|
_____Having been passed by the British Parliament 8 years ago in a response to the rebellious colonists the Intolerable acts, also known as the Coercive acts, was what pushed the colonies a step closer to rebelling against the already unpopular monarchy. On December 16, 1773 Boston merchants dressed as Indians dumped three shiploads of tea into Boston Harbor to protest the unpopular tea tax. The English in a foolish effort to punish this act of rebellion passed the five intolerable acts.
_____The first of these acts passed on March 20, 1774 was the Boston Port Bill, which closed all shipping in the harbor until all losses were paid to the East India Company. This act caused much resentment because it punished both those who were guilty and those who were innocent. The second act that followed was the Massachusetts Governing Act, which modified our charter and practically stripped this province of any self-government that we had enjoyed.
|
|
It was decreed that the local council was to be appointed by the king. Also, the royal governor would appoint the attorney general, judges and the justices of peace. The third act provided that all British officers accused of committing a crime in the colonies was to be taken back to England to be tried. The other acts were the Quartering Act and the Quebec Act.
_____To have accepted these acts would have meant total surrender to England, giving up rights and self-government. The effort by the British to punish and suppress us backfired on them because the people became more enraged. This led to economic sanctions against England and the call for the first Continental Congress. As King George III wrote," The die is now cast. The colonists must either submit or triumph."
Unfortunately for him we did not submit and triumph we did.
|
