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Zenger Trial
Horton, Scott (2011-02-28) He was a printer and he sometimes printed books and essays about freedom and liberty during the Revolutionary War. The Obstinate Dr. HeicklenJohn Peter Zenger was a German writer, editor, and jouirnalist. He was a defendant in a landmark legal case in American jurisprudence that determined that truth was a defense against charges of libel and "laid the foundation for American press freedom. -
Albany Congress
Representatives from Connecticut, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New York, Pennsylvania, and Rhode Island met from June - July of 1754 to discuss better relations with the Indians and to discuss defensive measures to take against the French. They actually were just colonists looking to find a treaty with the Mohawks. This was the first time in the 18th century that colonists had met to form some kind of union. -
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Seven Years' War
The Seven Years' War TimelineThis war was a war of Great Britain against France and Spain. It primarily developed due to conflicting interests between the countries in colonial matters, like boundaries, who got what areas, etc. George Washington was involved. -
Treaty of Paris
This Treaty ended the French and Indian War. Great Britain beat both France and Spain, and sparked an era of dominance by England in Europe and around the world. English Prime Minister Lord Bute wanted a treaty that would not aggravate France to another war, which is why England did not gain too much from the war. -
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Pontiac's Rebellion
Anderson, Fred. Crucible of War: The Seven Years' War and the Fate of Empire in British North America, 1754–1766. New York: Knopf, 2000. ISBN 0-375-40642-5.Pontiac's rebellion was an uprising of Native Americans due to their dissatisfaction with Great Britain's post-French-and-Idian-war policies. It is named after the Ottowa tribe leader Pontiac. -
Sugar Act
Alexander, John K. Samuel Adams: America’s Revolutionary Politician. (2002) ISBN 0-7425-2114-1The Sugar Act, also known as the American Revenue Act or the American Duties Act, was a revenue-raising act passed by Parliament. The earlier Molasses Act of 1733 had never been effectively collected due to colonial evasion. By reducing the rate by half and increasing measures to enforce the tax, the British hoped that the tax would actually be collected. -
Stamp Act
"The Stamp Act of 1765 – A Serendipitous Find" by Hermann Ivester in The Revenue Journal, The Revenue Society, Vol.XX, No.3, December 2009, pp.87–89.The Stamp Act was a direct tax imposed by the British Parliament specifically on the colonies. The act required that many printed materials in the colonies be produced on stamped paper produced in London, carrying an embossed revenue stamp -
Declaratory Act
"American Revolution: Prelude to Revolution" The History PlaceThis act was introduced by George Grenville. This act accompanied the repeal of the stamp act, and gave the British Parliament legislative power over the American conlonies. -
The repeal of the stamp act
Alexander, John K. Samuel Adams: America's Revolutionary Politician. (2002).With the introduction of the Stamp Act, both colonists and British merchants were outraged. The colonists were starting a trend of nonimportation and nonconsumption due to the tax, and this negatively affected British merchants. Because of this, it was finally appealed in 1766 accompanied by the Declaratory Act. -
Boston Massacre
Fischer, Paul Revere's Ride, 24.Many townspeople in Boston, MA began to yell and antagonize a small group of British soldiers. It got so out of hand that the soldiers began to shoot people, one of which being Crispus Attucks. This outraged the colonies, but the soldiers barely received any punishment. -
Tea Act
Ketchum, Richard, Divided Loyaties, How the American Revolution came to New York, 2002.Contrary to popular belief, the Tea Act did not put a tax on tea. This act was primarily created to help the East India Company, who was close to bankruptcy. It required the colonies to buy tea only from the EIC, not the dutch. This gave the EIC a monopoly. -
Boston Tea Party
Young, Shoemaker, 183-85The Boston Tea Party was a political protest by the Sons of Liberty against the Tea Act. It signified the Americans' defiance towards taxation without representation. -
First Continental Congress
Puls, Mark, Samuel Adams, Father of the American Revolution, 2006.This was a convention of delegates from twelve of the thirteen colonies to develop a response to the intolerable acts. They discussed a boycott of british trade, and a petition to King George III to redress of the grievances that the colonies proposed. -
The Intolerable Acts
Middlekauff, GLorious Cause, 241.Also known as the coercive acts, the intolerable acts were a series of laws passed by the British government in 1774. THey caused such outrage that they were one of the main contributing factors to the revolutionary war. Among the laws were the Boston Port Act, The Massachussetts government Act, the administration of justice act, a new version of the quartering act, and the Quebec act -
Lexington and Concord
Brooks, Victor (1999). The Boston Campaign. Combined Publishing.This battle signified the first physical sign of armed conflict between Britain and its colonies. The actual battle was betwen Britain and the Massachussetts colony, but it escalated to all the colonies fighting for independance. -
Fort Ticonderoga
