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French and Indian War
The French and Indian War consisted the French and British. They had the most territorial disputes within North America during this war. Both countries wanted access to the profitable fur trade business and the cheap fertile land west of the Appalachian Mountains. Although the British lost majority of the initial battles they ultimately won the war. The war caused relations to worsen between the British and the Colonists. Colonists were mad that they need to pay taxes on the Proclamation line. -
The Sugar Act
The British Parliament passed the Sugar Act in 1764 in order to help pay for their debt from the French and Indian War as well as to pay for the troops guarding the Proclamation Line of 1763. It forced the colonists to pay a 3 cent tax on goods like sugar, coffee, indigo and certain kinds of alcohol. The colonists were not happy with this law because they had no say in parliament. The slogan “No Taxation without Representation” became popular in the colonies -
The Stamp Act
The British Parliament passed the Stamp Act in 1765. This was for the British soldiers protecting the Proclamation Line. The Stamp Act required that a stamp purchased by the British government had to be placed on all important documents like court papers, newspapers and even playing cards. The colonists were mad because they were paying for troops that were keeping them out of the land they had just fought for. They also had no say in government. This led to an increase in colonial protests. -
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Sons of Liberty
A well-organized political organization shrouded in secrecy that was established to undermine British rule in colonial America. This group sprang up in port cities like Boston and NYC. Group member were men from all walks of life, and they were known to be hot headed and violent. -
Townshed Acts
The Townshend Acts taxed imported items such as paper, glass, paint and tea. The English Parliament passed this act to cover costs of the French and Indian War, as well as to show that they still had power over the colonies. The colonists were outraged with this act so they held public demonstrations, boycotted products and smuggled in goods. Parliament eventually decided to repeal this act because of colonial protests. -
Boston Massacre
On March 5, 1770 there was a violent confrontation between the British soldiers and the colonists in Boston. The colonists blamed the British for the murders, but really they persuaded them to shoot by saying,"Damn your bloods, why don't you fire?" -
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The Coercive (Intolerable) Acts
The colonists brought themselves the Coercive Acts by dumping the tea into the ocean. These acts included: the colonists having to house and feed the British soldiers, the Massachusetts government was taken away, and the new government was ruled by a loyalist, and the king closed the Boston harbor until the colonists paid for the tea they dumped. This was effective because people could not fend for themselves and died. -
The Tea Act
This new tax law was not designed to raise taxes in the colonies. The tea act was created to help the East India Company make profit again because they were going out of business. So the EIC started to give the colonists tea and taxing them for it. -
The Boston Tea Party
At the Boston Tea Party, some men dressed as Indians, (The sons of liberty) threw 342 crates of tea into the water. The main point of this was to show the king that the colonists did not want the tea and they did not want to pay taxes on them. -
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The First Continental Congress
Different men from the thirteen colonists gather at Carpenter’s Hall in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. They discussed the current crises with England and expressed their thoughts about the Coercive Acts. They talked about how the British kept taxing them on different things like, tea, sugar, important documents, etc. -
The Battles of Lexington and Concord
In the battle of Lexington, the colonists only had 77 militia men that were not that experienced war. When the two groups met, the first shot could have been heard around the world. No one knew who’s shot it was. There were 8 dead and 10 wounded. The British had won the first battle. In the battle of Concord, the colonists had over a 1000 people fighting. After the battle, the British ended up retreating and the colonists have won the final war of Concord.
