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Second Continental Congress Meets
The Second Continental Congress was a convention of delegates from the thirteen colonies. They managed the colonial war effort and moved incrementally towards independence, adopting the Declaration of Independence on July 4, 1776. -
Battle of Bunker Hill
The British defeated the Americans at the battle of Bunker Hill. The Americans inflicted several serious casualties against the British. They had little ammo, little food. The colonist are told don't fire till they see the whites of their eyes. -
Olive Branch Petition Sent
The Olive Branch Petition was adopted by the Second Continental Congress in a final attempt to avoid full on war. They already authorized the invasion of Canada. They petition affirmed American loyalty to Britain and beseeched King George III to prevent further conflict. -
Declaration of Independence Drafted
The goal of this was to convince the states that the time had come for the colonies to declare independence from mother england. It was an incredibly difficult time for the US. -
Battle for New York
Washington withdrew his troops across the East River to Manhattan. He turned his attention to rebuilding his army. He was instructed by the Continental Congress that allowed him to withdraw from New York. -
Battle of Trenton
General George Washington's army crossed the icy Delaware on Christmas Day 1776 and, over the course of the next 10 days, won two crucial battles of the American Revolution. In the Battle of Trenton (December 26), Washington defeated a formidable garrison of Hessian mercenaries before withdrawing. -
Common Sense Pamphlet Is Published
England-born political philosopher and writer Thomas Paine helped shape many of the ideas that marked the Age of Revolution. His highly popular “Common Sense” was the first pamphlet to advocate American independence. After writing the “Crisis” papers during the American Revolution, Paine returned to Europe and offered his defense of the French Revolution with “The Rights of Man.” -
Fight for Philadelphia
It was a fight for Philadelphia. They wanted it so much because it was the largest city in English North America. Washington ended up planning a strike. But that failed. -
Battle of Saratoga
It marked the climax of the Satatoga campaign giving a victory to the Americans over the British in the American Revolutionary War. John Burgoyne led a large invasion army southward from Canada hoping to meet similar forces. -
Valley Forge
It was a military camp where the American Continental army spent the winter during the American Revolutionary War. Starvation, disease, malnutrition, and exposure killed more that 2,500 soldiers by the end of that February. -
Battle of Yorktown
It was one of the most important battles of the Revolutionary War. In a stroke of luck, the patriots departed St. Domingue for the Chesapeake Bay. They fought French naval fleets and Loyalists. -
Treaty of Paris 2783
It negotiated between the Untied States and Great Britain. They named a five member commission to negotiate a treaty.
