EARLY BRITISH ACTIONS

The Townshend Acts, Boston Massacre, Boston Tea Party, Intolerable Acts, First Continental Congress, Lexington and Concord

Townshend Acts

Charles Townshend=member of British Parliament

In 1767, he persuaded Parliament to pass the Townshend Acts Townshend Acts placed a tax on certain

goods imported to the colonies from Britain. (ex. Glass, paint, paper, tea)

Townshend Acts

Colonists thought the Townshend Acts were another way to be taxed by Great Britain.

Boston Patriot, Samuel Adams, led the opposition to British goods. To protect colonists’ rights, Adams

suggested they boycott British goods. All the colonies supported the boycott

Townshend Acts

Lord North = new head of British government

Saw that the Townshend Acts were losing money for Great Britain because of the boycott.

1770, North persuaded Parliament to repeal the all the Townshend Acts except for the tea tax.

King George agreed.

The Boston Massacre

On the same day the Townshend Acts were repealed, there was a fight between British soldiers and American colonists in Boston. 5 Bostonians were dead and 10 were

injured. Patriots called this the “Boston

Massacre” to describe the killing of defenseless people. Truthfully, it was a small riot.

The Boston Massacre

There had already been tension between the Boston Patriots and the British soldiers.

British soldiers thought Bostonians were trouble-makers

Bostonians called British soldiers “lobster-backs” because of their red uniforms.

British troops were not allowed to fire at citizens and the Bostonians knew that.

The Boston Massacre

Mob violence breaks out and Bostonians threw rocks at troops and a soldier was knocked to the ground.

The troops panicked and opened fire. A Bostonian, Crispus Attucks, was shot and killed. The crowd was told the troops would be tried for murder.

The Boston Massacre

Sam Adams used this to raise the anti-British feelings among the colonists.

Loyalists saw this as proof that troops were needed even more.

John Adams (Sam Adams’ cousin) was a Patriot lawyer who defended the soldiers in trial. He believed all people deserved a fair trial. 2 of 8 soldiers found guilty John Adams proud of upholding the law.

The Boston Tea Party

In 1773, the Tea Act was passed which prompted more protests than the previous tea tax.

Because of the colonists’ boycott of British tea, the British East India Company was loosing money.

British Tea Act lowered the price of tea so it was cheaper than the Dutch tea that colonists’ smuggled into the colonies.

The Boston Tea Party

The Tea Act gave Great Britain a monopoly (complete control) over tea sales in the colonies.

Great Britain used cheap tea to sell to the colonists. Lord North thought he tricked the colonists by charging low prices. Colonists were not fooled. Saw the Tea Act as another attempt for

Great Britain to unfairly tax them

The Boston Tea Party When British ships arrived in American

ports, angry protesters kept them from unloading cargo.

Many ships returned to England. Boston’s governor ordered the British

navy to protect the 3 ships from protesters.

December 16, 1773, the Sons of Liberty, dressed as Mohawk Indians, boarded the ships and dumped their cargo overboard into the ocean. Encouraged Patriots throughout the colonies.

The Intolerable Acts

Britain was less concerned about taxes and more concerned with getting control over the colonists.

Parliament passed a series of laws in 1774 that were so harsh, colonists called them the Intolerable Acts.

The Intolerable Acts were a British punishment for the Boston Tea Party.

The Intolerable Acts

1st Law: Closed Boston Harbor to all shipping until the ruined tea was paid for.

2nd Law: Placed the government of Massachusetts strictly under British control

3rd Law: British soldiers accused of murder would be tried in England, not in the colonies.

4th Law: More British troops were sent to Boston to enforce the new laws.

The Intolerable Acts Some British leaders thought the acts

might push colonists to the edge, but King George was sure they would put colonists back under British control.

Colonists began to unite. Colonies sent food and supplies to Boston Virginia was assembling a congress to try

to find a peaceful resolution to the conflict

Not everyone agreed on how to solve the problem.

First Continental Congress September 1774, 50 leaders from 12

colonies met in Philadelphia. (all but Georgia)

Continental Congress = colonies delegates from the North American continent

Patrick Henry = Virginia representative said, “I am not a Virginian, but an American.” This was a Patriot idea. Loyalists were against it. Others were in-between

First Continental Congress Delegates send a respectful message

to King George urging him to recognize their complaints.

Delegates also called for a new boycott of British goods until Parliament repealed the Intolerable Acts.

Colonial Militias

Militias formed across the colonies in case the boycott didn’t work.

In New England, the volunteers called themselves Minutemen because they could be ready to fight in 60 seconds.

Instead of forcing the colonists to give in, the Intolerable Acts brought the 2 sides to the brink of war.

Lexington and Concord King George ignored the colonists

message and believed that “blows must decide whether they are to be subject to their country or independent.”

Lexington and Concord = Massachusetts

The first blow at Lexington: April 1775, a British spy says colonists

are hiding weapons in Concord and troops are sent.

Colonial spies warned colonists.

Lexington and Concord Paul Revere and William Dawes galloped

through the countryside warning colonists that the British are coming.

Minutemen in Lexington were preparing to fight. Don’t fire unless fired upon. British troops appeared in the early morning

and a shot was fired, but no one knew where it came from.

Soldiers rushed forward shooting. 8 colonists dead or dying and 10 were wounded. British cheered at their victory and marched on

Concord.

Lexington and Concord

The Second Blow at Concord: British soldiers were in Concord

looking for weapons, but the colonists hid them.

In frustration, soldiers set some wooden tools on fire.

Militiamen were surrounding the countryside.

Militiamen marched down the hill and British troops opened fire.

Lexington and Concord

Minutemen fired back causing the red coats (British soldiers) ran away in panic.

The retreat back to Boston was terrible for the British because Minutemen lined their route and fired at them. 74 British soldiers were dead; 200

missing or wounded 49 Colonists were dead; 41 were missing

Lexington and Concord

Victory for the colonists! British were wrong in thinking

colonists were just ordinary people who would not fight for their rights.

At Lexington and Concord, Americans proved that they were not only willing to fight for their rights; they were willing to die for them.