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Writ of Assistance
In 1761, the royal governor of Massachusetts authorized the use of the writs of assistance, a general search warrant that allowed British customs officials to search any colonial ship or building they believed to be holding smuggled goods. which outraged the merchants of boston because many of them worked outside their residence. -
Sugar Act
In n attempt to greatly lower Great Britain's debt, King George III appointed George Grenville to serve as prime minister, in which later Grenville enacted a new law called the Sugar Act, which would put taxes on almost all goods, and most important, it provided that colonists accused of violating the act would be tried in a vice-admiralty court, where each case would be decided by a single judge rather than by a jury of sympathetic colonists. -
The Sons of Liberty + Samuel Adams.
In May of 1765, Samuel Adams, among several boston shopkeepers, artisans, and laborers organized a secret resistance group called the Sons of Liberty to protest the law after parliament passed the Stamp Act, which would put taxes on printed items such as wills, newspapers, and playing cards. -
declaratory act
although the sons of liberty convinced parliament to repeal the law and the stamp act in March 1766, Parliament passed the Declaratory Act on the same day, which asserted Parliament’s full right “to bind the colonies and people of America in all cases whatsoever.” -
Townshend Act + colonialist response
in 1767, Parliament passed the Townshend Acts, named after Charles Townshend, the leading government minister. The Townshend Acts taxed goods that were imported into the colony from Britain, such as lead, glass, paint, and paper. The Acts also imposed a tax on tea, the most popular drink in the colonies. Led by men such as Samuel Adams, one of the founders of the Sons of Liberty, the colonists again boycotted British goods. -
Boston Massacre
On March 5, 1770, a mob gathered in front of the Boston Customs House and taunted the British soldiers standing guard there. Shots were fired and five colonists, including Crispus Attucks, were killed or mortally wounded. Colonial leaders quickly labeled the confrontation the Boston Massacre. -
The Tea Act
In 1773, Lord North devised the Tea Act in order to save the nearly bankrupt British East India Company. The act granted the company the right to sell tea to the colonies free of the taxes that colonial tea sellers had to pay. This action would have cut colonial merchants out of the tea trade by enabling the East India Company to sell its tea directly to consumers for less. -
Why the Townshend act was repealed
in 1773, Lord Frederick North, who later followed Grenville as the prime minister, realized that the Townshend Acts were costing more to enforce than they would ever bring in after the events of the boston massacre in March 5, 1770. North persuaded Parliament to repeal the Townshend Acts, except for the tax on tea. -
The Boston Tea Party
on December 16, 1773, a large group of boston rebels took over some british ships and tossed 18,000 pounds of the East India
Company’s tea into the waters of Boston harbor. -
The Intolerable Acts
In 1774, Parliament responded by passing a series of measures that colonists called the Intolerable Acts. One law shut down Boston harbor. Another, the Quartering Act, authorized British commanders to house soldiers in vacant private homes and other buildings, and removing the governor to make a military based government. -
first continental congress meets
In response to Britain’s actions, the committees of correspondence assembled the First Continental Congress. In September 1774, 56 delegates met in Philadelphia and drew up a declaration of colonial rights. They defended the colonies’ right to run their own affairs and stated that, if the British used force against the colonies, the colonies should fight back. -
minutemen
Minutemen—civilian soldiers who pledged to be ready to fight against the British on a minute’s notice—quietly stockpiled firearms and gunpowder. -
Second Continental Congress
In May of 1775, colonial leaders called the Second Continental Congress in Philadelphia to debate their next move. The loyalties that divided colonists sparked endless debates at the Second Continental Congress. Some delegates called for independence, while others argued for reconciliation with Great Britain. Despite such differences, the Congress agreed to recognize the colonial militia as the Continental Army and appointed George Washington as its commander. -
Continental Army
Continental Army: the colonial militia led by George Washington as it's commander. -
Olive Branch Petition
Olive Branch Petition: A letter sent to the king by congress urging a return to “the former harmony” between Britain and the colonies -
Publication Of, "Common sense"
In a widely read 50-page pamphlet titled Common Sense, Paine attacked King George and the monarchy. Paine, a recent immigrant, argued that responsibility for British tyranny lay with “the royal brute of Britain.” Paine explained that his own revolt against the king had begun with Lexington and Concord. Common Sense sold nearly 500,000 copies in 1776 and was widely applauded. -
Declaration of independence author
John Locke, author of the Declaration of independence, states that people had natural rights to their life, every society is
based on a social contract, an agreement in which the people consent to choose and obey a government so long as it safeguards their natural rights, and If the government violates that social contract by taking away or interfering with those rights, people have the right to resist and even overthrow the government. the declaration of independence was adopted in august 1776. -
French-American Alliance
after George Washington's successful attack at Saratoga, France's belief that the Americans can win the war was boosted, causing them to sign an alliance with the Americans on February 1778 to join the fight. -
The Treaty of Paris
After the Americans and French surrounded the british at Yorktown and bombarded them day and night, General Cornwallis surrendered in less than a month on October 19,1781. after of which, In September 1783, the delegates signed the Treaty of Paris, which would declare the United States as an independent state and would set the boundaries of the new nation.
