Analyzing The Boston Massacre A Book Review.
Robert J. Allisons book entitled The Boston Massacre is one of the few best references that commemorate a very significant event in the American history. March 5, 1770 is a historical day that considerably contributed to the British and American relationships then. The event is continuously remembered today as it will always be a part of what led to the culmination of the American Revolution. Allison, in his own unique way of relating a story, was able to encapsulate and document chronologically what really happened on that very important day. The author was able to describe detail by detail what happened before, during, and after the Boston Massacre from all the perspectives possible.
This historical event is believed to be an unjustified attack from the camp of the British troops that led to the death of five civilians. It was an incident that inspired rebellion and strengthened hate from some of the British American colonies, particularly Massachusetts. However, in Allisons work, it is evident that he wanted to give a more in-depth perspective to the camp of the British soldiers who were not as guilty as the public believed. The author also wanted the readers to realize that the event that happened on this fateful night was not caused by impulse actions only but was actually the result of many other events in the past.
One of the very first things that Allison highlighted in his book is the difficult relationship of the British soldiers and the people of Boston that led to grave misunderstandings between the soldier and the ordinary men. From the arrival of the customs commissioners in November 1767, we can trace the cause of the late horrid massacre. He described how the presence of British troops in Boston was never really an idea that the civilians welcomed. Aside from the order for the soldiers to maintain peace and order in the colony, they were also given authority in the imposing of taxes. This caused a commotion to the public who believed that they do not need soldiers to keep them at peace and do not need soldiers meddling in their paying of taxes. In this light, Allisons account was telling us that the presence of military people was met with resistance and tension because the civilians saw the soldiers as potential invaders who would take over their lives. From the moment the troops arrived in Boston, they were treated with hostility already. By providing deep background on the events before the Boston Massacre, the author was able to describe to his readers how the animosity between the two groups had been great even from the start.
Allison also mentioned the role of the Sons of Liberty, a group of patriots in Boston who defied the British authorities. The presence of the two groups had caused tension over the years, and it all reached its height on the day of the Boston Massacre. The author described how, based on his extensive research, the event began from a simple complication that was blown out of proportion. He discussed the incidents during the day itself as a result of mistakes from both parties and that, despite all the faults of the British soldiers that day, they were not the only group to blame.
In his book, Allison also narrated the events on the night of the massacre in a very interesting way. He wrote them as if he was describing scenes from a movie, which made following the story easier. The book tells the readers that even before the massacre, a related incident involving the killing of an eleven-year old boy name Christopher Seider by a Customs official had caused the heightened hatred of the people of Boston to the British authorities.
Allisons book also highlights the role of provocation from both sides of the story. In his own words, he described briefly how the attack on the lone sentry in front of the Custom House had provoked soldiers into firing on the crowd, leaving four dead and one mortally wounded while seven others seriously injured. The Boston Massacre took place in King Street due to the misunderstanding of Private Hugh White, a soldier stationed outside the Custom House, and Edward Gerrish, a young apprentice of a barber, that started the whole riot. Some of the most common practices of the Americans towards the British was their fondness of taunting and ridiculing. Through these actions, they wanted to make the British know of their hostile feelings and anger towards them. When White and Gerrish got into a very heated argument, the more civilians mobbed the two and started taunting and attacking White. In the perspective pursued by Allison, he gave more attention to how the soldiers were being harassed by the patriots. The author also attempted to give the soldiers a fairer image by mentioning the handbill for the Rebellious People in Boston that only proved that the soldiers were mindful of their actions, even when sticks were being thrown already at them. Allison attempted to show the side of the story that the soldiers who aided White, led by Captain Thomas Preston, were provoked by the large and taunting mob. Although the soldiers were not able to follow the handbill thoroughly, they also did not violate it at once.
Yet, Allison was unbiased in his book for he also presented the side of the patriots by mentioning that the actions done by the mob had a clear basis. For the longest time, the soldiers had treated them poorly. The main purpose of the soldiers was to maintain peace, but the men of the town of Boston unanimously agreed that the people and the soldiers could no longer peacefully coexist, and that only the removal of the troops would restore order. The civilians wanted the soldiers to feel threatened while making them also believe that the colonies are best left independent. Also, the patriots condemned the harsh actions of the British troops. Rumors of abuse like a soldier in Dock Square had hurt an oysterman or that the soldiers were going to cut down the Liberty Tree were causing more alarm and tremor among the people that also provoked them to fight the soldiers.
