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Greetings fellow colonists, if you have not yet figured out I am a Loyalist. Today I'm going to try and convince you to be a loyalist. One brilliant up side about being a loyalist is that if the king tries' a crazy stunt about getting the patriots on his side I don't get punished because I was loyal to the king by being a loyalist.

But being a patriot also has it's down sides just as my people say "no king, no rules!" The only reason I chose to be a loyalist was because I don't want my kids and my grandkids and great grandkids Saying if my great grandma didn't have laws I don't have to listen to my parents rules . I don't want my name on an old family tree with descendants like that on it.

If they were a Patriot it would be fine by them but not a loyalist we actually have laws, rules, it sounds bad now but people out there, think of them like they're killing themselves here's another example. Would you want that grandchild running around and shooting people just because they can?!? NO!

So join as and stop being neutral join the people who do it right if you're not a loyalist your wrong, it's wrong. Now thank you for your time.

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Greetings fellow colonists, if you have not yet figured out I am a Loyalist. Today I'm going to try and convince you to be a loyalist. One brilliant up side about being a loyalist is that if the king tries' a crazy stunt about getting the patriots on his side I don't get punished because I was loyal to the king by being a loyalist.

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Reasons why we should choose Independence or oppose it.

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Thomas Hutchinson, a Supreme Court justice in Massachusetts, was the most hated man in America before Benedict Arnold, and was hung in effigy many times for being a loyalist.

The year is 1774. Whether you are a merchant in Massachusetts, a German-born farmer living in Pennsylvania, a tavern-owning woman of Maryland, or a slave-owner in the South, you share some things in common. For instance, you probably don't like paying taxes on such goods as tea that wind up going to support the royal coffers in London. At the same time you like the notion of being part of the British Empire, the most powerful in the world.

Chances are you speak English and have many British relatives or ancestors. Or, even if you're a German farmer with no ties to Britain, you are still grateful for the opportunity to farm peacefully in this British-ruled land. Yet, you hear murmurings - radical notions about separating from Britain are making the rounds. Those hotheads in Boston recently threw a load of tea in the harbor and the British retaliated with something called the Intolerable Acts. A confrontation is looming.

Who will you support? The radical Americans or the British? Fact is, it's not an easy decision. Not only will your way of life be drastically affected, but whomever you choose to side with will make you instant enemies.

Lord Dunmore, the royal governor of Virginia at the start of the Revolutionary War, offered freedom to enslaved Africans and Indians for joining the British Army.

Any full assessment of the American Revolution must try to understand the place of Loyalists, those Americans who remained faithful to the British Empire during the war.

Although Loyalists were steadfast in their commitment to remain within the British Empire, it was a very hard decision to make and to stick to during the Revolution. Even before the war started, a group of Philadelphia Quakers were arrested and imprisoned in Virginia because of their perceived support of the British. The Patriots were not a tolerant group, and Loyalists suffered regular harassment, had their property seized, or were subject to personal attacks.

The process of "tar and feathering," for example, was brutally violent. Stripped of clothes, covered with hot tar, and splattered with feathers, the victim was then forced to parade about in public. Unless the British Army was close at hand to protect Loyalists, they often suffered bad treatment from Patriots and often had to flee their own homes. About one-in-six Americans was an active Loyalist during the Revolution, and that number undoubtedly would have been higher if the Patriots hadn't been so successful in threatening and punishing people who made their Loyalist sympathies known in public.

One famous Loyalist is Thomas Hutchinson, a leading Boston merchant from an old American family, who served as governor of Massachusetts. Viewed as pro-British by some citizens of Boston, Hutchinson's house was burned in 1765 by an angry crowd protesting the Crown's policies. In 1774, Hutchinson left America for London where he died in 1780 and always felt exiled from his American homeland. One of his letters suggested his sad end, for he, "had rather die in a little country farm-house in New England than in the best nobleman's seat in old England." Like his ancestor, Anne Hutchinson who suffered religious persecution from Puritan authorities in the early 17th-century, the Hutchinson family suffered severe punishment for holding beliefs that other Americans rejected.

