Causes of the American Revolution

French and Indian War

• Known to the British and French as the 'Seven Years War'.
• French claimed a section of the American interior and allied with Native tribes to prevent British settlers from going West
• Encouraged Native American tribes to attack British colonies, in order to drive them out.
• Ended up with Native Americans attacking settlements so often that western expansion became almost impossible.
• After a series of losses early in the war, Britain gained it's footing in 1758 with the capture of several Forts such as Duquesne and Frontenac.
• The final victory came with the signing of the Treaty of Paris, 1763, marking the end of the war.

1754

Proclamation of 1763

1763

• After the end of the French & Indian War, Britain now controlled huge amounts of land in North America.
• The crown wanted to limit settlement to the west
• Partly to protect and appease the Native Americans who were unhappy with British rule.
• Partly to protect both settlers from Native attacks and Natives from settler attacks
• All trade negotiations would be done through the Crown, not by private citizens or Colonial governments

Sugar Act 1764

• Parliament lowered the tax on molasses from six pence to three, hoping to convince colonists to pay the tax instead of smuggling cheaper French molasses.
• Allowed officers to seize goods without going to court
• Colonists were angry that they were being taxed without being consulted.
• New vice-admiralty courts contradicted "innocent until proven guilty" which was British law

1764

1765

1765

Townshend Acts

1767

• Named for the British Chancellor of the Exchequer, Charles Townshend
• Placed taxes on British china, glass, lead, paint, paper, and tea imported into British North America
• Came after Benjamin Franklin had informed Parliament that the colonies were going to begin manufacturing their own goods instead of importing.
• These were picked because they were difficult for the colonists to manufacture on their own.
• It was estimated that the revenue would be around 40,000 pounds sterling, mostly from the tea
• The revenue was intended to pay the colonial governors and judges.

Boston Massacre

1770

• A deadly riot on March 5, 1770 on King Street in Boston.
• Began as a confrontation in front of the Custom House between a mob and a single British soldier standing guard.
• The mob insulted and harassed the guard, who eventually retaliated and struck a colonist with his bayonet.
• The mob began attacking the guard with snowballs, ice, and rocks.
• The guard eventually called for backup, bringing a small squad of soldiers to back him up.
• More confrontation occurred and someone said 'Fire', causing a soldier to discharge his weapon though it is unclear if it was intentional.
• Other soldiers fired after the first shot, killing 5 and wounding 6.
• The incident fueled anti-British views, especially after propaganda was distributed by individuals like John Hancock, Paul Revere, and Samuel Adams.

Committees of Correspondence

1772

• Colonial means of keeping open communication lines with Parliament and each other prior to the Revolutionary War.
• Boston had the first one in 1764 to encourage boycotts, followed by New York in the next year to keep the other colonies in the loop in their struggles against the Stamp Act.
• The tensions with Britain made it imperative that the colonies were able to communicate with one another
• They were so the colonies could share ideas and information.
• Boston's Committee of Correspondence in 1772 published information that Massachusetts colonial judges and governor were being paid by Britain, therefore accountable to Britain and not to the colonies they were serving.
• The Committees of Correspondence eventually culminated in the 1st Continental Congress in 1774, demonstrating the logical nature of intercolonial communication.

Tea Act

1773

• Passed on May 10, 1773
• Did not raise any revenue nor imposed new taxes.
• Designed to bail out East India Company, which had 18 million pounds of unsold tea and was struggling financially.
• The tea was to be directly shipped to the colonies and sold at bargain prices.
• Because the tea tax from the Townshend Acts were still in place, the radical leaders in America believed that the Act was an attempt to normalize the tax while undercutting the business of local merchants.
• Colonists in Philadelphia and New York turned the ships back to Britain while the cargo was left to rot in Charleston's port.
• The Royal Governor in Boston refused to allow the ships to leave port until the tea was unloaded while the colonists refused to unload the cargo. This led to British crews being stuck in Boston looking for work, usually finding trouble close behind.
• This situation led to the Boston Tea Party.

Intolerable Acts

1774

• In response to the defiance demonstrated by Boston, the British government passed a series of Acts to attempt to subjugate Massachusetts and to discourage the other colonies from any attempts at rebellion.
• They were a series of 4 Acts that were bundled together under the moniker: Coercive (Intolerable) Acts
• The British called them the Coercive Acts. Colonists called them the Intolerable Acts

1st Continental Congress

1774b

• Met in reaction to the Coercive Acts in Philadelphia on September 5, 1774
• 54 delegates from 12 of the 13 colonies
• Structured with the emphasis on equality of the participants and free debate
• Issued a Declaration of Rights, both affirming loyalty to the Crown and denying Parliament's right to tax the colonies.
• Passed the Articles of Association, calling all colonies to stop importing British goods of any kind beginning on December 1st, 1774, if the Coercive Acts were not repealed by that time.
• Threatened to reconvene in May of 1775 and cease to export to Britain in September of 1775 if the Coercive Acts still existed.
• Disbanded on October 26, 1774

1775

Paul Reveres Ride

4/18

Concord

4/19

• The Redcoats proceeded to Concord to look for hidden arms.
• When they didn't find much, they decided to light what they did find on fire, just a little. It became slightly more than a little, getting out of control.
• The hundreds of militiamen outside of town thought that Concord was on fire and double-timed to the North Bridge, which was defended by a group of soldiers.
• The British fired first in defense, but had to fall back after the return volley.
• This became known as the "Shot Heard 'Round The World", immortalized by poet Ralph Waldo Emerson.
• After 4 hours of searching, the British prepared to return to Boston.
• Over 2000 militiamen had descended on Concord, speeding up the British retreat.
• As the British left, militiamen began shooting at them from behind trees, stone walls, houses, and sheds
• The British began leaving things behind to move faster.
• After they arrived back at Lexington, a new column of Redcoats were available, but a second group of colonists also appeared.
• The colonists harassed the Redcoats the entire way back to Charlestown Neck, where they had naval support.
• Few Redcoat casualties (3500 militiamen firing constantly over 18 miles only killed or wounded 250 Redcoats compared to 90 militia casualties.)
• This did prove that the American colonists could stand up to the best military in the world, helping to drive the independence movement.

• Warned that the British were going to march on Lexington and Concord, Paul Revere and William Dawes were to alert residents and Patriots to the news.
• Instructed to look at the steeple of Boston's Old North Church for the sign if the British were coming by land or by sea.
• One lantern, by land.
• Two lanterns, by sea
• Dawes and Revere met in Lexington, persuading John Hancock and Samuel Adams to flee from their hiding place.
• Revere was captured by a British patrol, leaving Dawes to have to make his way to Concord alone on foot

1775

• 700 British soldiers arrived at dawn, finding 77 militiamen on the town green
• The militiamen were ordered to disperse, but a shot was fired.
• Several British volleys ensued, ending with 8 dead militiamen and nine wounded while only a single Redcoat was injured.

Lexington

4/19