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1585-Roanoke Colony
In 1585,the Roanoke colony was founded.It will soon disappear and will be known as the Lost Colony.Over the years people came and went,and tensions between the Native Americans and the English were increasing.This person returned to England in 1590 to find everyone had gone.The only "clue" they left behind was CRO etched in a tree.Croatian was the name of an Indian tribe and was assumed everyone got captured or left for other reasons.People say,survivors on Roanoke tried to escape but failed. -
Jamestown Colony was Established
Jamestown was the first permanent colony to exist.In May 14,1607 they decided to settle near the James River in Jamestown.7 ships in 1609 were sent to Jamestown and were caught in the Bermuda Triangle for 8-9 months.The problem was there were huge amounts of mosquitos and the land was swampy so they couldn't grow crops.The chief signed a peace treaty and ended the war.John Rolf married Pocahontas which brought more peace between the natives and the whites.1619-African slaves were first used. -
1620-1690 Plymouth Colony Was Founded By The Pilgrims
Plymouth was founded by the Pilgrims for religious reasons.90 people on the Mayflower and 30 people on the Speedwell voyaged and found out the Speedwell had a leak and needed to be repaired.They chucked the ship and lost 30 people that were willing to voyage.1617 a disease killed almost 90% of native American population in Plymouth.December 21st,1620 they landed on Plymouth.When they entered Plymouth during the winter season.Natives helped Pilgrims settle down-population in Plymouth grew a lot. -
Sugar Act
The Sugar Act happened in 1764. It was a tax in sugar, molasses, and other stuff the colonies imported. It prompted James Otis to proclaim "Taxation without representation is tyranny!". This proclamation became the battle cry of the colonists. However, the British Parliament didn't listen to the colonists and just kept on adding taxes. -
Stamp Act
This act taxed all legal commercial documents which included diplomas,contracts,newspapers,and playing cards!The colonists protested against this.They organised the Stamp Act Congress in NYC to decide what to do.Samuel Adams,as well as other local leaders,organised chapters of the Sons of Liberty.This group burned stamps and tarred British Officials!Many colonists boycotted British goods.The Daughters of Liberty helped by creating some things that people were no longer buying from the British. -
Townshend Act
The Townshend Act taxed imports like glass, paper, paint, led, and tea.This act allowed British officers to search homes and businesses for smuggled goods.People responded with boycotts and protests.The anger boiled over in Boston Massacre. It took place in 1770 where British officers open fired on rioting colonists. Five colonists were killed. -
The Boston Massacre
On March 5 1770 American colonists gathered at the Customs House in Boston and began taunting the British soldiers guarding the building.The Patriots,were protesting the occupation of their city by British troops,which were sent to Boston in 1768 to enforce taxation passed by Parliament,which lacked American representation.The colonists threw snowballs and other objects at the British.The British soldiers began firing at the colonists.After the smoke cleared five colonists were dead or dying. -
Tea Act
The Tea Act took place in 1773.Colonists had to buy all tea from England.Colonists replied with the Boston Tea Party which took place on December 16th, 1773.A group of men disguised as American Indians,boarded three tea ships,docked in the Boston Harbour.They broke open the tea chest and threw them overboard.Parliament passed the coercive acts,that wouldn't let ships in or out, until the tea was paid for. This lead to more things like the Coercive act,the intolerable act,and many more things. -
The Battle of Bunker Hill
On June 17 2,200 British forces under General Howe's command,landed on the Charlestown Peninsula then marched to Breed's Hill.When the British were within several dozen yards,the Americans let loose with a lethal barrage of musket fire,making the British retreat.The British attacked again and when the Redcoats went up the hill for a third time,they engaged the Americans in hand-to-hand combat.The Americans were outnumbered and retreated.The Patriots’ had cut down more than 1,000 enemy troops! -
The Battle of Saratoga
Fought 18 days apart in fall 1777,the battle of Saratoga was a turning point in the war.After capturing Fort Ticonderoga,the British army,led by General John Burgoyne,went south at a slow pace,giving the Americans time to regroup under Horatio Gates.To support him,George Washington sent his best infantry commander Benedict Arnold,Colonel Daniel Morgan and his group of Virginian riflemen,and two battalions from the Hudson Highlands.Gates’s now had about sixty-five hundred men to help him. -
The Battle of Saratoga-Continued
General Arnold prodded Gates out of his defensive mentality,and led Morgan’s men and Henry Dearborn’s light infantry into the woods to block a British flanking column.After securing his camp and waiting for reinforcements from New York,the British attacked again on October 7.Ignoring orders,Arnold joined the fighting and led an attack that captured strong points,forcing the British to retreat to Saratoga.There,they were surrounded by an outpouring of militia and surrendered ten days later. -
The Battle of Yorktown
The battle of Yorktown was the most important war in the Revolutionary War.Washington realised that it was time to act,so he ordered Marquis de Lafayette and an army of 5,000 troops to block Cornwallis’ (the British General) escape from Yorktown by land while the French blocked their escape by sea.By September 28, they had completely surrounded Cornwallis and Yorktown with the combined forces.After three weeks of fighting,Cornwallis surrendered to Washington on October 17,1781 ending the war.
