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The French and Indian War
Started with disputes between France and Great Britain over the Ohio River Valley which eventually led to war. It started when Washington fired upon the French envoy which was supposed to meet him to discuss settlement over the land and the French retaliated out of outrage. The french and the indians Fought against the British colonies for control of the land but eventually the British won and as a result of the Treaty of Paris all of France's land was taken. -
The Proclamation of 1763
The proclomation of 1763 stated that the colonists could not settle west of the Appalachian Mountains. This was done as a way to lower the amount of conflicts between the Colonists and Indians. The main affect of this was resentment from the colonists to the crown because they saw all that opportunity to go west but they were being restricted -
Sugar Act
Parliament wrote this act on the Colonists. This law puts a tax on foreign sugar and molasses which devastated the Rum Industry and hurt the Economy. The colonials began to protest this act as they viewed it as harsh and unfair -
Stamp act
British Parliament passed this act on all Official documents and almost everything on paper, even playing cards! The colonies did not react well to this at all, the stamp act congress happened directly because of this and the Sons of Liberty began harassing Stamp Officers even before the act was put in place. -
Quartering act
The quartering act basically said that the colonies had to provide a space for the British enforcement officers to live and also provide them with basic necessities -
Stamp Act Congress
Representatives from 9/13 colonies showed up to the Stamp Act Congress held in New York City. They were attempting to figure out what they wanted to do to protest these new acts and showed major significance because this was the first time the colonies had put together local differences to solve a common issue. -
Declaratory act
England actually didn't do anything with this law but they said that they still had power over the colonies and they should respect it. -
Townshend Acts
Charles Townshend put this act into place and kindly decided to name it after himself. This act gave the British the power of the writs of assistance and taxed tea, lead, glass, etc. The tax money was supposed to go back to England so they could help pay ff their debt. The colonies responded with protests and the sons of liberty were at it again and the British repealed all of them except the tax on tea. -
Boston Massacre
-Crispus Attucks was the first casualty of a long and brutal war
-Five people died in total, 3 at the event and 2 died of their wounds
-Sparked hints of revolution and the Boston Tea Party -
Boston Tea Party
The Sons of Liberty really decided to show out here, they dressed as Native Americans and threw millions of dollars worth of tea into the harbor. This event was inspired by the tea act being in place after many protests. The British then responded by placing the Intolerable Acts.
-As indians they threw barrels and barrels of tea into the harbor
-Some colonists actually did not approve of this and thought it to be innapropriate -
Intolerable acts
Boston was mainly affected by these laws. The biggest problem with all of these was when they shut down Boston's harbor as a form of punishment. The colonials responded with the first continental congress. -
First Continental Congress
-South Carolina, North Carolina, Virginia, Maryland, Delaware, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, New York, Connecticut, Rhode Island, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Maine
-Patrick Henry, George Washington, John Adams, John Jay were some of the founding fathers present at the event
They all met at Carpenters Hall in Pennsylvania but decided they wouldn't take any action and gave Britain one last chance to live in peace with the colonists -
Quebec Act
Restored french form of civil law and gave religious freedom. Also instilled a permanent Administration. This just fueled the colonists resentment towards Britain. -
Lexington and Concord
The british heard of a cache of weapons was hidden in Concord along with Sam Adams and John Hancock were in the area. The minuetmen were called into action against the "most formidable army in the world". For the colonists 49 were killed,39 were wounded. For the British, 73 were killed, 174 were wounded. -
Second Continental Congress
-Connecticut, Massachusetts, Virginia, Pennsylvania, New York, Rhode Island, North Carolina, Georgia, Virginia, South Carolina
-Sam Adams, Patrick Henry, John Hancock, Benjamin Franklin
They met in Philadelphia and decided on how they would act against the British military after their actions in Lexington and Concord. The Olive Branch petition and the declaration of independence were written during this event. -
Battle of Bunker Hill
The battle occured in the Charles Town Peninsula, this battle resulted in a British victory but also as a morale boost for the colonists as it showed that they could actually fight against the British Army and gave us hope. -
Common Sense
Thomas Paine argued in this pamphlet that Independence in the Colonies was the only way they could move forward and get away from the "unfair" oppression by the British, this helped turn many undecided colonists to supporting the war effort. -
Declaration of Independence
Thomas Jefferson was the writer of the Declaration but the founding fathers all put their ideas and input into it. It was signed on July 4th, 1776 that is why we celebrate July 4th now. This document is what finally said that we wanted our own independence and were willing to fight for it. It included reasons why we signed it and gave some hints at how our country would turn out into the future. Now sent to the King the colonies now felt more of a sense of pride to call themselves American -
