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French & Indian War
A dispute over control of the Ohio River territory and the fight for power caused this war between the French and British. Tensions already existed between the two, and now with land control, The outcome of this war ended French influence in North America and England remained in control. It also worsened Enlgand and the Native American's relationship. -
The Sugar Act
King George III and Parliment passed the Sugar Act with the goal of raising 100,000 pounds. The Sugar Act lowered the duty on foreign-produced molasses from six pence per gallon to 3 pence per gallon, in attempts to discourage smuggling.In addition to a restriction of trade, many colonists felt the Sugar Act constituted a restriction of justice. -
Stamp Act
People living in the colonies had to pay about 26 times that of an England native, causing the people living in America to argue the need for unfair taxes, espeically because these people didn't have a say in parliament. This act required Americans to buy special watermarked paper for newspapers and all legal documents as an internal tax. This act forced colonists to think about parliament and if they really had a say in government. -
The Townshend Act
These were series of acts passed in 1767 by Parliment for the thirteen colonies. They are named after are named after Charles Townshend, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, who proposed the idea. The idea for the acts were to raise more revenue in the colonies to pay governers and judges. The Townshend Acts were met with resistence in the colonies, prompting the occupation of Boston by British troops in 1768 which resulted in the Boston Massacre. -
Boston Massacre
A crowd led by sailor Crispus Attucks formed to demonstrate against the customs agents, and when a British officer tried to disperse the crowd, his men were bombarded with rocks and dared to shoot by the unruly mob. The event quickly came to be known as the Boston Massacre, and marked the peak of colonial opposition to the Townshend duties, which were soon repealed. In trial, John Adams, a colonial leader and defender of colonial self-government, volunteered to defend the soldiers, and all but -
The Tea Act
In 1773, Parliament passed the Tea Act, granting the financially troubled British East India Company an exclusive monopoly on tea exported to the American colonies. This is also what led up to the Boston Tea Party. -
The Boston Tea Party
In Boston, the Governor Thomas Hutchinson continued to uphold the law and ordered three ships to arrive in Boston harbor with the cargo. The Boston Tea Party consisted of about 60 men that boarded the ship when it docked at the harbor, dumping all of the tea chests into the water as their revolt. -
The Intolerable Acts
In response to this rebellious action the boston tea party, the King and Parliament exacted punishment through legislation referred to by colonists as the "Intolerable Acts." The Congress drafted a declaration claiming that the Intolerable Acts were unconstitutional, that the colonists retained the same civil rights as English citizens, and that they would boycott all English goods until reconciliation was reached. The negotiations never happened. Instead, tensions continued to mount between the -
First Continental Congress
The First Continental Congress was a convention of delegates from twelve colonies that met on September 5th 1774, at Carpenters' Hall in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. This meeting was called forth to discuss Intolerable Acts that were passed by Parliment and they talked about a total boycott of British goods. -
Lexington & Concord
A British commander dispatched troops to seize an arsenal of colonial militia weapons stored in Concord, Massachusetts. Militiamen from nearby Lexington intercepted them and opened fire. Eight Americans died as the British sliced through them and moved on to Concord. The British arrived in Concord only to be ambushed by the Concord militia. The “shot heard round the world”—or the first shot of many that defeated the British troops at Concord—sent a ripple throughout the colony. -
Publishing of "Common Sense"
The author of Common Sense, Thomas Paine, argues for American independence. He talks about the difference between government and society. He believed that society is everything constructive and good that people should join to accomplish. However, government, is an institution whose purpose is to protect us from our own vices. He goes on with his views in the pamphlet which led to people rethinking the idea of government and how it should be carred out. -
Second Continental Congress
State governments sent representatives to the Second Continental Congress in 1776 to organize American efforts immediately before and during the Revolutionary War. These respresentatives didn't just demand better treatment from Britain, the representatives decided on fighting for full independence against Britain.
