On December 16, 1773, some 150 colonists made up as Mohawk Indians threw tea taken from the British East India Company's ships into Boston Harbor to protest the Crown’s taxing tea in America. Though this act was cheered by at least 45-50% of the colonists at the time, it was most certainly decried as thievery and barbaric by other colonists who supported the Crown and would later be known as Tories. Even at the start of the war, some 30% of colonists were undecided about which side to support.
The English Parliament responded to the Boston Tea Party, which was the most egregious and “last straw” of general colonial resistance, with the Intolerable Acts. The British enacted collective punishment against Boston by closing the harbor until it received restitution for the tea. The Massachusetts Government Act abrogated the colony’s charter and empowered the military governor, Gen. Thomas Gage, who immediately banned any town meetings without his personal approval. The Administration of Justice Act protected British officials charged with capital offenses by allowing them to be tried in England and, finally, the Act extended forced quartering of British troops in American homes.
Nonetheless, colonial resistance continued, even forcing British troops to remain in camps because the colonials would not modify or repair any of the structures in which they intended to house troops. The Act also led to the First Continental Congress in Philadelphia.
The January 6, 2021 Capitol incursion has some parallels to 1773’s Tea Party. For example, the preceeding rally is likely supported by 40-50% of Americans, though they certainly do not support the tragic deaths from the incursion a mile-and-a-half away. The rally was a protest over the questionable elections and an opportunity for the right to be heard in a way they were denied for many years until President Trump was in office – and even then, the media and Big Tech silenced conservative issues and speech.
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