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French and Indian War
Otherwise known as the Seven Years' War, Britian and the colonies defeated France. Because of this, Britian gained most of France's territories in eastern North America. The large amount of new land caused Parliament to tighten control over economic and political affairs in the colonies. Colonist did not like the idea of decision making being centralized in London. -
Proclamation of 1763
Issued by King George III, it stated that the British had control of land transactions, settlement, and trade west of the Appalachain Mountains. Angered colonist by taking away their western claims to imperial authority and it slowed down colonial expanison. -
Sugar Act
Intended to raise revenue to help with the expenses of the English military in North America.This ended the policy ended Britian's long standing policy of exempting colonial trade from revenue-raising measures. Act said that all shipments had to go through Britian first.It also required capitans to fill out complicated paperwork. If even one thing was missing, their ships were at risk of being seized. If ships were seized, they were tried at vice-admiralty courts. Heigtened colonists awarness. -
Stamp Act
This act stated that all colonists had to purchase a special watermarked paper for newspapers, customs documents, various licenses, diplomas, etc. Colonists felt that Stamp Act forced them to either confront the issue of parliamentary taxation head on or surrender any claims of self-government. -
Quatering Act
Because Parliament felt that British soliders were not being properly cared for in the colonies, the Quatering Act was passed to ensure that English soliders had to place to eat and sleep in the colonies during their time of service. Colonists were not compensated for this. Some Colonists viewed this as an invitation for rebellion because it was hard for poor colonists to house soliders. -
Townshend Acts
These laws placed new taxes on glass, lead, paints, paper, and tea. Colonial reaction to these taxes was the same as to the Sugar Act and Stamp Act, and Britain eventually repealed all the taxes except the one on tea. In response to the sometimes violent protests by the American colonists, Great Britain sent more troops to the colonies. -
Boston Massacre
The killing of 4 colonist after they threw snowballs filled with rocks at British troops in Boston. The Boston Massacre deepened American distrust of the British military presence in the colonies. -
Committee of Correspondence
Committees of Correspondence, patriot groups formed in the American colonies before the Revolution. The purpose of the committees was to exchange information, spread propaganda, and coordinate efforts of the various colonies in resisting British taxes and restrictions. They did much to win public support for the movement leading to the Revolution. -
Tea Act
Gave a monopoly on tea sales to the East India Company.The Tea Act lowered the price on this East India tea so much that it was way below tea from other suppliers. But the American colonists saw this law as yet another means of "taxation without representation" because it meant that they couldn't buy tea from anyone else with out spending a lot more money. Their response was to refuse to unload the tea from the ships. This was the situation in Boston that led to the Boston Tea Party. -
Intolerable Acts
Series of laws set in place by Great Britian in response to the Boston Tea Party.These Acts were the harshest so far of all the Acts passed by Parliament. Rather than keep the colonists down, the Intolerable Acts stirred the revolutionary spirit to a fever pitch. -
First Continental Congress
56 delegates were sent from each of the 13 colonies to meet in Philadelphia as representatives.These representatives debated the issues of the rights of colonists as a united group. passed resolutions stating that Parliament did not have the right to pass laws in the colonies, and only had the right to regulate trade between the colonies and Great Britain. They further resolved that by December of the same year they would cease importing any goods from Great Britain. -
Second Continental Congress
Met in 1775, when the Revolutionary war had started. Things were going badly, and the armed forces were disorganized. The Continental Congress created the Continental Army and named George Washington as commander-in-chief. The Congress continued through the summer. Out of the discussions came the Declaration of Independence, the Articles of Confederation, and the Marines Corps. -
Common Sense
Commone Sense was a pamphlet written by Thomas Paine that challenged the authority of the British government and the royal monarchy. The plain language that Paine used spoke to the common people of America and was the first work to openly ask for independence from Great Britain. -
Declaration of Independence
A formal statement announcing the independence of the United States of America from the British Empire. This document was signed off by all of the delegates from the colonies. This began what we now know was the United States of America.
