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Battle of Lexington and Concord
Shots fired at Lexington and Concord. "Minute Men" force British troops back to Boston. George Washington takes command of the Continental. -
Capture of Fort Ticonderoga
Benedict Arnold was authorized to raise a force of 400 to seize Fort Ticonderoga with help from the Green Mountain boys and Ethan Allen. -
Second Continental Congress meets
Colonial delegates reconvene in Philadelphia, now faced with bloodshed in Massachusetts. -
Battle of Bunker Hill
British troops dislodge an entrenched New England. -
George Washington named commander-in-chief
George Washington issues his first orders as commander-in-chief of the "Troops of the United Provinces of North America." -
American defeat at Quebec
American forces under generals Richard Montgomery and Benedict Arnold attack the city of Quebec in a failed attempt. -
British evacuate Boston
After American troops fortify Dorchester Heights with heavy artillery pieces obtained from New York's Fort Ticonderoga. -
British occupy New York City
A huge British force arrives in New York harbor bent on crushing the rebellion. -
Declaration of Independence issued
General Washington orders the Declaration of Independence to be read to Continental Army forces in and around New York City. -
Battle of Long Island
British land and naval forces attack the Continental Army on Long Island. -
Battle of Trenton
Washington gambles on a surprise attack on the Hessian garrison of Trenton, New Jersey. -
Battle of Brandywine
In the largest battle of the American War of Independence, British and American forces led by their respective commanders, Sir William Howe and George Washington's, clash near Chadd's Ford Pennsylvania. -
British occupy Philadelphia
Washington defeated at Brandywine (September 11) and Germantown (October 4). Philadelphia is lost to the British. -
Battle of Saratoga
Americans capture Burgoyne and his army at Saratoga. -
Articles of Confederation adopted
Was an agreement among the 13 founding states that established the United States of America as a confederation of sovereign states and served as its first constitution. -
Winter at Valley Forge
Washington's bedraggled forces arrive at Valley Forge, about twenty miles northwest of British-occupied Philadelphia where they remain in winter quarters for six months. -
Alliance with France
France signs a treaty of alliance with the United States and the American Revolution becomes a world war. -
Battle of Monmouth Court House
British and American forces clash in cantral New Jersey in the last large-scale military engagement before major operations shift to the South. -
Fall of Savannah
The southern campaign began in December 1778 when a British force under Lieutenant-Colonel Archibald Campbell landed at Savannah, Georgia, and quickly overwhelmed the city’s defenders. -
Spain enters the war
Although refusing to recognize American independence or enter into a formal alliance with the United States, Spain assists the struggle by joining France in naval and land operations against the British. -
Siege of Charleston
The American surrender at Charleston leads to a devastating partisan war across much of the South. -
Benedict Arnold's treason discovered
In the North, in November 1780, Benedict Arnold changed sides, escaping to the British lines, but leaving Clinton’s adjutant, Major André, in American hands to be hanged as a spy -
French and British battle in Chesapeake Bay
British forces defeat Americans under Nathanael Greene, but their control in the south begins to erode as British general Corwallis invades Virgina. -
Cornwallis surrenders
British general Cornwallis finds himself trapped and under siege by American and French forces when a French fleet defeats a British naval force at the mouth of the Chesapeake Bay. -
Siege of Yorktown
The latter taking place on October 19, 1781, was a decisive victory by a combined force of American Continental Army troops led by General George Washington and French Army troops led by the Comte de Rochambeau over a British Army commanded by British lord and Lieutenant General Lord Cornwallis.
