authority to tax the colonies, they would be disappointed. The reaction would not be what they had hoped for and the consequences would be far-reaching."

In fact, they cut tea completely out of lives of residents of those colonies, in effect.

Getting a good cup of tea across Atlantic amounts to making it, with some trouble, oneself - which has become easier only after microwave technology arrivedand became affordable.

But in a cafe, forget it.

Once, having walked across an expanse of lawn from The Mall towards somewhere behind Buckingham Palace, in a small teashop, I ordered a pot of tea - and was surprised at just how correct, how satisfying it was! Then I recalled that this was England, not US!
****

"“Belonging to the Whig party, the aim of that party has always been my aim—‘The cause of civil and religious liberty all over the world.’”

"—John Russell, 1st Earl Russell"

Did that "world" not include India?
***

"The term Whig was a shortened version of whiggamore, which was a Scottish word to describe cattle drivers who would go to the town of Leith to get corn. The word later referred to a Scottish radical faction, also known as the Kirk Party, who was active in the War of Three Kingdoms during the reign of Charles I. The term was also used to refer to Presbyterian Scottish rebels who fought against the royal Episcopalian order.

"With regard to English politics, the term Whig was initially used to describe those people who didn’t want to allow King Charles II’s brother, James, to ascend to the throne after Charles’s death. The Whigs argued that James was a Roman Catholic, and for that reason, he should be excluded. In their minds, Catholicism went hand-in-hand with absolutism, the French monarchy style of government that gave the monarch absolute power. The Whig political stance caused one Tory—the Whigs’ opposition—to joke that “the first Whig was the Devil.”
***

" ... There was a faction of Whigs who had become known as the Radical Whigs, and it was their writings that would come to influence the colonists in America. In fact, some of the early colonial activists were also calling themselves Whigs, as they allied themselves with the Radical Whigs who opposed Prime Minister North. They also referred to the American loyalists who still supported the monarchy as Tories.

"As soon as the American Whigs began to advocate for independence from the British government’s authority, however, they instead began to use the label patriots. It is the party of the patriots who would later form the American Whig Party in 1833, and as such, they would oppose a strong presidency just as the original British Whigs had opposed an overly strong monarchy and supported the supremacy of Parliament.

"It was these American Whigs—or patriots as they increasingly called themselves—who were protesting the Crown’s authority in the colonies. Many of them joined revolutionary organizations such as the Sons of Liberty, which was formed in Boston in 1765. It was through their organization of protests that the Boston Tea Party was eventually planned and executed."
****

"“There emerged a kind of unformed nationalism . . . growing up with more and more men in more and more colonies speaking and writing of an American cause that they largely defined in terms of protecting American liberties against British tyranny.”

"—Richard C. Simmons"

"When Parliament gave the East India Company the right to import tea directly to the American colonies, the result was that the price of British tea was lowered to the point where it undercut the smuggled Dutch tea the colonists had been buying. From Parliament’s point of view, they thought the colonists would be happy about it since they could drink better-tasting tea for a lower price, but that was not to be.

"Many of the colonists felt the act was nothing more than a kind of Trojan horse that Parliament was using to seduce them into accepting that the Crown had a right to tax them even though they had no representation in Parliament. Additionally, some of the more prominent and influential colonists reacted with anger because, by allowing the East India Company to sell its tea directly in the colonies, they had effectively undercut the business of many colonial merchants.

"What’s more, many of the agents who were chosen by the East India Company to ultimately sell the tea in the colonies were pro-Parliament, which only served to add fuel to a fire that was already burning out of control. The protestors were not simply concerned about the price of their tea. Samuel Adams, a prominent patriot, believed the Tea Act effectively created a monopoly for British tea. That, he argued, could not be instituted without colonial representation in Parliament.
***

"Other colonists felt that the purpose of the new tax was to relieve some of the more prominent British officials of the colonial influence that weighed on their decisions. This, they said, was a dangerous precedent that infringed on colonial rights, particularly in places like Massachusetts where the Townshend Acts had been implemented in their entirety.

