The Key Events Leading to Revolution
French and Indian War
• This struggle between France and Great
Britain was fought between 1754 - 1763 .
• Although it began in North America it
eventually spread to Europe.
• The origins of the conflict can be
traced back to events in the Ohio
Valley.
• The French built a chain of forts to
protect their Fur Trade from the
British and their Iroquois allies.
The Key Events Leading to Revolution
French and Indian War
• The French won most of the early battles,
including the first one at Fort Necessity .
• In this battle a 21 year old Major from
Colonial Virginia named George
Washington commanded the loosing
British forces.
• In 1758, the tide of the war changed
dramatically when the British
destroyed the great French fortress
at Louisburg .
The Key Events Leading to Revolution
French and Indian War
• In 1759, the British captured Quebec, the
capital of French Canada, and shortly after
that the French surrendered.
All the former French territories
east of the Mississippi went to
Great Britain .
• As a result, the French lost all their colonial
possessions on continental North America.
All the former French territories
west of the Mississippi went to
Spain .
The Key Events Leading to Revolution
The Proclamation of 1763
• Prior to the French and Indian war, the
French tried to prevent bloodshed by
keeping settlers out of Indian hunting lands
west of the Appalachian Mountains .
• After Great Britain took control of the
region, King George III forbid colonial
settlement in the western lands.
• This proclamation angered many colonists
along the western frontier who wanted to
settle these lands .
The Key Events Leading to Revolution
The Sugar Act of 1764
• By 1764, the British government was deeply
in debt from fighting France, so it was
decided that the colonies needed to help
pay for their own defense.
• It required payment of a
tariff on imported items such
as molasses, sugar, wine, and
coffee.
• To raise this money, Parliament made a new law
called the Sugar Act.
The Key Events Leading to Revolution
The Sugar Act of 1764
• The tariffs upset the colonists because they
were not allowed to have representation in
Parliament to speak for their rights.
• The most outspoken person on the subject
was Samuel Adams, who declared that the
right of taxation was a power that should
only belong to the people or their selected
representatives.
• Tariffs were suppose to be used to
regulate trade, not to pay taxes.
The Key Events Leading to Revolution
The Stamp Act and Declaratory Act of 1765
• Once again, taxation had been enacted
without colonial representation in
Parliament.
• The British government responded to the
protests over the Sugar Act by reducing
the tax by 2/3rd, but not before enacting
a new law called the Stamp Act.
• It required the colonists to pay for tax
stamps on paper goods such as almanacs,
newspapers, and official documents.
The Key Events Leading to Revolution
The Stamp Act and Declaratory Act of 1765
• Nine colonies participated in what has been
called the Stamp Act Congress.
• This act declared that the British government
had the right to tax the colonies as they saw fit.
• John Adams of Boston called for
representatives from each colony to
meet and come up with a plan for
resisting unfair taxation
• The Stamp Act was repealed the next year,
but not before the King approved a new law
called the Declaratory Act.
The Key Events Leading to Revolution
The Quartering Act of 1765
• The act required Colonial towns to provide
shelter and supplies for British troops.
• In response, angry merchants in colonial ports
boycotted British goods until the act was changed
• Even before the Declaratory Act was
approved, Parliament had passed the
Quartering Act to help the government
save money.
• When the colony of New York resisted
paying for the soldier’s upkeep, the British
shut down their legislature.
The Key Events Leading to Revolution
The Townsend Acts of 1767
• The next move by the British was to
enact the Townsend Acts, which created
created indirect taxes called duties on
imported items including tea, glass, lead,
paint, and paper.
• Once again the colonists exerted economic
pressure on Britain by boycotting their
goods.
• These activities were mostly successful because by 1770, all the
Townsend duties on imported goods had been revoked (except tea).
The Key Events Leading to Revolution
• On March 5, 1770, five colonists died
in Boston when British troops fired on
an unruly crowd protesting taxation
The Boston Massacre of 1770
The Key Events Leading to Revolution
The Boston Tea Party of 1773
• On December 16, 1773, Samuel Adams led a
group of patriots partially disguised as
Mohawks onto British ships and dumped the
expensive cargo into Boston harbor.
• By the 1770’s, tea was everyone’s
favorite non-alcoholic drink. But
because it was still being taxed,
many merchants smuggled tea
into the colonies from Holland.
• So Britain decided to lure colonists into
buying British tea by lowering their prices.
The Key Events Leading to Revolution
The Intolerable Acts of 1774
• Immediately, Committees of Correspondence sent off letters
recommending ways the colonies could resist the British acts.
• The British government immediately passed
laws to punish the colony of Massachusetts.
• As a result.
Extra troops were sent to maintain order
Boston harbor was closed to trade.
The Massachusetts legislature was
suspended