-
French and Indian War
The first phase of this war was a sheer disaster for Britain. Assaults on French territory ended in bitter defeat. The French and their Indian allies inspired fear on the British frontier by burning and pillaging settlements, -
Proclamation of 1763
French government had yielded this territory to Britain did not mean the Ohio Valley's French inhabitants would readily give up their claims to land or trade routes. Scattered pockets of French settlers made the British fearful of another prolonged conflict. The war had dragged on long enough, and the British public was weary of footing the bill. -
Stamp Act
The British point of view is not difficult to grasp. The Seven Years' War had been terribly costly. The TAXES asked of the American colonists were lower than those asked of mainland English citizens. The revenue raised from taxing the colonies was used to pay for their own defense. Moreover, the funds received from American colonists barely covered one-third of the cost of maintaining British troops in the 13 colonies. -
Tea Act
The BRITISH EAST INDIA COMPANY was on the brink of financial collapse. LORD NORTH hatched a scheme to deal simultaneously with the ailing corporation and the problem of taxing the colonies. He decided to grant the British East India Company a trading monopoly with the American colonies.
A tax on tea would be maintained, but the company would actually be able to sell its tea for a price that was lower than before. A MONOPOLY doesn't allow for competition. -
Boston Tea Party
The Sons of Liberty dumped 342 crates of tea into the Boston Harbor. -
Intolerable act
People were stealing tea so they had to make laws. -
Declaration of Independence
On June 7, 1776, RICHARD HENRY LEE introduced a resolution to the Congress that declared the thirteen colonies "free and independent states."
