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After the Seven Years' War (French and Indian War), Britain was left in massive debt. They felt as though the American Colonies should have to help bear the burden of their debt. Britain began to impose taxes upon every import and export to help pay for their war debt. One of the first was the Sugar Act. The Sugar Act placed taxes on all sugars in and out of the US.

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The Stamp Act was the next tax to be placed in the colonies. This angered the citizens even further. This act forced the colonists to pay taxes on certain papers, documents, and even playing cards. If it was marked with a certain stamp, it had a tax on it.

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On top of adding taxes onto almost every single thing in existence, Britain had to take it a step further. They set British troops into America to keep things under control. While sending troops, they passed the Quartering Acts. The Quartering Acts essentially stated that colonists had to provide for the troops. Homes, food, supplies, the colonists had no choice but to provide for them.

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As if taxes on sugar and paper products ween't enough, the Townshend Acts were passed two years after the stamp act. The Townshend Acts basically placed taxes on everything else that didn't already have a tax. Glass, lead, paint, more paper, and tea. All of this now had taxes and it infuriated the colonists. This was the last straw for the Americans.

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A lot of protests were being made because of the amount of taxation. This was one of the protests. At least that's how it started. The protest quickly turned into Boston citizens throwing things at the British troops. In turn, the British troops turned around and fired into the crowd. Five Boston citizens were killed.

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The Boston Tea Party was led by a group called the Sons of Liberty. They dressed up as Native Americans and boarded British ships. While aboard the ships, they dumped hundreds of boxes of imported tea into the harbor. This was in retaliation to the taxes placed on tea and other imported items.

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All of the colonies were set to meet at the First Continental Congress. They all met in Philadelphia in 1774. Georgia was the only colony who didn't send a representative. The purpose of this meeting was essentially just to make a decision on what course of action the colonies should take against Britain.

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The Battle of Lexington and Concord - 1775

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The Battle of Lexington and Concord - 1775

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British Troops were sent towards Lexington and Concord to take supplies from the military. This was the time of the famous moment from Paul Revere. He and William Dawes rode into town and warned everyone that the British were on their way. The Lexington Militia had time to prepare for battle and move the supplies to a safer location. 73 Redcoats were killed during this battle. It's considered the very first skirmish of the Revolutionary War.

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The Battle of Lexington and Concord - 1775

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The British army had lots of advantages during the Revolutionary War. One was that they had a superior navy. They still have the number one navy in the world to this day. They also had an extremely well-trained army as well as being very well equipped with guns and cannons.

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Despite having many advantages, they also had disadvantages. Back in England, the longer the war was, the more support the army lost. English citizens eventually got tired of all the fighting and started to believe that the crown should just give up and give the colonists their rights. They were also fighting on land that was unfamiliar to them.

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Americans obviously had plenty of advantages on their own land. They played very defensive strategies and used hit and run strategies. Their biggest strategy was to wear the British army down. The American army had very committed leadership with George Washington as the general.

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The second continental congress was once again in Philadelphia, only a year after the first one. At this meeting, George Washington was made commander in chief. All 13 colonies showed up to this meeting, unlike the first one where Georgia opted not to attend. In this meeting, the Declaration of Independence was drafted.

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The Battle of Saratoga is one of the most important battles in the Revolutionary War. It was the turning point for the American Army. They started winning against the British Army. This battle led to the Treaty of Alliance with the French which was negotiated by Benjamin Franklin.

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This was the final battle in the Revolutionary War. With assistance from the French, this Battle was the final victory the American Army needed. General Washington led the American Army to victory. At the end of this battle General Cornwallis, head of the British army, surrendered.