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French and Indian War
The French and Indian war lasted seven years, giving it the name, the seven years’ war. The conflict began over land disputes between the French and the colonists. The beginning of the war did not go very well for the colonies since the French were very strong and the British were not interested in helping the colonies, but soon the British declared war on France and in 1763 the Treaty of Paris which stopped the war was signed. -
Baron Von Steuben arrives in the U.S.
Baron Von Steuben, a former Prussian army soldier, was hired to help the colonial army during the French and Indian war. He contributed a lot to the army, he created battle tactics that were far more advanced than what the colonists had to work with. He also conditioned the soldiers, making them go through a grueling boot camp that turned out to be very beneficial and successful for the colonial army. -
Treaty of Paris (1763)
In 1763, the Treaty of Paris was signed to put an end to the French and Indian war. The treaty stated that the British would gain the land of Florida from Spain. -
Proclamation Line Developed
The British created this line as the furthest point that Colonists could settle westward. This was done to ensure that the colonists did not cut into French territory. The colonists disliked the proclamation line. -
Sugar Act Passed
The sugar act was passed to try and stop the smuggling of sugar from the French into the Colonies. This law was passed so that colonists would buy sugar from Britain instead, so that the British could increase profit. -
Committees of Correspondence
This was the first instance in the colonies where all of the colonies would come together to meet. It became more important for the colonies to begin meeting due to the growing dislike of being under British rule. -
Stamp Act Passed
The stamp act was a law that was passed that put a tax on all paper products imported to the colonies. The stamp act was created as a way for the British to try and regain money from their debt created by the French and Indian war. -
Quartering Act Passed
The quartering act was another law put on the colonies from the British that stated that the colonists had to house British soldiers in their military barracks. The act also stated that if the barracks were full they were to be placed anywhere that they could be housed, this included the colonists’ personal houses. -
Declaratory Act Passed
The declaratory law stated that parliament had the right to pass a law without the consent/representation of the colonies. This act was passed after conflict occurred over laws such as the stamp act. -
Townshend Act
These were a set of new laws passed to be put onto the colonies. These laws included a large amount of taxing, taxes were put on things like paper and paint, but the most important thing that caused the most outrage was their tax on tea. -
Boston Massacre
The Boston Massacre began as a protest between colonists and British soldiers, but as things escalated, the British began firing on the colonists and killing many of them. This made the colonists outrageous because it made them feel even more oppressed and unsafe because of the British rule. -
Tea Act
The tea act allowed for tea companies to ship tea directly to the colonies instead of having to go through Great Britain first. It was done as an attempt to help boost the economy as tea companies were losing money. -
Boston Tea Party
The Boston tea party was done as an action of anger due to the taxation on tea. Colonists dressed up as native Americans and dumped millions of dollars worth of tea into the Boston Harbor. This obviously made the British lose all of their money that was spent on the tea that was dumped. -
Intolerable Acts
The intolerable acts were a set of laws that the British put on the Colonists that were meant to be punishment for the Boston tea party. -
First Continental Congress
This was a group formed by all of the colonies except for Georgia. This group was created to resist the intolerable acts that were put on them by the British. -
Battles of Lexington and Concord
These battles were the beginning of the revolutionary war. The war occurred due to Colonists resisting British control and seeking to govern themselves. -
Second Continental Congress
Delegates of all 13 colonies met here after the start of the Revolutionary war. This continental congress succeeded the first continental congress which had already been established. -
George Washington Leader of Army
George Washington was the general overseeing the colonial army in its battle with the British army. He was a very important figure for the colonies and the military as he was a great leader. -
Battle of Bunker Hill
The battle of bunker hill was an early battle fought in which the British beat the colonial army, but the colonists still did significant damage to the British army. This battle gave the Colonial army going forward. -
Common Sense Published
Thomas Paine wrote an influential pamphlet called common sense. The pamphlet was explaining how bad of an idea it was to stay allied with the British. -
Committee of Five
The committee of five was a group of five members, Thomas Jefferson, John Adams, Benjamin Franklin, Roger Sherman, and Robert R. Livingston. They were appointed to write a declaration of independence from Britain. -
Declaration of Independence
The declaration of independence was a document created for the purpose of the colonies declaring their independence from Britain. The document included a preamble, statement of rights, grievances against the king, and their declaration. -
Marquis De Lafayette
De Lafayette served for the continental army and was very good. He helped smuggle goods from France and was a good tactical leader -
Battle of Saratoga
These were two battles fought in which the colonists won, they were very important battles for the war and is seen as a turning point of the war. The Colonists were able to win the war due to the high ground they had on Bemis Heights, a mountain which allowed for the Colonial Army to oversee everything that was going on. -
Articles of Confederation
The articles of confederation established a form of government for the United States after they declared independence from the British. -
Ben Franklin and John Adams Role in French Alliance
Benjamin Franklin and John Adams sailed to France in 1778 to negotiate an alliance between the French and Colonies. -
Battle of Yorktown
Colonial army campaign in which colonial and French soldiers trapped a large group of British soldiers on a peninsula. The French created ocean barricades so that the British could not escape and the Colonial army trapped them inside Yorktown. This battle almost immediately ended the British military occupying the U.S. -
Treaty of Paris (1783)
The treaty of paris was signed by US and British representatives that stopped the revolutionary war and gave the US their independence
