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Albany Plan of Union
The plan of Albany was a plan to place the colonies under a more centralized government. Although the plan was never seen through. It was however the first important proposal that eventually led to gathering all the colonies as a collective whole under one government. This was a stepping stone for our current government and the constitution. -
Proclamation
An order by king George lll that forbids Americans from settling west of the Appalachian Mountains. This was created at the end of the French and Indian war. One of the main goals of the war was to capture the Ohio River Valley because that land was rich in timber and fur. After years of warfare, the Americans believed that they had earned the right to settle and harvest this land. Many Americans took this as a violation to their inherent right to property. -
Sugar Act pt. 1
This Act lowered the taxes from the previous molasses act, but unfortunately the colonists ignored the molasses act. They saw the Sugar Act as a new tax. The goal of the Sugar act was to decrease smuggling of illegal trade.They put a tax on sugar, coffee, wine, and molasses. This was an indirect tax so most colonists were upset that the price of sugar had gone up. -
Sugar Act pt.2
The main problem the colonists had with this act was that it issued writs of assistance, meaning the British could search properties, like ships, without a warrant. A lot of colonists were still not following this Act, so in the future the British would create more Acts/taxes. -
1st Quartering Act
This Act required that Americans have to house and feed British Soldiers in the colonies. This creates a lot of tension between the Colonists and the British. Some American colonists even tried to refuse to quarter British soldiers. Overall this act created a lot of tension between the two groups and would eventually lead into future disagreements between the two groups. (like the Boston Massacre and Boston Tea Party) -
Troops Sent into Boston as Military Police
This was when the British sent over troops to maintain behavior in the colonies and make sure they were paying taxes, like the sugar act. The colonists hated the idea that British soldiers were not coming over to protect them in times of war, but instead to keep them in “order”. This would lead to the Intolerable acts and many other acts. Mainly because the colonist are angry and are not going to follow the rules so England is going to create stricter rules. -
Boston Massacre
This was a fight that “no one knew who started”, it was established that American colonists were antagonizing British soldiers. There was a club thrown at one of the soldiers and then he fired. At the end of the “battle” there were five dead. This creates tension between the colonists and British. They use it as propaganda to convince colonists to rebel. These rebellions lead into things like the Boston tea party three years later. -
Tea Act
The Tea Act was a tax on tea and made it so the colonists had to get tea from England. This act created a monopoly effect on tea, meaning that The colonists had nowhere else to get tea except England. This made England have complete control over the trade/prices. Tea prices rose profusely, and it caused the sons of liberty to react. This act angered many colonists because they felt like some of their rights were being infringed. This directly led to the Boston tea party. -
Boston Tea Party
The Boston tea party was when the American colonists dressed as the natives and dumped 342 barrels of tea into the harbor, causing 1-to-3 million dollars of damage. This made the British soldiers, and the king, very angry. This made the British think that they needed to punish the colonists or at least create stricter laws. This act of angry colonists led to the British creating the Intolerable Acts. -
Intolerable Act pt.1
The Intolerable act was 5 different acts in the same time period. These 5 acts were: The Boston Port Act; this closed the port of boston and forced the colonists to pay for the damage lost in the Boston tea party. The Mass. Govt. Act; this act was made to better regulate colonists behavior and made sure they were paying taxes. Justice Act; The purpose of this act was to make sure all British officers had a fair trial, meaning they got sent back to England for the trial. -
Intolerable Act pt.2
2nd Quartering Act; This act sent even more British soldiers over and required almost every colonist to house and feed them. Quebec Act; This act gave the French Canadians complete religious freedom and fixed the French form of civil law. All these acts as a whole created major tension between the British and the colonists and led to many uprisings and major fights. -
Lexington & Concord pt.1
There was a militia forming in Massachusetts, so the king took away their firearms. Some towns decided to hide their firearms so the British wouldn't take them. This was a raid of the two towns, Lexington and Concord, looking for firearms. The goal of this raid was to seize all leaders and munitions. -
Lexington & Concord pt.2
In the end of the raid, the British find NOTHING. There were 273 British casualties and only 95 US casualties. This raid, an infringement of their rights, led the move toward Independence and the 2nd continental congress.