-
French and Indian War
The French and Indian War began in 1754 and ended with the Treaty of Paris in 1763.In 1754 Washington's surprise attack upon a small French force at Jumonville Glen and his subsequent surrender to French forces at the Battle of Fort Necessity helped to spark the French and Indian War. -
The Proclamation of 1763
The Proclamation forbade all settlements west of a line drawn along the Appalachian Mountains, which was delineated as an Indian Reserve.They prohibited Anglo-American colonists from settling on lands acquired from the French following the French and Indian War The proclamation, in effect, closed off the frontier to colonial expansion. -
Boston Tea Party
It was an act of protest in which a group of 60 American colonists threw 342 chests of tea into Boston Harbor to agitate against both a tax on tea (which had been an example of taxation without representation) and the perceived monopoly of the East India Company.The British didn't think the colonists would be upset about the Act since by letting the East India Company not pay taxes, the price of tea would go down.All the tea aboard the three East India ships in Boston Harbor. -
1st Continental Congress
Delegates from twelve of Britain's thirteen American colonies met to discuss America's future under growing British aggression.This convention, the First Continental Congress, formally declared that colonists should have the same rights as Englishmen.The First Continental Congress was a key link in the chain of events that led to our nation gaining its independence from England. -
New England Restraining Act
Passed by Parliament in order to punish the colonies for their boycott of British goods.An act banning trade between the New England colonies and any other country besides Great Britain.The Conciliatory Proposition promised that no colony that met its share of imperial defenses and paid royal officials' salaries of their own accord would be taxed. -
Congress Chooses independence
It was engrossed in parchment and on August 2, 1776, delegates began signing it.On this decisive day, only the delegation from New York voted to abstain. South Carolina and Pennsylvania reversed their decision from the day before and voted for independence. -
Articles of Confederation
Featured a preamble and thirteen articles that granted the bulk of power to the state.To some degree, it was a treaty of alliance between thirteen sovereign republics rather than the foundation for a national government.Established a weak central government and placed most powers in the hands of the states. -
Revolutionary War
In Paris, the Treaty of Alliance and the Treaty of Amity and Commerce are signed by the United States and France, signaling official French recognition of the new republic.Congress ratifies the Treaty of Alliance with France, and further military and financial assistance follows -
The British Attack in North and South
In the frontier settlements of Pennsylvania, Loyalists and Indians led by Mohawk Joseph Brant attacked American settlers.After a brief fight, the British took Charleston, capturing 5,400 men and four American ships in the harbor. It was the worst American defeat of the war. -
Congress Ratifies the Preliminary Articles of Peace.
After Spain, France, and Britain successfully came to terms, the treaty between France, Britain, and America was put into effect, and warfare formally ceased. Congress ratified the Articles of Peace on April 15.