Hamilton, Edward (1964). Fort TIconderoga,Key to a Continent.Boston: Little, BrownFort Ticonderoga played an important role in the Revolutionary war when the Green Mountain boys and other colonial militia, led by Ethan Allen and Benedict Arnold, captured it by taking the British by surprise. The cannons that they won were transported to Boston, which led to the retreat of the British out of MA in 1776 -
Second Continental Congress
Burnett, Edward Cody (1941). The Continental Congress. New York: NortonThe second continental congress had delgates from all thirteen colonies shortly after the start of the revolutionary war. It managed the colonial war effort, and even adopted the Declaration of Independance on July 4, 1776. -
Battle of Bunker Hill
Chidsey, p. 104This Battle took place in Charleston, MA in 1775. Een though the colonial force, led by William Prescott, ultimately lost the battle, the English side had the worse outcome, with an extremely high casualty and wounded number. -
The Olive Branch Petition
Pauline Maier, American Scripture (New York: Knopf, 1997), 24-25, 249-50This was adopted by the continental congress in July 1775 to avoid a fully blown war with Great Britain. It said the colonies were still loyal to Great Britain and begged the king to prevent conflict. However, it was not accepted because the colonies were already considered rebelling. Thomas Jefferson wrote it, and John Adams felt the war was inevitable. -
Common Sense
Foot, Michael, and Kramnick, Isaac, eds. (1987). The Thomas Payne Reader. Penguin Classics.Common Sense was a pamphlet written by Thomas Payne, an Enlightenment thinker of the 18th century. It talked about why America needed to go to war with Great Britain, and became very popular because of the ideas Payne used to relate to common people. -
Virginia Declaration of Rights
The Virginia Declaration of Rights are extremely important in America's history because they spelled out inherent rights that all citizens should have. Many states also put this in their constitution like Virginia, and it was the predecessor of the Bill of Rights. -
Declaration of Independence
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Battle of Long Island
The battle of Long Island was a miserable defeat for General Washington and the COntinental Army. Washington was sent to New York from Boston to protect it, but was brutally beaten by the British. This, along with the entire New York campaign, helped him to realize that the only way to win the war was to stay in it. -
Battle of Saratoga
The battle of Saratoga was the most important and influential battle of the revolutionary war, excluding Yorktown. The Americans were able to capture John Burgoyne's army of more than 5,000 men, and is considered a turning point in the war. This also sent a message to Britain that America was a force to be reckoned with. -
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Valley Forge
Valey Forge was one of the places that George Washington had his army stay for the winter. It was freezing, the soldiers had little to no clothing, and almost no food. However, it is symbolic for the American resiliance and the will to fight for freedom. -
Ratification of the Articles of Confederation
Congress began to move towards ratification of the first constitution in 1777, but there were stipulations. First, it had to be ratified by all thirteen colonies. All colonies had their own wishes, so the process was slow to make everyone happy. Many colonies also had difficulties giving up land in the west. Finally, Marlyland ratified the constitution on March 1, 1781, as the last colony to approve it. -
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Siege of Yorktown
The Battle, or Siege, of Yorktown is often considered the ending of the Revolutionary war. Although the two sides fought after, it signified the ultimate victory of the United States over the British. Through deceptive tactics, George Washington, French general Rochambeau, and a French fleet were able to completely surround Yorktown, and eventually led to the British general Cornwallis' surrender. -
Inauguration of George Washington
This is when George washington was the first president in the United States. To hold this position, he decided it was best to resign from head of the continental army to prevent tyranny in the States. -
Treaty of Paris
The treaty of Paris ended the Revolutionary war. The Americans wanted a lot from it, but France and Spain pressured them to minimize there winnings due to their reliance on the two. In fact, had the American embassies (Ben Franklin, John Jay, and John Adams) not secretly signed the treaty without them, America would not have gained very much. America won its indepence, and got a little land, but very little land in the west or ohio river valley. -
Land Ordinance of 1785
After the Revolutionary War, there were many disputes over who got what land, including the Ohio River Valley and other land west of the Appalaichians. The Land Ordinance of 1785 separated this land into sections of approximately 625 acres to make division between countries much easier. -
Bill for Establishing Religious Freedom
This bill was one of the many bills that Thomas Jefferson created that were much ahead of his time. While religious freedom was not, and thus was readily accepted, he also created bills about freedom of slaves and bills about women's rights. -
Northwest Ordinance of 1787
With disputes still common about the land surrounding the upper regions of the Ohio River Valley, a settlement needed to be decided. The Northwest Ordinance did just that; it created a system of government for the land above the Ohio River Valley.
