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The Albany Congress
The British government called a meeting of colonial leaders. It took place in Albany, New York. The meeting was called because there was tension between the French and the British, and they expected a war to break out soon, and the British wanted to form an alliance with the Iroquois, because they expected the French to win. The meeting consisted of British, French, and Iroquois leaders. -
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The French and Indian war
The British, the Iroquois, and the colonists VS the French, the Algonquin, and the Huron.
They were fighting for control over the Ohio River Valley.
The British defeated the French and their allies, and the British took most of the French territory. -
The Treaty of Paris
The French and the British signed the Treaty of Paris because
France could not defend the rest of its North American territory. The British claimed French Canada and all other French territory east of the Mississippi when France ceded. The Treaty of Paris was signed in the French's territory, but later became Britain's. -
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Pontiac's War
Leader of the Ottawa nation, Pontiac formed an alliance of western Native Americans. Nearly half a dozen British forts were destroyed and at least 2,000 back country settlers were killed. The British were just as vicious and attacked Native Americans that did not attack them. The British finally defeated Pontiac's forces in early August at a battle near Fort Pitt. In 1764, the war was over. It happened near Fort Pitt, and near Western British settlements. -
Proclamation of 1763
It banned colonial settlement west of a line drawn along the Appalachian Mountains. Settlers were told to move to the east of that line. It involved the colonists and Britian. The Proclimation angered many colonists, and the rule was ignored and was almost impossible for Britian to enforce. This happened near the Appalachian Mountains, and near some colonial settlements in the Mountains. -
The Sugar Act
The British tried to impose taxes on some things in 1764, including molasses. Also, it called for harsh punishment of smugglers. Some merchants that traded in smuggled goods protested. This included the British, and some colonial merchants. -
The Stamp Act
An even more unpopular law was the stamp act, passed by Parliament in early 1765. It required colonists had to buy special tax stamps for things such as licenses, policies, and other documents.
Patrick Henry made an emotional speech attacking the law, and ended the speech with a reference to the murder of Julius Caesar in ancient Rome. Other colonial assemblies followed Virginia's example, and merchants in New York, Boston, and Philadelphia organized a boycott, and the protests worked. -
The Quartering Act
The act required to house British troops, and provide them with food and other supplies. But the colonists protested angrily and complained that Parliament was violating their rights. This act included Britain, British colonists, and British troops. -
The Boston Massacre
The protests worked once again, but the Parliament had not acted in time. An angry crowd of workers and sailors surrounded a little group of soldiers and yelled at them and threw rocks and snowballs at them. The soldiers killed 5 people and wounded 6. Even though John Adams was against recent British policies, he still defended the soldiers when they were tried for murder. And only 2 soldiers were convicted.
This happened in Britain, and British soldiers were the most involved in this. -
The Tea Act
The British passed the Tea act in 1773. It was intended to help the British East India Company, which was one of Britain's most important companies. The Tea Act lowered the price of the tea by letting the East India Company to ship tea directly to the colonies.
Some people responded angrily the part of the act that gave the East India Company a monopoly on selling British goods. Colonial leaders also complained because even though of the price of tea was lowered, colonists still had to pay tax. -
The Boston Tea Party
A group of colonists called the Sons of Liberty organized in port cities to stop the East India Company from being unloaded. They threatened ship captains that brought tea, and said they wouldn't buy it. No tea was opened in New York, Philadelphia, and other ports. On the night of December 6th, 1773, a -
The Intolerable Act
Parliament was upset by the Boston Tea Party and other acts of destruction of British properties by American colonists, so they established the Intolerable Acts. The Intolerable Act was 4 harsh laws that may colonists did not agree with one of the laws was that the British port had to be closed. two other laws were to increase the power of the government. the last law was to strengthen the Quartering act. -
The First Continental Congress
This was a meeting between 12 of the 13 colonies Georgia was the only colony to not send representatives , this congress fought to repeal of the intolerable act, and declare that the colonies had a right to tax and govern themselves. It took place in Philadelphia. -
The Battle of Lexington and Concod
General Thompas Gage learned that minutemen were storing arms in concord about 20 miles from Boston. He sent 700 troops to seize the arms and some important colonial leaders. Five miles from concord in the town of Lexington about 77 men were waiting for the troops to arrive. Suddenly a shot rang, this turned out to be the first shot of the American Revolution. A larger battle took place nearby. This time there were 400 minutemen who defeated Britain. -
The Second Continental Congress
As the crisis with Britain deepened, the Second Continental Congress came together in Philadelphia. The delegates included Thomas Jefferson, John Hancock, and Benjamin Franklin. Their first step was to form an army. The Congress chose George Washington as the commander of the new army because he was well respected and had military experience. The Congress paid for this army using paper money, and the Second Continental Congress was act like a government. -
Battle for Fort Ticonderoga
A band of colonists made a surprise attack on Fort Ticonderoga. The fort was at the southern end of Lake Champlain and protected the water route to Canada. The leader of the force was a blacksmith named Ethan Allen, and Allen's force of 83 men reached the fort by crossing the lake at night and surprising the morning. The Fort was important for 2 reasons. It controlled the main river route from Canada to the Hudson River Valley, and it held valuable weapons. They seized many cannons during this. -
The Olive Branch Petition
Months after Lexington and Concord, many delegates from the Second Continental Congress hoped that there could be peace between Britain and its American colonies. They made the Olive Branch Petition, which stated that the colonists were loyal to the king. It asked George to stop the fighting so all disputes between the colonists and Britain could be solved. The petition got its name because in ancient times, an olive branch was a sign of peace. King George did not bother to answer the petition. -
Battle of Bunker and Breeds Hill
The Americans around Boston were farmers and workers. None of them thought they would stand up to tough British soldiers. British general William Howe decided to attack straight up Breed's hill. The Americans general, Israel Putnam, knew that the Americans were running out of ammunition, so they waited until the British were 150 feet away to fire. The first and second British attacks failed, but the third attack succeeded because the Americans ran out of ammo. 1,000+ British died. -
Invasion of Quebec
While Washington trained an army outside of Boston, two other American armies were moving north into Canada. One led by Richard Montgomery, and one led by Benedict Arnold. Arnold had a terrible trip through Maine, his troops were forced to boil candle wax and bark as their food. In late December 1775, the Americans attacked Quebec during a severe snowstorm. The attack was returned. The Americans stayed outside Quebec until May 1776, the Americans withdrew leaving Canada to the British. -
The British Withdrawal from Boston
Washington knew he had to build a regular army. He also needed powerful weapons to drive the British from Boston. In March, with the cannons he seized at Fort Ticonderoga, Washington placed the cannons on high grounds over looking Boston. The British could no longer defend the city. In March they withdrew from from Boston by Sea and never returned. Even through the Americans Washington knew the war was far from over. Britain still held most of the advantages.