Question

Besides the tax on tea which had been in place since 1767, what fundamentally angered the American colonists about the Tea Act was the British East India Company's government sanctioned monopoly on tea.

Answer 1

The Tea Act of 1773 incited colonial protest because it reinforced 'no taxation without representation' by allowing a monopoly for the British East India Company, undercutting colonial merchants and pushing colonists towards acts of resistance like the Boston Tea Party.

Step-by-step explanation:

Understanding the Colonial Resentment Towards the Tea Act of 1773

The passage of the Tea Act of 1773 fundamentally angered American colonists, not solely because of the ongoing tax on tea from the 1767 Townshend Acts, but due to the monopoly it granted the British East India Company. This state-sanctioned monopoly allowed the company to bypass colonial merchants by exporting tea directly to the colonies without import or export duties, significantly reducing the price of tea.

Even with this price reduction, the Townshend tax remained, embodying the principle of "no taxation without representation". The action of such economic measures like the Tea Act was seen by many colonists as a form of economic protectionism for British corporate interests at the expense of American merchants, who were influential figures in the colonies.

The colonists feared complying with this act would ultimately concede the fundamental principle of self-governance and representative legislation, hence leading to the renowned colonial protest: the Boston Tea Party.