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Navigation Acts
The Navigation Acts were originally put in place in 1651, but became more enforced in 1763. Britain profited from the Navigation Acts because it taxed all goods coming in and out of Britain. Also, all colonial trade and manufacturing was to be bought or sold in Britain. One of the more critical economic causes of the Revolution. -
French & Indian War Ends
The French & Indian War drained the treasury and King George III and his advisors wanted the colonists to pay for the debt they fell in. France gave Nova Scotia and Newfoundland to Britain. The result of the French and Indian War ended with Britain getting all of French Canada and some Caribbean Islands. -
Stamp Act
Imposed taxes on all commercial and legal documents: diplomas, pamphlets, newspapers, almanacs, dice, playing cards, etc. This started to bring up the question of who should represent the colonies because they began to believe in “No taxation without representation.” -
Boston Massacre
British soldiers opened fire on angry crowd resulting in the death of five protesters. Some loyalists were tarred and feathered. This lead to the Committees of Correspondence to be formed. Their purpose was to warn neighboring colonies about the incidents with Britain and to broaden the resistance movement. The Boston Massacre was one of the main events that lead to the start of the Revolutionary War. -
Tea Act
This act put a tax on tea. British East India Co. had a monopoly on British tea imports, many members had shares of the company. They permitted the colony to sell tea directly to the colonies without colonial middle men because this made the tea cheaper. This led to the Boston Tea Party. -
Boston Tea Party
Colonists started throwing newly arrived tea off the ships to protest the tax on tea. This resulted in the Intolerable Acts to be put in place. Other results of this was Port Bill being closed until compensation, the Quartering Act, and the Administration of Justice Act. -
Intolerable Acts
Result of the Boston Tea Party. They were meant to punish colonists of Massachusetts for the acts they committed and ultimately was an attempt to restore some peace and order within the colonies. Port Bill was closed until George III and Britain were compensated, the Quartering Act and the Administration of Justice Act were put in place. -
First Continental Congress
The First Continental Congress was held to talk about how they would respond to Britain’s new policies. There were 55 delegates from 12 colonies (except Georgia) present to figure out how they would respond to the intolerable acts. -
Lexington and Concord
Paul Revere and William Dawes make their midnight ride to warn the minutemen of the approaching British army. “The shot heard around the world” happened at Lexington and Concord and is known to be the first military encounter fo the war. This ultimately sparked the beginning of the Revolutionary War. This lead to the convening of the Second Continental Congress. -
Second Continental Congress
The convening of the Second Continental Congress was caused by the events at Lexington and Concord. During this meeting they wrote and signed the Olive Branch Petition which was a last effort to make things right with King George III and Britain. This didn’t entirely work out which eventually led to the adoption of the Declaration of Independence. -
Declaration of Independence Adopted
The adoption of the Declaration of Independence was a result of the colonies deciding that they no linger wanted to be under British rule. At this point in time, the Revolution had already started. The Declaration was put in place to make their separation from Britain official. They wrote their own rules and rights that they felt were more fair and would serve the colonists better. -
Battle of Saratoga
The Battle of Saratoga was a win for the colonies and it boosted their morale. They also were able to become allies with the French who were known enemies of Britain. -
Winter at Valley Forge
Due to the harsh conditions over 10,000 soldiers died from disease of illness. Some members of congress wanted to replace Washington as general because they thought he had become “incompetent.” By the end of the winter the experience helped the soldiers become more unified and somewhat in a way helped them win the war. -
Battle of Yorktown
The Battle of Yorktown in Virginia was the last major battle fought in the Revolutionary War where Washington forced the British army to surrender and this ultimately established Washington as the nation’s leader. This led to the signing of the Treaty of Paris where America, Britain, and France signed to end the war. -
U.S. Constitution Written
The Constitution was a replacement for the government system that failed before: The Articles of Confederation. The Constitution created a Federal Republic for the U.S. and created “checks and balances” so no one part of the government could have more control or more than another. -
U.S. Constitution Adopted
The Constitution was officially ratified when New Hampshire accepted it as the ninth state of thirteen. This was 6 months after the constitution was written. This made sure that any final touches or tweaks that were needed were made.