Revolution Begins

Boston Tea Party

-tax on tea still remained ineffect

-Monopoly on tea had beengranted to British TeaCompany

-Dec. 1773 colonists raidedBoston harbor and destroyedthe tea and burned the ships

-resulted in more troops beingsent to the colonies

Intolerable Acts

-Parliament passes Coercive Act topunish Boston

-Colonists called it the Intolerableacts

-closed Boston harbor

-suspended basic civil rights

-housed troops in peoples homes

-Committees of Correspondencebegin

1st Continental Congress

-Committees of Correspondencethis group had been communicatingwith other colonies

-militias begin to formminutemen

-after Intolerable Acts they call fora meeting

-late 1774 1st meeting held inPhiladelphia

-discussed rights of colonies

-agreed to meet again in 1 year

Lexington and Concord

-April 1775

-British try to seize weapons storedin Concord

-Paul Revere, William Dawes, SamuelPrescott warn colonists

-minutemen met British at Lexington

-shots fired and colonists killed -”shot heard around the world“

-colonist conduct guerilla battlealong road to Concord

2nd Continental Congress

-May 1775

-called for an army and appointedGeorge Washington as leader

-some talk of compromise and someof independence

Bunker Hill-June 1775

-Colonists take hill overlookingBoston (Breed’s Hill)

-British charge the hill 3 times untilcolonists run out of ammo

-lots of casualties

-deadliest battle of war

-proved colonists could compete withthe British army in certainsituations

Olive Branch-July 1775

-2nd Continental Congresssends King George a petitionto return to the peace ofthe past

-he refuses the petition andurges the rebellion put down

Common Sense-many colonists had loyalties thatwere strong to Britain

-Loyalists

-Patriots

-Common Sense-pamphlet that urges independencefor the colonies

-Thomas Paine

-Jan. 1776