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To make this timeline easier to comprehend, I color coded the events. Acts will be in purple, wars/violent events in red, and other events in orange.

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The French and Indian war was the culmination of many previous conflicts between France and Britain, for both land-related and other reasons. War was officially declared by the British in 1756 after France began to expand along the Ohio river. Originally, the French were winning, but the tides soon turned after William Pitt borrowed money, paid Prussia to fight, and reimbursed colonies for raising troops. The Treaty of Paris was signed in Feb 1763, ending the war. The British got Canada and the land between the Appalachian mountains and the Mississippi River from France, and Florida from Spain, but let Spain keep Louisiana.

Unfortunately, all the money borrowed from Dutch and British bankers left the monarchy in debt (£72,289,673 in 1755 to £129,586,789 in 1764). To protect the new borders, British troops were permanently stationed in America, which further added to the expenses. King George II thought the colonists should help pay the debt, because they benefited the most from the land gain.

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In response to the Pontiac’s Rebellion/War (1763-1764), King George said all land west of the Appalachian divide was off-limits to settlers. He passed the Proclamation Act, which forbade both individuals and colonial governments from buying land or negotiating with Natives. Only certain licensed traders could travel west or negotiate.

Some colonists refused to follow this act, and continued to expand west, while others simply resented the act, but either way, tensions were high between the colonists and the King and Parliament in England. In addition, the effects of Pontiac’s War meant more debt added to that of the French and Indian War.

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Debt continued to grow, and those in Britain were desperate to get more money to pay it. The Chancellor of the Exchequer at the time, Sir George Grenville, hoped to help with the Sugar Act (1764) and Stamp Act. The Stamp Act taxed colonial papers (commercial and legal), newspapers, pamphlets, cards, almanacs, and dice. Much of the first section of the act followed this format: “For every skin or piece of vellum or parchment, or sheet or piece of paper, on which shall be engrossed, written, or printed, (what the paper is used for), a stamp duty of (between three pence and six pounds, depending on the usage).”

The Stamp Act caused absolute uproar the colonies. Colonists refused to use stamps, rioted, and took part in stamp burning  and the intimidation of stamp distributors. A group called the Sons of Liberty was formed to oppose the act. They destroyed stamps whenever encountered, tarred and feathered stamp distributors, and robbed homes of the wealthy(presuming they were the governor’s favorites). It is important to note that the colonists were not upset simply because they were being taxed, they were upset because they were being taxed by a government in which they were not represented.

The violent protests around the Stamp Act led to it being repealed, which in turn, created the need for more methods of taxation (the Townshend Acts).

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The Quartering Act, passed only two days after the Stamp Act, required colonists to provide food, drink, fuel, transport, and housing to English Troops stationed in their town.

Colonists weren’t opposed to the idea of taking in soldiers, who were mostly underpaid young men, but they did want to be asked for their consent before having soldiers in their home, especially since many of the goods they were required to provide were heavily taxed. The colony of New York completely refused to comply, which resulted in the New York Restraining Act of 1767, which prohibited the New York Assembly and Governor from passing new bills until they agreed to follow the Quartering Act.

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The King’s financial minister, Charles Townshend, proposed ideas to the Parliament for new acts. His suggestions for indirect taxes were agreed upon, passed, and called the Townshend Acts. These acts included taxes on imported goods such as British china, glass, lead, paint, paper, and tea. Townshend had been informed that the colonists were trying to produce their own goods so as to be less reliant on Britain, so he specifically taxed items he though would be hard for the colonists to make themselves. Extra customs officers were sent to prevent smuggling, and Parliament was now allowed to issue writs of assistance, which were warrants British officers could use to enter a house or business and search for smuggled goods.

Resistance to these acts was not anticipated by Townshend or others. However, colonists still reacted negatively. Samuel Adams in particular wrote a letter protesting the acts. To combat them, the colonies boycotted British goods. The Sons of Liberty asked that merchants not sell British goods, and the Daughters of Liberty asked women to weave cloth instead of purchasing it.

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On the day that Parliament repealed the Townshend Acts, fighting broke loose in Boston between soldiers and colonists. On this day, colonists began pelting British soldiers stationed outside the Boston Customs house with rocks and ice balls. Eventually, this escalated to the point where a soldier was knocked down. Panicked and thinking they had seen an order to shoot, the soldiers opened fire on the colonists. Five were killed and ten were injured. Among the five killed was Crispus Attucks, a 47 year old man who escaped slavery and is regarded as the first death of the Revolutionary War.

While this occurrence is widely known as the Boston Massacre, that term is a misnomer considering that a massacre is a killing of defenseless people, so what took place was more of a small riot. The soldiers were charged with murder, and with the help of John Adams, six were acquitted and two were charged with manslaughter and branded. Although this may have been enough for the British, it wasn’t for the colonists. The Boston Massacre became a powerful propaganda tool for patriot colonists. For one example of this, see the above image, which portrays the event inaccurately (organized soldiers, completely defenseless colonists, etc).

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Because of the colonists’ boycott of tea and other imported goods, the British East India Company was in financial danger with 17 million pounds of unsold tea in its London warehouse. The East India Company wanted to stop or lower the tax on tea so they could lower their prices and get more customers. To get colonists to buy from there as well as please the East India Company the Tea Act was passed. It reinforced the tax on tea as well as largely cutting out wholesalers and merchants from the importing process, decreasing the price of tea.

Again, Parliament assumed the colonists would be happy with this, considering it lowered the cost of tea for them, and again, they incorrectly predicted the response. Colonists saw the renewed tax on tea and change in trade as a symbol of British Tyranny. They revolted by refusing to let ships full of tea dock at the port and some resisted the act by participating in the Boston Tea Party.

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The Intolerable Acts were created in response to the American rebellion against the tea tax. It was comprised of four main laws. The first was the Boston Port Act, which closed off Boston Harbor until all ruin tea was paid for. The second was the Massachusetts Government Act, which revoked the colony’s charter and placed it under the rule of Gen. Thomas Gage. The third was the Administration of Justice Act, which said British soldiers charged of murder would be tried in England. Finally, there was a reinstatement of the earlier Quartering Act.

The British hoped to impose their rule and separate Massachusetts from the other colonies with these acts, but instead, they spurred action among the colonists in the form of  the First Continental Congress in Sept. 5, 1774.

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The Olive Branch Petition was the final effort of the Colonists to prevent war with Britain and reconcile. Agreed upon and signed by the members of the Second Continental Congress, the petition was sent back to England to be signed by King George III. King George outright refused to sign it. Many colonists had hoped that he wasn’t fully aware of what the Parliament was doing, but they now realized they were acting with full royal support.