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Albany Plan
Details: The Albany Plan of Union was a rejected plan to create a unified government for the Thirteen Colonies at the Albany Congress.
Significance: The Albany Plan of Union was the first occurrence of the idea to have the colonies work as a collective whole under one government. -
French and Indian War
Details:The French & Indian War was fought between the colonies who were supported by British military units, France & Native American allies. The War was fought over the French & British desire over land & trades with the Natives, ending with the British winning.
Significance:The 7 Years War allowed Britain to gain ownership over land in North America but caused a lot of debt for Britain which led to increased taxes for colonies & the furthering of the colonies relationship with the British. -
Proclamation of 1763
Details: The Proclamation of 1763 was established as a way to prevent further conflicts between settlers and natives by stopping the expansion of colonies westward over the Appalachian Mountains.
Significance: The furthering of relationships between the colonies and Britain was expanded due to the fact that colonies felt they deserved the land which they had fought a war over of which they were getting heavily taxed from so they believed they were being treated worse than they should. -
Sugar Act
Details: The Sugar Act was a tax that made it a lot more expensive to obtain well sugar. The reason they increased the price of sugar was the war, and since Britain was in debt after that war, they put a tax on the colonies.
Significance: This Act played a role in the resistance and rebellions of the Colonies, it played a part in worsening the relationship between Britain and the Colonies. -
Stamp Act
Details:The Stamp Act of 1765 was passed by the British after the large amount of money the British had lost due to the 7 years war which they planned to regain by increasing taxes on the colonies.
Significance: The Stamp Act alongside many other acts were an attempt to regain money for Britain and all of these caused the colonies to grow restless at the British but the stamp act specifically was the first direct taxation on the colonies and led to the saying “No taxation without representation” -
Townshend Acts
Details: The Townshend Acts were a series of Acts places by the British on the Colonies to help pay the expenses involved in governing the American colonies, Parliament passed the Townshend Acts, which initiated taxes on glass, lead, paint, paper, and tea.
Significance: This prompted boycotts of British goods like nonimportation, nonexportation, and nonconsumption. -
Boston Massacre
Details: The Boston Massacre was a confrontation in Boston, where nine British soldiers shot several of a crowd of three or four hundred who were harassing them verbally and throwing various projectiles. The massacre resulted in the death of five people.
Significance: The Boston Massacre raised tensions between colonists and Britain. Which contributed to riots and colonists supporting independence from Britain. -
Boston Tea Party
Details: Boston Tea Party, incident in which 342 chests of tea belonging to the British East India Company were thrown from ships into Boston Harbor by American patriots disguised as Mohawk Indians. The Americans were protesting both a tax on tea.
Significance: The Boston Tea Party was one of the most significant protests that led up to the Revolutionary War, it encouraged colonists in other places to revolt as well. -
Coercive Acts
Details: Coercive acts or the intolerable acts were four new laws placed on to the Massachusetts bay colony to punish the people for the Boston tea party. This was put in place to put the rebellious colonies back in their place this however did the opposite and fueled a rebellion.
Significance: These acts were meant to break Massachusetts Bay and to warn other colonies of what would happen if you do something like the Boston Tea Party however it caused the colonies to want to unite. -
First Continental Congress
Details: This was the first meeting of the congress, colonists held the meeting to resist the taxes the British are enforcing onto them, colonists believed they should have equal rights to British & had a document in depth of their rights, called the “Declaration of rights”, it was the stepping stones to make the Declaration Of Independence.
Significance: It served as an example for the first government for the future of the United States and this expressed the people resisting British control. -
Battle of Lexington and Concord
Details: This was a battle that would start the American war of Independence this was most know for being “The shot heard around the world” although we do not know who shot first what we do know is that this battle would be the starting point to a great war.
Significance: This battle would be the start of the war and also led to a whole lot of people to support this revolution which caused the people to gain allies. -
Second Continental Congress
Details: This was a meeting held by the congress this would be what establishes a government showing what their currency would be, this would be the making of the Continental Army and picking generals to lead that army, and this would also have the same leaders who made the declaration of independence.
Significance: This was where we adopted the Declaration of independence which led to the colonies to form the United States of America. -
Olive Branch Petition
Details:This was the colonists last attempt to stop a war from coming in this petition they showed to the king that they are still loyal to the crown but also emphasized that they should be given rights if this plead to the king failed then a war would erupt between the colonists and the mother country.
Significance: The king refused to even read such a thing so since he did not accept their last attempt to stop the war from coming this of course began the war. -
Common Sense
Details: Thomas Paine wrote "Common Sense" to explain to the colonists that they must fight for independence from Britain. He also explained what type of government the colonies should create for themselves.
Significance: Thomas Paine's Common Sense helped persuade the public to lean towards wanting independence and fighting for their rights away from Britain. -
Declaration of Independence
Details: The colonies breakup letter with Britain that announced the separation of the 13 North American colonies with Britain. It is recognized as the United States founding document.
Significance: This directly states what the colonies want which showed their motivations and what they're seeking from Britain. -
Battle of Saratoga
Details: The Battle of Saratoga was an important battle that served as the climax of the Saratoga campaign & was held between the Americans & British in the American Revolutionary War that the Americans won.
Significance: This victory for the Americans was incredibly important as the defeat of the superior British army greatly boosted morale, furthered the hope for independence, & directly helped in winning the Revolutionary war due to the foreign support of the French gained from this victory. -
Articles of Confederation
Details: The Articles of Confederation were adopted by the Continental Congress in 1777, it served as the United States first constitution. It was in force from March 1, 1781, until 1789 when our present-day Constitution took effect.
Significance: The Articles of Confederation established the functions of the national government of the USA after it declared independence from Britain. -
Valley Forage
Details: Valley Forge is an area in Pennsylvania where George Washington and his Continental Army spent the severe winter of 1777-1778 during the American Revolution. Hundreds died of cold and lack of food, but the army still managed to fight against the British.
Significance: Valley Forge was a naturally defensible plateau where the Continental Army could train and recoup from the year's battles. -
Yorktown
Details: The Siege of Yorktown was a land and sea campaign fought by French and Americans that entrapped a major British army on a peninsula at Yorktown, Virginia and forced its surrender. The siege ended military operations in the American Revolution.
Significance: This victory would eventually led to peace negotiations for the war which would directly lead up to the treaty of Paris. -
Treaty of Paris
Details: This Treaty of Paris was a treaty between the American colonies and Great Britain which ended the American Revolution and formally recognized the United States as an independent nation.
Significance: The official end of the American revolution and served as recognition for the United States as an independent nation.