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The French and Indian War
The French and British had been fighting for a long time and they did not like each other. In America the British were fighting the French for more land. The British also wanted to get the Indian tribes like the Iroquois to help fight the British, but they did not join because they thought the French would win. The British did lose a lot of battles in the beginning, starting with the battle at Fort Duquesne. When the British started to win a lot of battles the Indians started helping the Fren -
The Proclamation of 1763
The British issued the Proclamation of 1763. This banned settlements along the Appalachian Mountains. This was issued because the British did not want any wars with the Indians so they wanted to make sure that the settlers did not disrupted them. This angered the colonists and they thought that they had their own rights. The colonist ignored the Proclamation. -
Sugar Act
The sugar act was to impose new taxes on the colonies in 1764. It enforce that a duty must be put on several products like Molasses. This happened because After the French and Indian war the British thought that they should make the colonists pay the dept., so they decided to tax them in order to get their money. The colonists got mad that the British was making them clean up their mess and had gotten angrier. This act had led to the Quartering Act. -
The Quartering act
This act was made to save Britain’s money. It enforced the proclamation of 1763 and it required colonist to quarter British troops and provide them health care. This happened because the British were in debt after the French Indian War, and they did not want to pay for the soldiers who fought in that war. The colonists still angry over other taxes, protested on this act because it cost them money. The British did not st not stop and this act led to another one called the Stamp Act. -
The Stamp Act
The stamp act was passed by the British parliament in 1765. It made all colonists buy special tax stamps for all products and activities. This happened because the British could not pay their debt from the war so they wanted the colonists to pay. The colonists responded by protesting wildly and many people even boycotted British products. An American patriot named Patrick Henry made a famous speach against the tax.The tax was repealled in 1776, but led to the Declatory Act. that was worse. -
The Tea Act
In 1773, the British parliament passed the Tea Act that lowered the price of tea so the East India Company to ship cheap tea to the colonies. The tea act was passed because the British were getting paid from the company. The British thought the colonies wouldn’t object because they lowered the price but the colonists were angry that the company now had a monopoly for selling tea in the colonies. They were also mad because they still had to pay taxes. This act lead to the Boston Tea Party. -
Boston Tea Party
The Boston tea party was an event where a group of colonists organized in port cities to stop the East India Company from unloading their tea. They threatened the ships captains and a group of people dressed as Indians and threw 342 cases of tea into the harbor. They did this because they wanted to show the British that they couldn’t control them and make them buy British tea. -
Second Continental Congress
In 1775 the 2nd continental congress came together. At first the congress divided about what to do about the taxes and laws from Britain. A group of delegates from New England wanted to declare independence, so they an army with George Washington as the commander. This happened because they thought they were being controlled by the British for too long. Most colonists reacted happily and they fought against the British. This meeting led to fighting for independence in war. -
The Shot Heard Round the World
√\The shot heard round the world is the name of the first shots between the British soldiers and the Americans. The colonists were mad at the British so they began to arm and form a new militia called the Minutemen. In 1775, Thomas Gage, on the side of the British, sent 700 troops to find the arms that the Minutemen had in Concord. The Minutemen were there because Paul Revere warned them that the British soldiers were coming. The British commander told them to go home but the minutemen refused. -
The Declaration of Independance
The Declaration of Independence is a document that was written by Thomas Jefferson to declare to the King why they wanted to be independent of British rule. It states that all men are created equal and that the British were not treating the colonist fairly. It also contains a long list of grievances against the king. This document was made to show the colonists that the king is bad and is trying to show the colonists that they should have independence. -
Valley Forge
Valley Forge was one of the most important battles of the revolutionary war. Washington and his troops went to Valley Forge because the British were in the capital of Philadelphia. There were 11,000 soldiers who were not fed, clothed, or housed. The food was very scarce. When people learned that the soldiers had no food or clothes they sent help.The fact that they survived, gave the Americans courage in their future battles. -
Africans in War
In the revolutionary war there was a period of time that African Americans could fight in the war. Nine men served minutemen in Lexington and concord. Even enslaved people fought in the war like Jehu Grant fro Rhode Island that served America for 9 months. This happened because they could have used as many people as they could to fight in the war. The Americans reacted normal to this decision and fought with them. This led to the question of the freedom of slaves. -
Natives Take Sides
The Native Americans kept their decision to stay on the side of Britain. The Americans offered payments to have them fight for them but they still staid allies of Britain. Lots of things hurt the Indians like small pox. The Indians sided with the British because they were afraid of losing their land if America won. The Americans reacted sadly to this and tried to still per swayed the Indians to side with them. -
The Battle of Yorktown
General Cornwallis was a British general. He made a big mistake and was cornered in by the French navy and Washington’s troops and was forced to surrender. This Happened because Cornwallis thought that the British would be in Virginia and the Americans wanted them to surrender for them to have independence. British had finally given up and they reacted kindly. This event had led to the peace treaty of Paris. -
Treaty of Paris
The British lost the war and accepted the American’s independence, and the Americans recognized the honor of the British. At the end of a war the soldiers usually sign a treaty. The Treaty of Paris gave the Americans their independence. The American congress acted with a positive response by approving the treaty and the end of the war had inspired other countries that they can win.
