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Sugar Act
Taxed goods imported to America to raise revenue for England. It was meant to assist England in recouping the debt it had taken on during the French and Indian War. The taxed goods included imports such as wine, cloth, coffee, and silk. -
Stamp Act
An internal tax, the sole purpose of which was to raise revenue to be used solely for the support of the British soldiers protecting the colonies. Required Americans to use "stamped" paper for legal documents, newspapers, and playing cards, among other goods. -
Quartering Act
Act that required the colonies in which British troops were stationed to provide soldiers with bedding and other basic needs. Colonists reacted negatively because the feared having a standing army in their towns, and they disliked the additional expenses it caused. -
Declaratory Act
Act giving Britain the power to tax and make laws for Americans in all cases. It suggested that Britain might pass more restrictive acts in the future. -
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Letters From A Pennsylvania Farmer
A series of essays written by the Pennsylvania lawyer and legislator John Dickinson and published under the name "A Farmer" from 1767 to 1768. The twelve letters were widely read and reprinted throughout the thirteen colonies and were important in uniting the colonists against the Townshend Acts. -
Townshend Acts
Created by British Prime Minister Charles Townshend as a program of taxing items imported into the colonies, such as paper, lead, glass, and tea. Led to boycotts by Boston merchants and served as a key contributor to the Boston Massacre. -
Boston Massacre
Occurred when the British attempted to enforce the Townshend Acts. British soldiers killed five Bostonians, including Crispus Attucks, an American patriot and former slave. Though the British soldiers acted more or less in self defense, anti-Royal leaders used the massacre to spur action in the colonies. -
Tea Act
A concession that allowed the British East India Company to ship tea directly to America and sell it at a bargain. Because the cheap tea undercut the costs of local merchants, colonists opposed these shipments; they turned back ships, left shipments to rot, and help ships in port. -
Boston Tea Party
Where citizens, dressed as Native Americans, destroyed tea on the British ships. -
The Intolerable Acts
Names given by colonists to the Quebec Act (1774) and to a series of acts by the British in response to the Boston Tea Party, closing off the Port of Boston to all trade until citizens paid for the lost tea. Increased the power of Massachusetts' Royal governor at the expense of the legislature, allowing Royal officials accused of crimes in Massachusetts to be tried elsewhere. -
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The First Continental Congress
Meeting in Philadelphia of colonial representatives to denounce the Intolerable Acts and to petition the British Parliament. A few radical members discussed breaking from England. Created Continental Association and forbade the importation and use of British goods. -
Give Me Liberty or Give Me Death
As the colonists assembled at the Virginia Convention, being held at St. John's Church in Richmond, debated whether to mobilize forces against the British, Henry gave an impassioned speech in support of the resolution from his pew in a Richmond church. -
Battle of Lexington
Concord: site suspected by British General Gage of housing a stockpile of colonial weaponry. Paul Revere, William Dawes, and others detected movement of British troops toward Concord and warned militia and gathered Minutemen at Lexington. Lexington: Militia and Royal infantry fought, and the colonial troops withdrew. -
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The Second Continental Congress
Colonial representative meeting in Philadelphia, over which John Hancock presided. The group was torn between declaring independence and remaining under British power. Moderates forced the adoption of the Olive Branch Petition, a letter to King George III appealing one final time for a resolution to all disputes; the king refused to receive it. The Congress sent George Washington to command the army around Boston, American ports were opened in defiance of the Navigation Acts, the Congress wrote -
Battle of Bunker Hill
An American post overlooking Boston. The stronghold allowed Americans to contain General Cage and his troops. Colonists twice turned back a British frontal assault, and they held off the British until the Bunker Hill force ran out of ammunition and was overrun. The American strong defense led to strengthened morale. -
Common Sense
Pamphlet published by Thomas Paine that called for immediate independence from Britain. It was sold throughout the colonies, where it gained popularity. It helped weaken resistance in the Continental Congress toward independence. -
Declaration of Independence
Document restating political ideas justifying the separation from Britain. Thomas Jefferson and his committee had the duty of drafting for the Continental Congress. John Locke's influences served as a foundation for the document. The final product lacked provisions condemning the British slave trade and a denunciation of the British people that earlier drafts contained. -
Articles of Confederation
Began drafting the framework for an American national government in which states were given the most power. Permitted the federal government to make war, offer treaties, and create new states. There was no federal power to levy taxes, raise troops, or regulate commerce. Congressional revision of the articles created a weak national government. -
Battle of Saratoga
American Revolution battle fought in northern New York. The British planned to end the American Revolution by splitting the colonies along the Hudson River, but they failed to mobilize properly. The British ended up surrendering, allowing for the first great American victory. It demonstrated that the British could more easily hold the cities, but that they would have trouble subduing the countrysides. Considered a turning point, as French aid began after this battle. -
Treaty of Paris, 1783
Peace settlement that ended the Revolutionary War. The United States was represented by Benjamin Franklin, John Adams, and John Jay. Britain recognized the United States' independence and outlined its borders. The United States received all lands east of the Mississippi River, north of Florida, and south of the Great Lakes. The United States agreed that Loyalists were not to be persecuted.