Redcoats boston massacre

When the smoke cleared, five men lay dead or dying. The first man to fall at the Boston Massacre was dockworker Crispus Attucks, who was of African and Indigenous descent. Little is known about Crispus Attucks, and yet he is one of the most important figures in the Revolution. The Sons of Liberty held funerals for the victims and organized a vigorous propaganda effort in order to turn public opinion against the Redcoats, and labeled the tragedy a "bloody massacre.

The British soldiers were tried for murder and were defended by John Adams, a Boston lawyer who was as loyal to the idea of justice as he was to the Patriot cause. The Massacre site has been moved twice, both times from the center of the intersection. Today, a medallion on the Freedom Trail marks the site of the Boston Massacre and reenactments hosted by the Bostonian Society take place on the anniversary every year.

Skip to main content. I think part of the reason certain aspects of this case became enshrined was because this case was viewed in such a positive light historically. At the time, colonists were frustrated at the result, but I think they realized the trial had been fair.

And if you can have a case with this much emotion and passion and get a mixed verdict, which was generally unsatisfying to the colonists—and yet have it accepted—that is the kind of case that serves as effective precedent. Patriots accepted the mixed trial verdicts without violence. What does that say about their faith in the rule of law?

Stunningly so. I think the verdicts are almost exactly what we would see today. But if you see something that doesn't look right, click here to contact us! Twice a week we compile our most fascinating features and deliver them straight to you. Live TV. This Day In History. History Vault. Recommended for you. Remembering the Boston Massacre. Boston Massacre. British troops in the Massachusetts Bay Colony were there to stop demonstrations against the Townshend Acts and keep order, but instead they provoked outrage.

What events led to the Boston Massacre? Since the people of Boston had been heading protests against British taxation, first against the Stamp Act and then in against the Townshend Acts. Citizens believed that Britain did not have the right to tax them because they did not elect their representatives in Parliament. Why is the Boston Massacre important? The event in Boston helped to unite the colonies against Britain. What started as a minor fight became a turning point in the beginnings of the American Revolution.

The Boston Massacre helped spark the colonists' desire for American independence, while the dead rioters became martyrs for liberty. Who won the Boston Massacre?

The Boston Massacre was a street fight that occurred on March 5, , between a "patriot" mob, throwing snowballs, stones, and sticks, and a squad of British soldiers. Several colonists were killed and this led to a campaign by speech-writers to rouse the ire of the citizenry. Why did Britain pass the Tea Act? On this day in , 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.

How did the colonists react to the Boston Massacre? Colonists' Reactions to the Boston Massacre: The Boston Massacre occurred on March 5, as the culmination of civlian-military tension as British troops were stationed in Boston. Outrage over the Townshend Acts led a crowd of Bostonians to attack soldiers who fired on the crowd. What is the Boston Massacre and why is it important?