Events leading to Declaration of Independence

  • The Albany Plan

    The Albany Plan
    In 1754, the British Board of Trade called a meeting of the seven North colonies at Albany. The Purpose of the meeting was to talk about the problems with colonial trade and danger of attacks from the French and their allies. Ben Franklin then came up with the Albany Plan of Union. Ben thought to have delegates from each of the 13 colonies that would regulate trade and make war or peace with the Native Americans. The reps agreed with it during the meeting but it got turned down by the colonies.
  • The Stamp Act

    The Stamp Act
    In 1765, Britain established the stamp act. It was a law that required a tax stamp on all legal documents, business agreements, and newspapers. In October 1765, nine colonies sent delegates to New York to protest. The Parliament repealed the Stamp Act, but they made new laws to make things more like London's laws.Organized resistance was carried on by a political leader Samuel Adams. This Led to the Boston Tea Party on December 16, 1773.
  • Boston Massacre

    Boston Massacre
    Parliament had repealed The Stamp Act, but new laws were made to tie the colonies closer to London. Colonists showed their anger by not following the laws. The people began boycotting the goods. On March 5, 1770, British troops in Boston fired on a wild crowd, killing five people, making this a known event in history as the Boston Massacre.
  • Boston Tea Party

    Boston Tea Party
    340 chests of tea were destroyed during the Boston Tea Party, These objects would be worth $1.7 million today. A group of men, disguised as Native Americans boarded three tea ships in Boston Harbor. They broke open the chests of tea and dumped the ships cargo into the sea.
  • Intolerable Acts

    Intolerable Acts
    On May 20, 1774, the British Parliament passed the Coercive Acts, also known as the Intolerable Acts. The acts stripped away Massachusetts self-government and rights, triggering outrage and resistance in the Thirteen Colonies.
  • first continental congress

    first continental congress
    A parliament of another set of laws was passed, set to punish the colonists for the troubles in Boston and elsewhere. The new laws, denounced in America as the intolerable acts, promoted widespread calls for a meeting of the colonies. The first continental congress discussed the worsening situation and debated plans for action.
  • Battles of Lexington and Concord

    Battles of Lexington and Concord
    On April 18, hundreds of troops marched from Boston to nearby Concord, many more battles followed this one and finally in 1783 , the colonists formally won their independence.
  • Start of The American Revolution

    Start of The American Revolution
    The British government decided to make the American colonies pay a large share of the war debt from the French and Indian War. Through the Sugar Act, Stamp Act, and other taxes, the British tried to collect taxes that the American people considered harsh.
  • second continental congress

    second continental congress
    The revolution began, after the second continental congress had met. The battle of Lexington and concord had been fought three weeks earlier ,on April 19th , also known as " shot heard 'round the world"
  • Declaration Of Independence

    Declaration Of Independence
    Thomas Jefferson, as a young man, wrote an essay in 1774, in which he argued for colonial independence. The document he crafted drew from the political philosophies of Enlightenment thinker John Locke, in particular the ideas of natural rights and the social contract theory.
  • End of The American Revolution

    End of The American Revolution
    The Treaty of Paris of 1783, negotiated between the United States and Great Britain, ended the revolutionary war and recognized American independence. The Continental Congress named a five-member commission to negotiate a treaty–John Adams, Benjamin Franklin, John Jay, Thomas Jefferson, and Henry Laurens.