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French-Indian War (1756 - 1763)
The French & Indian War happened because of the disputes that developed over land in the colonies, control of the fur trade in the colonies and over the balance of power in Europe. -
Navigation Acts (1763)
The Navigation Acts were intended to promote the self-sufficiency of the British Empire by restricting colonial trade to England and decreasing dependence on foreign imported goods. -
Stamp Act
British attempt to raise income through direct taxation of anything newspapers, pamphlets, cards, etc. -
Quartering Act
The Quartering Act required authorities to provide food, drink, quarters, fuel, and transportation to British forces stationed in their towns or villages. -
Townshend Acts
The Townshend Acts were a series of measures, passed by the British Parliament that taxed goods imported to the American colonies such as glass, lead, paint, paper and tea. -
Boston Massacre
The Boston Massacre was a deadly riot on King Street in Boston. It began as a street brawl between American colonists and a lone British soldier, but quickly escalated to a chaotic, bloody slaughter. -
Boston Tea Party
The Boston Tea Party was a political protest that occurred in Boston, Massachusetts. American colonists, frustrated and angry at Britain for imposing “taxation without representation,” dumped 342 chests of tea, imported by the British East India Company into the harbor. -
Intolerable Acts
The Intolerable Acts were laws passed by the British Parliament in 1774 after the Boston Tea Party. The laws were meant to punish the Massachusetts colonists for their defiance in the Tea Party protest in reaction to changes in taxation by the British Government. -
Second Continental Congress
The Second Continental Congress was a meeting of delegates from the Thirteen Colonies in America that united in the American Revolutionary War. -
Common Sense
Common Sense is a pamphlet written by Thomas Paine advocating independence from Great Britain to people in the Thirteen Colonies. -
Battle of Lexington & Concord
The Battles of Lexington and Concord kicked off the American Revolutionary War. Tensions had been building for many years between residents of the 13 American colonies and the British authorities, particularly in Massachusetts. British troops marched from Boston to nearby Concord in order to seize an arms cache. -
Olive Branch Petition
Continental Congress adopted the Olive Branch Petition, which appeals directly to King George III and expresses hope for reconciliation between the colonies and Great Britain. -
Declaration of Independence
Declaration of Independence was a document that was approved by the Continental Congress that announced the separation and freedom of the 13 colonies from Great Britain. -
Articles of Confederation
The Articles of Confederation was the first written constitution of the United States. Under these articles, the states remained independent -
Daniel Shays’ Rebellion
Shays’ Rebellion was a series of violent attacks on courthouses and other government properties in Massachusetts and led to a full-blown military confrontation. -
Constitutional Convention
The Constitutional Convention addressed the problems of the weak central government that existed under the Articles of Confederation. The United States Constitution that emerged from the convention established a federal government with more specific powers.