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French and Indian War
Also known as the 7 years' war, the French and Indian War was fought between Britain and France in an attempt to get more land. Taking place in the Ohio River Valley, many soldiers lost their lives in a fight to expand their countries. The war ended in 1763 thanks to the Treaty of Paris with the British gaining the majority of the land. -
Stamp Act
The Stamp Act was passed by the British Parliament on March 22, 1765. It made the colonists pay a tax on every printed paper they used. This money was used to help pay the costs of defending and protecting the American frontier. -
Townshend Acts
The Townshend Acts were introduced by the British Parliament in an attempt to tax glass, paper, lead, tea, and painted being imported into the colonies. This angered the colonists and the British later revoked taxes on the imports on all but the tea. -
Boston Massacre
A street fight fought between the Colonists - calling themselves a "patriot" mob" - and British soldiers, the Boston Massacre was responsible for the deaths of several colonists. -
The Tea Act
The Tea Act was the last straw after Britain had imposed many unpopular policies upon the colonies. It ignited a “powder keg” of anger and opposition throughout the colonies and was the starting point of the Boston Tea Party. -
Boston Tea Party
Tired of the taxes on tea, Samuel Adams and the Sons of Liberty broke onto 3 ships and dumped 342 shipments of it into the Boston Harbor. This resulted in the passage of the punitive Coercive Acts in 1774 and pushed the two sides closer to war. -
The Intolerable Acts
The Intolerable Acts was Britain's way of punishing the Massachusetts Colonists fot the Boston Tea Party. -
1st and 2nd Continental Congress
The First Continental Congress was a group of 56 delegates from 12 colonies (all except Georgia) who met in secret in Philadelphia in September of 1774. They came together to act together in response to the Intolerable Acts.The Second Continental Congress met in 1775, when the Revolutionary war had started. The Continental Congress created the Continental Army and named George Washington as commander-in-chief. -
Battles of Lexington and Concord
These battles kicked off the American Revolutionary War. As a result of the tensions building between the colonies and Britain, the British finally decided to march to Concord to seize an arms cache. The fighting began as a result of a confrontation on the Lexington town green, and the British retreated under intense fire. Many more battles ensued, and in 1783 the colonists won their independence. -
Common Sense Published
Common Sense was published in 1776. It challenged the authority of the British government and the royal monarchy. It was the first work that openly asked for independence from Britain, and was written in simple language so that the common people of the colonies could understand that.
