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Information relevant to the role played in the war for independence

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(1756-1763) French and Indian War (Seven Year's War)

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(1756-1763) French and Indian War (Seven Year's War)

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The war reflected the imperialistic attitude of both France and England.

It consisted of English colonists, who didn't want to fight in "England's war" but were forced into military service, French troops and their allied natives.

England won the war and drove France out of Canada and in return gained control of their territories west of the Appalachian Mountains, but the Proclamation of 1763 was issued which prohibited settlement west of the Appalachian Mountains, a region too costly for the British to protect from the displaced natives.

This angered the colonists who believed that those territories would be given to them after the war, which they didn't want to fight in the first place.

England also suffered financially from the war and others back in Europe, resulting in an increase in taxation of the colonists specifically as King George III viewed them as lesser than his people in England. This was seen as the quickest way to get increase finances and it angered the colonists even further.

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Prohibited settlement west of the Appalachian Mountains. The region was too costly for the British to protect, so colonists couldn't use the land they fought for. Now the deaths of many colonists who fought in a war they didn't want to fight in did it for nothing. It was more of a continuation of England's ill relationship with France in Europe, a relationship that will cause the French to aid the colonists at the end of the American Revolution.

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King of England during the French and Indian War on through the American Revolution.

Viewed the colonists more as slaves than citizens and therefore taxed them to pay for England's war debt.

After the colonies boycotted British goods he ordered merchants that were bound for America to make sure all the tea was unloaded and sold on American ground, which ultimately lead to the Boston Tea Party.

He then imposed the intolerable acts on the people, and it didn't take long for this to turn into the start of the American Revolutionary War.

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All three acts hurt everyday colonists, artisans, merchants, etc. as prices rose due to the taxes.

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British law that taxed molasses and anything with sugar in it. It was issued to help pay for the national debt that England had accumulated, demonstrating another example of the home nation using the colonists for its own needs. The tax affected a lot of food items since many had sugar in them in some shape or form. The colonists gained more ill feelings towards England because of this.

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A law in which British Parliament established a direct tax on all printed materials made in the colonies. Tensions were rising so this act was issued in order to prevent dissention from being printed in the colonies and spreading, resulting in a revolution. Even so, this act still contributed towards the dissention as the colonists ownership of something as simple as words on paper was regulated.

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British law that allowed the British East India Company to ship their goods directly to the colonies and sell their tea at a bargained price. Many colonists opposed the Act because it seemed to validate the Townshend Tax on tea. This was a main event which lead to the Boston Tea Party, a protest against all of the taxes but one in which tea was a primary target.

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Colonists were growing increasingly angry over the overwhelming amount of attempts by the British government to tax them without their consent. King George III left troops in Boston to monitor them.

In this event, mobs of mostly drunk and angry colonists surrounded British troops and were taunting them and throwing objects at them. The event wasn't the fault of tyrannical British forces, but a provocation incited by the colonists themselves.

One soldier shot a rifle at them despite his commander's order not to fire and more troops followed, causing the deaths of three colonists and wounding eight others.

This event was only portrayed as a massacre in a painting by Paul Revere that was sent to other colonies to fan the anti-British flame into a revolution. His painting made it seem as though the British troops had started to kill innocents in the streets at random, which was far from the truth.

This even fueled anger towards a man called John Adams as well. He defended the British troops, all of which faced an antagonizing death by the hands of the angry colonists despite being the victims of the inciting attack.

Paul Revere's Depiction:

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A very fervent American patriot, Paul Revere served primarily as a courier and an engraver of propaganda pictures, one of the best-known examples being a wildly inaccurate cartoon depicting the Boston Massacre which was sent out to the colonies and further pitted the colonists against Britain.

His acts and those of his fellow patriots contributed (purposefully) to the early start of the American Revolution which was at the time unplanned due to the 1st Continental Congress's decision to wait a year to see if the colonists' problems would be fixed by the King of England.

He played a role in warning the colonists of a British attack at Lexington and Concord, the first battle of the Revolutionary War, although his part is wildly exaggerated in stories.

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(December 16, 1773) The Boston Tea Party:

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(December 16, 1773) The Boston Tea Party:

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Was a protest against the many taxes (tea, sugar, stamp)

Groups of colonists dressed as natives, as a slap in reference to the French and Indian War, boarded British East India Company ships that ferried tea from Britain and threw everything on board into the Boston Harbor.

Most of the cargo was the tea that was being sold to the colonists at extreme prices with the additional tax courtesy of the King of England.

It was all to reference and remind King George III who started all of it with his war.

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(Sept-Oct 1774 in Philadelphia) 1st Continental Congress:

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(Sept-Oct 1774 in Philadelphia) 1st Continental Congress:

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A meeting in which all thirteen colonies except Georgia sent representatives to discuss the events and taxes and whether or not they should push for independence or keep asking the King of England for better treatment.

Not all of the colonies wanted war since war was what got them into the mess they were in, but the agreed that something needed to be done if their lives were to improve.

New England wanted separation
The Middle Colonies had mixed opinions
The Southern Colonies wanted to seek a resolution since they had the closest ties/relationship with England.

All three wanted to make the King and Parliament to understand their grievances and fix the issues.

Due to their different opinions on the matter they agreed to meet again but in one years time if the grievances were not met.

This lack of a decision and agreement to deal with the problem a year later angered Paul Revere and other American patriots who then went to work to incite the revolution as early as possible.

