Image – The Boston Massacre

Chapter 6

The Boston Massacre

Paul Revere’s engraving of the Boston Massacre is one of the most famous works of propaganda in modern world history. The event was a clash between British soldiers and colonists in Boston, Massachusetts on March 5, 1770.  As a result of the clash, five colonists were killed. The engraving was done by Paul Revere soon afterward.   He entitled the engraving, “ Bloody Massacre Perpetrated in King’s Street in Boston.”  It would become the most influential anti-British propaganda piece of the Revolutionary War.  It omits key details, such as the harassment and physical abuse British soldiers faced just before the violence. Instead, the scene Revere engraved shows colonists being mowed down in cold blood.   Not surprisingly, Revere’s work spread outrage.