

So to funnel money back to the EIC, the EIC was permitted to export their tea directly to America (via the Tea Act), as well as forcing American colonists to pay for it.Īt the same time, the Townshend Acts were still in effect, meaning all imports were taxed. Which is a lot of money not going back to the Crown. Like 85%+ of American tea was being smuggled in instead of being bought from the Brits. Thanks to everyone hating Britain and the EIC in America, a large amount of tea started getting smuggled from the Dutch. With so much influence in British Parliament, the EIC somehow managed to convince Parliament into passing the 1773 Tea Act.

Of course, the EIC was the darling child corporation of Britain. There was also the fact that the EIC was stagnating in trade and were in a terrible downward spiral.īasically, the EIC had controlled and ruined so many countries they had started breaking Britain’s economy. After they had caused a famine in India and created a lot of social unrest, the EIC was also causing Britain to bleed money. With a handful of those territories in active rebellion with the EIC, they were losing finances. Heading into the Boston Tea Party the EIC had exerted a lot of control over various territories.

Heck, both India and America had revolutions as a direct result of the EIC. So needless to say, England was feeling pretty left out.Įarly on, the EIC wasn’t very profitable, so England kept them afloat until they became a global juggernaut with control over a lot of economies. This was mostly because East India Companies were operating for France, Spain, Portugal, and the Netherlands. Even outside of that the EIC (they sound more dystopian this way) had their own private army.įormed in 1600, the company was chartered by Queen Elizabeth I because she wanted England to get more involved in some sweet trade with Asia. We’re talking about the military, finances, the works.
Boston tea party quiz full#
Before they collapsed in the 1870s, they had the full support of the British Monarchy. The East India Company is our first foray into dystopian megacorporations. But more specifically, it was people from the city of Boston against the British East India Company.įun fact: At some point, the East India Company was just referred to as “The Company”, giving you a sense for just how important it was. Most people know that the Boston Tea Party was a conflict between the Thirteen American Colonies and Great Britain. So what was the Boston Tea Party exactly? And who actually celebrated? What Was the Boston Tea Party? And regardless, protesting normally makes for a healthy civil society. But hey, a discussion of what led to the American Revolution is pretty important. It may have come up a few other times during your schooling, and then you likely never thought about it again. Way back in grade school, you probably learned about the Boston Tea Party that took place on December 16, 1773.
