Transcript The Road to Revolution

The Boston
Masacre
A
• The Boston Massacre was the killing of five colonists by
British regulars on March 5, 1770.
• It was the culmination of tensions in the American
colonies that had been growing since Royal troops first
appeared in Massachusetts in October 1768 to enforce the
heavy tax burden imposed by the Townshend Acts.
What was the Boston
Massacre?
• On the same day that Parliament repealed most of the Townshend
duties, a brawl broke out between soldiers and colonists in Boston.
• Patriots called this incident the “Boston Massacre.” A massacre is the
killing of defenseless people.
• What really happened was a small riot.
• Trouble had been brewing in Boston for months before the riot.
• To the British, Boston Patriots were the worst trouble makers in the
colonies.
• In 1768, the government had sent four regiments of troops to keep
order in Boston.
So what happened?
• Bostonians resented the British soldiers. They made fun
of their red uniforms by calling them “lobsterbacks.”
• Sam Adams even taught his dog to nap at the soldiers
heels.
• Despite such insults, the troops were forbidden to fire on
citizens. Knowing this only made the Bostonians bolder
in their attacks.
• General Thomas Gage , the commander of the British
army in America, wrote that “the people were as
lawless….after the troops arrived, as they were before.”
So what happened cont…..
• http://www.bostonmassacre.net/timeline.htm
Timeline of the event
• http://www.bostonmassacre.net/players/index.htm
The Victims
• The Massacre trials ended quietly. Samuel Adams wrote several articles in the Boston
Gazette during December, 1770, under the pseudonym "Vindex," that accused the
soldiers of escaping with blood on their hands. But the mood had changed in Boston
since the Massacre. He turned his attentions to keeping the memory of the Massacre
alive, organizing annual commemorations on March 5, a tradition that lasted until
1783.
• Kilroy and Montgomery faced the death penalty at the sentencing on December 14,
1770. To escape execution they "prayed the benefit of clergy," a Medieval remnant of
the time when clergymen were excepted from the secular courts. To receive the benefit
they had only to prove they could read Psalm 51, verse 1, the "neck verse," at a time
when most people were illiterate. Although illiterate himself, Kilroy was able to obtain
the benefit because the reading requirement was abolished in 1705.
• Suffolk County Sheriff Stephen Greenleaf branded Kilroy and Montgomery on the
right thumb with an "M" for murder. The brand was to prevent them from ever being
able to invoke the benefit of clergy again.
• After his acquittal, Captain Preston removed himself from Boston to Castle William in
Boston Harbor, and eventually returned to England. The soldiers returned to the
Twenty-ninth Regiment, which had left Boston following the Massacre.
The Trial
• http://www.bostonmassacre.net/trial/index.htm
Witness Testimonies
• Starting from the name itself, this landmark event of the American Revolution proved
to be a magnet for popular myths and misconceptions.
• It was not called the “The Boston Massacre” until many years after it occurred in
1773. The first popular name popularized by Paul Revere was The Bloody Massacre in
King Street. In the early 1800's it was also called the State Street Massacre.
• In many history books the dramatic shooting is described as the spark that ignited the
Revolutionary War. Perhaps one of the reasons is the loss of human lives. In reality
there were several other historic milestones although less dramatic, that moved Boston
towards the revolution. Townshend Acts, Stamp Act and Boston Tea Party were some
of them.
One of the most interesting myths is that the scuffle on King’s street started from the
accusations thrown at one of the British officers that he did not pay the wigmaker’s
bill. This makes an interesting story and many of us may speculate that perhaps the
most famous protest would not have occurred if the bill had been paid on time. But on
the contrary to the popular myth, the British officer Captain John Goldfinch in fact
settled his bill the day earlier.
Myths of the Boston
Massacre
• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iloGkp5f_Hk&feature
=related
A Reenactment
• Sam Adams saw this event as a perfect opportunity to
whip up anti-British feelings. He called the riot a “horrid
massacre” and had Paul Revere, a local silversmith
engrave a picture of it.
• Revere’s engraving shows soldiers firing at a peaceful,
unarmed group of citizens.
Massacre or selfdefense?
• http://www.bostonmassacre.net/gravure.htm
Paul Revere’s Engravings