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Signing the Declaration of Independence
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Delegates begin to sign The Declaration of Independence
members of Congress rewrote their signatures to a bigger copy of the Declaration of Independence. -
Lord Cornwallis captures Fort Lee from Nathanael Greene
Fort Lee was defenseless after Continental Army troops holding Fort Washington were defeated and captured. General William Howe ordered General Charles Cornwallis to clear the rebel troops from New Jersey without a battle, and to do it quickly.The force included Hessian units commanded by Colonel Carl von Donop. -
Battle of Trenton
Washington defeated a formidable garrison of Hessian before withdrawing. (Trenton, NJ) -
Treaty of DeWitt's Corner
Essentially this treaty ended the Cherokee War (1776-1777). Cherokee vs. American colonists, the war was mainly over the colonists where trying to seize their land. -
Burgoyne surrenders at Saratoga
John Burgoyne captured Fort Ticonderoga before losing decisively at Bennington, Vermont, and Bemis Heights, New York soon after. His forces depleted and Burgoyne had no choice but to surrendered at Saratoga. -
Washington winters at Valley Forge
December 19, 1777–June 19, 1778,after the losses at the Battles of Brandywine and Germantown, Washington and some of his regulars took up winter quarters at Valley Forge. Although the ranks were decimated by rampant disease, semi-starvation, and bitter cold, the reorganized Continental Army emerged that June as a well disciplined and efficient fighting force. -
The United States and France sign the French Alliance
The French had secretly helping the american with money and materials since 1776, but with the peace-making in France, the Franco-American alliance was made. France began preparing fleets and armies to enter the fight but would not formally declare war on Britain until June 1778. -
Battle of Barren Hill, Pennsylvania.
British forces from Philadelphia, tried to trap a group of Continentals. it is estimated to be 2200 tropes there defending valley forge but, thanks to Marquis De Lafayette he managed to avoid the death of his men. -
John Paul Jones: “I have not yet begun to fight!”
the Bonhomme Richard, an U.S. battleship, was getting the worst of its battle with the British vessel HMS Serapis off Flamborough Head, England, when the American commander, John Paul Jones, refused to surrender, “I have not yet begun to fight!” Jones won the battle that day, but he lost his ship in the process. -
Clark's Victories in the West
George Rogers Clark had the idea to invade British forts in Illonois country. -
US Defeat at battle of Camden
This battle was important for the British because Despite the proliferation of dysentery among his men, Continental General Horatio Gates chose to fight British General Charles Cornwallis's force on August 16, 1780. -
French/Americans force Cornwallis to Surrender
The French and Americans force cornwallis back to yorktown and this is where he finally surrenders. -
French fleet drives British naval force from Chesapeake Bay
The French were able to gain control of the sea against the British and provided the Franco-American army with artillery to fight and French reinforcements. These proved helpful in the Siege of Yorktown, effectively securing independence for the colonies. -
Siege of Yorktown
Sep 28, 1781 – Oct 19, 1781. After winning a very expensive victory at Guilford Courthouse, Lord Cornwallis came to Virginia to join other British forces there, setting up a base at Yorktown. Washington’s army and some men provided by Count de Rochambeau of France laid siege Yorktown siege, and Cornwallis surrendered his army of more than 7,000 men. -
British Government authorises peace negotiations.
House of Commons voted against any further war in America. The British Parliament empowers the King to negotiate peace with the United States.Talk of Peace begin in Paris between Ben Franklin and Richard Oswald of Britain. -
The United States and Great Britain sign the Treaty of Paris
The Treaty of Paris ended the American Revolution. Ben Franklin, John Adams, and John Jay negotiated the treaty with Great Britain and ultimately England agreed to peace.
