-
Paul Revere's Ride
In Paul's Revere ride, Revere planned to ride from Charleston to Lexington to inform the colonials that the British were coming from Boston to take their armory at Concord. However, Paul Revere was stopped right outside of Lexington and instead appointed a "friend" to give signals to the men stating whether the British were going to march by land or come in by sea. The signals were one lantern, to represent coming in from land and two lanterns to represent the British leaving Boston by sea. -
Battles of Lexington and Concord
The Battle of Lexington and Concord was the battle that marked the beginning of the American Revolution. General Thomas Gage, who acted on orders from London, ordered his troops to head towards Concord to seize the colonists armory. However, the colonists had already been warned and met Gage's troops at Lexington. -
Battle of Bunker Hill
The Battle of Bunker Hill was the first major battle in the American Revolution. The Colonists learned that the British were planning to send troops from Boston to occupy nearby hills. However, Colonel William Prescott prepared and set up the Colonists on the hill to meet the British. Although the British lost, the colonial army posed a large number of casualties on the enemy giving them a sort of a "boost of confidence." -
Thomas Paine's writing of "The American Crisis"
Thomas Paine wrote a series of "articles" during the ongoing war. One of these articles included "Common Sens," which was written about why America should have independence from Britain, became very well known. In fact, George Washington found the first "article" to be very moving and demanded "that it be read to his troops at Valley Forge." -
Creation of the Declaration of Independence
On June 7, Richard Henry Lee introduced a proposal calling for the colonies independence before the Continental Congress at Pennsylvania. When the meeting was in a huge debate and it was about to be over, Congress decided that a five-man committee draft a formal statement that ratified the break from Britain. This document became known as the Deceleration of Independence. The five-men committee included Thomas Jefferson, John Adams, Roger Sherman, Benjamin Franklin and Robert R. Livingston. -
Crossing of the Delaware River
George Washington devised a surprise attack on the British. His plan was to move the Continental Army across the icy Delaware River in order to surprise attack Hessian's at Trenton the next morning. Washington devised this plan because his army had many losses and he believed that the element of surprise would win him and his army a battle. -
Battle of Trenton
In the Battle of Trenton, George Washington baited the British forces to the south then managed to do a night march with his army to capture Princeton. The victories that the Continental Army had were huge because they regained control of much of New Jersey and it instilled confidence in them. -
Battle of Philadelphia
The British Army began their plan to capture the colonial capitol of Philadelphia. British General Howe and his army came from the Chesapeake River towards Philadelphia. On the other side, George Washington set up a defensive position along the Brandywine River in order to protect route between Baltimore and Philadelphia. The British won this Battle and were able to successfully capture the colonial capital. -
Battles of Saratoga
There were two Battles of Saratoga and they were a pivotal turning point in the American Revolution. British General John Burgoyne won the first battle in a "small, but costly victory" against the Continental Army leaders Horatio Gates and Benedict Arnold. Although the British army was weakened, the attacked again at the second battle but they lost and were forced to defeat. The American victory convinced the French to enter the war and become their ally. -
The Winter at Valley Forge
During the winter, George Washington moved his army to their "winter headquarters at Valley Forge." Despite their victory at the last Battle of Saratoga, the Continental Army suffered many defeats including the ones at Paoli, and Germantown, Pennsylvania where the British captured the capital. Subsequently, when the Americans marched into Valley Forge, they were suffering from hunger, cold, fatigue and low confidence. -
Battle of Yorktown
General George Washington, who was commanding a force of 17,000 French and Continental troops, began the siege against British General Lord Charles Cornwallis and their 9,000 man troops. After three weeks of battle, Cornwallis surrendered, ending the war for Independence. -
Treaty of Paris
The Treaty of Paris was the document that formally ended the American Revolution. Benjamin Franklin, John Adams, and John Jay arranged the peace treaty with Britain. In the treaty, the British Crown acknowledged American independence and surrendered most of their territory “east of the Mississippi River to the United States.”