b) The Intolerable Acts

The Intolerable Acts were a series of punitive measures passed by the British Parliament in 1774 in response to the Boston Tea Party. These acts severely restricted colonial self-governance and justice procedures, including closing Boston Harbor and placing Massachusetts under direct British control. The Intolerable Acts were designed to assert British authority and punish the colonists for their defiance. However, these measures had the opposite effect, unifying the colonies in their opposition to British rule and hastening the onset of the Revolutionary War.