Essay on The Boston Massacre

Submitted By ktstevenz
Words: 878
Pages: 4
Open Document
Paul Reveres Engraving of
The Boston Massacre
Page 1

There is much controversy over the events that occurred on March 5, 1770 in Boston, Massachusetts. On this night while guarding a Boston Custom House, a British sentry begins to be taunted by a group of boys. After reaching his breaking point the soldier hit one of the boys with his musket. Following that a crowd of fifty or sixty people began to crowd around the soldier telling him to call for help. Captain Thomas Preston was informed of the event and lead seven of his British soldiers to the Custom House to assist the sentry. Upon arriving Preston tries to calm the crowd down but all attempts failed. Next one of the British soldier fired a shot into the crowd. The shot was soon followed by other shots. All of the colonist ran and scattered away leaving five of the colonist’s dead and six wounded. Three weeks or so after the horrible event an engraving by Paul Revere began to circulate. This engraving did not show a mob of people fighting against British troops but showed a group of British troops firing at a group of innocent colonists. Many questions arise from this engraving. Why did Paul Revere put out and engraving with depicted false events. Was there anyone actually aggravating the guards? If so were the soldiers under the command of Captain Thomas Preston ordered to fire into the crowd or were they provoked to do so? Paul Revere engraving was a very patriotic message that spread very quickly throughout the streets of Boston. In the engraving on one side there is a group of British soldiers and on the other side there is a group of colonists. The British
Paul Reveres Engraving of
The Boston Massacre
Page 2

soldiers are very organized and lined up into a straight line, while the colonist are just a big crowd of people standing in the middle of the street. The British soldiers are firing multiple shoots into the crowd of colonists. The engraving shows that the colonists are not fighting back but sitting there and taking the shots. A black man named Crispus Attucks is shown in the engraving lying on the ground closest to the British soldiers, but is drawn as a white man. Regardless if he was drawn as a white man, because of his death, Crispus Attucks became the most famous black man to fight the cause of the revolution. Also illustrated in the engraving is the sign for the customs house, which is labeled Butchers Hall. Tension had been very high between the British and the colonists ever since Parliament passed the Stamp Act, which mandated the use of stamped paper of the affixing of stamps certifying payment of tax. This tax was required on a number of items including types of commercial and legal documents like playing cards, pamphlets, newspapers, diplomas, bills of lading, and marriage licenses were required to have a stamp on the bills of sale. After forcing Parliament to repeal the Stamp Act a new act was passed entitled The Townshend Act. This act had a tax on five items: glass, whit lead, paper, paint, and tea. Following the passing of The Townshend Act colonists found a cheap way to successfully smuggle tea into their ports. Great Britain was faced with a “breakdown of law and order” (Kennedy, Cohen, Piehl pg. 88), and therefore sent two regiments of troops into Boston in 1768. “With liberty –
Show More

Related Documents: Essay on The Boston Massacre

The Boston Massacre: The Boston Massacre

The Boston Massacre is one of the most important events that turned into a colonial sentiment against King George III and British acts and taxes. It all started with a street fight that had occurred on March 5, 1770. This fight was between a "patriot" mob, throwing snowballs, stones, and sticks, and a squad of British soldiers who were armed with guns. This lead to the death of 5 colonists, named Crispus Attucks, Patrick Carr, Samuel Gray, Samuel Maverick, and James Caldwell. After these colonists…

Words 175 - Pages 1

Massacre: The Boston Massacre

The Boston Massacre is a key point in American history. There is no doubt that the Boston Massacre played an important role on our fight for independence from England and started our nations journey on the path towards freedom. However, there is a doubt that the Boston Massacre was not really a massacre at all, it was just an incident that occurred on King street. First to understand why this is a debate, one must understand what a massacre actually is. The definition of a massacre is the deliberate…

Words 147 - Pages 1

Boston Massacre

The military was given pardon over the law by order of the king and avoided harsher punishments for the crimes they committed. The Boston Massacre of 1770 displays a case of murders by British soldiers. Although they did not commence the occurrence, the soldiers mortally wounded five men. A trial was held, but the worst punishment given was a branding on a finger. The American people did…

Words 670 - Pages 3

The Booston Massacre: The Boston Massacre

The Boston Massacre was a battle that had taken place on March 5, 1770. During this battle, five men were killed. The five men were Crispus Attucks, Samuel Gray, James Caldwell, Samuel Maverick, and Patrick Carr. The Townshend Acts of 1768 made colonists pay taxes on products imported from Great Britain. The colonists had already been infuriated with these taxes, and had an even greater tension when the British troops had arrived in the colonies. The battle had taken place in front of a British…

Words 256 - Pages 2

Causes Of The Boston Massacre

The Boston Massacre was not really a massacre and was not a reason for revolution. A massacre is the killing of a large number of people and from my resources I found that only as many as five people died. It was called a massacre by the use of the propaganda picture in source B. It shows a photo which made it look like it was more brutal and it harmed more people than it really did. In fact, many important events led up to the massacre. One of the causes that got the british mad was how the british…

Words 334 - Pages 2

Essay On Boston Massacre

Discussion board/history With regards to Boston Massacre that happened on 5th March 1770 is evident that the arrival of his majesty troops in Boston could have triggered the conflict with the inhabitants. First, the residents considered their arrival as being abhorrent since they have never used their influence to weaken the troops. Additionally, the soldiers were brought into contempt by enhancing and aiding desertions and by extension with impunity. This has been depicted even where facts are evidence…

Words 560 - Pages 3

The Boston Massacre And Its Importance

the Boston Massacre and its Importance. The Boston Massacre was originally named the “Bloody Massacre in King Street” by Paul Revere and the name was later changed.It occurred on March 5,1770.The Boston Massacre is about the British Army Soldiers and “how they shot and killed people while under attack by a mob”[“Boston Massacre 2009”].The Boston Massacre was important “because it united the colonists against Britain”[“Why was the Boston Massacre Important?Study.com 2017”].“The Boston Massacre was…

Words 115 - Pages 1

Boston Massacre DBQ

After reading and analyzing a number of sources I am writing to you to state my opinion about who is to blame for the Boston Massacre. I have come to a result that the blame for the Boston Massacre rests entirely on the British. I believe that the British are to blame for the Boston Massacre because in Document 2 it states, “under the command of Captain Preston and by his orders fired upon the colonists in King Street.” There were three killed without any type of warning. Also in Document 3 it…

Words 290 - Pages 2

boston massacre Essay

“The Boston Massacre” My report is about the Boston Massacre. Let me start of by telling you a little bit about what led up to the Boston Massacre .The Townshend act was a series of laws passed in the beginning of 1767 by the parliament Great Britain relating to the British Colonies. The purpose of the Townshend acts was supposed to raise revenue to help pay the cost of maintaining an army in North America. When they changed the purpose, its purpose was to raise money in the colonies to pay the…

Words 542 - Pages 3

Essay On The Boston Massacre

The History of the Boston Massacre Five people were murdered on the day of March 5, 1770. This tragedy was known as the Boston Massacre. In the beginning, Bostonians started throwing rocks, snowballs, and lumber at the British soldiers. Colonists were very frustrated with the British, because of the constant taxes on priced goods. The Boston Massacre was a key event that kick-started the American Revolution, as evidenced by the Boston shooting, the political outbursts between the British and the…

Words 647 - Pages 3