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Sugar Act
This is the first try by the British to control the money in the colonies.This act was put in place to stop the smuggling and encourage British rum. The taxes on molasses was also dropped. -
Stamp Act
The British Parliament put a tax on all legal documents and newspapers. They did this to gain a profit. This act enraged the colonists and colonists starting turning on their home country. -
Quartering Act
The colonists were forced to house British soldiers. They had to provide for them and had to buy supplies and things that are necessary for life. The colonists were very mad about this and felt like it wasn't their duty to provide for the soldiers. -
Boston Massacre
This event took place out on the street of Boston. A soldier was hit by a snowball who then fired his weapon into the crowd. 5 civilians were killed. This was very important in the timeline of the Revolution because many people stopped trusting the British and turned against them because they killed one of their own. -
Tea Act
The British Parliament was trying to help out the East India Company and said that only tea from the East Indian Company could be bought. The colonists did not like this at all because they wanted to have the right to buy the tea that they wanted. This was very important becasue it led to the Boston tea party. -
Boston Tea Party
This happened because of the Tea Act. The Americans dressed up as indians and dumped today's worth of $1,000,000 of tea into the harbor. This was one of the first real examples of the colonists defying the British which shows why it was really important to the Revolution. -
Battles of Lexington and Concord
This marked the start of the Revolutionary War. Paul Revere warned the Minutemen that the British troops were coming. This was "the shot heard 'round the world". -
Battle of Bunker Hill
This is the first major battle of the War of Independence. There were 1054 British casualties and 367 American casualties. The colonists unofficially won this battle because of the less casualties they endured. -
Olive-Branch Petition
The Americans wanted to end the Intolerable Acts and they would not fight and have a cease fire. King George III denied this and on August 23, 1775, declared that the colonists were in "open rebellion". This could have ended the war and that's why it's important. -
Declaration of Independence
The Contiental Congress issues the Declaration of Indepence written by Thomas Jefferson. However, this did not end all the battles and fighting. The war officially ended on September 3, 1783 with the Treaty of Paris. Noboody supported the British and that played a big role in the colonists winning the war because the colonists had the help of the French.