Allisons book succeeded in presenting the other side of the Boston Massacre. It provided ample space and facts from the side of the soldiers that neutralized the struggle of the colonists. One of the most meaningful input of Allison in his book was Lt. Gen Hutchinsons opinion that the street fight of March 5 might escalate into something more serious. This fact proved to be correct because the drive of the people in Boston to liberate themselves became more forceful. To make their point more felt, the public funeral was held to keep attention focused on the victims who were buried not as individuals but together as martyrs. This was a clever tactic that made the fate of the soldiers more doomed.
One of the best parts of Allisons book describes the trials of Captain Preston and his soldiers. His book is filled with a detail by detail presentation of the proceedings in the trial that makes the readers aware of what were all the events that happened, who were the people involved, and how were the soldiers acquitted. The Boston Massacre gives rich and informative accounts about John Adams, one of the three lawyers who defended the British troops and succeeded in freeing them. The facts of the massacre may have blamed a soldier for starting the fight at the ropewalk and for provoking ordinary people to acts of violence but beneath it also lies the reality that the soldiers were mere tools in the hands of the customs commissioners, so the soldiers should not be labeled as killers. Allison even included reflections from Adams diary and presented in detail the defense of Adams that won the trial. However, Adams wanted to make clear while there had been a riot, Bostonians were not rebellious and that he also recognized the grievances of the civilians.
Allison also successfully narrated how the event developed to have lasting results. After the Boston Massacre, there were people in town determined to keep the memory of March 5 alive, and to use it in their continuing campaign against British rule. It was relived year after year and is remembered today as one of the most significant turning points of history. Although the troops were acquitted for the incident, the event allowed the people to intensify their campaign against British authorities.
The tragic events of March 5 were part of a political struggle and would have dramatic political consequences. For a great part, it also changed the political arena of America as it revolted against Britain. The shock that it caused had lasting effects and it uplifted patriotism and democracy in the colony.
Allison was very effective in his attempt to remember a very significant event of American History in just a few pages because each page was filled with full details and stories. All the interesting facts about the significant people involved with the event were incorporated, and the author presented the two sides of the story fairly. Even Allisons very last line, which was Attucks, Gray, Maverick, Caldwell, or Carr may not have intended to start a revolution, but with their deaths they did so, was a very successful end to what caused the massacre and what are its continuous effects in history.
As a whole, Allisons work was a very informative and interesting book to read. It was also able to justify the meaning of one of the most important events in American Revolution. The book was successful in presenting the very essential details of one of the most horrible events in history, and the authors delivery is indeed critical and yet thought-provoking.
This historical event is believed to be an unjustified attack from the camp of the British troops that led to the death of five civilians. It was an incident that inspired rebellion and strengthened hate from some of the British American colonies, particularly Massachusetts. However, in Allisons work, it is evident that he wanted to give a more in-depth perspective to the camp of the British soldiers who were not as guilty as the public believed. The author also wanted the readers to realize that the event that happened on this fateful night was not caused by impulse actions only but was actually the result of many other events in the past.
One of the very first things that Allison highlighted in his book is the difficult relationship of the British soldiers and the people of Boston that led to grave misunderstandings between the soldier and the ordinary men. From the arrival of the customs commissioners in November 1767, we can trace the cause of the late horrid massacre. He described how the presence of British troops in Boston was never really an idea that the civilians welcomed. Aside from the order for the soldiers to maintain peace and order in the colony, they were also given authority in the imposing of taxes. This caused a commotion to the public who believed that they do not need soldiers to keep them at peace and do not need soldiers meddling in their paying of taxes. In this light, Allisons account was telling us that the presence of military people was met with resistance and tension because the civilians saw the soldiers as potential invaders who would take over their lives. From the moment the troops arrived in Boston, they were treated with hostility already. By providing deep background on the events before the Boston Massacre, the author was able to describe to his readers how the animosity between the two groups had been great even from the start.
Allison also mentioned the role of the Sons of Liberty, a group of patriots in Boston who defied the British authorities. The presence of the two groups had caused tension over the years, and it all reached its height on the day of the Boston Massacre. The author described how, based on his extensive research, the event began from a simple complication that was blown out of proportion. He discussed the incidents during the day itself as a result of mistakes from both parties and that, despite all the faults of the British soldiers that day, they were not the only group to blame.
In his book, Allison also narrated the events on the night of the massacre in a very interesting way. He wrote them as if he was describing scenes from a movie, which made following the story easier. The book tells the readers that even before the massacre, a related incident involving the killing of an eleven-year old boy name Christopher Seider by a Customs official had caused the heightened hatred of the people of Boston to the British authorities.
