The colonists had never accepted the constitutionality of the duty on tea, and the Tea Act rekindled their opposition to it . Their resistance culminated in the Boston Tea Party on December 16, 1773, in which colonists boarded East India Company ships and dumped their loads of tea overboard.
What is the significance of the Tea Act?
The Tea Act taxed the tea at source (i.e. in India) so there was no tax collection in the colonies. The act allowed the tea to go directly to America instead of having to be imported to Britain and then re-exported to the colonies. This made the tea 9d per lb cheaper, even with the 3d tax.
Are the Tea Act and the Boston Tea Party the same thing?
The Tea Act, passed by Parliament on May 10, 1773, granted the British East India Company Tea a monopoly on tea sales in the American colonies . ... The policy ignited a “powder keg” of opposition and resentment among American colonists and was the catalyst of the Boston Tea Party.
Why was the Tea Act and Boston Tea Party Important?
The event was the first major act of defiance to British rule over the colonists . It showed Great Britain that Americans wouldn't take taxation and tyranny sitting down, and rallied American patriots across the 13 colonies to fight for independence.
What did the Boston Tea Party Act do?
The midnight raid, popularly known as the “Boston Tea Party,” was in protest of the British Parliament's Tea Act of 1773, a bill designed to save the faltering East India Company by greatly lowering its tea tax and granting it a virtual monopoly on the American tea trade .
How much did tea cost in 1773?
The amount of tea dumped into the harbor would make 24,000,000 cups of tea. Today, that much tea would cost about $1,000,000.00 !
Is there still tea in the Boston Harbor?
What happened after the Tea Party? Boston Harbor was shut down . For weeks after the Boston Tea Party, the 92,000 pounds of tea dumped into the harbor caused it to smell. As a result of the Boston Tea Party, the British shut down Boston Harbor until all of the 340 chests of British East India Company tea were paid for.
What was the cause and effect of the Tea Act of 1773?
The Tea Act was a tax on all imported tea from Britain. Cause: The colonists boycott against British goods had hurt their trade , so the British repealed the Townshend Acts after the Boston Massacre. ... Effect: The Sons of Liberty organized a protest against the Tea Act known as the Boston Tea Party.
Why were colonists angry after the Tea Act?
American colonists were outraged over the tea tax. They believed the Tea Act was a tactic to gain colonial support for the tax already enforced . The direct sale of tea by agents of the British East India Company to the American colonies undercut the business of colonial merchants.
How much was the tax that caused the Boston Tea Party?
The act granted the EIC a monopoly on the sale of tea that was cheaper than smuggled tea; its hidden purpose was to force the colonists to pay a tax of 3 pennies on every pound of tea . The Tea Act thus retained the three pence Townshend duty on tea imported to the colonies.
What was a major effect of the Boston Tea Party?
The effect of the Boston Tea Party was that the British passed the Intolerable acts , which were very harsh and cruel to the people of Boston.
What are some important facts about the Boston Tea Party?
- Colonists weren't protesting a higher tax on tea. ...
- The attacked ships were American and the tea wasn't the King's. ...
- The tea was Chinese, not Indian, and lots of it was green. ...
- The Tea Party, itself, didn't incite revolution.
What was a major consequence of the Boston Tea Party?
A major consequence of the Boston Tea Party was the Coercive Acts passed in 1774 , called the Intolerable Acts by Americans.
Did the Boston Tea Party pollute the water?
This myth is perpetuated by many historic recreations of the event, but it doesn't seem to be true . Most of these crates were too heavy to throw into the water, so the Bostonians chopped them open with axes and dumped the contents overboard.
Why was the Tea Act 1773 passed?
On April 27, 1773, the British Parliament passes the Tea Act, a bill designed to save the faltering East India Company from bankruptcy by greatly lowering the tea tax it paid to the British government and, thus, granting it a de facto monopoly on the American tea trade.
Why did the colonists dress as Mohawks during the Boston Tea Party?
The disguise was mostly symbolic in nature; they knew they would be recognized as non-Indians. The act of wearing “Indian dress” was to express to the world that the American colonists identified themselves as “Americans” and no longer considered themselves British subjects.
