-
Boston Massacre
The Boston Massacre was an event that changed America's views on the British. On March 5th, 1770, colonists were throwing things such as snow and sticks at British soldiers (Boston). This caused the British to open fire on the colonists. These actions caused an uproar in the people which made the British look menacing. -
Boston Tea Party
The Boston Tea Party was a result of the high taxes that were placed on the colonists. This event occurred on December 16th, 1773 (Tea Party). This caused them to storm the Boston harbor in order to get rid of all the tea that the British had. This event caused the British to strengthen their rules in the colonies in order to prevent anything like this from happening again. -
The Battle of Lexington
The plan for the British was to capture Sam Adams, John Hancock, and Concord. This capture would then lead to them capturing gunpowder as well (Lexington). This plan failed when Paul Revere rode across the countryside warning the people of the impending attack. When the British reached their destination they found the militia ready to fight. The British were then pushed back by the militia and were forced to retreat. During this battle the militia killed 125 British troops, some were office -
Minutemen
The Minutemen were a group of fighters who were very important to the Americans. This is because the minutemen were a group of men who would be ready to fight the British in less than a minute. This was ideal for the Americans because they needed a group of men who are ready and equipped to fight the British compared to the rest of the army who had little to no experience. Even though they lacked a central figure to lead them, they were still effective in the things that they did (Minutemen). -
Paul Revere
Paul Revere was a supporter of the American Revolution. The most famous occurrence that Revere was involved in was the midnight ride. The midnight ride was when Revere warned the militia that the British were coming to attack. This gave the Americans an advantage that they then used to beat the British and to gain the first win of the American Revolutionary War. -
Battle of Bunker Hill
American troops were told to dig trenches on top of Bunker Hill in order to gain an advantage over the British troops. This order was interpreted incorrectly which led to the Americans entrenching themselves on Breed’s Hill (Bunker). The Americans then threatened the British Troops which led the British to attack. The first two British attacks failed horribly but the 3rd wave proved successful for the British. Although the British captured the hill, they lost 1,054 of the 2,300 troops . -
Declaration of Independence
The Declaration of Independence was definitely the most important domestic event of the time period. This is mostly due to the impact that it made on everything. First off, the Declaration was a big deal because it listed all of the Americans grievances which was a large step in becoming its own nation (Declaration). Prior to this the Americans had not acted on this scale. -
Period: to
Revolutionary War
-
The Battle/Siege of Charleston
The British planned an extremely large attack on Charleston which was meant to be a devastating blow to the Americans. This attack was delayed for a very long time due to the distances that the British had to travel. It was also delayed because the fleet was separated by a storm when they were out at sea. The battle/siege began on April 2nd, 1780, and lasted for about a month. This resulted in the death of 92 Americans, as well as the capture 4650 Americans. This was the greatest defeat. -
The Siege of Yorktown
This siege was the result of Cornwallis taking Yorktown (Yorktown). Upon hearing this, Washington and the Americans along with the French, marched down to Yorktown to attack Cornwallis. Cornwallis was ultimately outnumbered and was forced to surrender to the American armies (Yorktown). This was the end result of the Revolutionary war which left the Americans feeling strong. It also left the British feeling weak and defeated. This was the first display American military strength. -
George Washington
George Washington was, most likely, the most important person in the whole of the Revolutionary War. This is due to the fact that Washington led the Americans to victory multiple times and because he won the war. He also was one of the most experienced American fighters during the war because of his previous experience in the French and Indian War (Washington). This is what led him to becoming the General for the whole of the American military. -
Innovation
The spinning barrel was a great innovation because it gave the Americans the upper hand in the war. This is because the spinning barrel gave the bullet a spiral motion which made it more accurate. This innovation meant that the bullet was a lot more accurate than the British rifles (America). -
Cornwallis
Cornwallis was a commander of the British army. He was at one time appointed second in command to Clinton in the British army (Cornwallis). His most devastating defeat was at Yorktown when he was forced to surrender to the Americans which caused them to lose the war. In the overall perspective he played a large part in the war but not only because of the surrender, but for his many attacks and attempts at controlling the colonies.
