History Timeline

First Continental Congress

Sep 5, 1774

The First Continental Congress was a meeting of delegates from 12 of the 13 British colonies that became the United States.

Second Continental Congress

1775

The Second Continental Congress was a meeting of delegates from the Thirteen Colonies in America that united in the American Revolutionary War.

Olive Branch Petition

Jul 8, 1775

July 5, 1775. The Olive Branch Petition was adopted by Congress on July 5th, 1775 to be sent to the King as a last attempt to prevent formal war from being declared. The Petition emphasized their loyalty to the British crown and emphasized their rights as British citizens. The Congress met according to adjournment.

Prohibitory Act

Dec 1, 1775

In December 1775, Parliament passes the Prohibitory Act, which outlaws American trade with foreign nations. All American ships (regardless of the owner's political sympathies) are considered enemy vessels that can be captured by the British Navy and declared prizes of war, their cargoes sold to the highest bidder.

Declaration of Independence

Jul 4, 1776

The United States Declaration of Independence is the pronouncement adopted by the Second Continental Congress meeting in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on July 4, 1776.