History American Revolution Dates Flashcards
George Washington
served as a colonel during the French and Indian War. Appointed commander-in-chief of the Continental Army in 1775 and became the first President of the United States.
Crispus Attucks
first person killed in the Boston Massacre, later a martyr for the American Revolution.
Samuel Adams
a passionate advocate for American liberties, he founded the Sons of Liberty and was a key organiser of the Boston Tea Party.
George III
King from 1760 to 1820. During his reign, the British government enacted policies unpopular with American colonists.
Lord North
Prime Minister of Great Britain from 1770-1782, implemented many of the measures listed below.
Paul Revere
member of the Sons of Liberty and organised the Boston Tea Party. Famous for his ‘midnight ride’ to warn the colonial militia of Lexington of the approaching British troops
1607
The English established their first permanent settlement at Jamestown, Virginia, which was followed by the Plymouth Colony in 1620. Over the next century, British colonies were established up and down the eastern seaboard of North America.
1732
Province of Georgia is formally established as a proprietary colony. This brought Britain’s colonies in America to thirteen.
1754 - 1763
Conflict in North America in the form of the French and Indian War. Despite eventual British success, the war had been expensive and led to a permanent British military presence and a great financial burden imposed on the colonist.
1763
Aimed to prevent conflict, the Settlement Ban was introduced to prohibit colonists settling west of the Appalachian Mountains
1764
Replacing the earlier Molasses Act 1733 (which had never been effectively collected), the Sugar Tax reduced the rate by half, however new measures were introduced to actually enforce the tax.
1765
The Stamp Act required that all legal documents, newspapers and pamphlets to be printed on paper that was stamped with an official government seal. The purpose of the tax was to pay for British military troops stationed in the American colonies.
1767
Named after the Chancellor of the Exchequer, the Townshend Taxes were new taxes on imported goods such as paper, paint, lead, glass, and tea. The revenue generated from these taxes was to pay the salaries of royal officials in the American colonies.
1767
In order to maintain an army, the Quartering Act required colonists to provide food, housing and supplies to British soldiers.
1770
Following a local dispute, British soldiers fired into a crowd of colonists at the Boston Massacre, killing five people and injuring several others. It became a rallying cry for the colonists who saw it as an example of British brutality and oppression.
1773
The Tea Act gave the British East India Company a monopoly on tea sales, hurting American merchants and smugglers.
1773
Following the Tea Act, a group of colonists boarded British ships in Boston Harbour, dumping hundreds of chests of tea overboard in what would become known as the Boston Tea Party.
1774
Following the Boston Tea Party, the British Parliament introduced a series of measures known as the Intolerable Acts; they were designed to punish Massachusetts and reassert British authority. Boston’s port was closed, the Quartering Act extended and rights Massachusetts had enjoyed since its founding were taken away
1774
Delegates from twelve of thirteen British colonies met at First Continental Congress to coordinate a response to the Intolerable Acts and assert the rights of colonists. They issued a Declaration of Rights and Grievances and set up the Continental Association.
1775-
1783
Following the outbreak of war at the battles of Lexington and Concord, the American Revolutionary War continued for eight years. The American Revolutionaries received support from several countries, including France and Spain. In 1783, the Treaty of Paris was signed and recognised the United States as an independent nation.
1776
Adopted by the Second Continental Congress, the Declaration of Independence served as the nation’s founding document, listing grievances against the British and asserting the rights of colonies to form their own government and to protect their liberties.
Summary of the Period
Following the early British settlements in New England, a series of British colonies were established throughout the east coast of North America. From the seventeenth to the eighteenth century, the colonists increasingly adopted their own identity at the expense of their British heritage. In order to maintain control of the region amidst threats from French and Native American forces, British troops were stationed in America and taxes were increasingly introduced by Parliament. This drove the colonists further into opposition as the burden of British rule became increasingly apparent. This burden led to a series of flashpoints in the 1770s, before relations deteriorate to a state of war.
