PROTESTS BECOME RESISTANCE

• It has been two and a half years since the latest taxes on tea, paint, lead, and glass

• The year is 1770

• During this time, the colonists are not blaming the king…they blame Parliament

• Was it a lull in the buildup OR the calm before the storm?

THE CALM BEFORE THE STORM

March 1770-Boston is home to some of the most rebellious and radical colonists

• One night as young boys were throwing snowballs at the soldiers, a man yelled, “Attack!”

• In the confusion, the British soldiers fired and 5 men were killed

THE BOSTON MASSACRE

• The British believed the colonies planned the Boston Massacre because things had quieted down

• Radicals use this event as a battle cry

• Parliament takes away all taxes but the one on tea

THIS IS NO LONGER NONVIOLENT

• In 1772 Sam Adams forms a committee in Boston to get opinions voiced

• Within two years, the colonies are writing to one another to stay informed

• They are starting to feel more united…

CORRESPONDENCE COMMITTEES

• The British East India Company is an important business in England

• They were about to go bankrupt so the British flood the American market with tea

• They make smuggling tea incredibly expensive and they sell tea at a very low price

• ****Why do you think this would make colonists angry?*****

BRITAIN TRIES TO CREATE THE WALMART OF TEA

• To protest against the tea tax in December of 1773 a group of colonists disguised as Indians snuck into Boston Harbor

• They poured 342 chests of tea into the harbor

THE BOSTON TEA PARTY

• Parliament closes the Boston Harbor until tea is paid for

• Royal governors are appointed to be in charge of Boston

• More troops quartered in Boston homes

• Anyone tried for crimes had to be tried in England

THE INTOLERABLE ACTS

• Takes place in 1774 in Philadelphia

• 55 men from 12 colonies (no Georgia) meet to discuss their complaints

• There is a liberal, a moderate, and a conservative group even after everything England has put them through

THE FIRST CONTINENTAL CONGRESS

• The colonies at least agreed they had to stop trade with Britain

• They gathered minutemen who had to be ready for battle at a moment’s notice

• A colonial militia made up of average citizens and all volunteers was formed

• Britain has one year to shape up or exports to Britain will stop

MINUTEMEN