Boston Tea Act Research Paper

Words: 675
Pages: 3

It is widely agreed that British-imposed tax revenue acts were central to provoking the American War of Independence. However, the extremity of colonial beliefs and the retaliation that ensued were arguably motivated by the fixation on liberty and ‘natural law’ subsequent to the Enlightenment movement.

The 1760s oversaw the rise of revolutionary fervour within the colonies. In the wake of the ‘Seven Years' War’ (1757–1763), the British parliament decided to introduce the Sugar Act (5 April 1764) to generate funds in order to repay debt, which culminated in “defraying expenses of defending, protecting land, and securing [America]” (George Granville, Lord of Britain’s Treasury, 1764). Outrage within the colonies ensued, however, not due to the
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of the Townshend Duties (1767) inspired further infuriation observed in Samuel Adams’ ‘Massachusetts Circular Letter’ (1768), in which he claimed British-imposed taxation “are infringements of their [colonists] natural and …show more content…
Although the 1773 Tea Act introduced no new tax and made tea incredibly cheaper for colonists, historian Ray Raphael claims the issue was “one of self-governance” consequent to suspicions generated by preceding Parliamentary acts. The Tea Act triggered severe implications in British-American relations, such as the Boston Tea Party (16 December 1773) and consequently the Coercive Acts (1774), which arguably was the most pivotal British Act that induced the American Independence War. Historian Gordon Wood states, “The Coercive Acts of 1774 provoked open rebellion in America.. Whatever royal authority was left in the colonies is now dissolved." This is considerably due to the controversial Boston Port Act (31 March 1774) and the Massachusetts Government Act (20 May 1774) which historian David Ramsey claims colonists “viewed them as deadly weapons.” 9 months after the Massachusetts Government Act, the British Parliament declared Massachusetts a ‘state of rebellion’ (February 1775), and 2 months later, the Battle of Lexington and Concord (19 April 1775) marked the beginning of the American Independence