-
French and Indian War
It wouldn't let me add a picture under the timespan so I added this as an event. -
Period: to
French and Indian War
This was a war fought between the British and French with each side having some Native American allies over land disputes in the Ohio River Valley. The British ended up winning the war and gained a large amount of French Louisiana territory, though they had to spend a lot of money on the war effort putting the British in debt. -
Proclamation of 1763
This was a law from King George III of England that prohibited the colonists from settling on lands won by Britain in the French and Indian War. It prohibited the colonists from settling along and west of the Appalachian Mountains to avoid conflicts with Native American populations in these areas, so the British would not have to spend more money defending the colonies. -
Stamp Act
A direct tax passed by the British Parliament on the American colonies for printed materials including stamps, diplomas, newspapers, pamphlets, posters, wills, licenses, and more. The purpose of this tax was to pay for the British troops that were stationed in America. This was one of many tax acts that angered the colonists because they felt taxes levied upon them by a government 3,000 miles away in which they had no representation had no right to tax them. -
Boston Massacre
A confrontation between British soldiers guarding a customs house in Boston and colonists resulting in five colonists being shot and killed by the soldiers. The first to be killed was Crispus Attucks, an African American dockworker at the Boston port. The Boston Massacre helped increase tensions between the British and the colonists in the years following the massacre, increasing the colonist's want for independence. -
Boston Tea Party
The Boston Tea Party was a protest by the colonists against the British tea taxes. They boarded ships loaded with tea belonging to the British East India Company and dumped 342 chests of tea into Boston Harbor ruining the tea. As punishment following the Boston Tea Party, the British enacted the Coercive Acts that took away some rights of the colonists in Boston specifically and they also increased British troop presence in Massachusetts. -
Battle of Lexington and Concord
The first fighting of the Revolutionary War. The British were going to confiscate and destroy weapons stored by the Massachusetts militia. The colonists were warned of the impending by Paul Revere and Samuel Prescott, so they were ready when the British arrived. The colonists ended up forcing the British to retreat showing to the British leadership that the colonists can fight. -
The Second Continental Congress
The 2nd Continental Congress was the meeting of delegates from all 13 colonies to have a de facto government during the war. They met in Philadelphia following the Battles of Lexington and Concord and worked to set up an army for the colonies in the war. They appointed George Washington to be the commander of the Continental Army and also issued the Olive Branch Petition to King George II as a last resort to avoid fighting in the war to no avail. -
Battle of Bunker Hill
The Battle of Bunker Hill was a battle in the early stages of the war that took place at Breed's Hill close to Boston. The British troops were attempting to occupy the hills surrounding the city of Boston that the colonists held. During the battle, the British suffered heavy losses with the colonists inflicting over 700 casualties decimating British forces in Boston. Despite this, the colonists lost the battle because they ran out of ammunition and were forced to retreat. -
Signing of the Declaration of Independence
The Declaration of Independence was a document created by the Second Continental Congress to declare independence from Britain. In the document, the colonists state the reasons why they feel separation is necessary and the grievances the King of England and the British government had committed against the colonies. Another purpose of the Declaration was to try and convince foreign nations such as Spain and France to join their cause fighting Britain for independence. -
Battle of Trenton
This battle was fought in Trenton, New Jersey on the day after Christmas in 1776. After a long year of defeat, Washington led his troops across the Delaware River for a surprise raid against the British and Hessian forces. They were caught completely off guard by the colonist's attack and the battle resulted in a victory for the colonists. This battle is considered to be a turning point because the colonists gained a huge boost in morale from their victory. -
Battle of Saratoga
The Battle of Saratoga was a major turning point in the war for the colonists. The Continental Army defeated General Burgoyne of the British army in New York. This was a major victory for the Americans because, after this battle, France decided to join forces with the Americans in fighting Great Britain. The added support of the French in fighting the war would prove key in the colonists' war effort. -
Winter at Valley Forge
During the winter of 1777-78, the Continental Army was encamped at Valley Forge, just outside of Philadelphia after the city was captured by the British. Conditions at Valley Forge were rough as it was a very cold winter and supplies were hard to come by at times. In total, about 2,000 colonial soldiers died during this winter. One positive aspect of this encampment was that the army was trained during the six months they were here by Baron von Steuben, who helped the troops learn discipline. -
Battle of King's Mountain
This battle was a major turning point in the Southern Campaign of the war in the Carolinas. At this battle, the colonists defeated British General Patrick Ferguson. This was a very bad defeat for the British as they lost all of their troops that engaged in the battle, with over 1,000 soldiers killed, wounded, or captured by the colonists. -
Battle of Guilford Court House
The Battle of Guilford Courthouse was a major battle in the war fought near present-day Greensboro, North Carolina. The battle resulted in a victory for the British, however, because the British lost so many troops it was considered a strategic victory for the Americans because it would end up helping them to win the war. After this battle, Lord Cornwallis would make his way towards Yorktown, Virginia to gain reinforcements and find supplies. -
Battle of Yorktown
This was the final battle of the Revolutionary War. Lord Cornwallis was forced to Yorktown, VA where he was waiting for reinforcements or an escape path back to Boston by ship. However, his reinforcements never came from New York and the British were blockaded by the French navy preventing them from escaping. Running low on supplies, Cornwallis was forced to surrender to George Washington on October 19, marking the end of fighting in the American war for independence. -
Treaty of Paris 1783
A treaty between the United States and Great Britain that officially ended the American Revolutionary War. Under this treaty, Great Britain recognized American independence and ceded land to between the Appalachian Mountains and the Mississippi River to the United States and gave them fishing rights in the North Atlantic, as long as the Americans treated colonists who remained loyal to the British in the war fairly. -
Shays Rebellion
The assembly of Massachusetts raised taxes on its citizens to help pay off debts related to the war. This angered many small farmers who could not afford these high taxes causing them to rebel. A group of 1,200 small farmers led by Daniel Shays went to Springfield to take weapons from a federal arsenal. There, they were met by the MA militia who fired upon them killing 4 of the farmers. This rebellion highlighted the need for a federal government that could create a military for the new nation. -
Constitutional Convention
After realizing that the Articles of Confederation was too weak of a government for the United States, they decided to meet in Philadelphia to try and resolve the issues that the government was experiencing. In the end, they created a new government under the Constitution, the first of its kind which set up the foundation for the country that we know today. It created a government with three branches: Executive, Legislative, and Judicial, with checks and balances to limit their power. -
Constitution Ratified
On June 21, 1788, the state of New Hampshire became the ninth state to ratify the Constitution making the official new government for the United State of America. However, it wasn't until May 1790 that all 13 states would ratify the Constitution. North Carolina and Rhode Island did not ratify at first over fears that the government would have too much power which helped lead to one of the Bill of Rights amendments to guarantee the state's rights. -
George Washington Elected First President
Following the ratification of the Constitution by all of the states, George Washington was elected President of the United States, in the first presidential election. It also remains the only election in US history to be a unanimous electoral college with Washington getting all 69 electoral votes. John Adams was also elected to be the first Vice president of the United States. As President, Washington would set the example for what the US President should be. -
Whiskey Rebellion
The Whiskey Rebellion was an uprising of farmers and distillers in western Pennsylvania over a whiskey tax imposed by the federal government. The protesters would refuse to pay the tax and would also tar and feather many of the tax collectors sent to their region. The violence ended up getting out of hand so it was decided to send in the federal militia to resolve the conflict. This was considered to be the first test of the new government's powers which proved to be a success.
