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Albany Congress
The British government wanted the colonies to agree to cooperate. In Albany New York.They did this so they can defend themselves for the French. The British wanted an alliance with the Iroquois but they refused. Benjamin Franklin of Pennsylvania made a point in the Philadelphia Gaztte published a picture of a snake chopped into pieces with the warning "Join or Die" Ben Franklin drew up a plan called the Albany Plan of Union. It called for a council of representatives. -
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French and Indian War
French and Indians vs. British colonists and Iroquois. Both wonted control Ohio River Valley. British won the war. French lost the war and lost almost of there land. -
The Treaty of Paris
Britain and France signed the Treaty of Paris. This Treaty ended to French and Indian war.The treaty also allowed Britain to take all of the land east of the Mississippi with the exception of New Orleans along with all the French territory. Spain also lost Spanish Florida because Spain was on the lousing side with the French. Native Americans also lost a lost a great deal of land. With out the French to help the Native Americans could not stop the British from moving on to there land. -
Proclamation of 1763
The British wanted to avoid further wars with Native Americans on the frontier. So the British government issued the Proclamation of 1763. It banned colonial settlement west of the line drawn along the Appalachian Mountains.The Proclamation angered many colonists who believed they had the right to reside wherever they wanted. So the Proclamation was widely ignored. -
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Pontiac's War
Pontiac and his allies attacked British forts and settlements throughout the colonies. Nearly half a dozen British forts were destroyed and at least 2000 back country setters were killed. The British settlers reacted with equal viciousness. They killed Native Americans who had not attacked them.The British finally defeated Pontiac's forces in early August in a battle neat Fort Pitt. But Pontiac continued to fight for another year but by the fall of 1764 the war was over. -
The Sugar Act
The British effort to impose new taxes on the colonies in 1764. The tax was passed the Sugar Act, put a duty on several products, including molasses. It also called for harsh punishment of smugglers. So colonial merchants sometimes traded in smuggled goods and protested. -
The Stamp Act
One of the most unpopular laws passed in 1765 was the Stamp Act. The Act required all colonists to buy tax stamps to place on all papers and products. The stamps had to be put on newspapers, wills, licenses insurance policies, titles, contracts, and other documents. Patrick Henry led a boycott against the Stamp Act. In October delegates from nine colonies met in New York for the Stamp Act Congress. They sent a petition wanting to end the Sugar and Stamp Acts. In the end the protest worked. -
The Quartering Act
A year after the Sugar Act a new Act was past and that Act was the Quartering Act. The Quartering Act was to save money by having 10,000 soldiers live in the colonies. The colonists to quarter or house, British troops and provide food and other supplies for them. So the colonists protested angrily saying it was violating their rights. -
The Boston Massacre
On March 5th 1770 a crowed of colonists in Boston surrounded a small group of solders and threw snowballs and rocks at them. So the scared solders shot at the colonists. 5 were killed and 6 wounded. The first to go down was a African sailor. John Adams took an unpopular case because he thought the solders should have a fair trial. Only 2 solders were convicted of murder and there punishment was to have their thumbs branded. -
Tea Act
In 1773 the British parliament passed the Tea Act. It was intended to help the British East India Company one of Britain's most important companies. For many years the company had made money growing tea, selling it to Britain and the colonies. But the boycott had seriously hurt the company. The Tea Act actually lowered the cost of tea allowing the East India Company to ship tea to the colonies. The colonists reacted angrily because it gave monopoly to the company. Had to pay tax on tea. -
The Boston Tea Party
A colonial group called the Sons of Liberty organized in port cities to stop the East India Company tea from being unloaded. So no tea was unloaded in New York Philadelphia or other ports. However in Boston Governor Thomas Hutchinson decided to make sure tea was unloaded. So on the night of December 16 1773 a group of people disguised as Native Americans got on the ship. During the next 3 hours they dumped cases of tea into the harbor as the crowed watched as 90000 lbs of tea was destroyed. -
The Intolerable Acts
King George III called for thou action to make examples of the people of Boston and Massachusetts. Parliament passed 4 laws. The colonists called them the Intolerable Acts. The first act closed the port of Boston. Two Others Increased the Power of the royal governor, abolished the upper house of the Mass. legislature. Finally the 4th law strengthened the 1765 Quartering Act. Parliament also passed the Quebec act witch calmed land between the Ohio and Missouri. -
The First Continental Congress
12 of the 13 colonies sent delegates. Only Georgia did not send one. Among the delegates were John and Samuel Adams John Jay and George Washington. The Congress demanded the repeal of the Intolerable Acts and declared that the colonies had a right to tax themselves. It also voted to meet again in May 1775 if its demands were not met. -
Battles of Lexington and Concord
20 miles from Boston 700 troops to seize the arms and capture some impotent colonial leaders. Paul Revere and William Dawes then rode in front of the British.About 77 minute men were waiting when the British arrived and they ordered the minutemen to go home but they refused. Suddenly a shot went off and nobody knows who fired it. That shot was called the Shot heard Round the World. The first shot in the American Revolution. A fight broke out and 8 Americans Died. -
Second Continental Congress
In May 1775 the Second Continental Congress came together in Philadelphia. The delegates this time were Thomas Jefferson John Hancock and Benjamin Franklin. Delegates from New England wanted to declare independence. Some of the delegates from the middle colonies favored less drastic action. Thou almost all of the delegates felt they needed to prepare for war. They chose George Washington as the commander of there army. The congress also printed paper money to pay for the solders. -
Battle for Fort Ticonderoga
An important battle took place in northern New York. A daring band of colonists made a surprise attack on Fort Ticonderoga. The fort protected to water route to Canada. Leading the force was Ethan Allen with a force of 83 men. With the 42 solders guarding the fort the British surrendered almost immediately. The fort was important for two reasons it controlled the main route to Candida and the Hudson River Valley and had cannons. -
The Battles of Bunker and Breeds Hill
British General William Howe decided to attack straight up Breeds Hill. Israel Putnam knew he was low on ammunition so the Americans waited until the British were only 150 feet away then they opened fire hundreds of British soldiers fell dead or wounded. The First attack failed and so did the second but the third succeeded only because the Americans ran out of ammunition. So the British won but at a huge cost. -
The Olive Branch Petition
The first resolution made by the congress was called the Olive Branch Petition and was sent to King George. The petition stated that the colonists were loyal to the king and asked George to stop fighting so all disputes would be over and peace wold be restored. The petition got its name from the Olive Branch a symbol of peace seance ancient times.The effort to make peace failed and George sent 20,000 solders the end the colonist revolt. -
Invasion of Quebec
In late December the Americans attacked Quebec during a severe snowstorm. The attack was turned back. Montgomery was killed and Arnold was wounded. So the Americans stayed outside of Quebec until May 1776 when the British landed new forces in Canada. Weakened by disease and hunger the Americans withdrew leaving Canada the the British. -
The British withdrawal from Boston
George Washington knew he needed a regular army and powerful weapons to drive the British out of Boston. The canons that were seized from Ticonderoga were dragged on sleds for 300 miles and took 3 months to get to Boston. In March Washington placed the canons on high ground over Boston. The British could no longer defend the city so they withdrew from Boston by sea and never returned.