The Answer Might Be In Here:
In 1773, the Tea Act was enacted. To help finance the East India Company's expensive imperial expansion in India, Parliament eliminated the tax on the Company's tea. Most Americans, by now, were drinking imported Dutch tea, to avoid paying the Townshend tax. The cost of the Company's tea would be cheaper than the Dutch tea, even with the Townshend tax. This gave the colonists a dilemma - pay less for tea and pay the hated tax, or pay more for tea and continue defiance. When a shipment of the Company's tea arrived in Boston, a band of men led by Samuel Adams, attacked the three ships it had arrived on and threw the tea into Boston Harbor. The Boston Tea Party was a turning point.Could a tea-stained harbor really lead to war? The British Parliament, up to now determined to placate the colonists by pulling back taxes just enough to cool the flames of rebellion, decided now was the time to stand firm. They demanded payment for the tea, and the town of Boston refused to pay. The Parliament responded by passing the Coercive Acts (called Intolerable Acts by the colonists) in March, 1774.
In 1773, the Tea Act was enacted. To help finance the East India Company's expensive imperial expansion in India, Parliament eliminated the tax on the Company's tea. Most Americans, by now, were drinking imported Dutch tea, to avoid paying the Townshend tax. The cost of the Company's tea would be cheaper than the Dutch tea, even with the Townshend tax. This gave the colonists a dilemma - pay less for tea and pay the hated tax, or pay more for tea and continue defiance. When a shipment of the Company's tea arrived in Boston, a band of men led by Samuel Adams, attacked the three ships it had arrived on and threw the tea into Boston Harbor. The Boston Tea Party was a turning point.Could a tea-stained harbor really lead to war? The British Parliament, up to now determined to placate the colonists by pulling back taxes just enough to cool the flames of rebellion, decided now was the time to stand firm. They demanded payment for the tea, and the town of Boston refused to pay. The Parliament responded by passing the Coercive Acts (called Intolerable Acts by the colonists) in March, 1774.
