Boston Massacre Research Paper

Words: 553
Pages: 3

The Boston Massacre

In January of 1770, tensions in Boston were running high. The British had in recent years enacted a series of acts such as the Sugar Act of 1764, and the Stamp Act of 1765 for the purpose of increasing tax revenues from the colonies. In order to enforce compliance with these acts, the British government sent three thousand soldiers to Boston. On the evening of March 5, 1770, a crowd of (probably drunk) Bostonian colonists taunted and assaulted with rocks and icy snowballs, a group of British soldiers who were standing guard outside the customs house on King street. Some in the crowd dared the British to fire, until at last, one of them did. A moment later, the other soldiers fired into the crowd, hitting eleven men,
…show more content…
Second, the engraving shows the streets of Boston as being very clean. In reality, they were probably filthy. Also, where is all the snow? And third, The Colonists are shown as being well-dressed. Most however, were probably very shabby-looking. The engraving did get a few things right, however. First, the massive billows of smoke is exactly what would be expected from eighteenth century gunpowder. As is the copious amounts of blood (a .58 caliber musket ball makes a big hole!), and the many (strange that Revere only shows four dead instead of the five who actually died) dead colonists. However, the engraving shows the British soldiers formed into orderly battle ranks and firing as one even though accounts tell that one soldier fired first. Also, Captain Preston is shown with drawn sword as he gives the order to fire. The whole scene was most likely very chaotic. The engraving also depicts the Colonists picking up the injured as they try to flee. In reality, accounts say that the Colonists were taunting the British by daring them to fire while throwing snowballs and rocks. Many were said to have been armed with clubs. This incident did happen on a weekday evening therefore, many Bostonians would probably have been drunk (“Sam Adams: not always a good