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French and Indian War
This war gave Great Britain a lot of territory in North America, but the war was so costly that paying the war's expenses led up to the American Revolution. -
Proclamation of 1763
After the French and Indian War ended, King George III wrote this to keep the colonists from colonizing too far west. This was because there were still French and Native Americans living across the Appalachians, fueling French and Native American hate and maybe causing a new war, which is something Britain couldn't afford to have. The colonists weren't happy with these restrictions and wanted to colonize more land, causing more hate towards Britain, and creating the thought of a revolution. -
Stamp Act
This act that was passed by Great Britain to pay off war debts led to colonists to boycott stamps, riot, burn stamps, and intimidate the stamp distributors. -
Boston Massacre
British soldiers fired at mobs that were slightly harassing them (by throwing snowballs) and killed 5 people. This incident led to colonists uniting together against Britain and made the dead rioters the symbol of the tyranny and the unkindness of the British. -
Boston Tea Party
The Boston Tea party caused a lot of property damage and angered the British, so they passed the Intolerable Acts, causing the colonists to revolt, leading to the American revolution. -
The First Continental Congress
The First Continental Congress was made in response to the Intolerable Acts. The very first meeting was in Florida, with 56 delegates showing up, representing every colony except Georgia. Come on Georgia! -
Paul Revere's Midnight Ride
Near midnight, on April 18th, 1775, Paul Revere rode from Charlestown to Lexington to warn the colonial army that the British were marching in from Boston with hostile intentions to annex their armory. His ride became famous nearly 100 years later in a poem written by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow's 1861 poem. -
Battle of Lexington
On the same night as Paul Revere's ride, the British were already en route to the armory at Concord. On the way there, their troop of 700 men was met at Lexington Green by 77 local minutemen. No one knows who fired the first shot (and this was the famously known "shot heard around the world") but it led to a deadly battle that left eight minutemen dead. This battle was the very first battle of the American Revolution. -
Battle of Concord
Shortly after the Battle of Lexington (still in the same day), the British finally arrived at Concord. There, they were met again by the colonists, but this time, instead of only 77 minutemen, they saw hundreds of militiamen. Since the British were outnumbered and very low on ammo, they retreated back to Boston. This was Britain's first defeat in the war- but there are many more to come. -
Battle of Bunker Hill
Even though the colonists lost this battle, they imposed heavy casualties on the British, giving the inexperienced colonists a huge morale boost. During this battle, Colonel William Prescott said his famous line, "Don't fire until you see the whites of their eyes!" in an effort to save the colonist's ammo. -
Common Sense
Since the war began in 1775, the American Revolution still looked like a civil war, but Thomas Paine's Common Sense brought the colonies to their senses and directed at why they weren't going anywhere with this war. This publication also paved the way for the Declaration of Independence. -
Declaration of Independence
This very important document was drafted by Thomas Jefferson, Benjamin Franklin, John Adams, Roger Sherman, and Robert R. Livingston, and revised by the committee. On July 2nd, Congress voted for independence and on July 4th, adopted the Declaration of Independence, meaning it officially declared the colonies as independent from the British crown. -
Battle of Trenton
The day before the battle, Christmas Day, George Washington crossed the Delaware over to Trenton, New Jersey to surprise the Hessians. Because of Washington's surprise attack, the Hessians quickly surrendered. The Hessians suffered a bitter defeat; 22 were killed, 92 were wounded, and 918 got captured. As for the colonists, 2 froze to death and 5 were wounded. -
Hessians
Hessians were German soldiers that were hired by the British to aid them during the Revolutionary War. Hessians were known to be nasty, and you could always tell it was them from their signature gold, triangular hats. Without the Hessians, the British would've lost more battles, thus ending the Revolutionary War quicker. -
Battles of Saratoga: Freeman's Farm
On September 19th, John Burgoyne, a British officer, fought with the colonists at Freeman's Farm, an abandoned farm from a loyalist. When Burgoyne tried to outflank to colonists, a small part of the army, led by General Benedict Arnold, imposed many casualties on British forces thanks to his sharpshooters. This battle was crucial in the fact that it caused the British to retreat and slowed their march and depleted nearly half of their soldiers. -
Battles of Saratoga: Bemis Heights
After the battle at Freeman's farm, the colonists received more enforcements. Benedict Arnold led the colonists and charged at the British, causing the British to suffer heavy losses, also forcing them to retreat back to their camps. The colonists then surrounded the British camps, outnumbering them by around 15,000, causing Burgoyne to surrender. This battle was crucial; France recognized the colonist's cry for independence, so they supported them by sending more troops to aid their fight. -
Benedict Arnold
Benedict Arnold was a general in the colonist army. He talked with a British Major, John Andre, about trading West Point for money and a high rank in the British military. West Point was a very important base; it was the only thing stopping the British from taking control of the Hudson River and splitting the colonies in half. In the end, John Andre was hanged after the plot was revealed, and the British never got West Point. Arnold eventually took sanctuary with the British. -
Alexander Hamilton
Hamilton is one of the Founding Fathers of this nation. He has done many things, but during the Revolutionary War, he helped lead the colonists with George Washington to victory at Yorktown. He also helped draft the US Constitution. For the date, I'm basing it off on when he was in the Revolutionary War. -
Battle of Yorktown
Lord Cornwallis, who was a decorated British Army general, led British forces up to Virginia, where they set up a base at Yorktown to make their last stand. George Washington led an army there, under the command of the French general, Count de Rochambeau, and proceeded to attack without mercy. Lord Cornwallis surrendered, making the British lose all chances of winning the Revolutionary War. -
Treaty of Paris
After the British were defeated at Yorktown, the on-land battles faded away. There was still fighting at sea, but it was mostly between the British and America's European allies, like Spain and the Netherlands. The document was written by Benjamin Franklin, John Adams, and John Jay, and was negotiated with King George III.
