Revolutionary War Vocabulary Proclamation Line of 1763: Imaginary Line drawn along the Appalachian Mountains prohibiting settlers from crossing Indian territory. Pontiac’s War: An uprising of Native American tribes led by Ottawa Chief Pontiac in opposition to British policies and the settlement of colonists into Indian territories. Mercantilism: Belief by the British king that the colonies exist for the benefit of the mother country. Navigation Acts: Enforced Mercantilism. Forced British colonies to trade only with England. Sugar Act: Tax placed on molasses/sugar products sold to colonists.

Revolutionary War Vocabulary Stamp Act: Required colonists to pay a tax on all printed materials including newspapers, legal documents, playing cards & dice. Parliament: British government consisting of elected and appointed representatives. King has primary importance in all matters. Tyranny: Absolute rule by an individual or group which denies rights to the general population. Sons of Liberty: Group of colonial patriots created to oppose British policies of tyranny. Led boycotts of British taxation. Townshend Acts: Tax on lead, paint, paper, glass and tea.

Revolutionary War Vocabulary Boston Massacre: An incident in which British soldiers fired into a crowd of unarmed colonists, killing 5 people. Boston Tea Party: Colonists disguised as Mohawk Indians sneaked onto three tea filled ships and dumped hundreds of tea chests into Boston Harbor. Tea Act: Rule by King George III which allowed British East India Company to sell tea directly to colonists thus eliminating the Colonial tea merchants. Intolerable Acts (Colonists )/Coercive Acts (British ): Laws passed by Parliament created to punish the Colonists for the Boston Tea Party and to tighten control of the colonies. 1. Close Boston Harbor 2. No Town Meetings 3. Trials held in England 4. Quartering Act

Revolutionary War Vocabulary Quartering Act: Part of Intolerable Acts requiring colonists to house and feed British soldiers. Grenville’s Plan: Prime Minister George Grenville devised plan to permanently fund a British army in the colonies. Grenville’s plan included colonial taxes such as the Stamp Act. Committees of Correspondence: Colonial members met and shared ideas about new British laws and ways to challenge them. Patriot: American colonist who fought for independence from Great Britain. Loyalist: American colonist who sided with Britain during the fight for independence. Propaganda: The spread of ideas designed to influence or promote people’s opinion of a situation or event.

Revolutionary War Vocabulary Common Sense: Pamphlet written by Thomas Paine which made the case for independence against tyranny and the abuse of English power. Declaration of Independence: Document written by T. Jefferson, B. Franklin & A. Hamilton. Formally announced the separation of the colonies from England. Militia: Army consisting of civilian soldiers. Minutemen: Local militia: prepared to fight at a moments notice. Continental Army: Paid colonial soldiers from each of the 13 colonies. Commander in Chief- G. Washington

Revolutionary War Vocabulary 1 st Continental Congress: Met to determine plan of action with regard to implementation of Intolerable Acts. 2 nd Continental Congress: Authorized the creation of Continental Army to carry out the fight against Great Britain. Sent Olive Branch Petition. Olive Branch Petition: 2 nd Continental Congress sent B. Franklin to meet with King George III in order to pursue peace between the colonies and Great Britain. This effort was designed to avoid war. Patrick Henry: Virginian Patriot leader/member of Continental Congress who encouraged colonists to join the Patriot cause with his famous words: “Give me liberty or give me death”.

Revolutionary War Vocabulary Paul Revere: Boston silversmith and patriot who traveled along with Dawes and Prescott on horseback from Boston to Concord to warn/alert the minutemen. Writs of Assistance: Search warrants created to enforce Townshend Acts. Allowed tax collectors to search for smuggled goods. Regulars: British soldiers. Referred by the colonists as Lobster backs due to their red dress uniforms. Tory: Another term for Loyalist. Colonists who chose to side with the British. Lexington & Concord: First battle of the Revolutionary War. Patriots were defeated in Lexington however were successful in Concord. Best know as “The shot heard round the world”.

Revolutionary War Vocabulary Battle of Bunker Hill: (occurred on nearby Breeds Hill) Patriots pushed Redcoats back 2x until running out of ammunition and retreating. Although patriots lost, battle was viewed as a moral victory because the battle proved the patriots could take on the mighty British army. Best known for Col. Prescott’s command: “Don’t fire until you see the whites of their eyes.” George Washington: Commander in Chief of the Continental Army. Mercenaries: Foreign soldiers paid by Britain to fight against Continental army. Most notable were the highly trained Hessians from Germany.