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French and Indian War
The French and Indian War was mainly between France and Great Britain. The fight was over land in North America. It started because there was a great deal of tension between the two countries. Britain won a great deal of land however, later it led to the Americn Revolution. -
Proclamation of 1763
The Proclamation of 1763 was issued by King George III, after the end of The French and Indian War. The document stated that no colonists were allowed to settle west of the Appalachian mountains. Although the king claimed he was just trying to keep peace with the natives, the colonists viewed it as a threat to their freedom. -
Stamp Act of 1765
This act was passed by the British Parliment. The act said that Americans would be taxed for every piece of printed paper they used. Anything from newspapers to legal documents were taxed. The money went towards proecting the America's frontier near the Appalachian Mountains. -
Boston Massacre
A mob of angry unarmed patriots were provoking a group of soldiers by throwing snowballs and pieces of ice at the them. The throng of people began to throw more harmful items, so a scared soldier fired into the crowd. Within seconds the street became a chaotic battlefield of gunfire. And a minute later, 5 colonists layed dead with many more injured. The Boston Massacre is when, in my opinion, many patriots realized that war was inevitable. -
Boston Tea Party
Because of the Townshed Act issued by King George III, the PATRIOTS devised a plan against Britan. Since they were taxed on tea, the PATRIOTS constructed a plan to make the King mad. On the Night of December 16, 1773 the PATRIOTS disguised themselves as Indians. They threw the tea, manufactored by the East India Company, overboard into the Boston Harbor. -
Intolerable Acts
The Intolerable Acts were a result of the colonists actions.The Boston Tea Party was mainly why King George III enforced the Intolerable Acts. The Boston Port Bill, one of the acts, closed the Boston Harbor. Once closed citizens of Boston had no goods such as tea, food, etc. The Quebec Act shut off fur trade from the Ohio and Mississippi River. This eventually lead to the First Continental Congress later in 1774. -
The First Continental Congress
The First Continental Congress was a group of delegates from twelve colonies, they met in secret to discuss how to deal with Britan's unfair rule. After over a month of arguing, the congress finally came to a conclusion. They decided to boycott all British goods, in hope that the king might repeal the Intolerable Acts. -
The Second Continental Congress
The Second Continental Congress met in Philadelphia. The first question was how would they meet the military threat of Britain. It was decided that there would be a CONTINENTAL ARMY. They also came to agreement on making GEORGE WASHINGTON the commander of the Army. They also authorized the printing of money to pay for the supplies. Congress appointed a committee to deal with relationships with foreign countries. By the end of the meeting it was a full on governing body. -
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Revolutionary War
The war started due to LOYALIST'S making the Declaration of Independence. The war began as Britain fighting the Colonies. It later turned to the newly formed United States, Spain, and France against Britain. There was many battles in this war. British had so many advantages but somehow the Americans won. The war gave America their freedom as it's own individual country. -
(1) Declaration of Independence
The Declaration of Independence was a letter that the colonists sent to KING GEORGE III. The letter simply stated all the wrongs that the king has commited, and then it proceeded to declare America's independence. This letter was the colonists way of saying that the king should have acknowledged the OLIVE BRANCH PETITION. COMMON SENSE, an inspirational pamphlet written by THOMAS PAINE, encouraged the colonists to go to war. This book had a very large impact on the Declaration of Independence. -
(2) Declaration of Independence
The fathers of the constitution took many ideas from an English philosopher (JOHN LOCKE). However the most influential person in the writing of the Declaration was Thomas Jefferson. Jefferson was the official author of the Declaration of Independence. Without this document, America might still not be a free country. -
Articles of Confederation
The Articles of Confederation was the so called first Constitution of America. The Articles of Confederation gave most of the powers to state governments. With a very weak central government. This document later fell apart and lead to the First Constitutional Convention in 1787. The Constitution later replaced the Articles of Confederation. -
Treaty of Paris
The Revolutionary War went on for eight years. The war was a world conflict involving not only USA and Britain, but Spain, France, and the Netherlands. The war was one by America. The Treaty of Paris ended the war and gave the United States their freedom as their own country. -
Start of Constitutional Convention
In 1786 the citizens of America knew that the Articles of Confederation was causing troubles among the country. In 1787 they demolished the Articles of Confederation and started the Constitutional Convention. They started with the GREAT COMPROMISE, in the House of Represenatives the number of seats a state had mattered on population. In the senate all the states had the same amount of represenatives. -
Constitutional Convention (2)
Next was the THREE-FIFTHS COMPROMISE, the north didn't want slaves to be counted in population and the south wanted slaves to be counted. If the slaves did count the south would have a bigger population which meant more represenatives. The ELECTORAL COLLEGE was made up so that picking the president was not all up to the people. -
(1) Shay's Rebellion
Shay's Rebellion was an uprising that took place in Massachusetts during the late 1700s. The rebellion started because farmers were not earning enough money to pay their debts and taxes. The government threatened to take away their land, if they did not pay up. This angered many of the farmers to point of rebelling. Luckily, the uprising did not last long. -
(2) Shay's Rebellion
When Daniel Shay, leader or the rebellion, and his men marched on Washington they were quickly forced to retreat, due to the American Militia. This uprising was important because it made the government realize that The Articles of Confederation were not working. -
Northwest Ordinance
The Northwest Ordinance gave America more land. It gave them everything northwest of the Ohio River. They established a government for the Northwest Territory. Having a government outlined the process of becoming a new union and not long after did it become a union. The Northwest Territory also outlawed slavery. -
(1) The Constitution
The Constitution is the documents that JAMES MADISON, ALEXANDER HAMILTON, and our other founding fathers wrote. The papers explained the basic framework for our government, and laws. The Constituion was organized in a way that made it easy to decipher. The first part of The Constitution is called the PREAMBLE. The PREAMBLE states the founding fathers goals for the new government. However, not everybody supported The Constitution. -
(2) The Constitution
The ANTI-FEDERALISTS were a group of people that did not support the new government. They believed that the states should have more power than the central government. After The Constitution was done being written, 13 states had to ratify in order for it to become a law. THE FEDERALIST PAPERS were a series of documents, written to persuade the states to sign The Constitution. Without this important document, we would never have the amazing government we have today. -
Bill of Rights
The Bill of Rights are the main rights of the American citizens. The Bill of Rights are a outline of MAGNA CARTA. MAGNA CARTA were the British citizens rights. The Bill of Rights are the first ten amendments. They include anything from the freedom of speech to the rights of an accused suspect in a trial. The RATIFICATION of the Bill of Rights happened on December 15, 1791. It lead to seventeen more amendments and counting.