"As a result of these sentiments, the passage of the Tea Act revived the colonial boycott of British tea, and it also inspired other acts of protest. Moreover, it made allies out of groups like the Sons of Liberty and local merchants who had previously been adversaries in this debate. Many of the merchants were smugglers whose businesses were at risk of going under, but it wasn’t just a problem for them. Even legal tea importers were faced with financial ruin when they were not chosen by the East India Company as consignees to receive and sell their tea. Others feared that the creation of one monopoly by the government would lead to others for different goods coming from abroad.

"Because of the anger, mobs of colonists began to intimidate the agents chosen by the East India Company to sell tea. That caused many of them to resign from their commissions. Additionally, crowds began to gather in several colonial port towns, and they were successful in forcing the East India Company ships to turn away before they could unload their controversial cargo. In Charleston, where company consignees were forced to resign, the tea that was left unclaimed was then seized by the port’s customs officials.

"In Philadelphia, at mass protest meetings, Benjamin Rush urged fellow colonists to oppose the ships attempting to land since their cargo contained what he called “the seeds of slavery.” As a result, in early December of 1773, the East India Company’s consignees in Philadelphia had resigned their commissions and the ship laden with tea was returned to England after protestors angrily confronted the ship’s captain. A similar result occurred in New York, where the consignees had resigned by the time the ship bound for that port arrived, and it was turned back by protestors.
***

"It was in this atmosphere of protest that the tea ship Dartmouth arrived in Boston in late November of 1773. By law, the ship was required to unload its cargo and pay the duties required within 20 days. Failure to do so would result in the confiscation of the cargo. On November 29, Whig leader Samuel Adams called for a meeting among the protestors.

"Thousands of people attended the meeting, which led to the colonists passing a resolution that urged the captain of the ship to return without having paid any import duties. While this was going on, there were 25 men watching the ship to prevent it from unloading the tea. Despite the passage of this resolution, Governor Hutchinson refused to allow the Dartmouth to leave before paying the required duty. By that time, two more tea ships arrived in the harbor, the Eleanor and the Beaver. In this way, the stage was set for the protest that would become known as the Boston Tea Party."
****

" ... They were aware of the need to disguise their faces because what they were planning to do was, after all, illegal, and many chose to dress as Mohawk warriors in order to be able to completely paint their faces. The Mohawk people were part of the Iroquois League of Nations and lived in and around the New York State area at this time. By choosing to disguise themselves as Mohawks, the Sons of Liberty protestors were making a statement about their alliance with America as opposed to Great Britain. Ironically, the Mohawk would go on to support the British in the subsequent American Revolutionary War as they sought to maintain their long-standing trade relations and garner support for prohibiting further colonial expansion into their territory.

"With disguises in place, on the evening of December 16, between 30 and 130 men snuck on board the three ships anchored in the Boston Harbor. They spent approximately three hours dumping all of the tea chests stowed on the ships into the water. There were 342 chests in total, and that amounted to some 92,000 pounds of tea. The destruction of the tea resulted in a loss of £9,659 or the equivalent of $1.7 million in modern dollars. This hit Nantucket-born colonist William Rotch particularly hard since he was the owner of two out of the three ships.

"The precise location in Boston where this is said to have taken place was at Griffin’s Wharf, but that has not been established as fact. Some studies place it at the foot of Hutchinson Street which is today known as Pearl Street. Wherever it took place, this would not be the last of the Tea Party’s actions.
***

"There had been another ship headed for Boston, the William, but it ran aground at Cape Cod that December. Still, its tea was able to be unloaded, taxed, and eventually sold to private individuals. The Sons of Liberty, in March of 1774, learned that the tea from this ship was being stored in a Boston warehouse. They broke into the warehouse and destroyed everything they were able to find, but some of the tea had already been sold to Davison Newman and Company. That tea was stored in their shop, and so, on March 7, the Sons of Liberty, unwilling to let any British tea into Boston, once again donned their Mohawk disguises and broke into the shop. There, they dumped the last of the tea from the four ships into the Boston Harbor.

