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Proclamation of 1763
In 1763, British leaders passed a law saying that you could not own land West of the Appalachain Mountains. This was made with the intent to keep peace in the colonies, but the citizens felt cheated because owning land meant alot to them. -
The Stamp Act
The stamp act was a way of making sure that the colonists payed their taxes. The act stated that every sheet of legal document had to carry a stamp that showed the tax has been payed. This act made the colonists very angry. If you were caught disobeying the law, you would be tried in a court where you were not allowed a trial-by-jury -
Stamp Act Protest
In early fall of 1765, nine colonies sent delegates to Congress in New York City. When they were there, they drew up a petition that protested the Stamp Act. The petition mainly stated that taxing colonists was the right of colonial assemblies, and not to Parliment. -
Stamp Act Cancelled
Following Protests of the Stamp Act throughout 1765, the Parliament cancelled the Stamp Act. However, it wasn't ready to give in to the colonists. So, Parliament passed the Declaratory Act. This stated that Parliament had a right to rule and tax the colonies "in all cases whatsoever" -
Townshend Acts
In the aftermath of the Stamp Act, the king's finace minister, Charles Townshend, claimed he figured out a way to tax the colonies without making them mad. So, the Townshend Acts were passed. The acts suspended the New York Assembly and placed taxes on things like glass, paper, paint, and other items brought into the colonies. It also gave all officers the right to search any place for any reason. -
Boston Massacre
Shortly after the Townshend Acts were passed, British officers demanded to search a cargo vessel that carried illegal wine from Portugal. Even though the officers knew it was their right, a riot broke out and the soldiers had to flee. After the riot, more soldiers came to Boston to keep the peace. However, this just made things worse. Finally, tensions exploded. After people threw snowballs at the "Redcoats", the soldiers grew nervous. They fired on the crowd, leaving five men dead or wounded. -
Boston Tea Party
Following the Boston Massacre, the Townshend Acts were repealed. However, it "reopened old wounds" when it passed the tea act which gave Britain total control over the tea trade. In retaliation for the act, George Hewes and many other men dressed up like Native Americans and threw 342 chests of tea into the Boston Harbor. -
Intolerable Acts
As punishment for the Boston Tea Party, King George wanted to punish the colonists of the area. He passed 4 acts that were so hard to deal with, the people called them the "Intolerable Acts". The acts did this: They closed the port of Boston to all untl the lost tea was payed for, they restricted who could be in politics in all of Massachussetts, they allowed commanders to house troops wherever they wanted, and they allowed officials accused of crimes to be tried in Britain and not in the Coloni -
Colonists Prepare to Fight
As a way to protest the Intolerable Acts, John Hancock started a militia (made of ordinary citizens instead of trained soldiers) group that was ready to fight at a moment's notice. Because of the speed of their readiness, they earned the name: Minutemen. -
Midnight Ride of Paul Revere
The sons of Liberty were prepared for British rule to try and destroy the Militia. When the British army moved to destroy munitions owned by the minutemen, Paul Revere set out on horseback to warn people of the approaching army. -
Revolutionary War Begins
When word of the approaching Brits reached the minutemen, nearly 4,000 men were ready to fight to defend their home. At dawn on April 19, the Minutemen fought off the army. The British were saved by reserve troops that helped them retreat to Boston. -
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Revolutionary War
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Green Mountain Boys
Later in the spring of 1775, a group of backwoodsmen attacked Fort Ticonderoga, a British owned fort on Lake Champlain. The goup called themselves the Green Mountain Boys. They were led by Benedict Arnold and Ethan Allen. They goup captured the fort and took control of a great deal of artillery that was within the walls of the fort. -
Battle of Bunker Hill
In June, a Patriot (slang term for colonial soldier) took control of a penninsula that the British had just left. On the penninsula, there was Breeds Hill, and there was Bunker Hill. The Patriots turned the area into a camp. The British rushed to retake the area. The Patriots did a terrific job of holding two thousand British soldiers at bay until their gunpowder ran out. The Brits retook the hill. However, due to tremendous loss of British soldiers, the Patriots considered it a victory. -
Olive Branch Petition
Even though there had already been bloody battles for both sides, most people still believed in having peace. So, Congress sent a petition to Britain called the Olive Branch Petition because the Olive Branch is a symbol of Peace. However, the King refused the petition and called the colonists rebels. He said he would send 10,000 mercenaries to fight in America. -
Articles of Confederation
Since they were not in a government with Britain, the United States needed a new form of government. They decided on the Articles of Confederation. These articles said that even though the U.S. was one governing body, the states would have the most power. -
Declaration of Independence
In June of 1776, Congress began to debate as to what should be done so they would not be under the British rule. Finally, on July 4, 1776, Congress passed the Declaration of Independence. This stated that the colonies were now the United States of America and they were free from Britain. -
New York Battle
