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(March 22, 1765) - Britain sets a tax that requires a 

stamp on all public documents like newspapers or legal 

documents. The colonists did not like having this tax 

placed on them. This led to unrest in the colonies and 

the Stamp Act Congress (October 1765).

(March 5, 1770) - 5 Boston colonists are shot by 

British troops. The local British officer of the watch, 

Captain Thomas Preston, sent a number of soldiers 

over to the Custom House to maintain order. 

However, the sight of British soldiers armed with 

bayonets just aggravated the crowd further. They 

began to shout at the soldiers, daring them to fire. 

Captain Preston then arrived and tried to get the 

crowd to disperse. Unfortunately, an object thrown 

from the crowd struck one of the soldiers, Private 

Montgomery, and knocked him down. He fired into 

the crowd. After a few seconds of stunned silence, a 

number of other soldiers fired into the crowd as well. 

Three colonists died immediately and two more died 

later from wounds.

TEA

TEA

TEA

TEA

TEA

TEA

TEA

TEA

TEA

TEA

TEA

TEA

 (Dec. 16, 1773) - Angry with a new tax on tea, some Boston colonists 

calling themselves the Sons of Liberty board British ships and dump 

crates of tea into the Boston Harbor. 

At first, throwing tea into the ocean dressed as Mohawks might seem a 

bit silly, but the colonists had their reasons. Tea was a favorite drink 

among the British and the colonies. It also was a major source of 

income to the East India Trading company. This was a British company 

and the colonies were told they could only buy tea from this one 

company. They were also told they had to pay high taxes on the tea. 

This tax was called the Tea Act. 

This didn't seem fair to the colonies as they were not represented in 

British Parliament and didn't have a say on how the taxes should be 

done. They refused to pay taxes on the tea and asked that the tea be 

returned to England. When it wasn't, they decided to protest Britain's 

unfair taxes by throwing the tea into the ocean. 

The First Continental Congress took place from September 5 through 

October 26, 1774. Delegates from each colony, except Georgia, met at 

Carpenter's Hall in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. They discussed the 

current situation with Britain including the Intolerable Acts, which the 

British Parliament had imposed on Boston as punishment for the 

Boston Tea Party. 

The delegates took two major actions: 

1.     They sent a letter to King George III explaining the issues the 

colonies had with the way they were being treated. They demanded 

that the King stop the Intolerable Acts or they would boycott English 

goods. However, the King chose to ignore them and the Americans 

began the boycott.

2.     They made a plan to meet again in May of 1775 if the British did not 

meet their demands. 

Members of the First Continental Congress included John Adams, 

Patrick Henry, and George Washington. The President of the First 

Congress was Peyton Randolph.

In April of 1775 the British Army was stationed in Boston and rumor had it that they 

were about to make a move on the leaders of the Sons of Liberty and other American 

Patriots. The Sons of Liberty were watching the British closely so they could warn the 

colonists if they started to attack. 

Two main riders were to set out and warn Samuel Adams and John Hancock in 

Lexington. Paul Revere would go across the Charles River to Charlestown and then to 

Lexington. William Dawes would ride a longer, but different route. This way, hopefully 

one of them would make it there safely to warn Adams and Hancock. There also were 

other riders that Revere and Dawes would tell along the way. They would pass the 

warning on to other locations.

There was one other warning system that Paul Revere put in place just in case none of 

the riders made it. Robert Newman was to set lanterns in the steeple of the Old North 

Church to alert the colonists in Charleston. He would put one lantern if the British were 

coming by land and two if they were coming by sea. There is a famous phrase about 

this event "one if by land, two if by sea". 

It was during the night on April 18-19 in 1775 when the British began to move. They 

were coming to Lexington by the Charles River, or "by sea". Dr. Joseph Warren told 

Revere and Dawes the news and the riders set out. 

Revere was the first to arrive in Lexington. Dawes made it about half an hour later. 

There they warned John Hancock and Samuel Adams. They decided to ride toward 

Concord to warn the militia there. However, they were detained by British soldiers. 

They managed to escape and Paul Revere walked back to where John Hancock was 

staying so he could help Hancock and his family to escape Lexington. 

(April 19, 1775)Battle of Lexington: The Battle of Lexington was a very small 

fight. You could hardly call it a battle, but it's important because it's where the 

Revolutionary War started. When the British arrived, there were only around 80 

American militiamen in the town. They were led by Captain John Parker. They 

were up against a much larger British force led by Major John Pitcairn. Neither 

side expected to actually fight, but in the midst of the confusion a gunshot went 

off forcing the British to attack. Some of the colonists were killed and the rest 

fled. 

The gunshot was the first shot of the American Revolution and the start of the 

war. It was called the "shot heard around the world" by Ralph Waldo Emerson in 

his poem Concord Hymn. No one is actually sure who fired the first shot or if it 

was an American or British soldier. 

Battle of Concord: After the Americans fled from Lexington, the British marched 

to the city of Concord. When they first got to Concord, they met little resistance 

and began to search the town for the militia's hidden stash of weapons and 

munitions. The Americans had retreated to the outskirts of Concord and 

observed the British from other side of the North Bridge. As the Americans 

waited, more and more local militiamen arrived making their forces stronger and 

stronger. 

The Americans decided to cross the North Bridge back into Concord. They 

defeated the British troops at the North Bridge, giving the Americans renewed 

confidence. Soon the British commander, Colonel Francis Smith, realized that the 

American militia resistance was rapidly growing and it was time to retreat. 

(May 10, 1775)- The Green Mountain Boys led 

by Ethan Allen and Benedict Arnold capture 

Fort Ticonderoga from the British.

(June 16, 1775)-Major battle where William Prescott told 

the American troops "don't fire until you see the whites 

of their eyes". The Battle of Bunker Hill took place on 

June 17, 1775, just a few months after the start of the 

American Revolutionary War. Boston was being besieged 

by thousands of American militia. The British were trying 

to keep control of the city and control its valuable sea 

ports. The British decided to take two hills, Bunker and 

Breeds, in order to gain a tactical advantage. The 

American forces heard about it and went to defend the 

hills.

(July 4, 1776) - The Continental Congress agrees to 

Thomas Jefferson's Declaration of Independence.

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