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The Boston massacre was a riot that occurred on March 5, 1770

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It was initially a group of colonists taunting, insulting, and attacking a lone British soldier

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That lone British soldier’s name was Hugh White. He had been guarding the Custom house (which contained a large amount of money inside).

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That lone British soldier’s name was Hugh White. He had been guarding the Custom house (which contained a large amount of money inside).

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Hugh White had felt threatened by the colonists’ attack and struck someone in the crowd with his bayonet, resulting in mass hysteria.

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As a result of the chaos, Captain Thomas Preston brought in reinforcements to try and suppress the crowd. What actually happened was that some soldiers claimed to have heard the “fire” order, resulting in five dead and six wounded.

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After the massacre the soldiers involved were arrested and awaiting trial. The Crown’s forces were called back to Fort William in response to the sudden, explosive rage directed towards them.

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Politician John Adams defended the soldiers in question, resulting in most of them being found “not guilty”, the remaining two had their thumbs branded, as was the punishment for manslaughter at the time

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Both the British and the Americans had a near constant stream of propaganda running about the other side after the incident.

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Paul Revere created an etching of the incident, which was later revealed to be a copy of a piece of art created by Henry Pelham.

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This violent incident was crucial to the development of the Revolution. It incited intense feelings against the British, leading to mass attacks on British property, like the Boston Tea Party.

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It gave colonists a reason to fight (if the taxation weren’t enough already) because now the British were killing colonists (even if the colonists had instigated the situation).

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The British were beginning to realize just how much trouble the colonists were willing to cause in order to get rid of them. It put the Crown on the defensive because now they were worrying about having a full scale revolution on their hands.

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There is a statue dedicated to the Boston Massacre in modern day Boston. It is located relatively close to where the incident actually occurred.