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1492
Columbus lands in the Caribbean
Columbus sailed West to trade, and discovered the New World. This gave people the opportunity to colonize in a new place. -
Jamestown founded
English colonists arrived in Jamestown in the New World. Here, they could have possible riches to trade with the motherland and possibly a new hidden trade route. -
Pilgrims land in Plymouth
The Pilgrims set sail for the New World in order to escape the Church of England. They landed in Plymouth, where they could have religious prosperity. -
French and Indian War
The French and Indian War took place between the French and Indians against the British and its colonies. They were fighting to decide who gets the land in the Americas. -
Albany Plan of Union
Benjamin Franklin presented the 'Join or Die' plan to the colonies. His goal was for all the colonies to unite together in order to defend themselves against the French and Natives. -
Treaty of Paris
The Treaty of Paris was a treaty signed by the British and the French that marked the end of the Seven Years War. Because of this, the British received the rest of the land in the Americas, after France surrendered. -
Proclamation of 1763
The British government tells the British after the Seven Years War that they still cannot settle on the land they gained from the French. This affected colonists because it prohibited them from settling on the land they fought hard for. -
Stamp Act
The British government had to pay off their large debt after the Seven Years War, so they placed an act on the colonies called the Stamp Act that required the colonies to buy one stamp per certain item they bought. These items were typically very popular. -
Quartering Act
The British government still had to pay off their large debt, so they made the colonists in America provide the soldiers with basic needs like bedding, housing, beer, and more. -
Townshend Act
The British government now started to tax the soldiers on imports sent to the colonies. This helped Britain pay off the debt they needed to pay after the war. -
The Boston Massacre
When a crowd of civilians dare soldiers to fire their weapons, the soldiers finally fire at the crowd and leave some civilians killed and injured. This is important because tension is rising in Boston at a very quick rate. -
Tea Act
The British grant the East India Company the right to sell tea to the colonies. This angered the colonists because they felt that they were still being used to pay off Britain's debt. -
Boston Tea Party
The patriots dressed up as Native Americans, go onto the three ships filled with tea from the East India Company, and throw 342 chests of tea into the water. This is important because the tension is rising at a very fast rate between Britain and its colonies. -
Intolerable Acts
The British Parliament passes the Boston Port Act, Massachusetts Government Act, Quartering Act, and the Administration of Justice Act. These try to force the colonists into paying back the money that was spent from the Boston Tea Party. -
First Continental Congress
There were thirteen representatives that each came from a different colony. These representatives met up discussed challenges they were facing with the British They decided to boycott British goods by not buying them. -
Period: to
The American Revolution
This was the period where the patriots fought the British in multiple battles, fighting for their independence in America. The battles extended from The Battle of Bunker Hill, and the last was The Battle of Yorktown. Luckily, the patriots won the final battle in 1883 for their independence. -
Second Continental Congress
The thirteen representatives met up once again and decided to form the 'Continental Army'. To lead the colonists, they decided to make George Washington Commander. -
Olive Branch Petition
The Second Continental Congress writes a nice letter to the King, where the tone comes across as very loyal, asking to work their conflict out. Instead of agreeing to work things out with the colonists, the king refuses to read the letter. -
Common Sense by Thomas Paine
Thomas Paine writes a document about how America doesn't need Britain since the colonies are bigger than Britain. He also states how Britain doesn't care about the colonies, and only cares about itself. -
The Declaration of Independence
On this day, the Continental Congress makes a document explaining their motives for independence from Britain. It describes their rights for a revolution. -
The Treaty of Paris
The British and the Americans sign a treaty ending the Revolutionary War, and granting the Americans independence and western territory. -
Shay's Rebellion
Daniel Shay, who was a protester, lead a rebellion against continuous taxing in America. They were upset since they still had to pay taxes, even though they were free from Britain, and some of them didn't have the money to pay the extreme taxes. -
Congress ratifies the US Constitution
The Constitution is ratified, creating a new plan of government with a president and three government branches. This is important because it is the fist written plan of government ever since the colonies gained their independence. -
Whiskey Rebellion
When farmers learned how to make whiskey out of corn, they started selling their newly made whiskey. But soon, the government placed a "whiskey tax", which caused people to violently rebel. This is important because it caused people to turn against each other and cause conflict. -
XYZ Affair
During the XYZ Affair, since the US broke their treaty with France, France became angry, and many citizens wanted to go to war. Because of this, the US tries to gain peace with Britain to have them on their side because they are unprepared to fight. This is important since the US is unprepared to fight, but a very powerful nation is angry with them. -
War of 1812
The War of 1812 was when the US declared war on the British because they were rejecting peace treaties and kidnapping their people to use for the British army. Although the war ended with a peace treaty, this was an important event because America needed to show American dominance, and that Britain couldn't take advantage of them anymore.