-
Sugar Act
A three-cent tax on foreign refined sugar and increased taxes on coffee, indigo, and certain kinds of wine. -
Stamp Act
Direct British tax on American colonists. Every newspaper, pamphlet, and other public and legal document had to have a Stamp, or British seal, on it. The Stamp, cost money. -
Boston Non-Importation Agreement
The merchants and traders in the town of Boston having taken into consideration the deplorable situation of the trade, and the many difficulties it at present labours under on account of the scarcity of money, which is daily increasing for want of the other remittances to discharge our debts in Great Britain, and the large sums collected by the officers of the customs for duties on goods imported; the heavy taxes levied to discharge the debts contracted by the government in the late war. -
Boston Massacre
Shooting of five American colonists by British troops on . One person, an African-American man named Crispus Attacks, was killed. Nearly every part of the story is disputed by both sides. Did the colonists have weapons? The British say rocks and other such weapons were hurled at them. But the British had guns, and they did open fire. -
The Tea Act
The Tea Act, passed by Parliament on May 10, 1773, would launch the final spark to the revolutionary movement in Boston. The act was not intended to raise revenue in the American colonies, and in fact imposed no new taxes. It was designed to prop up the East India Company which was floundering financially and burdened with eighteen million pounds of unsold tea. -
Boston Tea Party
Angry and frustrated at a new tax on tea, American colonists calling themselves the Sons of Liberty and disguised as Mohawk Native Americans boarded three British ships (the Dartmouth, the Eleanor, and the Beaver) and dumped 342 whole crates of British tea into Boston harbor. -
The first Continental Congress
Two groups of people from all over the 13 Colonies who came together to discuss liberty. The First Continental Congress was A group of 56 delegates from 12 colonies (all except Georgia) who met in Philadelphia in September of 1774. They came together to act together in response to the Intolerable Acts. They met in secret because they didn't want Great Britain to know that they were united. -
The Battles of Lexington and Concord
First shots fired between American and British troops, The British marched to Concord because it was an arms depot. This meant that the Americans had stockpiled weapons there. British troops had occupied Boston and were marching on Concord as they passed through Lexington. No one is still sure who fired first, but it was the "Shot Heard 'Round the World." -
The Green Mountain Boys Seize Fort Ticonderoga
New York fort on the western shore of Lake Champlain that was originally a French fort, called Carillion, that was seized by the British in the French and Indian War. The fort was later captured by the Americans in their first "official" victory of the Revolutionary War. The fort wasn't garrisoned very well but still held a stock of British weapons. Ethan Allen and the Green Mountain Boys, along with Benedict Arnold, captured the fort. -
Geroge Washington named Commander in Chief
First president of the United States, he also fought (for the British) in the French and Indian War and was the commanding officer of the victorious American forces in the Revolutionary War. He was named president of the Constitutional Convention. He served two terms as president. -
Battle of Bunker Hill (fought on Breed's Hill)
The Americans had occupied Breed's Hill in Charlestown on June 16, 1775, in order to protect the shipyard of nearby Boston. The next day, the British attacked. They took the hill but suffered heavy losses. The Americans fired until they were out of ammunition, then quickly retreated. To conserve ammunition, Prescott told his men, "Don't fire until you see the whites of their eyes." Even though the battle was fought on Breed's Hill, it has been remembered as the Battle of Bunker Hill. -
Thomas Paine's "Common Sense" puished
Patriot and American soldier whose main contribution was in writing. His pamphlets, including Common Sense and The Crisis, inflamed the American population and furthered the Revolutionary cause. -
The Virginia Declaration of Rights
One of the 16.......That all men are by nature equally free and independent, and have certain inherent rights, of which, when they enter into a state of society, they cannot, by any compact, deprive or divest their posterity; namely, the enjoyment of life and liberty, with the means of acquiring and possessing property, and pursuing and obtaining happiness and safety. -
The First Virginia Constitution
Whereas, George III, King of Great Britain and Ireland, and elector of Hanover, heretofore entrusted with the exercise of the kingly office in this government, has endeavored to prevent the same into a detestable and insupportable tyranny by putting his negative on laws the most wholesome and necessary for the public good -
Declaration of Independence
Document declaring the 13 American Colonies independent from Great Britain. Written by Thomas Jefferson and declared in effect by the Continental Congress on July 4, 1776. Many prominent Americans signed it, including John Hancock, John Adams, and Samuel Adams. Great Britain's response was to continue the war. -
Washington Crosses the Delaware and captures Trenton
Famous American victory that began with "Washington Crossing the Delaware." Actually, the whole army crossed the Delaware River, on Christmas night, 1776, from Pennsylvania to the outskirts of Trenton, New Jersey. There, the Americans surprised a drunken Hessian force that celebrated the holiday a little too much. The battle lasted about 45 minutes and resulted in 900 Hessian prisoners -
Paoli Massacre
-
The French Alliance
-
Washington fights Battle of Monmouth
American troops under General George Washington fought British troops under General Henry Clinton. The British had left Philadelphia en route to New York. The Americans were pursuing from Valley Forge, their goal to stop the British advance. It was a very hot day, and the heat took its toll on both sides. Exhausted, both sides stopped the fighting. Under cover of darkness, the British slipped away. -
The Tappan Massacre ("No Flint" Grey kills 30 Americans by bayonet)
-
Articles of Confederation adopted
Document detailing form of government taken after the Revolutionary War. The focus was on state governments, which had tremendous power. This form of government proved unequal to the task of governing the 13 Colonies, mainly because 9 of the 13 states had to agree to get anything done. The result was the Constitutional Convention. -
British sign Articles of Peace
-
Treaty of Paris
Treaty that officially ended the Revolutionary War on September 3, 1783. It was signed in Paris by Benjamin Franklin, John Adams, and John Jay. Under the terms of the treaty, Britain recognized the independent nation of the United States of America. Britain agreed to remove all of its troops from the new nation. The treaty also set new borders for the United States, including all land from the Great Lakes on the north to Florida on the south, and from the Atlantic Ocean to the Mississippi River. -
British troops leave New York City
The brithish leave
