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The French & Indian War
The French & Indian War, fought in North America, was a crucial event in the Road to Revolution. The colonists were still loyal to Britain, and they fought alongside them for control of North America. France was winning until the late 1750s, when King George III upped the funding for the war, Britain became allied with the Iroquois tribe, and generals developed the fort-by-fort strategy, which proved very successful. -
King George III's Royal Proclamation of 1763
After the war, King George III issued his Royal Proclamation. His Proclamation Line was roughly the western border of the Appalachian mountain range, forbidding colonists from settling beyond the mountains. More specifically, in the Ohio River Valley, a very fertile land which the colonists had just fought hard to grant Britain the control of. -
Troops sent to Boston as military police
King George III, irked by the relatively small rebellious acts of the colonists in response to his various suppressing acts, sent British troops to Boston to enforce his law. He appointed governor generals to uphold his rules and to lead the troops, which was met with much animosity from the colonists. Customs Houses were built, and taxes were more heavily enforced. Even though Britain was in debt from the French and Indian War, the colonists did not see these taxes just. -
The Boston Massacre
In the winter of 1770, British troops were taunted and provoked by Bostonians in the courtyard in front of the Customs House. In the midst of the skirmish, shots were fired and five colonists were killed, among them Crispus Attucks, a free black whaler who many consider the first casualty of the Revolutionary War. The "massacre" was blown out of proportions by radicals like Sam Adams and Paul Revere, turning a lot of colonists against the British. -
The Boston Tea Party
The Boston Tea Party, known in its time as "the destruction of the tea," was an iconic event, again crucial in the Road to Revolution. Fed up with the King's Tea Act of 1773, which granted the British East India Company a complete monopoly in the tea industry, between 30 and 75 colonists dressed as Mojave Indians and dumped $1 million worth of tea into Boston Harbor. Britain now sees this as a threat to British rule. -
The Battles of Lexington & Concord
Militias had begun to form all over Massachussetts. Governor generals began to go for armories, and the King ordered leaders and munitions supplies to be seized. Paul Revere and others developed a "spy network" comprised of lanterns in belfries and were able to warn the colonies of a British invasion. Militias were able to ambush the British troops, and the "Shot Heard 'Round the World" started the war. 235 British were killed and woulded, while America only suffered 8 deaths. -
Thomas Paine's "Common Sense"
In January of 1776, Thomas Paine anonymously released his pamphlet "Common Sense," an instant phenomenon. It was written in a simple manner that everyone could understand. In three months, virtually every colonist had read, or heard excerpts from one of the 500,000 copies sold. The pamphlet urged people to rebel, stating if your government does not protect you, it should not be your government. This piece converted many colonists. -
The Ratification of the Declaration of Independence
On July 4, 1776, the Continental Congress adopted the Declaration of Independence, written by Thomas Jefferson, edited by Benjamin Franklin and others. It included terms such as the "pursuit of happiness" and "God-given rights" so as to please all of the colonists, including strict Quakers. It expressed the American mindset, and set about a full-blown war, thus ending the Road to the Revolution.