Allisons book also highlights the role of provocation from both sides of the story. In his own words, he described briefly how the attack on the lone sentry in front of the Custom House had provoked soldiers into firing on the crowd, leaving four dead and one mortally wounded while seven others seriously injured. The Boston Massacre took place in King Street due to the misunderstanding of Private Hugh White, a soldier stationed outside the Custom House, and Edward Gerrish, a young apprentice of a barber, that started the whole riot. Some of the most common practices of the Americans towards the British was their fondness of taunting and ridiculing. Through these actions, they wanted to make the British know of their hostile feelings and anger towards them. When White and Gerrish got into a very heated argument, the more civilians mobbed the two and started taunting and attacking White. In the perspective pursued by Allison, he gave more attention to how the soldiers were being harassed by the patriots. The author also attempted to give the soldiers a fairer image by mentioning the handbill for the Rebellious People in Boston that only proved that the soldiers were mindful of their actions, even when sticks were being thrown already at them. Allison attempted to show the side of the story that the soldiers who aided White, led by Captain Thomas Preston, were provoked by the large and taunting mob. Although the soldiers were not able to follow the handbill thoroughly, they also did not violate it at once.
Yet, Allison was unbiased in his book for he also presented the side of the patriots by mentioning that the actions done by the mob had a clear basis. For the longest time, the soldiers had treated them poorly. The main purpose of the soldiers was to maintain peace, but the men of the town of Boston unanimously agreed that the people and the soldiers could no longer peacefully coexist, and that only the removal of the troops would restore order. The civilians wanted the soldiers to feel threatened while making them also believe that the colonies are best left independent. Also, the patriots condemned the harsh actions of the British troops. Rumors of abuse like a soldier in Dock Square had hurt an oysterman or that the soldiers were going to cut down the Liberty Tree were causing more alarm and tremor among the people that also provoked them to fight the soldiers.
Allisons book succeeded in presenting the other side of the Boston Massacre. It provided ample space and facts from the side of the soldiers that neutralized the struggle of the colonists. One of the most meaningful input of Allison in his book was Lt. Gen Hutchinsons opinion that the street fight of March 5 might escalate into something more serious. This fact proved to be correct because the drive of the people in Boston to liberate themselves became more forceful. To make their point more felt, the public funeral was held to keep attention focused on the victims who were buried not as individuals but together as martyrs. This was a clever tactic that made the fate of the soldiers more doomed.
One of the best parts of Allisons book describes the trials of Captain Preston and his soldiers. His book is filled with a detail by detail presentation of the proceedings in the trial that makes the readers aware of what were all the events that happened, who were the people involved, and how were the soldiers acquitted. The Boston Massacre gives rich and informative accounts about John Adams, one of the three lawyers who defended the British troops and succeeded in freeing them. The facts of the massacre may have blamed a soldier for starting the fight at the ropewalk and for provoking ordinary people to acts of violence but beneath it also lies the reality that the soldiers were mere tools in the hands of the customs commissioners, so the soldiers should not be labeled as killers. Allison even included reflections from Adams diary and presented in detail the defense of Adams that won the trial. However, Adams wanted to make clear while there had been a riot, Bostonians were not rebellious and that he also recognized the grievances of the civilians.
Allison also successfully narrated how the event developed to have lasting results. After the Boston Massacre, there were people in town determined to keep the memory of March 5 alive, and to use it in their continuing campaign against British rule. It was relived year after year and is remembered today as one of the most significant turning points of history. Although the troops were acquitted for the incident, the event allowed the people to intensify their campaign against British authorities.
The tragic events of March 5 were part of a political struggle and would have dramatic political consequences. For a great part, it also changed the political arena of America as it revolted against Britain. The shock that it caused had lasting effects and it uplifted patriotism and democracy in the colony.
Allison was very effective in his attempt to remember a very significant event of American History in just a few pages because each page was filled with full details and stories. All the interesting facts about the significant people involved with the event were incorporated, and the author presented the two sides of the story fairly. Even Allisons very last line, which was Attucks, Gray, Maverick, Caldwell, or Carr may not have intended to start a revolution, but with their deaths they did so, was a very successful end to what caused the massacre and what are its continuous effects in history.
As a whole, Allisons work was a very informative and interesting book to read. It was also able to justify the meaning of one of the most important events in American Revolution. The book was successful in presenting the very essential details of one of the most horrible events in history, and the authors delivery is indeed critical and yet thought-provoking.
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