American patriots used tar and feathering to intimidate British tax collectors.

Perhaps the most interesting group of Loyalists were enslaved African-Americans who chose to join the British. The British promised to liberate slaves who fled from their Patriot masters. This powerful incentive, and the opportunities opened by the chaos of war, led some 50,000 slaves (about 10 percent of the total slave population in the 1770s) to flee their Patriot masters. When the war ended, the British evacuated 20,000 formerly enslaved African Americans and resettled them as free people.

Along with this group of black Loyalists, about 80,000 other Loyalists chose to leave the independent United States after the Patriot victory in order to remain members of the British Empire. Wealthy men like Thomas Hutchinson who had the resources went to London. But most ordinary Loyalists went to Canada where they would come to play a large role in the development of Canadian society and government. In this way, the American Revolution played a central role shaping the future of two North American countries.

James Chalmers and Plain Truth
Along with earning Thomas Paine the respect of his fellow Patriots, his pamphlet Common Sense brought scorn from those loyal to the English Crown. James Chalmers, a Maryland planter, decided to counter Paine with his own work which he dubbed Plain Truth. Chalmers angrily denounced the American cause and called Paine a "political quack." View an ad announcing its first publishing, listen to a reading from Plain Truth, or read a fine essay on Chalmers and his Loyalist document.

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Loyalist Institute
Complete coverage of the Loyalist presence in the Revolution is the focus of this site. Divided into many different sections, all packed with information. Read up on Loyalist regiments, genealogy, re-enactment groups, black Loyalists, uniforms, music and more, more, more. Just take a minute to get the hang of the navigation, and you'll be knee-deep in Loyalist info.

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Thomas Hutchinson
From being the "most popular man in the colony" to his eventual exile back to England, Thomas Hutchinson's turbulent life is profiled on Bartleby.com's Great Books Online page. This bio covers Hutchinson's troubles with rebellious colonists, as well as providing some commentary on his History of the Colony of Massachusetts Bay. No images to see, just a quick overview of one of the more famous Loyalists.

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Tar and Feathers in Revolutionary America
America at the time of the Revolution was a great place if your opinions matched those of the Patriots. Opponents to the popular uprising were often treated to the harshest forms of punishment. This in-depth essay on using tar and feathering to silence Loyalists and others comes to you from Brandeis University. Sorry, no images of what some colonists referred to as "new-fashioned discipline."

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The Birchtown Archaeology Project
When black Loyalists fled the colonies for Nova Scotia in 1783, they landed at Shelburne and were assigned land which became known as Birchtown. More than 2 centuries later an excavation took place at Birchtown; it continues to provide clues as to how life was for these 18th century refugees.

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In 1775, Lord Dunsmore issued the first emanicpation proclamation in American history - however qualified and motivated by military desperation : "I do hereby further declare all indented Servants, Negroes, or others, (appertaining to Rebels,) free that are able and willing to bear Arms."
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In the battle over taxes, patriot and loyalist did their part to keep a certain medieval tradition alive: "Yankee Doodle came to town / For to buy a firelock, / We will tar and feather him / And so we will John Hancock."
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Thomas Hutchinson, a Supreme Court justice in Massachusetts, was the most hated man in America before Benedict Arnold, and was hung in effigy many times for being a loyalist. The year is 1774. Whether you are a merchant in Massachusetts, a German-born farmer living in Pennsylvania, a tavern-owning woman of Maryland, or a slave-owner in the South, you share some things in common.

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On the evening of March 5, 1770 a group of Boston residents gathered at the local customs house to demonstrate their anger over the various taxes Parliament had recently imposed upon the colonies. Tensions between the Royal soldiers that protected the customs house and the locals had been increasing since the troops had been dispatched to Boston two years earlier.

As the fury of the crowd mounted, a young man hurled an insult at the sentry on duty. The sentry responded by smashing his tormentor's head with his rifle butt. The victim gave a shout and ran from the scene only to return shortly with a group of his friends who joined in the taunting.
Church bells summoned townspeople to the scene. Soon, a crowd of as many as 400 howling, wailing citizens confronted the thirteen-man squad of British soldiers sent to defend the Customs House. Standing before the mob with fixed-bayonets, the soldiers were pelted with angry epithets, stones and snowballs. The crowd advanced to within inches of the besieged soldiers, daring them to fire their muskets. Suddenly, a member of the squad fired, prompting his colleagues to fire as well. The crowd fell back in panic revealing three of their number dead on the ground and another two mortally wounded.

