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End of the French and Indian War
When Britain and France fought over who would control the Ohio River Valley, Britain formed an alliance with the Iroquois Native Americans, who helped them fight and win the war. Britain won the war, and France lost almost all of its land in the U.S. However, Britain was in debt from the war, so they started taxing the colonists living in the 13 Colonies. The colonists were angered by this because they helped Britain fight and win the war, so they thought Britain would be grateful. -
Proclamation of 1763
When King George III said colonists were not allowed to move west of the Appalachian Mountains because he didn't want to have to send soldiers over to protect them from Indian attacks. This angered the colonist because they thought since they just helped Britain win this land, they would be allowed to use it and live on it. Though they weren't allowed to, they moved west of the Appalachian Mountains anyway. -
The Sugar Act
When Britain put a tax on sugar and molasses, so that the colonists would have to pay extra to get them. He also said that the 13 Colonies couldn't import these things directly from the place they were made, they had to be imported to Britain first. Britain did this so that they would make a profit from the 13 Colonies too. This angered the colonists, so they boycotted taxed sugar and they smuggled it. -
The Stamp Act
This is when Britain required special tax stamps to be put on things like legal documents, newspaper, and etc in the 13 Colonies. The colonists thought this was unfair because they didn't have a representative in the Parliament to stand up for them. They were annoyed by this, and reacted by sending petitions, boycotting, smuggling, and a lot of violence broke out. -
The Quartering Act
When King George III forced colonists to house British soldiers that were stationed in the 13 Colonies. They had to house, feed, and sometimes even pay for them to live in the 13 Colonies. The colonists felt that this was a violation of their rights, and they were outraged. They refused to do this and committed violence against the soldiers. -
The Townshend Act
When Britain decided to put taxes on imported items such as glass, paper, and tea. They also established Writs of Assistance to allow soldiers to search colonial ships for smuggled goods. The colonists thought this wasn't fair because of no taxation without representation, and that the Writs of Assistance violated their rights. Many merchants signed Non-importation agreements and colonists continued to boycott many goods. -
The Boston Massacre
When British soldiers shot and killed 5 colonists on the streets of Boston, whom were simply protesting their rights. They were protesting when a group of soldiers came over. The soldiers got angry, and fired off their guns, killing 5 people in a number of minutes. They colonists were completely outraged by this, and caused them to protest their rights even more. -
The Boston Tea Party
This is when the Sons of Liberty snuck onto the Fast India Company ships, dressed as Mohawk Indians so no one would recognize them, and dumped the tea into theBoston Harbor as an act of protest to the Tea Act. Nobody had any proof of who did it, so the Sons of Liberty got away with it. Unfortunately, Boston didn't. Britain thought of a punishment known as the Intolerable Acts. -
The Tea Act
This is when Britain tried to fix things, by allowing the colonies to import British tea directly from India, and Britain lowered the tax. They thought that this would make everything better, because everybody gains from it. However, the colonists saw it as a trick to accept being taxed without representation. The colonists were annoyed by this, and this soon lead to the Boston Tea Party. -
The First Continental Congress
This is when a meeting of representatives from each colony came to a meeting in Philidelphia, PA. These meetings were organized to discuss how to respond to the Intolerable Acts the British put on MA because of the Boston Tea Party. It was decided that the 13 Colonies should demand repeal of the Intolerable Acts, and all colonists were to train militias, and there were new boycotts. -
The Intolerable Acts
These are the consequences the British gave Massachusetts because of the Boston Tea Party. Britain banned town meetings in MA, made a new quartering act, and they closed the Boston Harbor until the tea was paid for. The colonists were outraged and thought these punishments were way too harsh. The other colonies grouped together and supported MA and held the first Continental Congress. -
Paul Revere's Ride
When Paul Revere rode through the streets of Boston in the wee hours of morning, warning people that the British were coming and shouting "THE BRITISH ARE COMING, THE BRITISH ARE COMING!!!!!". He also warned Sam Adams and John Hancock that the British were going to capture them and that they needed to escape. Shortly after he did this, he was captured by the British. -
The Battle of Lexington and Concord
When the Massachusetts "minutemen" arrived and Lexington, MA and met the British soldiers, where the first shots of the Revolutionary War were fired. Britain fired these shots, and killed 8 colonists, and wounded 9 people. Britain then made their way to Concord to destroy the weapons and supplies in a surprise raid, and succeeded, only to be confronted by about 400 minutemen. Britain retreated towards Boston, only to be shot at by 3,000 minutemen whom were hiding behind walls and trees.
