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Albany Plan of Union
In response to the French attacks on the frontier, Benjamin Franklin proposed a plan for uniting the the colonies - although it was rejected by the colonies because it gave too much power to an assembly made up of representatives from all thirteen colonies. -
George III Becomes King of Great Britain
George III becomes king of Great Britain. He had different ideas about how the colonies should be governed. -
The French and Indian War
The French and Indian War started as a struggle between the French and British over lands in western Pennsylvania and Ohio. By 1756, several other European countries became involved. Great Britain won the war in 1763 and gained complete control of the eastern third of the continent. -
The Stamp Act
To help pay for the war, the kind and ministers levied taxes on tea, sugar, glass, paper, and other products for the colonists. It required them to pay a tax on legal documents, pamphlets, newspapers, and even dice and playing cards. Parliament also passed laws regulating colonial trade in ways that benefited Great Britain but not the colonies. -
The Stamp Act Congress
Nine colonies sent delegates to a meeting in New York called the Stamp Act Congress. This was the first meeting organized by the colonies to protest King George's actions. Delegates to the Congress sent a petition to the king arguing that only colonial legislatures could impose direct taxes such as the Stamp Tax. -
Boston Tea Party
A group of colonists, dressed as Mohawk Indians,dumped 342 chests of British tea into the Boston Harbor. In retaliation, Parliament passed the Coercive Acts- one closed the Boston Harbor, another withdrew the right of the Massachusetts colony to govern itself. -
The Coercive Acts
In retaliation, Parliament passed the Coercive Acts (also known as the Intolerable Acts) - one closed the Boston Harbor, another withdrew the right of the Massachusetts colony to govern itself. -
Committees of Correspondence
Organizations called committees of correspondence were urging resistance to the British These committees consisted of colonists who wanted to keep in touch with one another as events unfolded. Samuel Adams established the first committee in Boston. Two prominent members of the Virginia committee of correspondence were Thomas Jefferson and Patrick Henry. -
First Continental Congress
Delegates from all the colonies except Georgia met in Philadelphia on September 7, 1774 for the First Continental Congress. Key colonial leaders such as Patrick Henry, Samuel Adams, Richard Henry Lee, and George Washington attended. The delegates debated what to do about the relationship with Great Britain. They finally imposed an embargo on Britain and agreed not to use British goods. They also proposed a meeting the following year if Britain did not change its policies. -
Lexington and Concord
The first blow fell early on the morning of April 19th, 1775. British Redcoats clashed with colonial minutemen at Lexington and Concord in Massachusetts. This skirmish was the first battle of the Revolutionary War. -
The Second Continental Congress
Within three weeks, delegates from all thirteen colonies gathered in Philadelphia for the Second Continental Congress. The Continental Congress immediately assumed the powers of a central government. It chose John Hancock of Massachusetts as president. Hancock was a well-known colonial leader, but he was also a wealthy merchant and thus well-placed for helping to raise funds for an army. Although it had no constitutional authority, it served as the acting government of the colonies thru the war. -
Resolution of Independence
More than a year after fighting had begun in the colonies, Richard Henry Lee of Virginia did declare independence. Lee introduced a resolution in the Continental Congress. "That these United Colonies are, and of right ought to be, free and independent states." -
Declaration of Independence
On July 2nd, 1776, the Congress approved Lee's resolution. The colonies officially broke with Great Britain. The Congress then turned its attention to Jefferson's draft. After considerable debate, few passages were removed and some editorial changes were made.
On July 4th, the Congress approved the final draft.