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(April 1775) The Battles of Lexington and Concord:

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(April 1775) The Battles of Lexington and Concord:

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The first armed conflicts of the Revolutionary War.

Following the Boston Tea Party both the colonists and England began gearing up for war as tensions rose.

Just six months after the First Continental Congress, British troops attempted to sneak in and destroy the colonists' supplies at Lexington and Concord. If they had been successful they may have prevented the war altogether.

The colonists were warned of their coming by Paul Revere and were ready to attack the British troops.

The battles marked the beginning of the Revolutionary War.

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The colonies agreed that they must respond to the military threat from Britain, yet they still wanted to find peace with England, even asking for a truce but King George III sent mercenaries instead to stop the civil unrest.

They concluded that the only answer left was independence so they agreed to draft the Declaration of Independence which was later signed in the summer of 1776.

The Continental Army was created and General George Washington was given command.

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Elected general of the Continental Army at the 2nd Continental Congress.

Being a former British colonel made him a good fit for the role as he closely observed British military tactics, gaining a keen insight into their strengths and weaknesses that proved invaluable during the Revolution.

Lead the colonists in a victory over the forces of Lord Cornwallis in the Siege of Yorktown, the last battle of the war, and made the key decision to hold Cornwallis captive until the British agreed to end the conflict by signing a surrender.

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(July 4, 1776) The Declaration of Independence:

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(July 4, 1776) The Declaration of Independence:

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Written by Thomas Jefferson and signed by fifty six delegates from the thirteen colonies.

It declared that the colonies were free and independent states and set the idea of unalienable rights of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.

Such demands made it one of the biggest acts of treason ever in the eyes of England.

Thomas Jefferson attempted to write the end to slavery within the Declaration, but once proofread by the representatives from the Southern Colonies, who were slave owners, they wouldn't sign it, so instead Jefferson took it out and settled for a potential foundation for a possible future end to slavery written within.

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Convinced George Mason to write the Virginia Declaration of Rights which lists all the rights Virginians should be afforded as citizens of the colony. This later becomes the model for the Declaration of Independence.

Wrote the Declaration of Independence with help in its drafting. Jefferson used sources from other pivotal documents to create one finalized document.

In his writing of the Declaration, he laid the foundation for the end of slavery that would be used in the future.

He was one of the first to sign the Declaration of Independence.

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He was one of Boston's leaders during the crisis that led to the outbreak of the American Revolutionary War in 1775.

He served more than two years in the Continental Congress in Philadelphia, and he was the first to sign the Declaration of Independence in his position as president of Congress.

Hancock’s revolutionary activities made him a target for British authorities. In 1775, he and fellow patriot Samuel Adams avoided arrest in Lexington, Massachusetts, after Paul Revere made his nighttime ride to warn them the British were coming.

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He assisted Thomas Jefferson in drafting the Declaration of Independence in 1774, and was its foremost advocate in the Congress.

As a diplomat in Europe, he helped negotiate the eventual peace treaty with Great Britain, and acquired vital governmental loans from Amsterdam bankers.

Adams defended the British troops at the Boston Massacre, though he feared that it would hurt his reputation. In arguing their case, Adams made his legendary statement regarding jury decisions: "Facts are stubborn things; and whatever may be our wishes, our inclinations, or the dictates of our passion, they cannot alter the state of facts and evidence."

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Produced a pamphlet known as "Common Sense" which challenged the rule of the American colonies by the King of England.

This pamphlet was the first call for Independence, and from an Englishman at that.

Written in plain English, It was read and acclaimed by many American colonists during the Mid-1700s and contributed for a growing sentiment for independence from Great Britain. Its contents were also used in a part of the Declaration of Independence by Thomas Jefferson.

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Turning point of the war.

Up to this point, the Americans were losing because they were fighting a "gentleman's" war. They realized that they wouldn't win by fighting the traditional way and as a result they switched to guerilla warfare, a hit and run fighting style.

Because of guerilla tactics the Americans won the battle, boosting morale and belief in the war.

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Last battle and end of the Revolutionary war with the colonial victory over the forces of the British commander Lord Cornwallis, who surrendered.

The key to winning the battle was the arrival of French troops and naval reinforcements to help cut off the supply line to the fort.

A key decision was made by General George Washington to hold Cornwallis captive until the British agreed to end the conflict by signing a surrender.

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Charles Cornwallis led several successful early campaigns during the American Revolution, securing British victories at New York, Brandywine and Camden.

In 1781, as second in command to Gen. Henry Clinton, he moved his forces to Virginia, where he was defeated at the Battle of Yorktown.

This American victory and Cornwallis’ surrender of his troops to George Washington was the final major conflict of the American Revolution.

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This treaty recognized America as a free and independent country for the first time.

England sent two delegates to Paris to negotiate a peace treaty; however, they still had ill feelings and refused to stay longer than necessary, just long enough to get it sorted.

Terms for the treaty were reached and it was signed into effect, officially ending the conflict.

This treaty also sealed an allied partnership between America and England, a partnership that would be put into effect for many events in the future.

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In 1776, he was part of the five-member committee that helped draft the Declaration of Independence, in which the 13 American colonies declared their freedom from British rule. That same year, Congress sent Franklin to France to enlist that nation's help with the Revolutionary War.

Presented the Declaration of Independence to the King of England who then locked him up for a time for doing so.

Worked with the British at the end of the war in the drafting and signing of the Treaty of Paris.