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Proclamation of 1763
This proclamation did not allow colonists to settle west of the Appalachian Mountains. The British government feared the conflict between colonists and Native Americans would lead to another war. They also could not afford to pay British troops to defend the western lands. Colonists were enraged by this proclamation beacuse they had won the right to settle in the Ohio River Valley after winning the French and Indian War. -
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The Road to Revolution
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Quartering Act
in 1765, Parliament passed the Quartering Act. It was a cost-saving measure that required the colonies to quarter or house British soldiers and provide them with supplies. -
Stamp Act
In 1765, the Parliament passed the Stamp Act. This law required all legal and comercial documents to carry an official stamp showing that a tax had been paid. All diplomas, contracts, and wills had to carry a stamp. -
Townshend Act
In 1767, Parliament passed the plan known as the Townshend Acts. The first of the townshend acts suspended the New York's assembly until New Yorkers agreed to provide housing for the troops. The other acts placed duties, or import taxes on various goods that entered the colonies, such as glass, paper, paint, lead, and tea. -
Tea Act & Boston Tea Party
in 1773, Parliament passed the tea act. Tea was very popular in the colonies, but much of it was smuggled in from Holland. The Tea Act gave the British East India company control over the American tea trade. Protests against the Tea Act took place all over the colonies. In Boston, the Son's of Liberty organized what came to be known as the Boston Tea Party. -
Intolerable Acts
In 1774, Parliament passed a series of laws to punish the massachusetts colony and to serve as a warning to other colonists. The British called these laws the Coercive Acts, but they were so harsh that the colonists called them the Intolerable Acts. -
Battles of Lexington & Concord
Lexington and Cncordwere the first battles of the Revolutionary War. As Ralph Waldo Emerson later wrote, colonial troops had fired the "shot hear round the world.' Americans would now have to choose sides and back up their political opinions by force of arms. Those who supported the british were called loyalists and those who sided with the rebels were the patriots. the conflict between the two sides divided communities, families, and friends. -
Olive Branch Petition
Even though the war had already started, the Americans still had not declared their independence. With the Olive Branch Petition, they made one last attempt to find a peaceful end to the revolution.
On July 5, 1775, Congress drafted the Olive Branch Petition. It outlined their issues and asked the British government to respond and deal with them. King George III of England refused to accept the petition. He believed the Americans to be in rebellion, and believed he could quickly end it with his -
Declaration of Independence
In 1776, soon after the beginning of the American Revolutionary War, the leaders of the war got together to write a letter to the King of England. They wanted to explain why they were fighting to be their own country, independent of England. Thomas Jefferson was chosen to compose the Declaration. On Juky 4th the Congress adopted the document and from that point forward, the colonies became independent.
