-
The Boston Massacre was a fight that led up to the war. This happened two years before the war started. This battle only had one side that was armed but they were not allowed to fire. Somebody broke that rule and caused 13 casualties and 5 of those were deaths. This violent act made the colonists very angry at England. This started out as a small fight, but ended up uniting the colonists to begin their fight against Britain to gain their independence. -
The Boston Tea Party was a protest against the British Parliaments "Tea Act". This was when the patriots dumped British tea into the Boston Harbor to spite England. Parliament was so upset, they enacted the Intolerable Acts which closed off Boston to shipping. Because of this, the colonists called their first Continental Congress to consider a United American resistance to the British. -
The 1st Continental Congress met in 1774 in reaction to the Intolerable Acts. The colonists did not want the British to give taxes on the colonists because the colonists believed they were unfair. -
The Battle of Lexington and Concord was the first battle of the American Revolutionary War. The night before, British troops marched from Boston to Concord to steal weapons. Paul Revere and others sounded the alarm and began moving to catch the British. -
This was the first armed battle for both sides. This battle was won by England because they had more men and gunpowder. Another reason that the colonists lost the battle is because their lack of experience and leadership. This was an important battle which helped the colonists gain confidence. -
Washington is now in charge for the American army. This was one of the most important decisions in the war. It lead to the U.S winning a lot more battles in the future. Washington later became the 1st president of the U.S. -
The Declaration of Independence was the first formal statement by the colonists that declared their independence in government from England. On July 4, 1776 Congress approved the final text. It wasn't signed until August 2, 1776. -
The Battle of Saratoga was a crucial turning point during the Revolutionary War. This was the first battle that the Continental Army won in the war. -
France joined up with the Colonists to help America in the war. -
General Cornwallis and his men were forced to surrender in Yorktown, VA on October 19th. As the British and Hessian troops arched out to surrender the British bands played the song "The World Turned Upside Down". Eventually this resulted in the signing of the "Treaty of Paris". -
The Treaty of Paris was signed on September 3, 1783, which formally recognized the United States as a free and independent nation after 8 long years of war.