The law that resulted in violence and property destruction, leading to the closing of Boston Harbor, was the Tea Act of 1773. This act was intended to help the British East India Company by allowing it to sell surplus tea directly to the colonies at a reduced rate, undermining local merchants.
The colonists viewed this as an attempt by Britain to impose taxation without representation and an infringement on their rights. The situation escalated, culminating in the Boston Tea Party on December 16, 1773, where colonists, dressed as Native Americans, boarded British ships and dumped 342 chests of tea into Boston Harbor as a protest. In response, the British government implemented the Intolerable Acts, which among other actions, closed Boston Harbor until the destroyed tea was paid for. This series of events increased tensions between Britain and the American colonies and eventually led to the American Revolution.
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