-
First British Colony Founded
Named Jamestown after the British king, settlers came in hopes of finding gold. To leader John Smith's dismay, the colony began suffering when colonists neglected farming and instead traded with the Native Americans. -
Period: to
Enlightenment Movement
During the 1700s, the movement of Enlightenment, later know as the "Great Awakening", throughout Europe spread to the colonies encouraging reformation of the church and the general way of thinking. This led to monumental scientific discoveries by prominent figures such as Benajmin Franklin and Sir Isaac Newton. -
The Sugar Act
Parliment passes a law putting tax on sugar. Because of corruption, the tax was mostly evaded. -
Stamp Act
Parliment forces colonists to buy a special kind of stamp. Colonists resist by harrasing stamp merchants and boycott English goods, leading to the preperation and publication of a Declaration of Rights and Grievences. -
Townshed Acts
The British pass even more taxes and station troops in colonies to protect customs officers. Colonists boycott more and coin the protest term "Taxation without representation". -
Boston Massacre
An angry mob provokes British officers and shots are fired into the crowd. 5 colonists are killed. Anger rises throughout the thirteen colonies. -
The Tea Act
Parliment puts a tax on the most popular drink in the colonies, tea, and eliminates tax on the British East India Company's tea, making their tea cheaper than colonists' tea in hopes of saving the British East India Company from bankruptcy. -
Boston Tea Party
Boston rebels disguise themselves as Native Americans on the night of December 16, 1773 and pour 18,000 pound of British East Inida Company's tea into the Boton Harbor -
Intolerable Acts
The Quartering Act, shutting down the Boston Harbor, and putting a British general in charge of Boston to implement maritial law are all apart of the Intolerable Acts the British put on the colonists. -
First Continental Congress
After the Intolerable Acts, an assembly on 56 delegates met and wrote the Declaration of Colonial Rights. Amongst other rights, they stated the use of force would result in violent retatlition of the colonists. -
Minutemen
civilian militia who pledged to fight for the colonies at just a minute's notice. General Thomas Gage of Britain learned of their stockpiled guns and commanded a raid of their illegal weapons. -
Midnight Riders
On the night of April 18, 1775, Paul Revere, William Dawes, and Samuel Prescott rode horseback throughout Boston to alert the colonists that the "redcoats" or the British were coming. -
Battle of Concord
After Lexington, the British continued their march to Concord. There they were met with nearly 4,000 minutemen. The British suffered major casualties and were left humilated with no other choice but to retreat to Boston. -
Battle of Lexington
When the British had plans of going to Concord, 70 minutemen faced them in Lexington. British commanded the minutemen to drop their weapons, and they retreated with their weapons instead. Shots were fired, and there were 18 American casualties (8 dead, 10 wounded), while the British only took one wounded soldier. The first battle of the American Revolution lasted only 15 minutes. -
Second Continental Congress
Greatly divided by independence and reconciliation with Great Britain, delegates met in Philadelphia to come up with a conclusion. In the end, delegates agreed to appoint George Washington to command the Continental Army (minutemen). -
Continental Army
Formerly the continental militia, during the Second Continental Congress, delegates agreed to appoint George Washington as the commander of the newly recognized army. -
Battle of Bunker Hill
British troops attack colonists north of Bunker Hill on Breed's Hill. The Continental Army loses 450 soldiers while the British take 1,000 casualties; this is the deadliest battle of the American Revolution. -
Declaration of Independence
The Declaration of Independence was the doctrine colonists wrote to the king of Britain formally announcing their cesation from British rule.
