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Writs of assistance
A general search warrant, that authorized custom house officers to search any house for an unspecified smuggled good. The Writs of Assistance caused controversy after a renewal attempt. -
Proclamation of 1763
Proclamation passed to limit encroachment on Native American Land after the French and Indian War. This was done to appease natives, and limit further conflicts between colonists and natives. Colonist were not permitted to settle beyond the Appalachian Mountains. Fur traders were granted permission after obtaining permits. -
Sugar Act of 1764
This act was passed to stop the smuggling of sugar in the colonies. This was a ploy from the British to raise revenue for themselves in an effort to recuperate their loses from the French and indian War. This restricted the trade of sugar and molasses from the French and Dutch, and gave a monopoly to the British West Indies sugar planters. -
Stamp Act 1765
Stamp Act was a direct tax on all colonial commercial and legal papers, newspapers, pamphlets, cards, almanacs, and dice in order to raise revenue for Britain after the French and Indian and Pontiac’s War. There was great opposition from the colonists. Colonists refused to use the stamps, and riots. -
Quartering Act 1765
An Act that required colonists to provide food, shelter, and transportation to British soldiers. This was resented by the colonist, especially in New York which had the largest number of British troops. The colonist hated this act so much that they forbade actions allowed in it in the third amendment of the U.S. Constitution. -
Stamp Act Congress
The congress was a gathering of representatives from the American colonies. They formulated a protest of the Stamp Act and sent a petition to the British Government, stating their complaints. They believed that only their local governments could impose internal taxes. They were concerned that Britain might take away the rights and/or property of the colonists. -
Declaratory Act 1766
This followed the repeal of the Stamp Act. The act increased Britain's law-making authority in the colonies, stating that they could bind the colonies in all cases whatsoever. -
Townshend Acts 1767
The Townshend Acts imposed a series of duties on goods imported on the colonies. The colonist believed that they had no representation in parliament, and considered it an abuse of power from the British. The British sent troops to enforce these duties, but this act increased tensions between the colonies and Britain. -
Boston Massacre 1770
A mob was protesting at the Custom House, which was defended by one British soldier. He called for reinforcements, and in time more soldiers arrived and set up defensive positions. One of the soldiers accidentally fired his weapon. The other soldiers began firing, thinking they were being fired upon, and they ended up killing five colonists. -
Tea Act 1773
The act imposed a tax on tea. It also cut out the middle men in the tea trade of the colonies. This lowered the cost of the tea. Parliament believed this would appease the colonists, but they were wrong. The colonist were mad because it hurt colonial merchants who sold tea, and some saw it as a scheme to make them accept taxes imposed by the British. -
Boston Tea Party
In protest of the Tea Act colonist, dressed as Mohawks Indians, boarded ships and dumped tea belonging to the East India Company into the Boston Harbor. The Tea Tax was considered Taxation without representation, and the colonists believed that the East India Company had a monopoly on Tea. -
Coercive Acts 1774
A series of four acts whose aim was to restore order in Massachusetts and punish colonists in Boston. These acts closed the ports in Boston until the loses from the Boston Tea Party were paid, restricted town meeting, and made British officials immune to criminal prosecution in Boston. -
Quebec Act 1774
This act instituted a permanent administration in Quebec, gave French Canadians religious freedom, and restored civil law in Canada. It also undid western claims of the colonists, by extending the territory of Quebec to the Ohio and Mississippi rivers. Protestant colonists were angry because the Act was in favor of Catholics. -
1st Continental Congress
In response to the Coercive Acts, 56 delegates from all the colonies, except Georgia, gathered and drafted a declaration of grievances and right, and elected Peyton Randolph as the first president of the congress. -
Battles of Lexington/Concord
The Battles of Lexington and Concord were the beginning of the Revolutionary War. British traveled from Boston to concord in order to take hold of an arms cache. Paul Revere and other riders warned the militia who cut the red coats off. The militiamen forced the Redcoats to retreat. -
2nd Continental Congress
The Second Continental Congress convened after hostilities had broken out at Lexington and Concord. They appointed Washington commander in chief of the American army, acted as a government for the thirteen colonies, issued and borrowed money, set up a postal service, created a navy, and approved the Declaration of Independence. -
Olive Branch Petition
The Olive Branch Petition was the last colonial effort to reconcile and avoid a break from Britain. The Continental Congress appealed to King George III, stating their dissatisfaction with the recent policies of the British government. -
Declaration of Independence
The Continental Congress approved the Declaration of Independence. This document announced the separation of the Colonies from Britain. It also explained why they decided to split from Britain.
