-
The French and Indian War
The French and Indian War was a 7 yearwar. The French and the British owned large amounts of land in North America. They both wanted the same land in the Ohio River Valley. The French and Indians fought against the British and the Colonists, for the rights to own land. During the war, the colonies, created the Albany Congress. The leaders of the colonists met together, to discuss the matters of the war. In 1757, British started to pull ahead, all thanks to Wiliam Pitt. Many new laws were created -
The Proclamation 1763
After the war ended, the British wanted to stop the fighting on the frontier. They created the Proclamation of 1763. It banned colonists from settling west of the Applachlain Mountains. The problem with the Proclamation was that even though it made the Indians happy, the colonists became annoyed and "violated" of their rights to land. The strict rule was impossible for the British to enforce, because of the amount of land, and they didn't have enough soldiers to always be n -
The Sugar Act 1764
The Sugar Act was a revival of the Molasses Act of 1733. It increased the import tax on molasses, and sugar. It was almost as a punishment to smugglers. The act was strongly enforced, and made many people protest. -
The Stamp Act
After the French and Indian war, the British felt as if they could control the colonies more. They had many unreasonable and outlandish laws, such as the Stamp Act. The Stamp Act forced the colonists to buy special stamps for everything, from luxury goods, newspaper, wills, and other documents. The colonists rebelled instantly. Merchants, who sold British goods, boycotted or banned the goods. In October of 1765, leaders from the colonies met together to create a petition for Britain. -
The Boston Massacre
The colonists were upset about the Townshend Acts. They thought that the British soldiers sent to the colonies after the Townshend Acts were passed, were going to be permanent. This angered the colonists. On March 5th 1770, an angry group of colonists started to bother and harass a solider. Other soldiers noticed and came to his defense. The colonists were throwing rocks, and other things at the soldiers. The British soldiers became scared, and fired their guns, killing and injuring colonists -
The Boston Tea Party
The Boston Tea Party was when a group called the Sons of Liberty, went into the harbor and dumped all the tea into the Charles River. They were dresses as Indians, and everyone was out in the streets celebrating, and protested against Britain. Because there was so much stress in Boston, on December 16th 1773, the colonists through all the tea in the water. Over 90,000 pounds of tea, and thousands of pounds worth of tea were wasted. The protests raged on after the Tea Party. -
Shot Heard Round the World
On April 1775, in Lexington , MA there was 77 minutemen awaiting the arrival of the British after the warning from Paul Revere. When the British arrived, the minutemen told the British to turn around and leave. The British refused. In the following seconds, a shot was fired. To this day, no one knows who fired the shot. It killed eight Americans. This was the start of the war. Following the interaction, there was a larger battle near Concord and Lexington. -
The Intolerable Acts
After the Boston Tea Party, the King and Parliament created the Intolerable Acts. Boston harbor was closed, and guarded by the British army. Nothing could get in, nothing could get out. Two other laws were created so the royal governors had more control, and that the powers of town meeting s had no value. Another law strengthened the 1765 Quartering Act. These laws pushed the colonists farther, making them rebel and protest. -
Battle at Bunker Hill
There was very little faith that America was going to win the war. The Patriots surrounded Boston, ready to fight. The British leader thought it would be the best to attack from the bottom of the hill, and run straight up. But, the American commander, Israel Putnam knew they didn’t have enough ammunition to stand against the British. He told all his troops, to only fire when you can see the “whites of their eyes”. It worked; hundreds of British died. The British didn’t retreat -
Common Sense by Thomas Paine
In 1776 Thomas Paine, wrote Common Sense a 50 page papplet about America governing them selves. His writing inspired everyone in the colonies. The book sold over 500,000 copies throughout the colonies. Some of the ideas in the Declaration of Independence were influenced by Common Sense -
Battle at Saratoga
British Military Leader, Burgoyne had a plan to defeat the Patriots. He wanted to gain control over Hudson Valley, and then attack Albany from all angles. His plan backfired. The King ordered General Howe to attack Philly instead this bothered Burgoyne very much. Also his weapons are having trouble getting down from Canada. While Burgoyne is set up at Camp in Western NY, Americans are able to come and attack. After the British are stuck in Saratoga, Burgoyne is forced to surrender -
Valley Forge
Valley Forge was a camp during the winter of 1777-78, located in Valley Forge, PA. Washington and his troops camped there. It was horrible. 11,000 Soldiers didn’t have enough food, clothing, or basic needs to live. They lived in tiny huts, and they were always freezing. Many became very sick. Women, including Martha Washington, came to Valley Forge to provide food, and nursing. The soldiers used Valley Forge to gain strength for the fighting in the spring. -
Battle at Yorktown
General Cornwallis needed to move his troops up to the Virginia coast, in order to help his navy get more supplies. He brought his troops onto a peninsula, near Yorktown, VA. The French surrounded the waters blocking him one way, and the British blocked the other way from land. He was stuck in a fort, until he surrendered. He had to ,because his army was dying. Yorktown was the last major battle of the war. -
Treaty of Paris
At the end of the war, Parliament voted on making amends with America. They met in Paris. Ben Franklin, and John Adams represented the colonies. The terms of the treaty included boarders being created, Florida needed to be returned to Spain, and states had to repay loyalist for damage. This marked the official end of the war. -
Washington's Farewell
At the end of the war, Washington and his partners met for one last meal together at the Fraunces Tavern in NYC. At the end of the meal, each man said goodbye to Washington. It was very emotional, and hard for the men to part. One man said" Such a scene of sorrow and weeping I had never before witnessed”, Washington wanted to retire, but couldn't because his country needed him again later.
