The American Revolution Timeline

  • French and Indian War

    French and Indian War
    The French and Indian War was a war fought been Great Britain and France. This was fought from 1754 - 1763. The after affect of this war was the British was in a lot of debt and so they decided to tax the colonists and this increased tensions in the colonies because they felt they shouldn't be able to tax them without any say from the colonies. Also known as "taxation without representation."
  • Period: to

    American Revolution time span

    a time span of the American Revolution
  • Proclamation of 1763

    Proclamation of 1763
    This proclamation was enacted for the purpose of not letting colonists settle passed the west Appalachian Mountains which increased tension because colonists that were already there had to move out. Furthermore, colonists felt their right as British citizens to move where they want was being taken away.
  • Sugar Act

    Sugar Act
    This was an effort by the British to control the economic activity in the American colonies by putting a tax on sugar, wine, molasses, and coffee. Molasses was important to New England since they needed it for making rum to sell to other colonies. The Sugar Act also imposed consequences for smugglers in the colonies and was hoping to reduce smuggling which the colonists were not happy with because it almost stopped the rum trade and they did not want to be taxed and so the colonists protested.
  • Quartering Act

    Quartering Act
    This act was an attempt to increase funds and raising revenue from the British colonies in America. This act also required colonists to pay for the feeding and housing of British soldiers or troops in their homes. This only further enraged the colonists by having what appeared to be foreign soldiers boarded in American cities and taking away their authority to keep the soldiers distant.
  • Stamp Act

    Stamp Act
    to help pay for British troops stationed in the colonies during the Seven Years' War; this British policy required colonists to purchase stamps for all official paper publications, including letters, newspapers, playing cards, and magazines. This led to an uproar in America over an issue that was to be a major cause of the American Revolution: "taxation without representation."
  • Townshend Acts

    Townshend Acts
    The Townshend Acts were a series of measures, passed by the British Parliament in 1767, that taxed goods imported to the American colonies. This British policy imposed taxes that colonists had to pay on tea, glass, lead, paper and paint products. However, these policies prompted colonists to take action by boycotting British goods. These new taxes even further fueled the anger regarding the injustice of "taxation without representation."
  • Boston Massacre

    Boston Massacre
    The Boston Massacre was a deadly riot in which British soldiers shot and killed several people while being harassed by a mob in Boston. The Boston Massacre increased tensions heavily and is one of the major turning points in the events leading to the American Revolution. It further increased the belief of "taxation without representation" which was already being said by many. This event was also used as propaganda and was distributed as copies all throughout Boston.
  • Tea Act

    Tea Act
    This British act required that colonists were only allowed to purchase tea from the British-owned East India Trading Company which directly impacted the colonial merchants because of their now inability to sell tea. This is was an effort to save the already troubled enterprise and allowed them the right to ship their tea directly to the colonies. The Tea Act had revived the boycott on tea and inspired direct resistance not seen since the Stamp Act crisis.
  • Boston Tea Party

    Boston Tea Party
    The Boston Tea Party was a political protest by the American colonists or more profoundly, the Sons of Liberty, disguised as Native Americans. Frustrated and angry at Britain for imposing “taxation without representation,” They had dumped 342 chests of tea, imported by the British East India Company, into the harbor. This was the first major act of defiance to British rule over the colonists and rallied many colonists to fight for independence.
  • Turning Point: The Boston Tea Party

    Turning Point: The Boston Tea Party
    I think the Boston Tea Party was a major turning point in the events that led up to the American Revolution because it is the first major act of defiance that had led to consequences given by Parliament. At this point, war was probably inevitable because the colonists had dumped hundreds of crates which led to many taxes and punishments that would not be repealed till all the tea would be paid for. Both Parliament and the colonists had been very upset at this point with the others' shenanigans.
  • Intolerable Acts

    Intolerable Acts
    This series of actions by the British government was in direct response to the Boston Tea Party. The purpose was to punish the colonists. The acts closed the Boston Harbor, limited colonial town meetings, and reinstated the Quarter Act which ordered the colonists to quarter British soldiers. The colonists, again as usual, were angered by this because they felt it was a violation of their rights and organized more boycotts.
  • First Continental Congress

    First Continental Congress
    The First Continental Congress was a meeting met by 12 of the 13 delegates of the American colonies. Delegates discussed boycotting British goods to establish the rights of Americans on December 1st, 1774 unless parliament would repeal the Intolerable Acts. They also planned for a Second Continental Congress.
  • Battle of Lexington and Concord

    Battle of Lexington and Concord
    The Battles of Lexington and Concord were the first battles of the American Revolution and was a victory for the Americans. The famous "shot heard round the world," marked the start of the American Revolution. It persuaded many Americans to take up arms and support the cause of independence.
  • Olive Branch Petition

    Olive Branch Petition
    The Olive Branch Petition was a final attempt by the colonists to avoid going to war with Britain during the American Revolution. It was a document in which the colonists pledged their loyalty to the crown and asserted their rights as British citizens. It had asked King George III to recognize the colonists' rights as Englishmen and repeal the unjust laws passed by Parliament. King George III had then reacted with the Proclamation of Rebellion which ordered officials to suppress this rebellion.