BOSTON MASSACRE
Background
Boston massacre is also referred to as the incident of king street, which occurred on 5th March 1770. It was a confrontation between colonialist and the British soldiers in which it resulted in the death of five people. Manufactured goods from Britain were brought to the capital of Massachusetts, which was Boston. The town later became a center of resistance as the British had imposed taxes on goods that were shipped from Britain to the capital. The colonialists opposed the rule as it was contrary to the original charter, which was against the power given to the British over the protectorates. The house of Representatives in Massachusetts began a movement to oppose the rule. They wrote to King George III, asking him to denounce the government. The representatives launched a campaign to oppose this legislation and called for other colonialists to join the movement. The then governor, Francis Bernard, declined the letter, and they were ordered to rescind the message which the house declined. As the movement grew, and people started boycotting the use of the products, the state affairs of Massachusetts become unable. The commander in chief referred to as Thomas gage ordered the deployment of s much forces as possible to Boston to contain the situation (Novic).
The Boston Massacre began on 5th March 1770. It started with a small argument on the king street between British soldiers and a few colonists. The argument escalated as more colonialist joined and started throwing stick and snowball to the British private white house. The crowd increased in number, and the local British officer sent more soldiers to control the situation. This aggravated the colonist, and they started daring them to shoot. When the condition worsened, captain Preston arrived and tried to calm the colonist. In the process, an object was thrown and knocked one of the soldiers down. This resulted in the soldier firing back at the crowd and some In the process, and other soldiers fired their weapon leaving three colonists dead on the spot and injuring others. Two more died as a result of the wounds bringing a total of five people died due to the riots (Hinderaker).
Conflicts between the British soldiers and colonists escalated because the British had been trying to increase their control over colonies and raising the tax on goods as well. Colonists saw they were being oppressed, and their human rights are violated. The event at Boston became a turning point, and it brought more colonists together to resist British rule.
Investigations about the incident were done immediately, and eight soldiers were arrested on 6th March. Boston selectmen requested the commander, Hutchinson, to order the troops out of the city, but he argued he did not have the authority to do so. William Dalrymple, the then commander of the troops, refused to move the soldiers. The council later unanimously agreed to remove the forces as the town meetings ad become more restive. They feared a rebellion that might occur if they did not withdraw the troops. The governor was off his duties since he did not have the personnel needed to run the town. Eight soldiers who were accused were brought to trial on 27th November 1770. Their lawyer argued the court to look at the charged not as British but the fact that they are soldiers, and they only fired because they felt their lives were in danger and that according to the law is legal. After the trial, six soldiers were released, and two were found guilty. The two convicted were given reduced sentences. The four civilians arrested were acquitted.
Some media battles transpired after the incident leading to different media cites spread different information. Some were for the British and others for the colonist. Both made strikingly different stories on the episode .one on the side of the British and the other on Boston’s side. Anonymous pamphlets headlined as A Short Narrative of The Horrid Massacre were published and circulated. It described the incident as unprovoked attacked on citizens who were conducting a peaceful demonstration. It accused the soldiers of intentionally wanting to cause harm. Hutchinson’s slater published his side of the story in a pamphlet named A Fair Account of The Late Disturbance in Boston, where he blamed the Bostonians for refusing to accept parliamentary laws and conducting lawlessness events intended to ambush the soldiers. The media had two contradicting stories about the event.
The Boston massacre has contributed significantly to the American Revolution. This was the turning point where Americans began to fight for their independence. They form movements to oppose the British. The massacre became a rallying cry for patriotism. It led to the formation of groups such as sons of liberty who showed the colonials the evils of British rule. The massacre was later to be remembered in 1858 by a patriot who witnessed the murders during the riots. The events are still being remembered today on 5th March of every year.
Works cited
Hinderaker, Erick. Bostons massacre . Harvard University Press, 2017.
Novic, David, et al. “the boston massacre history experience.” proceedings of the 19th ACM international confrence on multimodia interaction (2017).
York, neil L. “the elusive quest for a revotunary American State of Mind:boston after the massacre. discussion by Colin Nicolson.” rothermere american institute specialn seminar (n.d.): 2018.