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Treaty Of Paris Ended the War
The Treaty of Paris was signed in Paris, France in 1763. It was signed by the kingdoms of Great Britain, France, and Spain. This document was signed to end The French and Indian War. Thereafter, the Mississippi River became the border line between the British and Spanish lands in North America. -
The Sugar Act
Parliament passed a modified version of The Sugar and Molasses Act(1733), which was known as The Sugar Act. This act forced colonists to pay a 3 cent tax on sugar and increased taxes on coffee, indigo, and wine. Also, this act actually lowered tax on molasses, but it increased penalties for smuggling, by denying a jury trial to accused smugglers. Parliament placed these taxes because they needed money to pay off the large amount of debt that The French and Indian War had left them in. -
Creation of "Writs of Assisstance
Writs of assistance played an important role in tensions that led to the American Revolution. In 1760, Great Britain began to enforce the Navigation Acts by granting customs officers these writs.Smuggling was becoming common, but officers couldn't search a person's property without a reason. Colonists protested that writs violated their rights. The holder of a writ could search anything and wasn't responsible for the damage. Colonists felt that holders were put above law and that it was unfair. -
Stamp Act of 1765
Passed by the Parliment, Britain imposed a tax upon the Colonists which taxed almost all printed paper goods. Along with other acts, the Stamp Act was enacted in order to pay off major debt due to the previous French and Indian War. -
Declaratory Acts
This act was passed by Parliament and stated that the authority of Parliament was the same in Great Britain then it was in Amerca. The purpose of Parliament passing this act was to assert its right to rule the colonies as it saw fit. The result of the act was that Stamp Act was repealed. -
Townshend Acts
The Townshend Acts were a series of acts passed by Parliament. These acts involved taxes on a variety of imported goods and was collected to support royal officials in the colonies. They removed the responsibility from the colonoial assemblies. The colonist revolt successfully and the taxes were repealed, except the one on tea. The taxes were placed to raise money to pay off the great debts. -
Boston Massacre
Due to Colonists protesting the many taxes imposed on them, five were shot and killed in Boston in what is widly known as the Boston Massacre. After being tried for murder, the British soldiers were found 'not guilty' which angered the Colonists even more. -
Boston Tea Party
Late one night, Colonists who were angry with the Tea Act dressed up as Indians. They revolted against the British by ambushing their ship that was importing tea and dumped the tea into the Boston Harbor. That's when they introduced the famous quote: "No taxation without representation." -
Intolerable Acts
Aimed at Massachusets directly, the Intolerable Acts were group of punitive laws imposed for the purpose of punishment. The British Parliment was furious due to the fact that the Colonists revolted against the Tea Act. The Intolerable Acts took away all freedom of self-government in hope to reverse the Colonists riotous ways. -
The Battles of Lexington and Concord
The Battle of Lexington and Concord was the first battle of The American Revolution. British troops marched from Boston to Lexington to search for weapons that were being stored by the Sons of Liberty and to arrest John Hancock and Samuel Adams. Paul Revere warned them of the soon British arrival. The colonists gathered nearly 4,000 minutemen to attack the British soldiers as they march from Boston to Concord and then back to Boston. The British suffered 273 casualties and the Americans only 90.
