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Due to poor defined boundaries between the French and British, one territory, the upper Ohio River valley was disputed on. An attempt to remove the French failed, when word of an undeclared strike reach the French government led to an all-out war. The British won however the war was extremely expensive and they decided to help cover these expenses by imposing taxes on the colonies. This eventually caused the colonies to rebel and developed into a war for independence.
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An organized political group of men that was created to overrule the British control on colonial America. They orchestrated resistance movements on what they agreed was unfair taxation, and financial limitations. They carried out the Boston Tea Party with Samuel Adams, which was the primary reason the Revolutionary War broke out in Massachusetts.
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The British Parliament passed the Stamp Act to aid British Troops stationed in the colonies during the Seven Years' War. Colonies were forced to pay a tax on papers, documents, and even playing cards. This tax was directly paid to the British Government in British Sterling, without the approval of colonial legislatures. Those accused of violating the Act would be prosecuted by Vice Admiralty Court with no juries. The colonists were angry due to no representation being made to the parliament. -
To help pay for expenses parliament created Townshend Acts which allowed taxes on glass, lead, paint, paper, and tea. It was also used to punish colonial governments such as the New York assembly, and encourage the purchase of British goods since smuggling in goods wouldn't have much of a profit. Colonists were now forced to pay taxes with no say, except it was directly affecting the merchants. Those accused of smuggling were not given a fair trial and received harsh punishments if convicted. -
During a protest in Boston, seven British soldiers fired shots killing five and wounding six. The reason for the protests was due to the sudden increase on taxes and this angered the Englishmen which led to violent outbreaks in streets. To stop this violence British soldiers began to occupy Boston. A planned protest from the colony during the night against Private White shouting insults at him, some soldiers went to rescue him. Colonists circled the soldiers, with no way out they fired shots. -
A protest at the Boston Harbor, done by American colonists dressed as Mohawk Indians, threw out 340 chests of tea owned by the East India Company. It was against the tax on tea, made without representation to monopolize the East India Company. The Tea Act was passed earlier in the year to help the financial issues of the company and to control the colonies. This became one of the many significant events for the American Revolution. -
The Coercive Acts were made to control the colonies, threatening American liberty. The Acts blocked off trades to the Boston ports, controlled their governors, and increase both military and governor power. These Acts were meant to punish the Massachusetts Bay and warn the other colonies. These policies caused the American rebellion leading to the Revolutionary War.
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This battle took place in Charlestown, on Breed's Hill. General Thomas Gage attempted to stop colonial militia to prevent further violence, word spread and nearby colonies came to contain British forces inside Boston. After two hours British casualties totaled 1,504 while colonial losses totaled around 450 soldiers. This battle helped unite the thirteen colonies, a new Continental Army that would force British troops to evacuate Boston in March 1776. -
The Articles of Confederations had many limitations and was a weak government with no official branches. Approving the document took a long time due to rivalries between the states. States were operated independently, having their own money systems, foreign policies, and each state had one vote. This caused the central government to owe debts to European countries, without any power to tax and trade the economy was a mess. The lack of funds, control, and enforcement led to Shay's rebellion. -
A devastating defeat to the Americans, during early stages of British military attacks on the South. American troops marched into South Carolina to liberate the state from British control, word reached out and British troops deployed near the field. An error in deployment, veterans were positioned to the right and an inexperienced general on the left. Without realizing the British would do the same, it caused the American position to collapse. This defeat opened a way to invade North Carolina. -
Six years into the war both the British and Continental armies supplies were being drained. Both sides were trying desperately to gain a victory. The British was fighting a war against France and Spain, while the colonies in America were going into debt, giving the Continental Army only one choice. Attack the British in New York City or the south, Yorktown, Virginia. They decided the best plan was to attack the South. Fortunately the siege turned the tide for an American Victory during the war.
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The Treaty of Paris was signed to end the American Revolution for Independence between American colonies and Great Britain. It recognized U.S independence and gave U.S significant western expansion. Despite the treaty giving the U.S independence, it left border regions undefined and left for dispute. -
Due to the Articles of Confederation had flaws in conducting foreign policies, leading to the convention in Philadelphia. Delegates all came together to create a form of government that distributes work evenly to different departments. Senates would handle important issues such as the ratification of treaties, executives did routine paperwork and issues caused by sectional tension previously under Articles of confederation, while president was in charge of foreign affairs. -
During the Constitutional Convention, the delegates didn't realize how enslaved black people would affect the proportional aspect of the Constitution. Roger Sherman came up with the idea that for every white person, including indentured servants, would be counted as a whole while Black people would be counted as three-fifths a person. After discussion, they adopted the 3/5 compromise, with enslaved people not having any rights. This compromise kept slave states from having more power. -
During the Constitutional Convention states were heavily divided, to resolve this a "compromising committee" was created. This group proposed a plan called the Great Compromise, a bicameral legislature that had proportional representation of a state's population and equal representation of the other's. The House of Representatives proposed for every 40,000 inhabitants one representative was elected by the people and for the Senate an equal vote for every state elected by state legislatures.