Split History of the Battles of Lexington and Concord
the Sons of Liberty moved quietly to Boston Harbor Dressed as Native Americans the men boarded three ships docked in the harbor and dumped 342 chests of tea from the British East India Company into the water to protest the tea tax levied by Parliament own In three hours on the night of December 16 1773 116 protesters destroyed 92 000 pounds 41 730 kilograms of tea
Britain's response to the Boston Tea Party was the Coercive Acts which singled out Massachusetts and Boston in particular for punishment Colonists called them the Intolerable Acts Again this move by the British led the patriots to unite They formed the First Continental Congress in 1774 which was called to discuss a plan of resistance that all the colonies could agree upon
Men women and children gathered to burn the stamps required for certain products Armed resistance wasn't out of the question Since the 1760s the colonies had been forming Committees of Safety Made up of every male in the community Committees
of Safety met to discuss concerns in the colonies and monitor what the British were doing They also controlled local militias which were ready to fight when called upon CONTROLLING ACTS The French and Indian War 1754 1763 left Great Britain with a lot of debt To help pay that debt Parliament taxed the American colonies When the colonists objected to the taxes the British became determined to assert their right to tax the colonies They responded by passing other acts to exert control Sugar Act Passed in 1764 the Sugar Act placed taxes on sugar and molasses imported to the colonies from places such as the French and Dutch West Indies instead of the British West Indies Stamp Act Passed in 1765 this act taxed all commercial and legal papers newspapers playing cards pamphlets almanacs and dice sold in the colonies Townshend Acts Passed in 1767 these acts taxed all imported glass lead paper tea and paint Coercive Acts Passed in 1774 partly as a response to the Boston Tea Party the Coercive Acts were designed to restore order and punish the rebels in Boston Known as the Intolerable Acts in the colonies they included several acts that made colonists angry The Boston Port Act closed Boston's port until the loss of revenue from the Boston Tea Party was paid back he Massachusetts Government Act halted democratic town meetings in the colony The Administration of Justice Act said British officials could not be punished for crimes in Massachusetts The Quartering Act required colonists to share their homes with British troops when asked