"Although it is unclear if Samuel Adams actually helped to plan the Boston Tea Party, he did begin to publicize and defend the protestors’ actions. He claimed the protest was not an action perpetrated by a lawless mob; rather, it was an act of civil disobedience, a principled protest. He noted that the British government had given the colonists little choice, and they had to act to defend what were their constitutionally granted rights. The British government disagreed, and even those who were considered colonial supporters were angered by the act."
****

"In the immediate aftermath of the Boston Tea Party, many of the participants fled from Boston to avoid arrest. One participant, George Hewes, later remembered that several protestors went back to their homes and specifically avoided having conversations with anyone about the event. They purposely avoided any attempt to find out who else had been involved so that they could not reveal the identities of other actors should they be caught. Each of the participants understood that they were in charge of keeping their own secrets and taking the risk of any consequences for themselves.

"No one had been hurt during the act, and other than the tea and one padlock, there had been no other property damage, nor was there any looting. The participants in the protest had reportedly even swept the ships’ decks clean before leaving. Many claimed that the night of the act was the stillest night that the colony had enjoyed for a very long time.

"Only one member of the group known as the Sons of Liberty was caught and imprisoned for his role in the protest. His name was Francis Akeley. He was self-employed as a wheelwright—a person who fabricates and repairs wooden wheels—and would later serve as a militiaman in the American Revolutionary War. He was killed at the Battle of Bunker Hill in Charleston in 1775.
****

"The Declaration and Resolves called for not only the repeal of the Intolerable Acts but the censure of the British government. It also implemented a boycott of any goods coming from Britain, and it declared that the colonists had the right to govern themselves independently. For that purpose, it called upon colonists to form and train their own militia.

"Great Britain would not capitulate to their demands, however, and that would put the colonies on the path toward revolution. In fact, within months, the so-called “shot heard round the world” would ring out in Concord, Massachusetts. This is considered the start of the American Revolutionary War."
****


"There had been no violence committed during the Boston Tea Party. There was no fighting between the patriots and the British soldiers who were stationed in Boston. Moreover, none of the crewmembers of the Dartmouth, the Eleanor, or the Beaver were harmed in any way. The Sons of Liberty were careful in their planning and execution of the protest, but to the British government, that made little difference.

"For weeks following the Boston Tea Party, the harbor smelled of the 92,000 plus pounds of tea that had been dumped off the ships. The Sons of Liberty didn’t want anyone to try and salvage any of the leaves floating on the water, and for that reason, they would go out in boats to hit any tea they found with their oars in order to sink it or make it unusable. There was a considerable amount of tea floating on the water’s surface, and the colonial rebels worked hard to drench it so as to make it completely useless.

"On January 20, 1774, London ....

[Jerry Jares · Rating 4 out of 5]

Often, when I hesitate to read something because "I already know all about that" -- nothing could be further from the truth.  Hourly History sets up their tale by explaining the issues that precipitated the dumping of 92,000 pounds of tea in Boston Harbor. They did not touch any other goods on the ships, nor harm any of the seamen on board. They dressed as Mohawk Indians (who later fought on the side of the British against the Americans in the Revolutionary War) and even swept the decks after they finished. One padlock and the tea were the only damages.

The harbor smelled of tea for weeks. The Sons of Liberty would go out in boats to smack down the tea, so it could not be salvaged -- and it stayed worthless. This book highlighted some of the more prominent people in the early days of the unrest in America. Samuel Adams was a Puritan. Paul Revere was also a Puritan (by birth) but converted to the Church of England.

One fascinating tidbit about this story is that each of the 30 to 130 men who participated in the Boston Tea Party expected to be caught and tried for criminal and civil charges.  So, no one talked about it after the fact.  In March 1774, as Second Boston Tea Party took place, dumping another 30 chests of tea. This encouraged tea dumps in Maryland, New York, and South Carolina. The Boston Tea Party led directly to Americans drinking coffee instead of tea for breakfast (something that continues to this day).

