-
French and Indian War end
The war ended. They were fighting for with France over control of the Ohio River valley. -
Stamp Act Congress
The colonies decided to organize and send representatives to meeting in New York City. They met to discuss the colonists' right as British subjects. -
Stamp Act
Tax that required a stamp for all printed items included newspaper, legal documents, and even playing cards. Colonist were not happy about it. -
Stamp Act Repealed
Benjamin Franklin before the British House of Commons, Parliament voted to repeal the Stamp Act. However, the same day, Parliament passed the Declaratory Acts, asserting that the British government had free and total legislative power over the colonies. -
Declaratory Act Passed
British Parliament that accompanied the repeal of the Stamp Act. It stated that the British Parliament's taxing authority was the same in America as in Great Britain. -
Townshend Act Passed
The Townshend Acts were a series of British acts of Parliament passed relating to the British colonies in America. They are named after Charles Townshend, the Chancellor of the Exchequer who proposed the program. -
Boston Massacre
The Boston Massacre was a street fight, between a "patriot" mob, throwing snowballs, stones, and sticks, and a squad of British soldiers. Several colonists were killed and this led to a campaign by speech-writers to rouse the ire of the citizenry. -
Townshend Act Repealed
The British parliament repealed the Townshend duties on all but tea. Pressure from British merchants was partially responsible for the change. The British government, led by Prime Minister Lord North, maintained the taxes on tea, in order to underscore the supremacy of parliament. -
Tea Act
Parliament passed the Tea Act in 1773. The act granted the company the right to ship its tea directly to the colonies without first landing it in England. -
Boston Tea Party
The Boston Tea Party happened in 3 British ships in the Boston Harbor. The Boston Tea Party took place because the colonists did not want to have to pay taxes on the British tea. -
Coercive Act Passed
British measures passed in 1774 and designed to punish the Massachusetts colonists for the Boston Tea Party. For example, one of the laws closed the port of Boston until the colonists paid for the tea that they had destroyed. -
First Continental Congress
Meeting of delegates from 12 of the 13 British colonies that became the United States. A plan was proposed to create a Union of Great Britain and the Colonies, but the delegates rejected it. -
Revolutionary War Begin
The conflict following the revolt of the North American colonies against British rule, particularly on the issue of taxation. Hostilities began in 1775 when British and American forces clashed at Lexington and Concord. -
Second Continental
The Second Continental Congress was a meeting of delegates from the Thirteen Colonies in America which united in the American Revolutionary War. -
Declaration of Independence
The Declaration of Independence is defined as the formal statement written by Thomas Jefferson declaring the freedom of the thirteen American colonies from Great Britain.
