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French and Indian War
This war was a part of the Seven Years War that was fought in North America. The French and British were at war over territory, specifically the Ohio Valley. This war started on May 28, 1754 and ended on February 10, 1763 when the -
Sugar Act
This act was passed by Parliament in 1764 in an attempt to reduce the smuggling trade with other countries like the French and Dutch. This act reduced English molasses to three pence per gallon instead of six pence per gallon. This act also placed tax on more foreign goods like wine and sugar. This tax on molasses caused the wine industries in the colonies decrease. Multiple effects came from this act that also reduced trade with other countries that supplied needed products. -
Stamp Act
Passed on March 22, 1765, this act taxed paper, documents, playing cards, newspapers, and more. This was the first internal tax directly on the Colonists -
The Quartering Act
The Quartering Acts forced colonists to house British Soldiers. This was a part of the Coercive Acts that were acts to reassert British control over the Colonists as a punishment from the Boston Tea Party -
The Boston Massacre
Incident that happened on March 5th, 1770. The Boston Massacre was a very important event leading up to the American Revolution. A group of colonists were taunting British soldiers in Boston that led to the soldiers to begin to shoot the crowd. Five of the protesters were killed and others injured. -
The Tea Act
Was passed to help the British companies in India from going bankrupt. This act is what finally pushed the Colonists even though the British believed that passing this act and lowering the price on the British tea that the colonists would be content with this. The Boston Massacre that was organized by the Sons of Liberty, was ignited from this act. The Tea Act granted the British East India Company a monopoly on tea sales in the American colonies. -
The Boston Tea Party
A secret group called the Sons of Liberty organized to sneak onto ships dressed as Native Americans and dump the English tea into the Boston Harbor after Parliament adjusted import duties with the Tea Acts. The Boston Tea Party was -
Boston Port Act
This act closed the Boston port and demanded the colonists that lived in the city to pay for the tea, which is about 1 million present day, that was dumped in the Boston Harbor at the Boston Tea Party. This was one of the 4 acts that were apart of the Coercive Acts. Parliament hoped that the Coercive Acts would isolate Boston from Massachusetts, Massachusetts from New England and New England from the rest of North America as an attempt to prevent any more colonial resistance to the British. -
Patrick Henry's "Give me liberty or Give me death" Speech
Patrick Henry gave a speech at the Second Virginia Convention at St. John's Church in Richmond. In this speech, he urged for there to form a militia so the colonists can defend themselves against the British. He ended his speech with the famously spoken words, "Give me liberty, or give me death!" That became commonly used when the colonists marched to war. -
Battles of Lexington and Concord
The battles of Lexington and Concord is what started the American Revolutionary War. The British army planned to have a sneak attack to the Colonists, marching on the night of April 18, 1775 from Boston to Concord. This is when Paul Revere and others famously rode their horses warning the colonial militiamen that the British were coming. Both sides met at Lexington where the British retreated under intense fire, soon after the fighting began. -
Battle of Ticonderoga
The colonial militiamen were under the command of Ethan Allen and Benedict Arnold, this was the first rebel victory. Allen and Arnold had taken their men at dawn and attacked the still sleeping British garrison. -
Battle of Bunker Hill
In this battle, the British forces and colonial militiamen met at Breed’s Hill. The colonists had limited ammunition at this battle, so William Prescott, the leader for the colonists, told them not to fire until they could see the whites of their eyes. The colonists managed to get the British to retreat twice, but when they came back a third time, they had ran out of ammunition. The colonists were then forced to retreat. -
George Washington is Named Commander in Chief
On June 15, 1775 George Washington is chosen to lead the Continental Army by the Second Continental Congress -
Thomas Paine writes Common Sense
This pamphlet was published in 1776. This work was the first work to openly ask for Independence. The pamphlet challenged the British Government’s authority. -
Declaration of Independence is written and signed by delegates in the Continental Congress
The Declaration of Independence was written after the war had started, about a year after. Five men from the Continental Congress got together in 1776 to write the Declaration of Independence, Thomas Jefferson, John Adams, Benjamin Franklin, Roger Sherman, and Robert R. Livingston. This was the formal statement of the colonies. The Declaration of Independence was finished on July 4, but wasn't signed until August 4. -
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Battle of Saratoga
The first battle at Saratoga was a British victory lead by British General John Burgoyne over the American forces lead by Horatio Gate and Benedict Arnold. General John would attack again 14 days later only to be defeated. This victory for the colonists convinced the French to enter the war on the colonists side. -
Alliance is made between the Rebels and the French
The colonial victory at Saratoga is what got the French to declare publicly their alliance with the rebels. Before, the French secretly sent military supplies and aid. On February 6, 1778 a “Treaty of Alliance” and “Amity and Commerce” was signed by the French and the Colonies. This changed everything when France declared war on Great Britain. Now the British had to fight worldwide.
This alliance was crucial with the victory of the Colonists against the British. -
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Battle of Yorktown
The battle of Yorktown is the battle that gave Independence to the colonists. When a French fleet decided to part to Chesapeake, British General Charles Cornwallis chose Yorktown as his base. George Washington decided to take action right away and ordered troops to block any escapes. The French navy blocked escapes on sea. Washington had the British encircled with absolutely no place to go. After three weeks of constant battle back and forth, General Cornwallis surrendered on October 17, 1781 -
General Cornwallis surrenders to George Washington at Yorktown
On October 17, 1781 General Cornwallis surrenders to George Washington at Yorktown after being encircled, nowhere to escape on land and sea, and three weeks of a constant day and night fighting. This ends the war for Independence. Cornwallis was too ill to attend the formal surrender ceremony, he instead had his second in command carry his sword. -
Peace Treaty signed ending the American Revolution recognizing US Independence
The peace treaty between the United States and Great Britain was negotiated by John Adams, Benjamin Franklin, and John Jay. This treaty also helped the colonies gain plenty of new land, fishing rights in Canada, and it did not prevent British creditors from getting debts owed to them.
