Boston Massacre

Boston Massacre
Part of the American Revolution
The Bloody Massacre, a 1770 engraving by Paul Revere depicting the Boston Massacre in Boston in March 1770
Date	March 5, 1770 (255 years ago) (1770-03-05)
Location	Boston, Massachusetts Bay Colony, British America
Caused by	Townshend Acts Occupation of Boston Killing of Christopher Seider and the pardon of his killer
Resulted in	Five American colonists killed
Type	Shooting, manslaughter
Accused	Thomas Preston William Wemms Hugh Montgomery John Carroll James Hartigan William McCauley William Warren Matthew Kilroy Four civilians
Convicted	Montgomery, Kilroy
Charges	Murder
Verdict	Montgomery and Kilroy found guilty on the lesser offense of manslaughter Remaining accused found not guilty
Sentence	Montgomery, Kilroy: Branding of the thumb
Parties
29th Regiment Mob of colonists
Lead figures
Captain Thomas Preston None
Number
8 300–400
Casualties and losses
Minor injuries Five killed

The Boston Massacre, known in Great Britain as the Incident on King Street,^[1] was a confrontation, on March 5, 1770, during the American Revolution in Boston in what was then the colonial era Province of Massachusetts Bay.

In the confrontation, nine British soldiers shot several in a crowd estimated between 300 and 400, who were harassing them verbally and throwing various projectiles. The event was subsequently described as "a massacre" by Samuel Adams, Paul Revere, and other leading Patriots who later became central proponents of independence during the American Revolution and Revolutionary War.^[2][3] British troops had been stationed in the Province of Massachusetts Bay since 1768 in order to support Crown-appointed officials and to enforce unpopular legislation implemented by the British Parliament.

Amid tense relations between the civilians and the soldiers, a mob formed around a British sentry and verbally abused him. He was eventually supported by seven additional soldiers, led by Captain Thomas Preston, who were hit by clubs, stones, and snowballs. Eventually, one soldier fired, prompting the others to fire without an order by Preston. The gunfire instantly killed three people and wounded eight others, two of whom later died of their wounds.^[4]

The crowd eventually dispersed after acting governor Thomas Hutchinson promised an inquiry, but they reformed the next day, prompting the withdrawal of the troops to Castle Island. Eight soldiers, one officer, and four civilians were arrested and charged with murder, and they were defended in court by attorney, and future U.S. president, John Adams. Six of the soldiers were acquitted; the other two were convicted of manslaughter and given reduced sentences of branding on their hands.

Depictions, reports, and propaganda about the event, notably the colored engraving produced by Paul Revere, heightened tensions throughout the Thirteen Colonies.