American Revolution Illustrated Timeline

  • Salutary Neglect (1763)

    Salutary Neglect (1763)

    "hands off approach by Great Britain; British policy of loosely enforcing laws and regulations in the American colonies, allowing them to govern themselves.
  • French-Indian War (1756-1763)

    French-Indian War (1756-1763)

    AKA the 7 Years' War, between France and England. In the colonies, it was called the French Indian War because the colonists fought with British soldiers against France the Indians who were on side of France. Because of the war, England had a massive war debt began to tax the people in the 13 colonies.
  • Quartering Act (1765)

    Quartering Act (1765)

    A series of British laws in the 1760s and 1770s that required colonial governments to provide housing, food, and supplies for British troops.
  • Stamp Act (1765)

    Stamp Act (1765)

    A direct tax on the American colonies, requiring them to pay a fee on all printed paper goods, such as legal documents, newspapers, and playing cards.
  • Townshend Act (1767)

    Townshend Act (1767)

    A 1767 series of British laws that imposed new taxes on goods like tea, glass, paper, paint, and lead imported by the American colonies, aiming to raise revenue for Britain to cover war debts and colonial administration costs
  • Boston Massacre (1770)

    Boston Massacre (1770)

    A deadly confrontation on March 5, 1770, where British soldiers fired into a crowd of angry colonists, killing five people and wounding several others in Boston.
  • Boston Tea Party (1773)

    Boston Tea Party (1773)

    A political demonstration in 1773 where American colonists, as members of the Sons of Liberty and disguised as Native Americans, destroyed a shipment of the British East India Company's tea by dumping 342 chests into Boston Harbor.
  • Intolerable Acts (1774)

    Intolerable Acts (1774)

    Were a direct response to the Boston Tea Party and aimed to punish Massachusetts for its defiance by stripping the colony of self-governance and imposing strict British control.
  • Olive Branch Petition (1775)

    Olive Branch Petition (1775)

    A final plea from the Second Continental Congress to King George III in July 1775, seeking to avoid armed conflict and restore harmony between Great Britain and the American colonies.
  • Second Continental Congress (1775-1781)

    Second Continental Congress (1775-1781)

    The de facto government of the American colonies during the American Revolution.
  • Battle of Lexington and Concord (1775)

    Battle of Lexington and Concord (1775)

    The first military engagements of the American Revolutionary War.
  • "Common Sense" (1776)

    "Common Sense" (1776)

    Pamphlet by Thomas Paine that argued for American independence from British rule, attacking the concept of monarchy and advocating for a republican government.
  • Declaration of Independence (1776)

    Declaration of Independence (1776)

    The 1776 document approved by the Continental Congress that formally announced the separation of the 13 American colonies from Great Britain.
  • Articles of Confederation (1781)

    Articles of Confederation (1781)

    The first constitution of the United States, in effect from 1781 to 1789.
  • Daniel Shays' Rebellion (1786)

    Daniel Shays' Rebellion (1786)

    An armed uprising in western Massachusetts from 1786-1787 led by Revolutionary War veteran Daniel Shays, protesting heavy taxes, high debt, and unresponsive government under the weak Articles of Confederation.
  • Annapolis Convention (1786)

    Annapolis Convention (1786)

    A meeting of delegates from five states to address issues of interstate commerce under the Articles of Confederation.
  • Constitutional Convention (1787)

    Constitutional Convention (1787)

    A formal assembly called to draft, revise, or amend a constitution.