The more historical events move away from the present, the more magnificent they are covered with a romantic veil. In 1917, a relatively small group of propagandized sailors in Petrograd arrested the legitimate interim government, and a couple of decades later, a legend about heavy battles with the junkers and the Death Battalion was made from this episode by means of cinematography, and the talented director simply hung the wrought iron gates with extras, it is not clear why climbing onto open doors. The events of the Civil War were already romanticized beyond all limits. Our fellow citizens understand the technologies of manipulation of consciousness with the help of art, the media and history books, but how do Americans feel about this? The facts speak of their naivety. Thus, the famous "Boston Tea Party" of 1773 is considered by most of them to be the beginning of the struggle for independence.
What do we know about the Boston Tea Party?
The very name of this event evokes in a person who knows the history of the United States not very well, an association with a certain meeting of the founding fathers, familiar fromportraits on dollar bills, sitting at a set table with cups in their hands. The fact that the "Boston Tea Party" took place in the city of Boston, in a territory called Massachusetts, which later became a state, and then part of the British colony, is clear from the name. And tea is also related to this historical fact. But they didn't drink it, they drowned it. But first things first.
The name of the event is clearly ironic. In order to understand why a large amount of expensive goods was destroyed, one should know the international situation that preceded this. In what year did the Boston Tea Party take place? How were things in the overseas possessions of Britain? Who did the mess and why?
The British Empire and its overseas possessions
In the second half of the 18th century, almost the entire territory of the modern United States was a British colony. The common language, religious rites and the predominant ethnic composition of the settlers gave such administrative subordination a certain harmony. The habit of drinking tea, although not an essential product, was also an exclusively English custom. Nobody thought about fighting for independence from the mother country.
However, there were still some contradictions, and they were of an economic nature.
Economic crisis and ways out of it
The Seven Years' War, which was waged by Britain, pretty devastated the royal treasury. To improve things, the parliament decided to increase the tax burden onoverseas possessions. It all began eight years before the Boston Tea Party of 1773 took place. The control of fiscal revenues was difficult due to the large geographical distance of the American continent; at that time it took about three months to overcome the Atlantic. The difficult economic situation was aggravated by the critical situation, bordering on the complete bankruptcy of the main state enterprise of the empire, engaged in foreign trade - the East India Company. To save her from ruin was a matter of national importance, and for this the British government provided her with preferences, mainly regarding fees and taxes, or rather, consisting in exemption from them.
Tea trade in the New World
Tea in the British colonies of North America came through various channels - both official and smuggled. Over the years, a certain market equilibrium has developed, in which the consumer could choose between the goods of a legal supplier (as a rule, more expensive) and cheap, but imported, bypassing customs. As a result of the possible trade intervention of the East India Company, the whole situation changed radically. The locals didn't like it.
From the point of view of an ordinary buyer, nothing terrible happened. If a Bostonian is not directly involved in the trade in colonial goods, then what does it really matter to him in which shop to buy tea? But this is only at first glance. By ruining competing suppliers, the East India Company received an unlimited monopoly trade regime, and at the same timethe ability to force all consumers to buy a product at the price that it considers right. Not everyone understood this right away, but there was a person who was able to carry out explanatory work among the population. His name was Samuel Adams.
The Sons of Liberty and their leader
The idea of the independence of the North American states has not yet mastered the minds of the masses, but has already wandered in some heads. Adherents of separatism called themselves "Sons of Liberty", they professed radical views on independence. Ultimately, they were the ones who organized the Boston Tea Party. The year 1773 was a year of decisive action for the Sons of Liberty and their leader, Samuel Adams. The organization used the most revolutionary methods. During the unrest, all those who disagreed were subjected to obstruction, and their property could easily be damaged or even destroyed. This applied to both housing and shops.
In total, at the first stage, the East India Company intended to deliver three consignments of goods. The first of these arrived on the Dartmouth in Boston Harbor on November 27. A little later, two more ships "Beaver" and "Eleanora" came here.
In the holds were 342 large bales (45 tons), with a total value of 10,000 pounds. The amount at that time was not just huge, but astronomical.
Conflict development
The propaganda efforts of Adams and his "Sons" yielded results, there was no one to unload the ships, they were idle in the port, and the crews listened to the screams of the protesters who were going tocrowded protest rallies. A week later, the captain of the Dartmouth, Roch, proposed an option that seemed to him a compromise: the tea remains on the ships, and they themselves return to where they came from, to the UK. But it wasn't there.
Special words deserve the actions of those individuals who should have served as a bulwark of British power. It was Governor Hudchinson who gave the order to blockade the harbor and prevent the Dartmouth, Beaver and Eleanor from leaving it. In the course of further events, a significant part of the local police also went over to the side of the rebels.
How the Boston Tea Party went
On the night of December 16, several dozen residents of Boston (the exact number is as difficult to establish as the number of those who carried the log with Lenin on the first clean-up day) penetrated the Dartmouth, and from it to the Eleanor and Beaver. Before the attack, for some reason, they painted themselves like Indians. Why this was done is not known for certain, it is clear, however, that they had no intentions to impersonate the Mohawks, and this would not have happened. Perhaps such a masquerade gave the action the character of a fun adventurous adventure. As a result, all the imported tea ended up in Boston Bay. The goods were hopelessly damaged, the East India Company suffered huge losses. That was the Boston Tea Party.
Effects of drinking tea
The news then spread slowly. First they reached New York and aroused the enthusiasm of the inhabitants of all the British North American colonies. In London, they learned about the incident only three months later. The Boston Tea Party was described as a riot by the British government, which, in general, corresponded to the truth. Decisions followed quickly and harshly. They consisted of an order to blockade Boston, impose an embargo on trade with Massachusetts, remove local administration and establish martial law. General Thomas Gage was appointed as the new governor. The solutions are generally correct, but it turned out to be difficult to implement them.
Important lesson
According to the decision of the Massachusetts Provincial Congress, armed resistance began. The slogan "Freedom or Death" uttered by Patrick Henry in Virginia resonated with Bostonians, and later with all who henceforth considered themselves Americans. Gage was not helped even by the reinforcements that arrived from England, commanded by William Howe. The full scale Revolutionary War began in the spring of 1775.
Of course, the separation from the mother country of the North American colonies was not due to the drowning of a batch of tea in the depths of the sea, even if it was a large one. But, ironically, the Boston Tea Party, which took place purely for economic reasons, demonstrated the inability of Britain to hold on to outlying territories that show the will to stand on their own.
