What was the outcome of the Tea Act of 1773?

What was the outcome of the Tea Act of 1773?

• A. Higher taxes on all British imports
• B. Lower prices for tea sold by the East India Company
• C. Closure of Boston Harbor to tea shipments
• D. Prohibition of all tea sales in the colonies

Answer: (B)

The Tea Act of 1773 aimed to assist the financially struggling British East India Company by allowing it to sell its tea directly to the colonies, thereby bypassing colonial merchants. This arrangement resulted in lower prices for tea sold by the East India Company, even though it still included a tax that angered many colonists. The underlying intention was to undercut the non-importation agreements that colonial merchants had enacted in protest against British taxation. However, while the price of tea was reduced, the act reinforced the principle of Parliament’s right to tax the colonies, which incited considerable resentment among colonists, ultimately leading to events such as the Boston Tea Party. Thus, the outcome was a lowering of prices specifically for the East India Company's tea, making it the correct choice.

The Tea Act of 1773 aimed to assist the financially struggling British East India Company by allowing it to sell its tea directly to the colonies, thereby bypassing colonial merchants. This arrangement resulted in lower prices for tea sold by the East India Company, even though it still included a tax that angered many colonists. The underlying intention was to undercut the non-importation agreements that colonial merchants had enacted in protest against British taxation. However, while the price of tea was reduced, the act reinforced the principle of Parliament’s right to tax the colonies, which incited considerable resentment among colonists, ultimately leading to events such as the Boston Tea Party. Thus, the outcome was a lowering of prices specifically for the East India Company's tea, making it the correct choice.