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Stamp act of 1765
It required colonists to pay taxes on every page of printed paper they used. The reaction in the colonies was immediate. -
Boston massacre
The conflict energized anti-British sentiment and paved the way for the American Revolution. It began as a street brawl between American colonists and a lone British soldier -
Boston Tea party
A group of 60 colonists threw 342 chest of tea in the water. They were protesting the tax -
Intolerable acts
A series of four laws passed by the British Parliament to punish the colony of Massachusetts Bay for the Boston Tea Party. -
First continental congress meets
They formally declared that colonists should have the same rights as Englishmen. They also agreed to form the continental association. -
Second Continental Congress
appointed George Washington commander in chief of the army. It later approved the Declaration of Independence and prepared the Articles of Confederation which granted certain powers to the Congress. -
Battle of bunker hill
The American patriots were defeated at the battle of bunker hill. They proved they could hold their own against the superior British army. -
Declaration of independence adopted
the 13 American colonies severed their political connections to Great Britain. The Declaration summarized the colonists' motivations for seeking independence. -
Battle of Trenton
After crossing the Delaware River in a treacherous storm General George Washington's army defeated a garrison of Hessian mercenaries at Trenton -
Battle of Camden
british forces under Lieutenant General Charles, Lord Cornwallis routed the numerically superior American forces led by Major General Horatio Gates. The Battle of Camden was the worst Patriot defeat of the American Revolution. -
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Battle of yorktown
The Battle of Yorktown proved to be the decisive engagement of the American Revolution. The British surrender forecast the end of British rule in the colonies and the birth of a new nation the United States of America. -
Treaty of paris
This treaty, signed on September 3 1783 between the American colonies and Great Britain ended the American Revolution and formally recognized the United States as an independent nation. -
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Constitutional Convention
The point of the event was decide how America was going to be governed. Although the Convention had been officially called to revise the existing Articles of Confederation many delegates had much bigger plans. -
3/5 Compromise
It determined that three out of every five slaves were counted when determining a state's total population for legislative representation and taxation. -
Constitution is ratified
They bypassed the state legislatures, reasoning that their members would be reluctant to give up power to a national government