The entire altercation lasted approximately twenty minutes. However, these twenty minutes would have a significant impact on history. Within three days of the event, craftsman Paul Revere produced an engraving depicting the confrontation that was distributed widely throughout the colonies. Its inaccurate portrayal of a well-organized squad of soldiers simultaneously opening fire on a defenseless crowd of citizens helped galvanize colonial opinion against the British and opened the pathway that led to independence six years later.

Captain Thomas Preston was commander of the British squad that evening. He, along with the other members of the squad, was tried for murder in a Boston Court. In the following trial testimony, Captain Peterson describes the events of that evening.

On Monday night about 8 o'clock two soldiers were attacked and beat. But the party of the townspeople in order to carry matters to the utmost length, broke into two meeting houses and rang the alarm bells, which I supposed was for fire as usual, but was soon undeceived.

About 9 some of the guard came to and informed me the town inhabitants were assembling to attack the troops, and that the bells were ringing as the signal for that purpose and not for fire, and the beacon intended to be fired to bring in the distant people of the country. This, as I was captain of the day, occasioned my repairing immediately to the main guard.

In my way there I saw the people in great commotion, and heard them use the most cruel and horrid threats against the troops. In a few minutes after I reached the guard, about 100 people passed it, and went towards the custom house where the King's money is lodged.

They immediately surrounded the sentry posted there, and with clubs and other weapons threatened to execute their vengeance on him. I was soon informed by a townsman their intention was to carry off the soldier from his post and probably murder him: on which I desired him to return for further intelligence, and he soon came back and assured me he heard the mob declare they would murder him. This I feared might be a prelude to their plundering the King's chest.

I immediately sent a non-commissioned officer and 12 men to protect both the sentry and the King's money, and very soon followed myself to prevent, if possible, all disorder, fearing lest the officer and soldiers, by the insults and provocations of the rioters, should be thrown off their guard and commit some rash act.

They soon rushed through the people, and by charging their bayonets in half-circles, kept them at a little distance. Nay, so far was I from intending the death of any person that I suffered the troops to go to the spot where the unhappy affair took place without any loading in their pieces; nor did I ever give orders for loading them. This remiss conduct in me perhaps merits censure; yet it is evidence, resulting from the nature of things, which is the best and surest that can be offered, that my intention was not to act offensively, but the contrary part, and that not without compulsion.

The mob still increased and were more outrageous, striking their clubs or bludgeons one against another, and calling out, 'Come on you rascals, you bloody backs, you lobster scoundrels, fire if you dare, G-d damn you, fire and be damned, we know you dare not,' and much more such language was used. At this time I was between the soldiers and the mob, parleying with, and endeavoring all in my power to persuade them to retire peaceably, but to no purpose.

They advanced to the points of the bayonets, struck some of them and even the muzzles of the pieces, and seemed to be endeavoring to close with the soldiers. On which some well behaved persons asked me if the guns were charged. I replied yes. They then asked me if I intended to order the men to fire. I answered no, by no means, observing to them that I was advanced before the muzzles of the men's pieces, and must fall a sacrifice if they fired; that the soldiers were upon the half cock and charged bayonets, and my giving the word fire under those circumstances would prove me to be no officer.

While I was thus speaking, one of the soldiers having received a severe blow with a stick, stepped a little on one side and instantly fired, on which turning to and asking him why he fired without orders, I was struck with a club on my arm, which for some time deprived me of the use of it, which blow had it been placed on my head most probably would have destroyed me. On this a general attack was made on the men by a great number of heavy clubs and snowballs being thrown at them, by which all our lives were in imminent danger, some persons at the same time from behind calling out, 'damn your bloods-why don't you fire.' Instantly three or four of the soldiers fired, one after another, and directly after three more in the same confusion and hurry. The mob then ran away, except three unhappy men who instantly expired, ; . . one more is since dead, three others are dangerously, and four slightly wounded. The whole of this melancholy affair was transacted in almost 20 minutes.

