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Proclamation of 1763
The Proclamation of 1763 prohibited settlers from crossing west of the Appalachian Mountains. The government did this to protect Native lands from settler encroachment. Settlers were very unhappy because some settlers had already settled west of the Proclamation line, so they were forced to remove themselves. -
Sugar Act
During the Sugar Act, colonists were forced to pay a tax of six pence for every gallon of sugar. As a result of this, the colonist did not buy as much sugar, so they didn't have to spend as much money. -
Currency act of 1764
The Currency act prohibited the printing and issuance of paper money by colonial legislature. The government enforced this act so they could prohibit American colonies from issuing their own currency. The colonists protested because they were not happy with the new law. -
The Quartering Act of 1765
This act required the American colonists to provide British soldiers with living quarters wherever barracks were not available. The government enforced this law so all soldiers had a place to live. The colonists resented because they were being taxed to pay for provisions and barracks for the army, so they should have enough places to stay. -
Stamp Act of 1765
The Stamp Act imposed a tax on all papers and official documents in the American colonies. The government imposed this act because the American colonies needed to offset the sums necessary for their maintenance. The colonists refused to pay the stamp act tax because of the colony's sheer distance from London, the epicenter of British, politics, and a direct appeal to parliament was almost impossible. -
Declaratory Act
The declaratory act was put in place to assert the authority of the British government to tax its subject in North America after it repealed the much-hated stamp act. Colonists were outraged because they thought more would be coming. They felt this way because they did not want any more acts. -
Townshend Revenue Act
This act placed duties on various consumer items like paper, paint, lead, tea, and glass. The government enforced this act because these British goods had to be imported since the colonies did not have the manufacturing base to produce them, so it cost British money to manufacture the products and ship them to the colonies. The colonies set up a boycott so there were no more acts. -
Boston Massacre
The Boston Massacre was a war between the British and the angry colonists. This war was because the colonists were mad about the intolerable acts, especially the Quartering act. The colonists had no weapons, so they were fighting with snowballs and chunks of ice. The British fired their guns, and 8 colonists were killed. -
Tea Act of 1773
The tea act was put in place to allow a drawback of the duties of customs on the exportation of tea to any of his majesty's colonies or plantations in America. The government imposed this act to increase the deposit of bohea tea to be sold at the Indian company's sales, and to empower the commissioners of the treasury to grant licenses to the east India company to export tea duty-free. The colonist never excepted it because they didn't want India to have a free monopoly of their money. -
Boston Tea Party
The Boston Tea Party happened because the colonists were mad about the tax on tea. The colonists dressed as Natives, and went on the ship to dump tea into the ocean. The colonists did not care if the tea was cheap or not, they just cared if it had tax or not. -
Intolerable Act of 1774
This act mandated that the port remain shuttered until Bostonians made restitution to the East India Company. The government imposed this act to punish the colonists for the Boston tea party. The colonists protested to show what is right for their colonies. -
Battle of Lexington and Concord
The British found out that the colonists were hiding ammunition, and the colonists found out, so they wanted to defend it. They did not want any of the British soldiers to have any of their ammunition or weapons. The colonists wanted it to be clear that they were willing to rebel, and the colonists actually won. When they won, it boosted their confidence, so they were ready to do it again. -
The Battle of Bunker Hill
This battle occurred because the British wanted to claim the hills and attack the colonists. The colonists learned about the plan and went to claim it first. They built a fort, and they were preparing to battle the next morning. Whenever the British attacked, the fort was not done, so this was a big disadvantage. The British started coming up the hill, so all of them started to scramble. In the end, the British won, but they also lost more soldiers than the colonists -
Declaration of Independence
The declaration of independence was a document the colonists wrote to the king, the people of the colonies, and the world. They wrote this document to tell all people that they were not going to be part of the British people anymore. They said that they would be the united states, and they would be free. In the document, they stated all the ways the king had wronged the colonists and the ways that they tried to be free before. -
