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The first Continental Congress meets
- All the colonies except Georgia send representatives
- Voted to send a "statement of grievances"
- Boycotted British trade
- Patrick Henry (VA rep) urged colonists to unite against Britain
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Washington to Boston
- in July 1775, Washington arrives in Boston
- Washington disciplines his troops for months
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Troops in Boston
- General Thomas Gage takes over Boston
- By April 1775, thousands of troops are in Boston
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British Moving
- Dr.Joseph Warren saw moving troops and warned others
- Troops were moving to Concord to burn Patriot ammunition
- Paul Revere and William Dawes rode to Lexington to warn people
- Paul and Dawes caught by British, message is carried to Concord via Samuel Prescott
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The Battle of Lexington
- American victory
- British troops on the way to Concord are interrupted by minutemen
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The Battle of Concord
- American Victory
- Minutemen met British at the North Bridge in Concord
- British turn and retreat
- British suffer heavy losses
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The Battle at Fort Ticonderoga
- American victory
- British troops vs. Green Mountain Boys and Connecticut militia
- Colonists took British by surprise
- British surrender
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Second Continental Congress Meeting
- Delegates from the first continental congress and more came
- John Hancock chosen to be president of meeting
- Some people in attendance include: John and Samuel Adams, Patrick Henry, Richard Henry Lee, George Washington, Benjamin Franklin, and John Hancock.
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Battle of Bunker Hill
- British victory
- Previous day, colonist militia assembled on Bunker and Breed's hills
- British charged hills 3 times
- Americans surrendered because they were out of ammunition
- Heavy British losses
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Common Sense
- Thomas Paine publishes Common Sense
- He came from England to the Colonies in 1774
- Common Sense listed reasons why America would be better separate from Britain
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Redcoats retreat from Boston
- Washington brought cannons from Fort Ticonderoga
- Under the cover of darkness, Washington put people and cannons into position overlooking Boston
- William Howe retreated to Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada.
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Vote for Independence
- 12 of 13 colonies voted
- Voted on Richard Henry Lee's statement that the colonies should be an independent nation
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Declaration of Independence Published
- Committee of writing: John Adams, Benjamin Franklin, Thomas Jefferson, Robert Livingston, and Robert Sherman.
- Approved July 4th, 1776
- John Hancock signed it first
- Washington had the declaration read to his troops in NYC on July 9, 1776
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Traitor
- Benedict Arnold helped take Fort Ticonderoga
- Arnold sold military information to the British
- Fled to NYC