American Revolution: Massachusetts Contribution - Essay Example

One major contribution of Boston, Massachusetts was the establishment of the Committee of Correspondence with the purpose of organized communication between the colonies. The Committee of Correspondence aided in rallying opposition for common causes such as protest demonstration opposing tax acts. In 1765, the British Parliament established a Stamp Act that imposed a tax on official documents that "needed a governmental stamp (Aronson, 2005, 83)." New York formed a committee in response to the tax and the Massachusetts Bay Colony encouraged others to attend the Stamp Act Congress.

The Stamp Act Congress responded by a writing petition of grievances called the Declaration of Colonial Rights, however; the colonist of Boston took a different approach by breaking into Andrew Oliver's (a man designated to enforce the Stamp Act) home office and burning the stamps (Aronson, 2005, 97). The protest of the Stamp Act triggered a rise in protest among the colonies toward taxation without representation in Parliament.On the night of March 5, 1970, Boston colonists became part of history with the Boston Massacre.

A colonist and a soldier exchanged unpleasant words and the soldier eventually struck the colonist. Soon a crowd began to form in response to the commotion and started pelting soldiers with snow and ice (Bober, 2001, 148). One soldier was hit and fell to the ground causing his gun to fire into the air. The confusion caused the other soldiers to mistake the shot as a sign to fire killing five men and injuring six (Bober, 2001, 150). The contributing factor of the Boston Massacre was increased tension between the colonist and British soldiers.

The constant military presence was a threat to the colonist.The East Indian tea company was turned away at each colonial harbor because "to accept the shipments of tea was to admit the right of Parliament to tax the colonist (Bober, 2001, 180)." Boston, however; took a different approach in protest to the tea tax. The Sons of Liberty, formally known as the Loyal Nine, dressed as Mohawks, boarded the ship, broke open the creates, and dumped the tea into Boston Harbor (Aronon, 2005, 163). In response, the British government closed Boston's port, "sealed to all but necessary trade in food and fuel (Aronon, 2005, 163) and enacted the Intolerable Acts.

The Intolerable Acts created "the sense of dire threat from London and drew colonists together(Aronson, 2005, 165)." April 19, 1775, British soldiers arrived at Lexington Massachusetts," however; the Minutemen were waiting for the soldiers. Someone fired a shot and the British started to fire on the militia causing them to retreat. The British army was greeted once again by a group of Minutemen at Concord which caused the soldiers to retreat to Lexington when it was evident that the group was getting larger.

Britsh "retreat to Lexington was marked by the constant assault from hidden colonials (Bober, 2001, 261)." "Fought to defend communities against an invading army (Bober, 2001, 276)," the Battle of Lexington and Concord marked the beginning of the American Revolutionary War.On the night of June 16, 1775, General Prescott fortified Breed's Hill, and General Israel Putnam fortified Bunker Hill. British soldiers advanced on Breed's Hill. General Howe of the British army succeeded in capturing both Breed's Hill and Bunker Hill marking the fist significant British victory.

Although the British secured the Breed's Hill and Bunker Hill, the British army suffered the most casualties. Colonists "lost on the battlefield, however; they gained the respect of their opponents (Bober, 2001, 276)." This war gave colonists the realization that a long and difficult fight had just begun.Massachusetts contributed to the American Revolution was significant to American History. The defining events that occurred by Massachusetts colonists gave the other colonist the courage to revolt, caused sympathy for the revolution, and triggered a full out war which leads to American independence.

Massachusetts's revolutionaries shaped American history with their bold protest and strong tactics. Massachusetts's revolutionaries sacrificed greatly for American independence.