Thank you to my Ohio friend Jim Sperk who is an amateur winemaker, wine
judge, and blogger of wine topics. Please get in touch with him to learn about all of his offerings. In the meantime, please enjoy his wonderful article about the Boston Tea Party and Madeira. Enjoy!
A short history lesson
December 16th marked the 250th anniversary of the Boston Tea Party. On that day in 1773, a group of about 60 men known as the Sons of Liberty, many dressed as Native Americans, boarded British ships and threw the entire shipment of tea into the harbor. Over 90,000 pounds went into the water to protest the tax imposed on tea under the Townshend Acts.
An incident five years earlier involving John Hancock had already provoked the Colonists. Hancock was one of the wealthiest men in the Colonies. His sloop Liberty arrived in Boston Harbor on the evening of May 9, 1768, carrying a shipment of Madeira wine. It should be noted that Madeira wine was a favorite of the Colonists; it made up more than 75% of all the wine imported. Colonists in not only Boston, but all of the major cities, held weekly Madeira parties where they would gather to taste and discuss wine.
So, on the morning of May 10th, customs officials inspected the ship and found 25 casks of wine, one-fourth the capacity of the ship. Hancock paid customs on the 25 casks, but officials suspected more casks had been unloaded during the night. A month or so later, the Liberty was confiscated and towed out of the Harbor. Hancock was charged with smuggling. Angered Bostonians started a riot and customs officials were forced to retreat to a British warship. After many months of trials, the proceedings against Hancock were dropped without explanation.
The Liberty was not returned to Hancock; instead,the British used the ship to enforce trade regulations up and down the coast. Some months later, enraged Colonists burned Liberty in a Rhode Island harbor.
Some historians believe the ‘Sons of Liberty’ chose that name to commemorate Hancock’s ship. Many historians believe that the Liberty incident was the catalyst for the Boston Tea Party, which led to the American Revolution.