In 1776, General William Howe set sail from Nova Scotia with 8,000 mercenaries to take control of New York. On a hunch, George Washington moved his army to New York as well. What followed was "a bloody game of cat and mouse" in which the British seized control of New York but Washington saved his army by retreating. -
Washington Crosses the Delaware
On Christmas Day of 1776, George Washington crossed the Delaware River in an attemp to attack a British-controlled but Hessian-occupied base in Trenton. The Patriots killed over one thousand Hessians, and they also captured much-needed supplies to aid the war effort. -
Howe Takes Philly
Even after the loss of Trenton, the British army was not scared. General Howe set out to take the capital city of Phillidelphia in hopes that seizing the capital would crush Patriot morale. Howe took the city, but the government just moved to the town of York out in the country. -
Patriot Loses Men to Cold
After losing Phillidelphia, George Washington's army had to spend the winter in the Valley Forge. The name symbolizes the suffering that the Patriots went through that winter. Out in the cold, nearly 1/4 of the army died from sickness related to the cold. -
Steuben Readies Troops
A European volunteer from the town near the Valley Forge offered his help to the Patriot Army. The volunteer was named Baron von Steuben. In his home country, Prussia, he was a general. With large groups of troops at one time, he trained the troops how to fight like Europeans until they were able to preform drills very quickly. -
Clark is Given Grant
A young man named George Rogers Clark went to the Virginian Governor, Patrick Henry. He said, "If a country is not worth protecting, it is not worth claiming". The governor was impressed with the man's speech and gave him the money he needed to raise an army and capture British forts on the Western Frontier. -
Kentucky's Population Skyrockets
After the Treaty of Paris Granted the Americans land, some settlers moved to Kentucky. In 1775, there were only 100 settlers in the land. However, just five years later, the population reached 20,000 people! -
Revolutionary War Ends
After six years of fighting, the British could take no more. So, in mid-October, General Jean Rochambeau surrendered his army of nearly eight thousand men to the Patriots. -
Teaty of Paris
After the war ended, British Parliament decided they should try and make peace with the Patriots. So, in 1782, negotiators from both sides began to make the Treaty of Paris. The next year, the Treaty of Paris was signed. This said that the United States was independent, that the boundaries of the U.S. would extend to the Mississippi River, and that each side would repay debts from the war among other things. -
Ordinance of 1785
To help pay off taxes from the Revolutionary War, Congress called for the nation to be surveyed, or measured. Once the nation knew an accurate measurement of the land, it was divided into sections and sold to whoever would pay the most. -
Shay's Rebellion
Under the Articles of Confederation, paper money was not very valuable. Eventually, it was even outlawed. Because of this, debts had to be payed in silver or gold. The law hurt many because few had much silver or gold. In 1786, many Massachussetts farmers threatened violence and stopped repossession because of unpayed debts. A former Revolutionary War soldier named Daniel Shays was the leader of the rebellion. -
Annapolis Convention
As tensions between states grew higher, the nation called for delegates from each state to meet at a convention. However, only five states had delegates there. Because of this, the delegates decided that little could be done to help since only five states were "present" One delegate, Alexander Hamilton, wrote a report saying all the things he thought was wrong with the Articles of Confederation. He called for a convention to think of ways to strengthen the government, and the delegates agreed. -
Northwest Ordinance
Now that most of the land was taken care of, Congress devoted their time to the Northwest Territory and who would govern it. First, it appointed a governor and three judges to rule the land. When one part of the Territory reached 5,000 free settlers, the settlers could form an assembly that could help govern. When it had 60,000 free settlers, it could ask to join the Union. -
Washington Becomes 1st President
At a new convention in late-May of 1787, 29 delegates from seven states gathered, and more trickled in. The frist thing they needed to do was elect a president of the convention. They chose the Revolutionary War hero, George Washington. -
United States Constitution
As the summer of '87 went on, delegates formed a plan for a new government to clean up the mess that the Articles of Confederation left behind. Finally, in mid-September, 39 of the 42 delegates present signed a constitution that stated all ideas needed for a better government. -
New Hampshire Becomes 9th State to Ratify Constitution
In the summer that came two years after the constitution was signed, New Hampshire became the ninth, and last-needed state to ratify (approve) the constitution. However, the powerful states of Virginia and New York still hadn't approved. However, James Madison and Alexander Hamilton were able to help convince the two states to ratify. -
Bill of Rights
In the early years of the new government, not all things were perfect. So, in 1791, delegates met and added the first ten additionts to the Constitution. These additions were known as the Bill of Rights. -
Allen Founds Church
During the anti-slavery movement, 5 states had banned slavery. Now, free black citizens thought of themselves differently. A Methodist preacher named Richard Allen helped found the Free African Society. Then, in 1794, Allen founded a Methodist Church for African Americans. In the years that followed, many other churches were formed.
