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Started: 1754 Ended: 1763
Pitted the North American colonies of the British Empire against those of the French, each side being supported by various Native American tribe -
The Stamp Act of 1765 was ratified by the British parliament under King George III. It imposed a tax on all papers and official documents in the American colonies, though not in England. Helped pay for British troops stationed in the colonies during the Seven Year War. -
June 15 - July 2
To help pay the expenses involved in governing the American colonies, Parliament passed the Townshend Acts, which initiated taxes on glass, lead, paint, paper, and tea. -
A street fight between a "patriot" mob, throwing snowballs, stones, and sticks, at some British soldiers. Nine British soldiers shot five colonist of a crowd of three or four hundred. -
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. -
March - June
Series of punitive laws passed by the British Parliament. Laws aimed to punish Massachusetts colonists for their defiance in the Tea Party protest of the Tea Act. -
Delegates from twelve of Britain's thirteen American colonies met to discuss America's future under growing British aggression. Congress issued a Declaration of Rights, affirming its loyalty to the British Crown but disputing the British Parliament's right to tax it without representation in the parliament. -
Patrick Henry signaled the coming revolution when he spoke at a Virginia convention and allegedly implored: “Give me liberty, or give me death!”. His speech helped convince those in attendance to begin preparing Virginia troops for war against Great Britain. -
On the night of April 18, hundreds of British troops marched from Boston to nearby Concord in order to seize an arms cache. Paul Revere and other riders sounded the alarm. The Battles of Lexington and Concord were the first military engagements of the American Revolutionary War. The battles were fought on April 19. -
Early in the Revolutionary War, the British defeated the Americans. Despite their loss, the inexperienced colonial forces inflicted significant casualties against the enemy. The fierce fight confirmed that any reconciliation between England and her American colonies was no longer possible. -
Common Sense is a 47-page pamphlet written by Thomas Paine advocating independence from Great Britain to people in the Thirteen Colonies. Argued in favor of American independence. -
The Continental Congress adopted the Declaration of Independence. It was engrossed on parchment and on August 2, 1776, delegates began signing it. A call for the right to statehood rather than individual liberties.