Navigation Acts 1650-1673 Restricted colonial trade, manufacturing and shipping to other countries Colonists smuggle and disregard Acts Salutary Neglect: Britain has allowed the colonies to prosper under their protection with little or no control

The Proclamation Line of 1763 Colonist felt that England was attempting to control them England wants to avoid Indian trouble Colonies were angered over idea that they must pay for cost of war and British troops now and some colonist disregarded the proclamation and settled the land.

Sugar Act 1764 Tax placed on sugar and molasses because colonists are British subjects Colonist responded with written protests, occasional boycotts, and cries of “No taxation without representation!”

Quartering Act 1765 Required colonies to provide British troops with quarters and supplies Colonial assemblies vote to refuse to supply British soldiers. Most colonial legislatures refused to pay for the supplies as required by the Quartering Act

Stamp Act 1765 Any item that was made of paper required a stamped tax payment to be made Colonists protested violently. The Stamp Act Congress met and a boycott of British goods began.

Declaratory Act (1766) England repealed the Stamp Act in the face of colonial protest. To reassert its authority over the colonies, it passed the Declaratory Act – a statement of England’s right to rule the colonies in any way it saw fit Colonist were please with the repeal of the Stamp Act, but continued to protest British-imposed laws like the Quartering Act

Townshend Acts 1767 Tax on glass, lead, paper, paint and tea Colonist smuggle goods, boycott British goods, and fight with British troops. “Letters from a farmer in Pennsylvania,” a widely read series of letters protesting the act, were published in nine colonial newspapers.

The Boston Massacre aka The Killing in Kings Street

What Happened On March 5, 1770, a crowd of sixty towns people began pelting snowballs at British guards. A shot rang out, and ultimately, 11 colonists were hit and five were dead. Some argue Crispus Attuks-former slave was the first casualty in the Revolution

Paul Revere Engraving

John Bufords Engraving

Response Trial- John Adams defended British soldiers Found innocent Sons of Liberty stepped up their game More frustration

The Boston Massacre After Parliament repealed the Townshend duties, the first clash between British and Americans took place On the night of March 5, 1770, a crowd of 50 or 60 men and boys gathered to taunt British soldiers outside the Boston Customs House When the crowd went as far as to throw sticks and snowballs at the redcoats, the soldiers panicked and opened fire, killing five men The event quickly became known as the Boston Massacre

Tea Act 1773 Tax on tea, it is a plan to bail out East India Tea company through tax on tea Boston Tea Party and smuggling of tea

The Boston Tea Party In 1773 the British East India Company, facing bankruptcy, appealed to Parliament for assistance Parliament quickly voted to give them a monopoly for the trade of tea in America Opposition groups mobilized against the plan and forcing ships to turn back at New York and Philadelphia harbours In Boston, Governor Hutchinson ordered that no ship could leave harbour without being unloaded Colonists on a signal from Sam Adams disguised themselves as Mohawks, boarded the ship and heaved 342 chests of tea into the harbour

The Intolerable Acts (Coercive Acts) The Boston Port Act - closed the port of Boston to trade The Massachusetts Government Act - revoked the colony's charter and forbade town meetings The “new” Quartering Act - required the colonists to provide billets for British soldiers Delegates from 12 colonies met as the First Continental Congress met and they agreed to boycott British goods. They also sent a petitiion to the king outlining their rights.

The Quebec Act - 1774 It was passed at the same time and considered by many as one of the Intolerable Acts It extended the Canadian province of Quebec south to the Ohio River It also allowed French Canadians use of their own legal system which did not recognize trial by jury The colonists believed The Quebec Act was designed to keep American settlers out of western lands forever

The First Continental Congress 56 delegates from 12 colonies attended the first Continental Congress in Philadelphia in September, 1774 The Congress petitioned the King for relief from the Intolerable Acts and vowed to stop trade with Britain until the acts were repealed

Here come the Brits! Early on April 19, 1775, 700 British soldiers were secretly sent to destroy the military supplies the colonists had collected at Concord After learning the soldiers’ destination, the Sons of Liberty sent Paul Revere & William Dawes to warn the Minutemen of approaching British soldiers. Fighting between the Americans and the British broke out near Boston – a city occupied in 1774 by the British army under General Thomas Gage

Lexington and Concord When the British soldiers reached Lexington, Captain Jonas Parker and 75 armed Minutemen were there to meet them. The Minutemen were greatly outnumbered. The British soldiers fired, killing 8 Minutemen and injuring 10 others. While the British soldiers continued on their way to Concord, the men and women of Concord were busy moving the arms and ammunition to new hiding places in surrounding towns.

The British Retreat to Boston A large force of patriots gathered in response to the British troops. As the British soldiers headed back to Boston, they were attacked by the Minutemen. All along the route, Minutemen, local farmers and townspeople continued the attack against the British. By the time the soldiers reached Boston, 73 British solders were dead and 174 more were wounded.

Second Continental Congress The Second Continental Congress was a body of representatives appointed by the legislatures of several British North American colonies which met from May 10, 1775, to March 1, 1781 By the time the Second Continental Congress met, the American Revolutionary War had already started with the Battles of Lexington and Concord on April 19, 1775. Thus, the Second Continental Congress found itself in the unenviable position of being the decision-making body of a military alliance at war with a far more powerful enemy.

Thomas Paine and Common Sense In January 1776, Thomas Paine published Common Sense He attacked the strongest bond tying tying America to Britain – the King He pointed out the advantages of freedom from British rule and commercial restrictions The book divided Americans into either Patriots or Loyalists

Independence! Beginning in April of 1776, the colonies advised their delegates to vote for independence On June 7th, Richard Henry Lee introduced a brief “Resolution of Independence” On July 2nd, 1776, the Continental Congress adopted Lee’s resolution “that these united colonies are, and of right ought to be free and independent states.”

The Declaration of Independence The Official Declaration of Independence was agreed upon on July 4th, 1776 Its purpose was to justify the Revolution, state that the colonies were independent and to express the nation’s principles The rest is history!