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Proclamation Line
Issued by King George III, the proclamation prohibited settlers from crossing west over the Appalachian Mountains in order to prevent further conflicts between settlers and Native Americans. -
Stamp Act
Imposed on all American colonists and required them to pay a tax on every piece of printed paper they used. Ship's papers, legal documents, licenses, newspapers, other publications, and even playing cards were taxed. -
Quartering Act
Outlining the locations and conditions in which British soldiers are to find room and board in the American colonies. The act did not require Americans to house British soldiers in their private dwellings. -
Declaratory Act
declaration by the 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 Acts
The Townshend Acts were a series of British acts. The acts are named after Charles Townshend, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, who proposed the program. -
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. -
Committee Of Correspondence
Rallied colonial opposition against British policy and established a political union among the Thirteen Colonies. These served an important role in the Revolution, by disseminating the colonial interpretation of British actions between the colonies and to foreign governments. -
Tea Act
Granted the British East India Company Tea a monopoly on tea sales in the American colonies. ... The Tea Act was the final straw in a series of unpopular policies and taxes imposed by Britain on her American colonies. -
Boston Tea Party
The Boston Tea Party was a political protest by the Sons of Liberty in Boston, Massachusetts. -
Intolerable Or Coercive Acts
Were harsh laws passed by the British Parliament. They were meant to punish the American colonists for the Boston Tea Party and other protests. -
"Shot Heard Around The World"
The phrase comes from the opening stanza of Ralph Waldo Emerson's "Concord Hymn" and refers to the first shot of the American Revolutionary War. -
Common Sense
Challenged the authority of the British government and the royal monarchy. The plain language that Paine used spoke to the common people of America and was the first work to openly ask for independence from Great Britain. -
Declaration Of Independence
Is the statement adopted by the Second Continental Congress meeting at the Pennsylvania State House. The 13 American colonies severed their political connections to Great Britain. The Declaration summarized the colonists' motivations for seeking independence.