On my asking the soldiers why they fired without orders, they said they heard the word fire and supposed it came from me. This might be the case as many of the mob called out fire, fire, but I assured the men that I gave no such order; that my words were, don't fire, stop your firing. In short, it was scarcely possible for the soldiers to know who said fire, or don't fire, or stop your firing.

On the people's assembling again to take away the dead bodies, the soldiers supposing them coming to attack them, were making ready to fire again, which I prevented by striking up their firelocks with my hand.

Immediately after a townsman came and told me that 4 or 5000 people were assembled in the next street, and had sworn to take my life with every man's with me. On which I judged it unsafe to remain there any longer, and therefore sent the party and sentry to the main guard, where the street is narrow and short, there telling them off into street firings, divided and planted them at each end of the street to secure their rear, momently expecting an attack, as there was a constant cry of the inhabitants 'to arms, to arms, turn out with your guns;' and the town drums beating to arms, I ordered my drums to beat to arms, and being soon after joined by the different companies of the 29th regiment, I formed them as the guard into street firings.

References:
This eyewitness account appears in: Charles-Edwards, T. and B. Richardson, They Saw it Happen, An Anthology of Eyewitness's Accounts of Events in British History 1689-1897 (1958); Hansen, Harry, The Boston Massacre; an episode of dissent and violence (1970).

How To Cite This Article:
"The Boston Massacre, The British View, 1770," EyeWitness to History, www.eyewitnesstohistory.com (2009).

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The Boston Massacre 1770, The British Perspective

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On the evening of March 5, 1770 a group of Boston residents gathered at the local customs house to demonstrate their anger over the various taxes Parliament had recently imposed upon the colonies. Tensions between the Royal soldiers that protected the customs house and the locals had been increasing since the troops had been dispatched to Boston two years earlier.

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Loyalists were people in the Thirteen Colonies who opposed the American Revolutionary War. They were also called Tories. They fought with the British against the Continental Army and Continental Congress that they felt was oppressing them. In many areas, Loyalists were treated very roughly by revolutionaries (who often called themselves " Patriots"). Tory lands and other properties were taken away, and sometimes they were put into jail or even killed. Some formed militias, fighting along with the British Army against the rebels.

After the war, many Loyalists sought asylum in Canada to escape the new United States and to stay loyal to King George and the British Empire.

Loyalists came from all walks of life. The majority were small farmers, artisans and shopkeepers. Not surprisingly, most British officials remained loyal to the Crown. Wealthy merchants tended to remain loyal, as did Anglican ministers, especially in Puritan New England. Loyalists also included some blacks (to whom the British promised freedom), Indians, indentured servants and some German immigrants, who supported the Crown mainly because George III was of German origin.

The number of Loyalists in each colony varied. Recent estimates suggest that half the population of New York was Loyalist; it had an aristocratic culture and was occupied throughout the Revolution by the British. In the Carolinas, back-country farmers were Loyalist, whereas the Tidewater planters tended to support the Revolution.

During the Revolution, most Loyalists suffered little from their views. However, a minority, about 19,000 Loyalists, armed and supplied by the British, fought in the conflict.

The Paris Peace Treaty required Congress to restore property confiscated from Loyalists. The heirs of William Penn in Pennsylvania, for example, and those of George Calvert in Maryland received generous settlements. In the Carolinas, where enmity between rebels and Loyalists was especially strong, few of the latter regained their property. In New York and the Carolinas, the confiscations from Loyalists resulted in something of a social revolution as large estates were parceled out to yeoman farmers.

About 100,000 Loyalists left the country, including William Franklin, the son of Benjamin, and John Singleton Copley, the greatest American painter of the period. Most settled in Canada. Brantford, Ontario for example was started by Iroquois refugees. Some eventually returned, although several state governments excluded the Loyalists from holding public office. Most of the Black Loyalists left, as they faced re-enslavement if they remained in the USA. In the decades after the Revolution, Americans preferred to forget about the Loyalists. Apart from Copley, the Loyalists became nonpersons in American history.

