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Meeting of the Second Continental Congress
The Second Continental Congress was a convention of delegates from the Thirteen Colonies that started meeting in the spring of 1775 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.It succeeded the First Continental Congress, which met in Philadelphia between September 5, 1774, and October 26, 1774. -
Battles of Lexington and Concord
These battles were the first battles of the Revolutionary War. They happened because the British commander in Boston had heard of supplies of powder and weapons being kept by Patriots in the towns of Lexington and Concord. -
Battle of Bunker Hill
On June 17, 1775, early in the Revolutionary War (1775-83), the British defeated the Americans at the Battle of Bunker Hill in Massachusetts. Despite their loss, the inexperienced colonial forces inflicted significant casualties against the enemy, and the battle provided them with an important confidence boost -
Failed Seizure of Quebec under Benedict Arnold
On December 31, 1775, during the American Revolutionary War (1775-83), Patriot forces under Colonel Benedict Arnold (1741-1801) and General Richard Montgomery (1738-75) attempted to capture the British-occupied city of Quebec and with it win support for the American cause in Canada. -
Common Sense Published
Common Sense is a pamphlet written by Thomas Paine in 1775–76 advocating independence from Great Britain to people in the Thirteen Colonies. Written in clear and persuasive prose, Paine marshaled moral and political arguments to encourage common people in the Colonies to fight for egalitarian government. -
Adoption of the Declaration of Independence
By the time that the Declaration of Independence was adopted in July 1776, the Thirteen Colonies and Great Britain had been at war for more than a year. ... The colonies were not directly represented in Parliament, and colonists argued that Parliament had no right to levy taxes upon them. -
Battle of Trenton
Significance of the Battle of Trenton: The significance of the conflict was that the Hessian army was crushed in Washington's raid across the Delaware River and the Americans were invigorated by the easy defeat of the British Hessian forces. -
Paoli Massacre (Battle of Paoli)
The Battle of Paoli (also known as the Battle of Paoli Tavern or the Paoli Massacre) was a battle in the Philadelphia campaign of the American Revolutionary War fought on September 20, 1777, in the area surrounding present-day Malvern, Pennsylvania. -
Washington’s Encampment at Valley Forge
235 Years Ago, Washington's Troops Made Camp at Valley Forge. On December 19, 1777, 11,000 Continental Army regulars marched into Valley Forge, Pennsylvania, to set up winter quarters during the Revolutionary War. ... The soldiers who marched to Valley Forge on December 19, 1777 were not downtrodden or desperate. -
Battle of Saratoga
His surrender to American forces at the Battle of Saratoga marked a turning point in the Revolutionary War. The Battle of Saratoga was the turning point of the Revolutionary War. The scope of the victory is made clear by a few key facts: On October 17, 1777, 5,895 British and Hessian troops surrendered their arms.