Battle of Trenton
The Battle of Trenton was a battle between America and the British germans. America won the battle, and George Washington led the battle. It took place in long island manhattan and Trenton. 900 prisoners, 22 killed, and 92 wounded British and german soldiers. -
Battle of Saratoga
This was a battle between America vs. Britain and the Germans. This battle had 2 battles the Britons won the first one, and the Americans won the second one. George Washington lead the battle and the battle took place in long island manhattan and Trenton. 900 prisoners, 22 killed, and 92 wounded German and British soldiers. This battle freed New Jersey from brittish rule. -
Battle of Valley Forge
This battle was special because it was 2 battles put together. The British won the first one and America won the second. Important people in this battle include Horatio Gates, Benedict Arnold, and John Burgoyne. This battle was also the first big win for America which led them to have more confidence. -
Battle of Yorktown
The battle was a battle that America won. the Cornwallis took the British to Yorktown, the French and Americans surrounded them, and the British surrendered. One important thing about this battle was that it was the last battle of the revolution, showing that America was strong on its own. -
Treaty of Paris (1783)
This brought the American Revolution to an end and the United States was born and known as an independent. The Colonists won and as a result of that, they became free of British rule. -
The Whiskey Rebellion
The whiskey rebellion was an act by the people of Pennsylvania to take tax off whiskey. The people had torches and burned down a tax collector's house. Shots were fired and people died, and Washington had to bring military forces to protect the nation. -
XYZ Affair
The XYZ Affair was when France began attacking American ships as England once had. In 1797, President Adams sent three Americans to negotiate peace. The French foreign minister refused to meet and instead sent three representatives in his place. They demanded money to speak to the minister. American representatives were insulted! When the news broke many Federalists wanted war with France as clearly they did not respect the United States and would not change their ways. -
Alien and Sedition Acts
Alien Act: the president could imprison or deport anyone considered to be dangerous who was not a U.S. citizen Sedition Act: a law stating it was a crime to speak or publish any "false, scandalous, and malicious criticism of the government." -
Virginia and Kentucky Resolutions
Democratic-Republicans thought the Alien and Sedition Acts were an abuse of power. These political statements argued the Acts were unconstitutional because they interfered with Constitutional rights granted to the states. The Kentucky resolution went so far as to insist states could nullify laws they found unconstitutional. While the resolutions did not change the law, they did show that the states could challenge the federal government. -
Embargo Act
It was a response by Thomas Jefferson and Congress to increasing tensions between the U.S. and Britain and France during the Napoleonic Wars. Both Britain and France were blockading American trade with the other European nations, and the U.S. wanted to pressure them to respect its neutral trading rights. The act was aimed at hurting Britain and France's economy, but the embargo act was very ineffective and caused lots of economic hardships in the u.s. -
War of 1812
The war of 1812 was when the President of the United States was mad at the British for searching the United States ships and kidnapping people on them. This brought some controversy because some people wanted a war and thought it was necessary, but others did not want a war because they thought it was cruel, and human did not deserve it unless in was 100% necessary. -
McCulloch v. Maryland
This was an argument between McCulloch and Maryland about the first bank ever in the United States. McCulloch thought that he and the government could use 'implied powers," and create a bank, while Maryland didn't agree. Maryland tried to tax the bank, and McCulloch didn't pay the taxes. They fought and eventually it went to the Supreme Court. Everybody on the supreme court voted in favor of McCulloch, and they decided that congresses could make banks, and states could not tax them. -
Monroe Doctrine
The Monroe Doctrine is a policy statement issued by President James Monroe. The European powers renewed their attempts at colonization of a number of Latin American countries that had recently had a revolution against Spain. Monroe Doctrine declared that the western hemisphere was no longer open to European colonization and the U.S. would view any attempt by the European powers to interfere in the affairs of the Americans would be viewed as hostile, and the U.S. would not interfere either.