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Enlightenment
The American Enlightenment was initially what led to the revolutionary war. It was an intellectual development in the thirteen colonies where the colonies began to think about gaining freedom from the British. -
French & Indian War
The French and Indian war, also known as the seven years war, was a battle between the French, British Colonies, and Native American tribes. This was was caused by territorial expansion between France and Britain, which was a major point of conflict because of Britain's fear of losing American territory. The expansion by the European countries also caused conflict with the Native tribes, who weren't willing to give up their land. -
Sons of Liberty
The Sons of Liberty was a loose organization which consisted of investigators and provocateurs who relied on civil disobedience in order to help gain freedom from the British. The Sons of Liberty first sprung up in Boston and New York, and had many groups across the two states. The Sons of Liberty were responsible for many large acts of disobedience, such as the Stamp act in 1765 and the Boston Tea Party. -
Stamp Act
The Stamp Act was issued by the British Parliament. Its aim was to collect money to pay for the British troops staying in the colonies during the Seven Years' War. According to the act, the colonists had to pay a direct tax to the British Government. -
Townshend Acts
The Townshend acts introduced a series of taxes and regulations to fund the British colonies in America. For instance some of the taxed goods were glass, lead, paint, paper and tea.
The acts were passed by the British Government and they are named after Charles Townshend, the chancellor of the time -
Boston Massacre
The Boston Massacre took place on March 5, 1770. The Boston Massacre was a confrontation where 9 British soldiers shot 5 citizens who were in a crowed of three or four hundred. The reason for the British out lash on the Boston citizens was due to the fact that the citizens were abusing them verbally and throwing different items at them. -
Boston Tea Party
The Boston Tea Party was a political protest that took place at Griffin’s Wharf in Boston, Massachusetts. American colonists, angry at the British for the taxes they had imposed on them, dumped 342 chests of tea into the harbor. -
First Continental Congress meets
In 1774 the delegates of the 13 British colonies that became the United States met in the First Continental Congress. They discussed a way that the colonies could respond to the British government's pressing actions, and they worked to make a common cause. -
Second Continental Congress meets
In 1775 the Congress formed by the delegates of the Thirteen Colonies met to prepare for war against the English. They set up a Continental army and elected George Washington as its Commander. They also drafted the Olive Branch Petition and sent it to King George III hoping to reach a peaceful resolution but he refused to take in the petition and declared the American colonies were revolting against him. -
Olive Branch Petition
The Olive Branch Petition was a document sent to the King of England as a last resort to try and prevent war from being declared between the British and the 13 colonies(US). John Dickinson was the one who convinced The Second Continental Congress to try and reconcile with the King. And while John Dickinson and The Second Continental Congress sent the Olive Branch Petition to England, John Adams and a small group decided it would be best to reman silent, believing that war would be inevitable. -
Thomas Paine's common sense published
Thomas Paine's common sense was a 47-page pamphlet published in 1776 and pointed out the injustice rule of the king. Thomas Paine encouraged to not only go against British rule, but to realize that they are not British and that they were American. He also touched on the government systems in Britain and how America should form there's. He pointed out how having a king will always be a bad idea, a strong central government would be needed, and the governments purpose was to serve the poeple. -
Battle of Yorktown
The battle of Yorktown took place in 1781 and was a pivotal turning point for the US. By the time the Battle of Yorktown came the British was only holding onto coastal areas of the US and were also engaged in a war with France and Spain, which made them weaker. On September 28 American and French forces arrive in Yorktown and started there siege on the British. The battle was three weeks of non-stop bombardment until the British surrendered on October 17, 1781. -
Treaty of Paris
The treaty of Paris is what ended the Revolutionary War. The treaty was signed in Paris in 1783 by British representatives King George III. The treaty recognized American independence and established boarder for the new nation. -
The Great Compromise
The Great Compromise was originally set up in order to provide congressional representation, with each state being given an equal number of senate seats. But the problem with this is that larger states felt they should get more representation in the Senate because the contributed more money to the country. This was an issue, until Benjamin Franklin decided that all states should have equal representation except for when it comes to money, which is when the Great compromise was finally adopted.
