Events leading to Revo. War

Proclamation of 1763

Oct 7, 1763

The Royal Proclamation was issued by King George III, following the capture by Great Britain of French territory in North America after the Seven Years' War.

The Sugar Act

Apr 5, 1764

Also known as the American Revenue Act, the Sugar Act was a revenue-raising act passed by Parliament of Great Britain.

The Currency Act

Sep 1, 1764

This act was passed after the French and Indian War ended. The act banned the use of paper money in colonies. By passing this, the British government was attempting to have a greater amount of control over the individual colonies. The colonists became agitated at this, adding more tension between them and Great Britain.

Repeal of Stamp Act

Mar 18, 1765

The American Colonies Act of 1766 was an act of British Parliament followed the repeal of the Stamp Act of 1765 and the lessening of the Sugar Act.

Stamp Act

Mar 22, 1765

In the wake of Britain's victory in the French & Indian War, the nation found itself with a large national debt that had reached £130,000,000 by 1764. The government of the Earl of Bute made the decision to keep a standing army of 10,000 men in North America for colonial defense, as well as to provide employment for politically connected officers.

Quartering Act

Mar 24, 1765

Parliament passed the Quartering Act, forcing colonists to house soldiers against there will. This act was created due to the Seven Years' War.

Townshend Acts

Jun 15, 1767

Originated by Charles Townshend and passed by the English Parliament shortly after the repeal of the Stamp Act.

Boston Massacre[?]

Mar 5, 1770

The Boston "Massacre" was the killing of five colonists by British regulars. It was the culmination of tensions in the American colonies.

Tea Act

Dec 16, 1773

This act was made to help prevent the illegal smuggling of tea and to help sell tea from the West Indies. On the night of December 16, 1773, the Sons of Liberty, a loosely knit secret organization of American colonists who wanted American independence, illegally boarded three British East India cargo ships in the Boston Harbor and threw 45 tons of tea into the harbor, rather than let the tea be landed.

Intolerable Acts

Apr 22, 1774

These acts were the American Patriots' term for a series of punitive laws passed by British Parliament in 1774 after the Boston Tea party.

Lexington & Concord

Apr 19, 1775

These battles were the first military engagements of the American Revolutionary War. The battles were fought in Middlesex County, Province of Massachusetts Bay.

Second Continental Congress

May 10, 1775

This was a convention of delegates from the Thirteen Colonies that started meeting in the summer of 1775, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

Bunker Hill

Jun 17, 1775

This battle was fought during the Siege of Boston during the early stages of the American Revolutionary War. The battle is named after Bunker Hill in Charlestown, Massachusetts.