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The Stamp Act was passed by the British Parliament on the American Colonies. It was the first direct tax on the colonies to collect revenue for Britain. In response to the Stamp Act, the Virginia House of Burgesses passed the "Virginia Resolves", which stated that only the General Assembly of Virginia had the power to pass taxes on the people. Due to the resistance of the colonies, the Stamp Act was repealed in March of 1776. -
The Boston Massacre was a protest by American Patriots against British taxes that turned violent after a British soldier was struck with a Snowball, causing him to discharge his weapon. As a result, other British soldiers began firing onto the crowd, killing 5 colonists and injuring 3 others. The British soldiers were tried and convicted of Manslaughter. Many people believe these men were the first casualties of the Revolutionary War. -
The Boston Tea Party was a critical act of defiance against the British government in American History. In response to the Tea Act, passed by the British Parliament, a group of American colonists who called themselves the Sons of Liberty disguised themselves as Mohawk Native Americans, boarded British ships, and proceeded to dump 340 chests of tea owned by the East India Company into the harbor. -
At the end of 1774, delegates from 12 of the 13 colonies met at Carpenters' Hall in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, to discuss the future of America and the growing aggression of the British. This became the First Continental Congress. Georgia was the only state that did not send delegates.
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The Battles of Lexington and Concord were the first engagements between the Massachusetts Militia and British Redcoats. Thomas Gage, the Royal Governor of Massachusetts, sought to stamp out rebellion by seizing a weapons cache in Concord. On the evening of the 18th, the famous Paul Revere, along with many other riders, spread the word that the British were coming, which allowed the Militia to gather, ultimately leading to the Battles of Lexington and Concord. -
Bunker Hill was the first major battle during the American Revolution. The Battle ended in a British Victory however it was a hollow victory with the Americans only sustaining about 450 casualties while the British sustained a total of 1,054 casualties, 89 of which were officers. -
"Common Sense" is a 47 page pamphlet written by Thoma Paine. The maine idea of the text is that British rule is responsible for every colonial problem and the ongoing crisis in the colonies could only be solved through independance. -
The issueing of the Declaration of Independece, adopted by the Continental Congress on July 4th, severed the 13 colonies completely with ties to Great Britain. By becoming an indpendent nation they were able to formally confirm an alliace with the Governemtn of France. The Continental Congress formed a committee to create the Declaration of Independence and chose Thomas Jefferson as the initial author. -
Following defeats in New York, General George Washington famously crossed the Delaware River and marched his continental army to the city of Trenton. Early in the morning Washington's forces attacked the British forces stationed there with the General leading himself. The Hessian soldiers there were caught by the element of suprise and defeated by Washington. -
The Battle of Camden was a decisive victory for the British and a crushing loss to the Americans. The British forces led by General Charles Lord Cornwallis only suffered a total of 324 casualties while the Americans had a whopping 1,900 casualties including General Johann DeKalb who led his men valiantly into battle while General Horatio Gates fled from the battle 60 miles to Charlotte, North Caroline. This ultimately led to his replacement with the very capable Nathanael Greene. -
The Battle of Yorktown was the final victory for the Continental Army that effectively ended fighting in America. General George Washington effectively trapped British forces and General Cornwallis in Yorktown Virginia and began to lay siege to the city. With the French Navy blockading the Chesapeake Bay Cornwallis eventually surrendered.
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The Treaty of Paris formally ended the American Revolutionary war and recognized the United States and an independent Nation.
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The Constitutional Convention was a gathering of Delegates from 7 states at the State House to review the Articles of Confederation. In the end however the convention came to the conclusion that an entirely new form of government was to be created.
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The U.S. Constitution, the law of the United States and the establishing backbone of the country was ratified after New Hampshire the 9th and final state to approve it. In article VII of the constitution it states that 9 of the 13 states needs to approve the constitution before it can go into effect. Delaware was the first to approve it in December of 1787. -
James Madison introduced a list of "Amendments" to congress on June 8th, 1789. The House passed a resolution including 17 of the proposed amendments and in October, President Washington sent copies of the 12 approved amendments to the states. 3/4ths of the states had ratified 10 of them, known as the Bill of Rights.