-
French and Indian War
French and British soldiers
argued over who had control
of the Ohio Valley. Fur trade
and access to the Mississippi
River was at stake. George Washington attacked
Fort Duquesne. Washington’s
troops were forced to
surrender after the attack.
and the war began. The
French and Indian allies
burned settlements of the
British. William Pitt later took
over wartime operations. Later, the British
captured Louisbourg. -
Proclamation of 1763
The British were given a
large deal of North American
land. But. they
said that American colonists
could not settle west of the
Appalachians. These
Americans that wanted to
move west stretched British
administrative resources.
French inhabitants would
not give up their claims to
land or trade routes.
The last thing the
British government wanted
was many
colonists crossing the
Appalachians fueling French
and Native American
resentment, so they issued this proclamation. -
Stamp Act
This was a
tax that the British imposed
on the colonists to buy a stamp for every printed paper they used. This was a major reason that started the Revolution, taxation without representation. The Stamp Act was a
tax that the British imposed
on the colonists to defray the
expenses of defending,
protecting, and securing the
same and for amending
acts of parliament for the trade
and revenues of the said
colonies and plantations, and to recover penalties mentioned. -
The Boston Massacre
This was between the
Americans minutemen and the
British redcoats.This happened
after Lord Hillsborough ordered
four regiments to move to
Boston. A mob of around 60
townspeople came upon the
guard at the Customs House.
When reinforcements were
called, the crowd was unruly
and threw snowballs and rocks
at the guards. Then, the British
fired without Captain Thomas
Preston’s command and bullets
took the lives of 5 of the men,
and others were injured. -
Boston Tea Party
One night, townspeople
(Bostonians)
dressed like Native
Americans and threw 342
chests of tea into the water
into Boston Harbor.
No attempts were made to
resist the townspeople who
threw the tea overboard. -
Tea Act
The British East India
Company was on the urge of
collapsing. Lord North granted the
British East India Company a
trading monopoly with the
American colonies. The tax on
tea would be maintained, but
the company would be able to
sell its tea for a price that was
lower than before. A Monopoly
doesn’t allow competition. And
the British East India Company
could lower its prices. The
colonists saw through this
plot to encourage tax payment. -
Intolerable Acts
The British saw that the
Boston Tea Party protest as a
destruction of property by Boston thugs who
didn't have the courage to
admit responsibly. So, Boston Harbor
was closed to trade until the
owners of the tea were
compensated. Firewood and
food were permitted into the
port, nothing else. Then, town
meetings were banned.
General Gage was appointed
governor of Massachusetts, and greater
freedom was given to British
officers that wanted to house
soldiers in private dwellings. -
Declaration of Independence
On June 7, 1776, Richard
Henry Lee introduced a
resolution to the Congress,
that declared the thirteen
colonies free and independent
states. John Adams and
Thomas Jefferson were chosen
to select the careful wording.
The declaration was sectioned
Into three parts. On July 4,
1776 the colonies approved
the document with a vote of
12 to 0.
