French and Indian War
- fought between France and Britain and their Indian allies
- battle of Quebec (1759): Britain won; major defeat for france
- Treaty of Paris ended the war with France who essentially loses all their land to Britain (1763)
Albany Plan (1754)
discussion over whether Iroquois would remain loyal to the British
Pontiac’s Rebellion (1763)
Native tribes in the Ohio Valley under the leader Pontiac attacked numerous forts on the frontier, killing thousands.
Proclamation of 1763
British prohibited the colonists from settling west of the Appalachians
Paxton Boys (1763)
A vigilante group in Pennsylvania murdered nearby natives who were actually Christianize and living peacefully among white people.
Virtual Representation
British argument that the colonists didn’t need representation because Parliament had the colonists best interest at heart and represented them fairly
Sugar Act 1764
cut the duty on foreign molasses from 6 to 3 pence per gallon, retained a high duty on foreign refined sugar, and prohibited the importation of all foreign rum
Quartering Act (1765)
outlined the locations and conditions in which British soldiers were to find room and board in the American colonies
Stamp Act (1765)
- Tax on paper products; you had to buy the stamp even to buy playing cards
- Violators were tried in courts with no trial by jury
- Colonials reacted by tarring/attacking British officials, boycotts, and the formation of the Sons and Daughters of Liberty
- Stamp Act Congress formed to express grievances
Townshend Acts (1767)
- Taxes on glass, lead, paint, etc.
- Colonists failed to follow the Acts which lead to troops in Boston
- Leads to Boston Massacre in 1770
Boston Massacre (1770)
Seven British soldiers fired into a crowd of volatile Bostonians, killing five, wounding another six, and angering an entire colony.
Committees of Correspondence (1772)
formed by Samuel Adams to organize resistance and spread propaganda between colonies
Boston Tea Party (1773)
- Resulted from the tea monopoly granted to the British Company
- Colonists boarded British ships and threw tons of tea into the Boston harbor
- Britain passed the Intolerable Acts to punish Bostonians by closing the Boston Port (1774)
Coercive (Intolerable) Acts (1774)
- Boston Port Act: authorized the Royal Navy to blockade Boston Harbor
- Massachusetts Government Act: imperiled representative government in the colony
- The Act for the Impartial Administration of Justice: gave the King the ability to move a trial to another colony or Great Britain if it was determined
- Quartering Act (1774): required the colonies to house British soldiers in barracks provided by the colonies
First Continental Congress meets (1774)
grievances sent to the king; complete boycott of British goods declared
Battle that started the Revolution
Lexington and Concord (shot heard around the world)
2nd Continental Congress meets (1775)
- meets to make decisions about the war effort
- Issued the Olive Branch Petition: a last desperate attempt to make peace with king George III
Important pamphlet that argued reasons for independence
“Common Sense” by Thomas Paine
Declaration of Independence (1776)
- Heavily influenced by the Enlightenment; especially the work of John Locke
- Lists all the grievances the colonists had against King George III
- “All men are created equal”
- Written mainly by Thomas Jefferson
Loyalists/Tories
colonists who were loyal to the British
Patriots/American Whigs
- rebellious colonists
- whigs were people who were more liberal and open to freedoms
Hessians
German mercenaries hired by the British
Battle of Trenton (1776)
George Washington crosses the Delaware river on Christmas night and captures around 1000 Hessians
Valley Forge
location of the Continental Army in 1777-1778, during which they suffered from considerable shortages and the cold winter
Battle of Saratoga (1777)
convinced France to join on the side of the Patriots which was key to American victory
Battle of Yorktown (1781)
last major battle of the war; Cornwallis surrenders after being surrounded by the French at sea and the colonists by land
Treaty of Paris (1783)
treaty that officially ends the war and grants colonial victory