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French and Indian War - 1754 - 1763
The war was fought over an area of land called the Ohio River Valley. The French built a fort in this area that the British had already promised to wealthy planets. George Washington was sent with some men to drive them out and the French forced him to surrender. During the war, majority of the Native Americans fought alongside the French because the French did not try to take over their land while the colonists and Iroquois fought with the British. The Treaty of Paris ended the war in 1763. -
Proclamation Line of 1763
The Proclamation Line of 1763 was issued by King George III after the French and Indian War. It forbid colonists from settling west of the Mississippi River and angered colonists because they were promised land for fighting with the British in the French and Indian War. -
Sugar Act
The Sugar Act was passed on April 5th, 1764 and was an a modified version of an earlier one in 1733. It was designed to raise revenue from the American colonists by placing a tax on sugar and molasses. It halved the tax on foreign made molasses and strengthened law enforcements of smuggling to be tried in non colonial courts. Repealed in 1766. -
Stamp Act
The Stamp Act was passed in March 1765 by the Parliament persuaded by Prime Minister George Grenville. It required colonists to purchase special stamped paper for every legal document, license, newspaper, etc. and imposed taxes on other everyday items. This angered the colonists and sparked their rebellion against the British. -
Townshend Acts
The Townshend Acts were introduced in 1767, and they put taxes on glass, lead, paint, paper, and tea imported to the colonies. Many colonists argued that the acts were an abuse of power. The British eventually, in 1770 repealed the taxes except the one on tea. -
Boston Massacre
The Boston Massacre began with colonists were angry over British soldiers taking their jobs. They formed an angry mob in front of the Customs House in Boston. An important person in the event was Crispus Attucks who was killed during the event along with 4 other men. Samuel Adams and the colonists named the event the Boston Massacre. -
Boston Tea Party
An event where a group of Boston rebels disguised themselves as Native Americans and dumped 18,000 pounds of British tea into the Boston Harbor. This event resulted from the colonists anger towards the British putting taxes on items through the Stamp Act. The Tea Act was passed in 1773. -
Intolerable Acts
The Intolerable Acts were passed by the British Parliament to punish the Americans for the Boston Tea Party. It contained 4 acts: The Boston Port Bill which closed the Boston harbor until the tea was paid for, The Massachusetts Government Act which reduced the colony to a crown colony which forbid town meetings, The Administration of Justice Act which allowed British soldiers who committed crimes to be tried in England, and The Quartering Act which gave unhoused homes to British troops. -
Lexington and Concord
The conflict began on April 18th when General Gage discovered that John Hancock and Samuel Adams, the two most prominent British resistance leaders, were staying in Lexington. He gathered his men and sent to destroy all the munition they could find on their way to arrest the two leaders. Paul Revere got heard of this and during the night, rode his horse down to Lexington warning the leaders of the British. The next morning, 70 minutemen were lined up and the British began firing, killing 8.
