Walking through the Revolution

French and Indian War

Mar 11, 1763

http://www.sparknotes.com/history/american/frenchindian/summary.htmlThe French and Indian War was the bloodiest war in the 18th century. The war was a result of the clash between French and English over territory and wealth.

Sugar Act

Apr 5, 1764

http://www.ushistory.org/declaration/related/sugaract.htmMerchants were required to pay a tax per gallon on the importation of foreign molasses. Other goods to be taxed were sugar, certain wines, coffee, and pimiento.

Stamp Act

Mar 22, 1765

http://www.ushistory.org/declaration/related/stampact.htmThe Stamp Act required that every piece of printer paper that Americans used be taxed. Legal documents, newspapers, and letters were taxed. The money from this act was to help pay the costs of defending and protecting American troops.

Townshend Act

Jun 29, 1767

http://www.ushistory.org/declaration/related/townshend.htmThis act placed a tax on glass, paint, oil, lead, tea, and paper. These acts are named after Charles Townshend who hoped that they would defray imperial expenses in the colonies. The Townshend Acts, all except the tax on tea, were repealed in 1770.

Boston Massacre

Mar 5, 1770

http://www.bostonmassacre.net/Five colonists were killed by British regulars in the Boston Massacre. Tensions were high because of the tax burden from the Townshend Acts.

Boston Tea Party

Dec 16, 1773

http://www.history.com/topics/american-revolution/boston-tea-partyThe Boston Tea Party was an act of retaliation against the taxes imposed on tea. Samuel Adams and the Sons of Liberty threw 342 chests of tea overboard into the Boston harbor.

Coercive Acts

Mar 28, 1774

http://teachingamericanhistory.org/library/document/coercive-acts/The Coercive Acts, or the Intolerable Acts, were a series of 4 acts established by the British government. The goal of these acts was to restore order in Massachusetts and punish the people of Boston for their Tea Party. The following acts were included in the Coercive Acts:
1- Boston Port Act
2- Massachusetts Government Act
3- Administration of Justice Act
4- Quartering Act
and a 5th was added, the Quebec Act.

1st Continental Congress

Sep 5, 1774

http://www.ushistory.org/declaration/related/congress.htmThe 1st Continental Congress met for over a month in Philadelphia. Many objectives for the group of men included the union of Great Britain and the colonies and the Association.

Lexington and Concord

Apr 19, 1775

http://www.bostonteapartyship.com/the-shot-heard-round-the-worldThe "shot heard round the world" was the first shot of the American Revolution. There is still really no clear picture of what happened or who fired the first shot, but it started something major. Some say the first shots were fired as the sun rose in Lexington and others believe they were fired in Concord, Massachusetts.

Battle of Bunker Hill

Jun 16, 1775

http://www.history.com/topics/american-revolution/battle-of-bunker-hillThe Battle of Bunker Hill was a fight between the British and Americans, with the British coming out on top. Most of the fighting actually happened on a nearby hill, Breed's Hill, not at Bunker Hill.