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Sugar Act
- was an indirect tax
- sugar and molasses were taxed
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Stamp Act
- Taxed all paper products such as legal documents, licenses, newspaper, pamphlets, and playing cards
- direct tax
- only can be purchased with a silver coin
- if you didn't purchase = fine and jail
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Declaratory Act
- parliament declares it has power to make laws for the colonies in all cases whatsoever
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Townshend Act
- taxes house equipment such as paint, lead, glass, paper, and tea
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Boston Massacre
- colonists throw snowballs and make fun of a British troop
- a group of British troops come
- British Captain says "Hold your fire"
- colonists shout "shoot if you dare!"
- colonist hits British troop
- one fires and the rest of the British troops fire and kill 5 people more injured
- Paul Revere rights a picture of the Boston massacre for propaganda
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Tea Act
- allowed BEIC to sell tea directly to the colonists
- lower prices than colonists merchants prices
- tax tea cheaper than smuggled tea
- less smuggling = more tax company
- Colonial merchants feared BEIC would take them out of buisness
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Boston Tea Party
- Members of the sons of liberty dump over 340 chests of tea into the Boston Harbor
- The Boston Harbor becomes a teapot
- caused a problem for loyalists (British supporters)
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Quartering Act
- required colonists to house British troops
- "if a soldier comes knocking at the door..... You're sleeping on the floor"
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Intolerable Acts
- passed to punish Boston for tea party
- Boston harbor closed until Debt paid
- Massachusetts charter closed
- Royal officials had a trial in Britian
- large amount of land given to Quebec
- General Gage became the new Governer or MA
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continental congress meets
- All colonies but Georgia have representatives
- voted to send a "statement of grievances"
- voted to boycott all British trade
- Patrick Henry - VA rep. urged colonists to unite Great Britain
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1,000s of redcoats come to Boston
General Gage brings thousands of British soldiers to Boston with more on the way -
Midnight ride of Paul Revere
- Paul Revere rides to warn the sons of liberty in Lexington and Concord that "the British are coming.... the British are coming!"
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Battle of Lexington and Concord
Battle of Lexington
- 1st battle of American Revolutionary war
- "Shot heard around the world" - Ralph Waldo Emerson
- British Victory
- napoleon tactic
Battle of Concord
- Americans stop British and force them to retreat back to Boston
- AMERICAN VICTORY
- Gorilla tactic -
Second continental congress meet
- print money
- set up a post office
- created a continental army led by George Washington
- sent a Olive Branch asking the king to protect their rights
- king hires 30,000 Hessian soldiers in response
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Capture of Fort Ticonderoga
- Benedict Arnold and Ethan Allen capture the fort
- Green mountain boys
- Get all supplies in the fort including cannons
- AMERICAN VICTORY
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Battle of Bunker Hill
- Fought on Breed's Hill
- "Don't fire until you see the white in their eyes" - William Prescott
- British Victory (Americans ran out of ammunition) British learns defeating Americans would not be easy
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Washington arrives on the outskirts of Boston with continental troops
- realizes men are disorganized and need discipline
- need weapons
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"Common Sense" published by Thomas Paine
-Pamphlet inspires more colonists to become patriots
-“Everything that is right or reasonable pleads for separation. The blood of the slain, weeping voice of nature cries, ‘TIS TIME TO PART” - Thomas Paine, Common Sense -
British surrender Boston
- Washington believes his army is ready and weapons arrive
- Washington puts cannons on Dorchester Heights overlooking Boston
- BRITISH RETREAT - AMERICAN VICTORY
-
second continental congress meet again
- debate on declaring independence
- Thomas Jefferson is the primary author of the document
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Second continental congress votes for independence
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The declaration of independence is signed!
