1. Road to Revolution

2.  In 1760s British population in America exceeded 1.5 million people, 6 times that of 1700!!  1763 is the parting of ways, 150 years after Jamestown  A New Colonial System:  King wants more control, colonists more freedom  Crown needs more $ to keep up with expansion  How? Colonists will now pay for their own defense

3. Sugar Act, 1764  Measure by Parliament placing heavy duties on sugar, textiles, coffee, indigo, and wine imported from foreign countries  Designed to help pay the costs of keeping British troops in America  Was strictly enforced  In response, many colonist protested the tax by way of boycotts

4. The Stamp Act, 1765  Measure passed by Parliament requiringn tax stamps on all legal documents, newspapers, almanacs, and pamphlets  Designed to help pay for the maintenance of British troops and debt from the French and Indian War  Complaints and boycotts eventually led to the repeal of the stamp act.  The prime minister vowed to levy more taxes

5. Declaratory Act  Measure by Parliament after the repeal of the Stamp Act  Stated that the king and Parliament had the right and power to make laws that were binding on the colonies “in all cases whatsoever”

6. Quartering Act, 1765  Required colonists to provide British soldiers with housing, bedding, and other needs  Colonists Reaction: defied the acts  British Reaction: act was allowed to expire in 1770

7. Townshend Act, 1767  Placed duties on imported glass, lead, paints, paper, and tea:made it easy for tax collectors to get writs of assistance  Colonist Reaction: used boycotts, colonial legislatures circulated a letter protesting the acts, Sons of Liberty attacked homes of tax collectors  British Reaction: More soldiers sent to enforce the law

8. It’s about to get ugly…  Reactions:  “No taxation without representation” – Sam Adams  Sons of Liberty = organized protest, violence?  Trade began to fall sharply with boycotts  Parliament eventually repealed the stamp act  The issue now becomes representation  Not one American was a member of parliament!!

9. Boston Massacre, March 5 th, 1770  Street incident between an angry crowd and a group of British soldiers  Colonists protested the presence of British troops  Bostonians taunted the soldiers and threatened them with snowballs, stones, and clubs  A shot was fired and the panicky soldiers then shot point-blank into the crowd, killing five

10. Boston Massacre, 1770  Captain Preston and his men were acquitted of murder though two soldiers were convicted of lesser crimes  Trial lawyer in the case was the Patriot, John Adams  Samuel Adams, Paul Revere and other Sons of Liberty used the incident to warn the colonies of the British threat to the colonists’ liberties

14. Tea Act, 1773  Removed export duties on tea to help the financially troubled British East India Company  Act allowed the company to sell tea directly to the colonies without the tea first going to Britain  Colonist Reaction: Caused great resentment because colonial merchants were being undersold

15. Boston Tea Party, Dec. 16 th, 1773  Midnight raid against British tea ships in Boston Harbor by Samuel Adams and the Sons of Liberty  Disguised themselves as Mohawk Indians and dumped Britain’s East India Tea Company’s cargoes of overboard  Britain’s Reaction: Act could not go unpunished

16. Coercive (Intolerable) Acts, 1774  Five Laws passed by Parliament in response to colonial defiance of Tea Act  1. Boston Port Bill: closed the port of Boston until debt was paid  2. Administration of Justice Act: British soldiers arrested for serious crimes against colonists would be returned to England for trial

17. Coercive (Intolerable) Acts, 1774  3. Government Act: reduced the power of the colony’s local government and banned all town meetings  4. Quartering Act: more open rules for quartering troops  5. Quebec Act: expanded province of Quebec to Ohio River valley, eliminating the claims of some colonies to the region

18. First Continental Congress, 1774  Issued Declaration of Rights to Britain  Agreed not to import or use British goods  Agreed to stop exports to Britain  Olive Branch petition?  formed minutemen: colonial lead militia