<P> The Tea Party was the culmination of a resistance movement throughout British America against the Tea Act , which had been passed by the British Parliament in 1773 . Colonists objected to the Tea Act because they believed that it violated their rights as Englishmen to `` No taxation without representation '' , that is , to be taxed only by their own elected representatives and not by a British parliament in which they were not represented . In addition , the well - connected East India Company had been granted competitive advantages over colonial tea importers , who resented the move and feared additional infringement on their business . Protesters had successfully prevented the unloading of taxed tea in three other colonies , but in Boston , embattled Royal Governor Thomas Hutchinson refused to allow the tea to be returned to Britain . </P>
why did the colonists have a problem with the tea act of 1773
because they believed that it violated their rights as Englishmen to `` No taxation without representation '' , that is , to be taxed only by their own elected representatives and not by a British parliament in which they were not represented