“Demonstrations and the threat of serious violence precipitated by these onerous measures quickly became even more widespread, particularly in Boston. On the night of March 5th, 1770, a Patriot group calling itself ‘The Sons of Liberty’ set out to evict a Crown Revenue Officer—the official responsible for collecting Royal taxes and customs duties. British troops were called out to protect him and in the midst of the confrontation, the soldiers opened fire, killing five of the Patriots, and wounding six others.

“The incident sparked outrage throughout the Colonies. Sam Adams in Boston and Patrick Henry here in Virginia—and many others in New England, New York, and the Carolinas—denounced the event as ‘The Boston Massacre.’

“It’s rarely mentioned these days but Sam Adam’s cousin, John, also a member of Boston’s Secret Committee, served as defense attorney in the trial of the British officer charged with murder for what his troops did. A jury of Bostonians exonerated the young British Lieutenant and he was quickly shipped back to England—along with the king’s revenue officer—to avoid threats of ‘vigilante justice.’

“From that point on, I think a break with Britain was almost inevitable, though it didn’t seem that way here in Virginia. John Murray, a Scot nobleman who liked being called ‘Lord Dunmore,’ was appointed Royal Governor in September 1771. He immediately began encouraging westward expansion and settlement—
a policy popular here in Virginia—but not in financially strapped London.

“Many, including me, believe Lord Dunmore did this to increase his own power. The further west he could push the borders of Virginia, the greater his territorial authority and population—and therefore his wealth and influence in Britain. If it hadn’t been for events in other colonies, like the burning of the British revenue cutter, Gaspee, off the coast of Rhode Island, he might have succeeded in becoming the most powerful man on this continent.

“Unlike most other Royal Governors, John Murray—Lord Dunmore—actually took to the field last year, leading militiamen against the Shawnee tribes on the Ohio in what he cheerfully called, ‘Lord Dunmore’s War.’ It was a magnificent distraction for those of us here in Virginia. While the New England Patriots were contending with the Crown in London for their rights, Virginians were fighting Indians on the frontier for their lives.

“But I’m getting ahead of myself. After Massachusetts Governor Hutchinson narrowly escaped being lynched by a mob, he petitioned Parliament for relief —which was partially granted late in 1771. As a conciliatory gesture, some British troops were withdrawn from domiciles in Boston proper and sent to Castle William: a fortress island guarding the sea approaches to the harbor.

“A few of the most egregious regulations and taxes were repealed or held in abeyance—but not the tax on tea. The effect should have been predictable: posters, handbills, and broadsides appeared all over the Colonies: ‘Patriots don’t drink British Tea.’