Images for kids

Britannia offers solace and a promise of compensation for her exiled American-born Loyalists. (Reception of the American Loyalists by Great Britain in the Year 1783. Engraving by H. Moses after Benjamin West.)

Johnson Hall, seat of Sir John Johnson in the Mohawk Valley

Benjamin West's "John Eardley Wilmot"

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Loyalist (American Revolution) Facts for Kids

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Loyalists were people in the Thirteen Colonies who opposed the American Revolutionary War. They were also called Tories. They fought with the British against the Continental Army and Continental Congress that they felt was oppressing them. In many areas, Loyalists were treated very roughly by revolutionaries (who often called themselves " Patriots").

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Americans today think of the War for Independence as a revolution, but in important respects it was also a civil war. American Loyalists, or "Tories" as their opponents called them, opposed the Revolution, and many took up arms against the rebels. Estimates of the number of Loyalists range as high as 500,000, or 20 percent of the white population of the colonies.

What motivated the Loyalists? Most educated Americans, whether Loyalist or Revolutionary, accepted John Locke's theory of natural rights and limited government. Thus, the Loyalists, like the rebels, criticized such British actions as the Stamp Act and the Coercive Acts. Loyalists wanted to pursue peaceful forms of protest because they believed that violence would give rise to mob rule or tyranny. They also believed that independence would mean the loss of economic benefits derived from membership in the British mercantile system.

Loyalists came from all walks of life. The majority were small farmers, artisans and shopkeepers. Not surprisingly, most British officials remained loyal to the Crown. Wealthy merchants tended to remain loyal, as did Anglican ministers, especially in Puritan New England. Loyalists also included some blacks (to whom the British promised freedom), Indians, indentured servants and some German immigrants, who supported the Crown mainly because George III was of German origin.

The number of Loyalists in each colony varied. Recent estimates suggest that half the population of New York was Loyalist; it had an aristocratic culture and was occupied throughout the Revolution by the British. In the Carolinas, back-country farmers were Loyalist, whereas the Tidewater planters tended to support the Revolution.

During the Revolution, most Loyalists suffered little from their views. However, a minority, about 19,000 Loyalists, armed and supplied by the British, fought in the conflict.

The Paris Peace Treaty required Congress to restore property confiscated from Loyalists. The heirs of William Penn in Pennsylvania, for example, and those of George Calvert in Maryland received generous settlements. In the Carolinas, where enmity between rebels and Loyalists was especially strong, few of the latter regained their property. In New York and the Carolinas, the confiscations from Loyalists resulted in something of a social revolution as large estates were parceled out to yeoman farmers.

About 100,000 Loyalists left the country, including William Franklin, the son of Benjamin, and John Singleton Copley, the greatest American painter of the period. Most settled in Canada. Some eventually returned, although several state governments excluded the Loyalists from holding public office. In the decades after the Revolution, Americans preferred to forget about the Loyalists. Apart from Copley, the Loyalists became nonpersons in American history.

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Loyalists During the American Revolution

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Americans today think of the War for Independence as a revolution, but in important respects it was also a civil war. American Loyalists, or "Tories" as their opponents called them, opposed the Revolution, and many took up arms against the rebels.

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Learn about Patriots and Loyalists during the Revolutionary War. One side wanted independence while the other wanted to remain part of Britain.

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During the American Revolutionary War, the people living in the Thirteen American Colonies had to decide whether they wanted to break away from British rule and gain independence or remain British citizens. These two groups were the Patriots and the Loyalists.
See the fact file below for more information on the Patriots and the Loyalists or alternatively, you can download our 22-page Patriots and the Loyalists worksheet pack to utilise within the classroom or home environment.
Key Facts & Information

THE PATRIOTS

Patriots wanted the Thirteen colonies to gain independence from Britain. They wanted to create their own laws and to form the United States of America.

The Patriots wanted freedom from British rule because they didn't think they were treated well. The British kept introducing new taxes and laws, and the colonists had no representatives on the government - which lead to unrest and calls for "liberty". Patriots did not want to be ruled by the British any longer.

