Events that Lead up to the American Revolution Timeline by Caleb Yates

From 1754 to 1763

calebyates2005 — 2025-09-29 16:39:07 UTC

The French were making allies with many tribes of the Native Americans, and the English were making allies with the Iroquois. William Pitt took control of the British Navy in America.

The war ended in the Battle of Quebec, where they gained control in Canada. The war ended with England in a lot of debt, where they started taxing the 13 colonies for their debt.

Sources:

Text: From the video and lectures

Video: https://youtu.be/9n-gsgqaUo0

From 1763 to 1776

calebyates2005 — 2025-10-07 01:17:03 UTC

There was land west of the colonies that was promised by the English to the colonies as a reward for their support during the French and Indian War. Because of Pontiac's Rebellion however, the English did not allow the colonies the land, thus setting a proclamation line to stop the colonies from advancing. Even the colonists rebelled against the British when going past it, but when the British saw their settlements, they were burned.

Washington wanted the colonists to have hope of this being repealed, by referring to this as a "temporary expedient" at the time. The American identity found it's beginning during this time, as all thirteen of the colonies found a hate for the British in common.

Sources:

Text: https://www.mountvernon.org/library/digitalhistory/digital-encyclopedia/article/proclamation-line-of-1763

Video: https://youtu.be/HKNTBHmWOyA

From 1761 to 1776

calebyates2005 — 2025-10-07 01:22:50 UTC

These were laws written to give officials the authority to search people's private property to combat smuggling.

A lawyer in Massachusetts, James Otis, led a case where he spoke for five hours in front of the Massachusetts Superior Court, adhering to the principle that "a man's house is his castle", where these laws would be in violation of "one of the most essential branches of English liberty".

Sources:

Text: https://constitutioncenter.org/the-constitution/historic-document-library/detail/james-otis-against-writs-of-assistance-february-24-1761

From 1765 and 1774 to 1776

calebyates2005 — 2025-10-07 01:28:29 UTC

These acts allowed officers to enter into the houses of the colonists if they were not given military barracks. This further infringed on the colonists rights to their own houses, thus furthering the violations of liberty and going against Otis' principle of a man's house being his castle.

There was a later act which was passed in 1774 enacting a stricter act on the colonies.

Source:

Text: https://teachingamericanhistory.org/document/quartering-act/

From 1765 to 1766

calebyates2005 — 2025-10-07 01:30:03 UTC

This act granted England the authority to tax the colonies for any stamp duties, thus taking more money from the colonies. During this time, there was no direct representation for the courts of law in the colonies, so they had indirect representation in the courts in England.

The stamp act was later repealed in 1766 by parliament.

Source:

Text: https://teachingamericanhistory.org/document/the-stamp-act/

From 1767 to 1776

calebyates2005 — 2025-10-07 01:59:38 UTC

This was an enacted tax on glass, red lead, white lead, painter's colors, tea, and paper.

Most of these acts were repealed after the Boston Massacre.

Sources:

Text: https://teachingamericanhistory.org/document/the-townshend-revenue-act/

https://www.bostonteapartyship.com/the-townshend-acts

Video: https://youtu.be/FKGSda3sEVU

From 1773 to 1774

calebyates2005 — 2025-10-07 02:01:26 UTC

The British had a lot of stocks invested in the British East India Tea Company. When finding that the business was starting to go bankrupt, England forced the colonies to buy tea from their own company rather than from the Dutch. While the colonists bought the stock, the British congressmen would gain money through insider trading.

This all came to an end when the British sent over a ship full of tea to the Port at Boston. In retaliation, the Sons of Liberty dressed as native Americans and poured 342 chests of tea into the water, which absolutely bankrupt the British East India Company, and pushed the English government to enact stricter laws, leading to the Intolerable Acts.

Source:

Text: from lecture

From 1774 to 1776

calebyates2005 — 2025-10-07 02:02:58 UTC

The Coercive Acts included and act which was enacted to discontinue landing and discharging boats in the Boston Port on March 31, 1774. Another Act here was the Administration of Justice Act on May 20, 1774, where there was an impartial administration of justice for those who have led or participated in riots and other acts. Most of these laws were passed in Massachusetts because of the Boston Tea Party.

Many people lost their jobs because of the Boston Tea Party. England enacted stricter laws, like an increase in the Quartering Acts, where England would force the colonists to be more in submission to them.

Sources:

Text: Lecture and https://teachingamericanhistory.org/document/coercive-acts/

On March 5, 1770

calebyates2005 — 2025-10-07 04:01:14 UTC

The accounts of this event do not agree with the validity of what happened. Many would remember this event as a big moment in US history as a massacre of innocent colonists from organized British fire, yet the lack of eye witness testimony seems to minimize this to only a careless misfire. Both Paul Revere portrayed this image at the time and so did Alonzo Chapel, but only a hundred years after in 1868.

Paul Revere made an engraving of this "Boston Massacre", which is allegedly propaganda. The engraving went all throughout the Boston newspaper overnight, which when it made its way to the citizens, they understood the message Paul Revere placed in there that the British had opened fire collectively against the colonists.

Sources:

Text: from the video and the lecture

Video: https://youtu.be/cLbc0NcToUI

From 1774 to 1781

calebyates2005 — 2025-10-07 04:34:42 UTC

The Colonies sent a declaration of rights and grievances about all of the things that they wanted to have changed but King George II didn't respond positively to their petition. The colonies even sent an Olive Branch Petition to the King, where he didn't even give much of a response to that either.

There were delegates sent from the thirteen colonies to British North America, with the first congress in the fall of 1774, and the second in the spring of 1775. The second continental congress happened after the they had been engaged in combat during the battles of Lexington and Concord during the Battle of Bunker Hill. During this last continental congress in 1775, the colonist had their last appeal to the king to avoid war, yet all thirteen colonies agreed to an agreement in "The Declaration of the Causes and Necessity for Taking Up Arms."

Sources:

Text: From the lecture and from https://history.house.gov/Education/NHD/NHD-2026/NHD-ContinentalCongress/

calebyates2005 — 2025-10-07 04:35:25 UTC

calebyates2005 — 2025-10-07 04:36:01 UTC

calebyates2005 — 2025-10-07 04:36:35 UTC

calebyates2005 — 2025-10-07 04:37:00 UTC