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French-Indian War (1756-1763)
In 1756–the first official year of fighting in the Seven Years' War–the British suffered a series of defeats against the French and their broad network of Native American alliances. ... In addition, Spanish attempts to aid France in the Americas had failed, and France also suffered defeats against British forces in India. -
Navigation Acts (1763)
The Navigation Acts were a series of laws passed by the British Parliament that imposed restrictions on colonial trade. British economic policy was based on mercantilism, which aimed to use the American colonies to bolster British state power and finances. -
Stamp Act
The Stamp Act imposed a direct tax on the colonists. Specifically, the act required that, starting in the fall of 1765, legal documents and printed materials must bear a tax stamp provided by commissioned distributors who would collect the tax in exchange for the stamp. -
Quartering Act
On March 24, 1765, the British Parliament passed the Quartering Act, one of a series of measures primarily aimed at raising revenue from the British colonies in America.Once the war had ended, the king's advisors decided that some British troops should remain in North America, in theory to defend the colonies -
Townshend Acts
The Townshend Acts, named after Charles Townshend, British chancellor of the Exchequer, imposed duties on British china, glass, lead, paint, paper and tea imported to the colonies. ... However, these policies prompted colonists to take action by boycotting British goods. -
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. The conflict energized anti-British sentiment and paved the way for the American Revolution.More than 2,000 British soldiers occupied the city of 16,000 colonists and tried to enforce Britain’s tax laws. American colonists rebelled against the taxes “no taxation without representation.” -
Boston Tea Party
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. The event was the first major act of defiance to British rule over the colonists. It showed Great Britain that Americans wouldn’t take taxation and tyranny sitting down, and rallied American patriots across the 13 colonies to fight for independence. -
Intolerable Acts (aka Coercive Acts)
It included a new Quartering Act that provided arrangements for housing British troops in American dwellings. It revived the anger that colonists had felt regarding the earlier Quartering Act (1765), which had been allowed to expire in 1770.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 convention of delegates from the 13 colonies that formed in Philadelphia in May 1775, soon after the launch of the American Revolutionary War. It succeeded the First Continental Congress, which met between September and October of 1774.The First Continental Congress petitioned King George III to repeal the Intolerable Acts (punitive measures passed by Parliament in response to the Boston Tea Party) and initiated a boycott of British goods. -
Olive Branch Petition
The Olive Branch Petition was a final attempt by the colonists to avoid going to war with Britain during the American Revolution.It was a document in which the colonists pledged their loyalty to the crown and asserted their rights as British citizens. Thomas Jefferson wrote the first draft of Olive Branch Petition but it was considered too inflammatory. John Dickinson, a delegate from Pennsylvania, wrote the final draft, which was much more toned down. -
Battle of Lexington & Concord (aka “The Shot Heard Around the World”)
DeCosta July 29, 1775. The first shots were fired just after dawn in Lexington, Massachusetts the morning of the 19th, the "Shot Heard Round the World." The colonial militia, a band of 500 men, were outnumbered and initially forced to retreat. -
Common Sense
Thomas publishes his pamphlet “Common Sense,” setting forth his arguments in favor of American independence. Originally published anonymously, “Common Sense” advocated independence for the American colonies from Britain and is considered one of the most influential pamphlets in American history. Credited with uniting average citizens and political leaders behind the idea of independence, “Common Sense” played a remarkable role in transforming a colonial squabble into the American Revolution -
Declaration of Independence
Jefferson began the document by proclaiming a set of natural rights held by all and the responsibility of the government to protect those rights. He then cited specific ways in which King George 3 had violated the colonists’ rights, which formed their justification for seeking independence.The DOI states three basic ideas: all men equal,the main business of government is to protect these rights, if a government withhold these rights,the people are free to revolt and to set up a new government. -
Articles of Confederation
The Articles of Confederation and Perpetual Union was the first written constitution of the United States. Written in 1777 and stemming from wartime urgency, its progress was slowed by fears of central authority and extensive land claims by states. It was not ratified until March 1, 1781. -
Daniel Shays’ Rebellion
In western Massachusetts in opposition to high taxes and stringent economic conditions. Armed bands forced the closing of several courts to prevent execution of foreclosures and debt processes. In September 1786 Daniel Shays and other local leaders led several hundred men in forcing the Supreme Court in Springfield to adjourn. Shays led a force of about 1,200 men in an attack (January 1787) on the federal arsenal at Springfield, which was repulsed. Pursued by the militia, on February 4