On the evening of 16 December 1773, around a hundred men boarded three ships in Boston harbour, hoisting more than 46 tonnes of tea over the vessels’ rails and into the sea. The destruction of the goods became a pivotal moment on the road to the American Revolutionary War, and is better known to history as the Boston Tea Party. In our new HistoryExtra podcast series, on the 250th anniversary of the rebellion, we’ll be looking at the causes, tensions, and violent origins of the protest, the key players involved in the plan – and why exactly tea was so important to the story. Join experts Benjamin Carp, Sarah Churchwell and Sarah Purcell as we delve into the act of defiance that sparked a revolution.

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