There were a number of famous Patriots. Thomas Jefferson, who wrote the Declaration of Independence, and John Adams both eventually became presidents. George Washington was a patriot who led the Continental Army and after the American Revolution, he became the first President of the United States.

A number of patriots became known as the Founding Fathers of the United States. They include Samuel Adams, Paul Revere, Benjamin Franklin, Patrick Henry, and Ethan Allen.

THE LOYALISTS

Some people wanted to stay part of Britain and remain British citizens. A lot of the colonists had British relatives or ancestors, and some were very grateful for the opportunity to farm peacefully in the British-ruled land.

A significant amount of loyalists were African-American slaves. The British promised to free the slaves from their Patriot masters and around 50,000 slaves (roughly 10% of the total slave population in the 1770s) fled from their masters to side with the loyalists.

Other colonists had business interests in England. They knew that British trade was important to the economy and their livelihood, and thought that British rule would be better for them than the Patriots.

One of the most famous loyalists was Benedict Arnold. He was a general in the Continental Army and defected to fight for the British instead.

There weren't as many famous loyalists as there were patriots because they lost the war, but other famous loyalists included the governor of the Massachusetts colony, Thomas Hutchinson, Joseph Galloway, the Pennsylvania delegate to the Continental Congress who later worked for the British army, John Butler, the leader of the loyalists troops Butler's Rangers, and the mayor of New York City, David Mathews.

Loyalists During the War

Loyalists living in Patriot areas were under constant threat. They were in danger of attack from radical patriots and many loyalists lost their homes and businesses due to patriot attacks.

Some loyalists left the colonies and headed back to Britain. The more devoted loyalists either joined the British army or formed their own group of fights, including the Loyal Greens and the Royal American Regiment.

Loyalists After the War

The wealthiest loyalists moved to England after the war. Men like Thomas Hutchinson had the resources to travel to London.

The poorer loyalists lost their fortunes and their land. Some loyalists were paid by the British government for their loyalty, but it wasn't enough to compensate what they had lost.

The United States government wanted loyalists to stay in the country. The skills, education and knowledge of the loyalists were seen as important assets to the new country. Despite that, very few loyalists chose to remain in the United States.

The British evacuated 20,000 slaves. They resettled these formerly enslaved African Americans as free people.

Many ordinary Loyalists went to Canada. They would go on to play a large part in the development of the Canadian government and society. The American Revolution shaped the future of the United States and Canada as well.

Patriots and Loyalists Worksheets

This is a fantastic bundle which includes everything you need to know about Patriots and Loyalists across 22 in-depth pages. These are ready-to-use Patriots and Loyalists worksheets that are perfect for teaching students about the time during the American Revolutionary War when the people living in the Thirteen American Colonies had to decide whether they wanted to break away from the British rule and gain independence or remain British citizens. These two groups were the Patriots and the Loyalists.

Complete List Of Included Worksheets

Patriots and Loyalists Facts

Who's Who?

Compare and Contrast

Own Laws

Letter Unscramble

True or False

American Revolution Crossword

Arnold's Escape

Nicknames

Colonies in Map

Join or Die

Included Patriot & Loyalist worksheets:

After completing these worksheets students will be able to:

Have a clear understanding of the American Revolution.

Define and identify both Patriots and Loyalists.

Answer a series of challenging questions to hone their knowledge.

Have a grasp of key figures within society at the time of the revolution.

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Link will appear as Patriots and Loyalists Facts: https://kidskonnect.com - KidsKonnect, June 25, 2021
Use With Any Curriculum
These worksheets have been specifically designed for use with any international curriculum. You can use these worksheets as-is, or edit them using Google Slides to make them more specific to your own student ability levels and curriculum standards.

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Patriots vs Loyalists Worksheets, Facts and Definition For Kids

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Not ready to purchase a subscription? Click to download the free sample version Download sample During the American Revolutionary War, the people living in the Thirteen American Colonies had to decide whether they wanted to break away from British rule and gain independence or remain British citizens.