-
Period: to
The French and Indian War
The French and Indian war was a war between the British and the French that lasted for seven years. The British and French were fighting for land in North America. This put Britain in a lot of debt and that made Britan start taxing the colonies. -
The Proclamation of 1763
The Proclamamtion of 1763 was a document stating that everyone west of a line drawn on the Appalachian Mountains. This was to avoid further contact with the Native Americans. The colonists were very angry about this, they felt that they could live anywhere they wanted to. This led to tesion between the colonies and Britain. -
Period: to
The Sugar and Quartering Acts
The Sugar Act was to put tax on molasses. The British did this to get rid of debt from the French and Indian War. This act caught many smugglers and this made colonists angry because this messed up their way of getting products. The Quartering Act gave Britain the control to make colonists open their houses and care for soilders. This enforced the Proclamation of 1763 a little bit. Colonists felt that Britain was invading their privacy. -
The Stamp Act
The Stamp Act was a tax bill created by Britain on March 22, 1765. Britain put stamps on many legal and commercial papers. Parliament also put stamps on things like paint, wood and tea. The colonists called this “Taxation without representation.” Colonists hated this act. They resisted and protested. Britain repealed the act on March 18, 1766. This was the start of the many acts that were repealed, which made the colonies lose trust. -
The Boston Massacre
The Boston Massacre took place on March 5, 1770. A crowd of angry colonists started circling British soldiers and throwing insults and ice. One person was hit in the ear with the butt of a British soldier’s rifle. No one knows who shouted fire, but British soldiers started shooting and killed 5 men. This made British people think the colonists were uncivilized and this led to harsh results for the colonists. -
The Tea Act
The tea act was a tax on tea. This was to help the BEIC get out of its debt. This act could actually lower the price of tea, but there would be more money going to the BEIC. The problem with this was that the Parliament and the BEIC could choose which merchants were allowed to sell and not sell tea. Many merchants went out of business. Colonists started boycotting tea, hoping that the British would repeal the act. This led to the Boston Tea Party which led to big punishment -
The Boston Tea Party
On December 16, 1773, a group of colonists organized by the Sons of Liberty gathered at a ship waiting to be unloaded at Boston Harbor. The Sons of Liberty raided the ship and dumped 342 chests of tea into the harbor which was worth thousands of dollars. King George III was very upset. He closed Boston Harbor, which meant no ships could go through and unload. He wanted to show that he was in charge and punish Boston for what they did. -
The Battle of Lexington & Concord
On April 18, 1775 Britain began organizing more troops to get rid of colonial resistance. General Gage was planning to go to Concord to get more weapons. One person (Paul Revere) of the Sons of Liberty warned the American minutemen that the British were coming. The minutemen went to Lexington to face the British and someone fired shot that killed eight people. This is called “The shot heard around the world” This began the Revolutionary War. -
The Battle at Bunker Hill
On June 17, 1775, Americans fought British regulars and New England militiamen. General Artemas ordered a fortification at Bunker Hill when he knew about the British planning to secure Boston. His force took place on Breed’s Hill though. British started to attack and after many hours, the Americans retreated. More battles and fights followed after. -
The Declaration of Independence
On July 4th the Declaration of Independence was signed and approved. It consists of four parts; The Preamble, Natural Rights, The List of Grievances and Declaring Independence. Americans did this to break away from Britain’s control. This inspired other countries to declare independence from their countries. This also gave the soldiers who were fighting another reason to fight. Now they had to win, so they could win their independence. -
The Battle of Saratoga
In October 1777, Burgoyne wanted to take control of the Hudson Valley, so to do that he wanted to leave the other colonies alone. Burgoyne’s plan failed. His troops had trouble getting their weapons from Canada down south. American forces were able to surround the British troops and Burgoyne had to surrender. This made Britain realize that they couldn’t keep attacking New England anymore, so they needed to go down south. This also gave Americans more courage and hope that they would win. -
Winter at Valley Forge
In December 1777, Washington’s troops camped in Valley Forge. The conditions there were terrible. The troops did not have socks, shoes, warm clothes or a lot of food. Disease also spread like wildfire, because they didn’t have much medicine. With all the stories that people back home were hearing, they wanted to help. The women made clothes and shoes and socks for the men. They also made medicine and gave the men food. By the springtime, the issue had improved. This made everyone closer. -
European Alliances
In February 1778, France signed an alliance with America. That meant they would send weapons, money and uniforms in bigger quantities. Spain and the Netherlands followed. Marquis de Lafayette, Thaddeus Kosciusko, Casimir Pulaski and Friedrich von Steuben agreed to help the U.S. This made the soldiers more educated and this is what helped them win. For example: Steuben trained and worked on drills with the U.S. troops which raised their standards and made them work as a team. -
Last Battle- Battle of Yorktown
Cornwallis wanted to move his forces to the Virginia coast, so they could get more supplies. Cornwallis then put his troops in Yorktown, in the Chesapeake Bay. Cornwallis became surrounded by French ships in the bay and Washington’s troops on land. The French and American troops surround Cornwallis’s army for weeks. Cornwallis surrenders after three weeks. This was the last battle of the revolutionary war. The Americans had won. :) -
The Treaty of Paris
On September 3, 1783, the Treaty of Paris was signed. Now the new U.S. included land from the Atlantic to the Mississippi River. Britain got Canada and Spain got Florida. The U.S. promised to give back all debts owed to them and return Loyalist property. The treaty was approved on April 15, 1783. This created formal peace between all of these countries.
