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The Stamp Act put duties on the British colonies and plantations. It was the first time the British government had tried to assert their power over the colonists. The citizens being taxed were at a serious risk for revolt.
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When the Stamp Act was imposed, it was protested by angry colonists. They rioted, harassed British soldiers, and made petitions the boycotted trade with Britain.
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The smuggler-stopping ship "The Gaspee" ran aground and angry colonists pillaged and burned the ship, showing that they were no longer going to accept the tolls imposed by the British.
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The Committees of Correspondence was a plan proposed by Thomas Jefferson to communicate between colonies about British activities. These communications helped to unify the colonists against the British and they helped the leaders to cooridinate their plans.
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Colonists were enraged by the taxes puit on their tea, so they boarded British ships and dumped $18,000 worth of tea into the Boston Harbor. This act of rebellion was a massive step towards breaking away from British rule.
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The Coercive Acts were a series of acts and are also known at the intolerable acts. The acts contained in the Coercive Acts were the Boston Port Act, Quartering Act, Administration of Justice Act, and Massachusetts Government Act. They restricted the rights of the people and gave the British soldiers a lot more power. They caused anger throughout out the colonies.
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The First Continental Congress met in Philadelphia to end the crisis started by the British arrival of troops in Boston. They condemned the Intolerable Acts as well as the Coercive Acts. The delegates approved the Continental Association and agreed to hold a second Continental Congress in 1775 if the first did not solve their issues.
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Paul Revere was a colonial leader who rode his horse to Lexington to raise the alarm that the British were planning an attack. The local militia got the alarm in time and they managed to assemble before the British troops arrived. This led to the Battle of Lexington and Concord.
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The Battle of Lexington and Concord was between the colonial militia and the British troops. This is the site of the famous "Shot heard round the world". No one knows which side fired the first shot, but it served as the first act of war between the colonies and England. The Colonists retreated at Lexington after the British soldiers' first volley. The troops then marched on the Concord where they searched for the weapons supplies that they had originally set out to find, they found nothing.
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This congress met in Philadephia to discuss the issues of defence. They decided to rename the militias surrounding Boston as the Continental Army and elected George Washington as its general and commander in chief.
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George Wahinton was elected to lead the Continental Army which used to be the militias surrounding Boston. The first conflict he had to deal with after being elected was the Battle of Bunker Hill after the British reinforcements landed in Boston.
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After the battle of Lexington and Concord, the colonial militia controlled the hilly area surrounding Boston. The colonists recieved information that the British were going to attack Bunker Hill, so they sent fortifications to Breed's Hill which held out under two British attacks and retreated at the third. The English suffered large casualties but gained control of Breed's Hill.
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The Quebec Act was considered one of the Coercive Acts. It was a way for the British to expand closer to the rebellious colonies and to make peace with the French so they would not decide to join the colonists fight for freedom.
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The Olive Branch Petition was created to try to make peace with Britain by displaying their loyalty to the king. It was a failed attempt because the king shut it down.
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This Proclamation was put into effect by King George to draw a line from north to south along the western borders of the colonies. He did this to prevent the colonists from settling any further to prevent more conflicts between the setllers and the Native Americans. The King was tired of paying the bill for the fights that had broken out between the two groups.
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When colonists attacked the Virginian governors’ troops, the British fled the area giving the patriots a victory.
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Common Sense by Thomas Paine was an influential document that was revolutionary in the way it talked about being free from the rule of Great Britain and how it challenged the structure of the royal monarchy. It was the first written document to do that.
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After many long battles, including the battle of bunker hill, the British troops in needed reinforcements from England. Three months later, the Patriots had the British surrounded when they were getting their supplies. The British troops evacuated Boston and sailed to Halifax, Nova Scotia.
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Thomas Jefferson was appointed to draft the declaration then it was read and revised by congress.
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After it was fully revised the Declaration of Independence was signed by 56 people, copied, and read to the public. It is a very influential document.
