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French and Indian War
The French and Indian War provided Great Britain with enormous territorial gains in North America, but disputes over subsequent frontier policy and paying the war's expenses led to colonial discontent, and ultimately to the American Revolution. -
Stamp Act
The Stamp Act required the colonists to pay a tax, represented by a stamp, on various forms of papers, documents, and playing cards. It was a direct tax imposed by the British government without the approval of the colonial legislatures and was payable in hard-to-obtain British sterling, rather than colonial currency. -
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Townshend Act
To help pay the expenses involved in governing the American colonies, Parliament passed the Townshend Acts, which initiated taxes on glass, lead, paint, paper, and tea. In response to new taxes, the colonies again decided to discourage the purchase of British imports. -
Boston Massacre
Late in the afternoon of March 5, 1770, British sentries guarding the Boston Customs House shot into a crowd of civilians, killing three men and injuring eight, two of them mortally. -
Boston Tea Party
The Boston Tea Party was an act of protest in which a group of 60 American colonists threw 342 chests of tea into Boston Harbor to agitate against both a tax on tea and the perceived monopoly of the East India Company. -
Intolerable Acts
The Intolerable Acts included a new Quartering Act that provided arrangements for housing British troops in American dwellings. It revived the anger that colonists had felt regarding the earlier Quartering Act, which had been allowed to expire in 1770. -
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First Continental Congress
The First Continental Congress convened in Carpenters' Hall in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Delegates from twelve of Britain's thirteen American colonies met to discuss America's future under growing British aggression. -
The Battles of Lexington and Concord
In this first battle of the American Revolution, Massachusetts colonists defied British authority, outnumbered and outfought the Redcoats, and embarked on a lengthy war to earn their independence. The battles resulted in an American victory.