From About.com: Military: American Revolution: Tea in the Harbor
December 16, 1773 - Angry colonists conduct the Boston Tea Party (right). In the years after the French & Indian War, the British government attempted to levy several taxes on the colonies to aid in paying for the war and their defense. Lacking representation in Parliament, the colonials argued that their rights were being violated via "taxation without representation." In 1770, they succeeded in forcing Parliament to repeal a series of taxes known as the Townshend Acts after a series of boycotts. Though the bulk of the duties were removed, one remained on tea. In an effort to aid the ailing East India Company and break colonial boycotts, Parliament passed the Tea Act in 1773. This allowed the company to sell tea directly to the colonies.
The company dispatched tea ships to North America that fall. Recognizing Parliament's intent, colonists in Philadelphia and New York blocked the tea from being landed and forced the ships to depart. Arriving in Boston, the tea ships were prevented from unloading, but were unable to leave as Gov. Thomas Hutchinson desired the taxes to be paid. Rallying the community, the Sons of Liberty boarded the ships on the night of December 16, 1773, and threw the tea into the harbor as a protest. A direct affront to royal authority, the Boston Tea Party resulted in Parliament passing the punitive Intolerable Acts in early 1774. These new laws and their effects rapidly pushed both sides towards the American Revolution which would begin in April 1775.
