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George Washington was born.
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The Colonies.
A string of prosperous colonies stretched along the eastern coast of North America. -
George III began his 60-year reign.
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The Sugar Act was passed.
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The Stamp Act was passed.
The Stamp Act imposed taxes on items such as newspapers and pamphlets. -
The Boston Massacre occurred.
British soldiers in Boston opened fire on a crowd that was pelting them with stones and snowballs. Five protesters died. -
The Boston Tea Party.
A handful of colonists hurled a cargo of recently arrived British tea into the harbor to protest a tax on tea. -
The Revolutionary War begins.
The colonists and the British exploded into war in Lexington and Concord, Massachusetts. -
The Second Continental Congress took a momentous step.
The Second Continental Congress voted to declare independence from Britain. -
The Declaration was adopted.
The American leaders adopted the Declaration, pledging "our lives, our fortunes, and our sacred honor" to crearing ad protecting the new United States of America. -
Valley Forge
The Continental troops at Valley Forge suffered from cold, hunger, and disease. -
Battle of Saratoga
The Americans triumphed over the British at the Battle of Saratoga. -
Chesapeake Bay
The French fleet blockaded the Chesapeake Bay, which enabled Washington to force the surrender of a British Army at Yorktown, Virginia. -
Revolution in France.
A revolution in France toppled the monarchy in the name of liberty and equality. -
The Constitution became the supreme law of the land