Most of the leaders of the Boston Tea Party did not participate in the drafting of the Declaration of Independence or the US Constitution. They thought that their hands were dirty from causing civil unrest and that the elites would not support a movement that was led through mob violence or civil disobedience.  Then this book took an interesting turn by discussing how the Boston Tea Party became the watchword for other fights for liberation (Gandhi was one example).

[Bonnie Gleckler Clark · Rating 5 out of 5]

Freedom and Liberty for All!

I so enjoy reading the Hourly History novellas. Though I remember much about the events told about and/or the people discussed, I always learn something new. Or, I find I’m reminded of something that I’d forgotten about.
The Boston Tea Party lives on in the minds and hearts of many…taxation with out proper representation has become paramount to all speaking political freedoms.
When the the colonists found that despite their attempts to come to an agreement with the British Government at the time, eventually there was nothing left but to initiate a revolution.
In the infamous words of Patrick Henry “Is life so dear or peace sp sweet as to be purchased at he price of chains and slavery?…I know not what course others may take, but as for med, give me liberty or give me death.”

[Neera Kapahi · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Boston Tea party wasn’t a party but a protest against the taxes levied by the British government on tea and that the colonists had no representation in the British parliament. They opposed the crown’s authority and this resulted in the Boston Tea Party in which a group of men boarded the ships and threw chests of tea into the Boston Harbor.

I enjoyed the book, it explains all the facts simply and was very interesting. Eventually, the Boston Tea Party an act of defiance was one of the influences that led to the American revolution.

[Thordur · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fine, thank you.

This is a complicated story about a protest where no one dies and nothing is destroyed except some tea thrown into the harbor. But why they did that is what baffles me, with all the issues which surrounds the matter. A bigger history book might solve that problem to understand it better. Anyway on 59 pages you have a lot and a good start to begin reading about this.

[New Beginnings · Rating 4 out of 5]

Well written and interesting

A very good account of this event. It allows the reader to see the whole picture of the mindset of the British and the Americans. The Boston Tea Party is enshrined in nog only the minds of Americans but was an inspiration to others all over the world to seek freedom for oppression. Good read.

[F · Rating 4 out of 5]

Of course I knew about the Boston Tea Party but what I didn't know could fill a small book... it actually did fill a small book, this one! Some of the material I knew and some I remembered - from the surprisingly accurate Disney film Johnny Tremaine. I recommend both [of course the movie had to take some liberties with the sons of Liberty but still.

[Steven Fatigante · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great Quick Read for History Curious Patriots

I liked the Fact that Key events and players were introduced in a way that was easy to understand but gave you a sense for the catalysts and the history of the event.

[Tess Ailshire · Rating 3 out of 5]

These hourly history books are generally superficial, and for good reason. This one does a good job of tracing the backstory to the Tea Party, though; it's something I'd never thought of.

Editors -- where are you? There is a difference between "elicit" and "illicit".

[Gerry O'Brien · Rating 5 out of 5]

As refreshing as a cup of tea.

I've read the Hourly History American Revolutionary War books. I found them all entertaining and informative. I particularly enjoyed the presentation of the historical context this book used in telling this bit of Americana. Well done, and thanks.

[David Parker · Rating 3 out of 5]

How many lumps will you need

I founded it very interesting that the Sons of Liberty were Free Masons and held in taverns and coffee cafes.

[Raid alburaikan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good book to read

Nice and good writing book I enjoy reading it it has good collection of history events written in very simple English

[Lynn Schultz · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent book

I’m a fan of the American Revolution, but this book gave me a lot of new insight. Definitely worth reading.

[Bob Cantrell · Rating 5 out of 5]

Tea anyone

A good presentation on the Boston Tea Party. It has many details of the event and the lead up to it.