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Boston Massacre
British soldiers and a crowd engaged in a battle in Boston on March 5, 1770. British soldiers opened fire on the mob in response to colonist provocations, killing five men, including Crispus Attucks. The incident, which was widely portrayed as a struggle for American liberty by Samuel Adams, Paul Revere, and others, increased British unpopularity in the years preceding the American Revolution. -
Boston Tea Party
A group of 60 American colonists hurled 342 chests of tea into Boston Harbor as a form of protest against the East India Company's alleged monopoly and a tax on tea that they saw as taxation without representation. -
Passage of the Intolerable Acts
The act gave the Royal Navy permission to blockade Boston Harbor because "the commerce of his Majesty's subjects cannot be safely carried on there." On June 1, 1774, the blockade started, effectively cutting off commercial traffic to Boston's harbor. It also prohibited exports to any provinces or ports abroad. -
Creation of the Continental Congress
Between September 5th until October 26th, 1774, the First Continental Congress met in Carpenters' Hall in Pennsylvania. Twelve of Britain's thirteen American colonies sent representatives to a meeting to assess the country's future in the face increasing British Aggressiveness. -
Paul Revere's Ride
Paul Revere's ride was to warn the town, including John Hancock and Samuel Adams, that over 700 British troops were trying to invade them. -
Battle of Lexington and Concord
This conflict, which marked the beginning of the American War of Independence, is also referred to as the "shot heard around the world." The colonists of Massachusetts disobeyed British rule, outnumbered and outfought the Redcoats, and launched a protracted struggle to secure their independence. -
Battle of Bunker Hill
The Battle of Bunker Hill was New England soldiers in open combat against the British Army. Warfare occurred along a steep region of closed meadows. Although the American Revolutionaries lost the Battle, they showed they could compete with the more powerful British Army. The violent battle made it clear that there would be no reconciliation between England and her American colonies in the future. -
Creation of the Declaration of Independence
The 13 American colonies terminated their political ties with Great Britain. The Declaration specified the reasons on why the colonies wanted independence. -
Battles of Saratoga
The Revolutionary War was changed when the Battle of Saratoga occurred. The American army's victory over the greater British army raised national spirits, boosted the dream of independence, and helped to win the war's necessary foreign backing. -
Treaty of Paris
On September 3, 1783, representatives from the U.S. and the UK signed the Treaty of Paris, which put and end to the War of the American Revolution. The deal provided the U.S. important western territory and recognized U.S. independence based on a preliminary pact from 1782.