American Revolution: Timeline & History

Summary of the American Revolution

The American Revolution is a fairly vast subject, spanning a period of about 20 years. Many events have happened in this period of time and so that you can get a little perspective, here is a first brief overview for you:

• The aim of the American Revolution was first to resist British injustices.
• Later the goal was the independence of the 13 colonies from Great Britain.
• The American Revolution includes the following historical events:
  • from 1760: Relations with Great Britain deteriorated
  • Causes of the War of Independence:
    • from 1763: strict regulations of Great Britain for the colonists
    • 1773: Boston Tea Party
  • from 1776: War of Independence with George Washington as supreme commander
  • 1783: Peace of Paris
• Consequences: Independence of the United States with George Washington as President and writing of its own constitution.

Causes and Goals of the American Revolution

Wars and violent conflicts do not just appear out of nowhere. Most of the time, they are the result of decades of disputes and minor arguments. To understand the emergence of the American Revolution and the war that followed, you should first get to know the history of America and the resulting causes and triggers.

prehistory

After Christopher Columbus arrived in America, a lot has happened in what is now the United States. Finally, before the American Revolution, there was on the east coast of America only English colonies. There were 13 in total:

Figure 1: The 13 colonies

• New England with the colonies of New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Rhode Island and Connecticut
• Intermediate colonies with New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania and Delaware
• Southern colonies with the present-day states of Virginia, Maryland, North and South Carolina and Georgia

By 1763, the people of America lived in their colonies and had little contact with their mother country, Great Britain. The American colonists led independent lives and even began to look to the west of the continent and claim the land there.

There have been initial attacks on Native American villages, such as B. the Pontiac uprising.

causes

Building on this initial situation, there were several major and minor conflicts, problems and events that ultimately led to the American Revolution. The table below lists the top three causes and a brief summary of what happened.

EventDeclarationProclamation of Great Britain 1763

• To prevent further conflicts (such as the Pontiac Rebellion), the British Crown issued one in 1763 royal proclamation (law).
• This law stated that the Colonies no land west of the Appalachian Mountains (large mountain range in eastern USA) were allowed to occupy more.
• This ban triggered the first unrest among the colonists.

Increased taxes and new tariffs

• The British crown decided because of an impending bankruptcy 1766 to increase taxes on American colonists and introduce new tariffs.
• The smoldering conflict grew.
• Examples of new tariffs:
  • 1764: Sugar Act (duties on sugar)
  • 1765: Stamp Act (duties for stamps)
• no taxation without representation («no taxation without representation») is demanded by the colonies not represented in the British government.

Boston Massacre 1770

• The Boston Massacre took place on March 5, 1770, when a group of angry citizens called the Sons of Liberty («Sons of Liberty»), protested against British troops stationed in Boston.
• In the confrontation between the protesters and the soldiers, it came to accidental shots nervous british soldier, in which five colonists were killed.

Trigger of the American Revolution – Boston Tea Party 1773

the Boston Tea Party occurred just three years after the Boston Massacre and marks the final one Trigger of the American Revolution. the Boston Tea Party started when the colonists boycotted tea imports due to increased taxes and duties. A large British tea company almost went bankrupt and asked the British Parliament for support.

The British Parliament then arranged for the tea act (Tea Act) and thus spared British tea suppliers* customs duty if they wanted to transport their goods to Great Britain. So the tea became extremely cheap,Figure 2: Boston Tea PartySource: kunstkopie.de which should boost sales again. In America, however, the colonists felt betrayed by the British government, which they saw as a declaration of war against their boycott. In addition, the tea importers were now allowed to sell the tea directly, without intermediaries from the colonies, causing the colonies to lose money and jobs.

This called in November 1773 the Boston Tea Party out where the Sons of Liberty several Loads of the delivered tea threw into the harbor basin. the Boston Tea Party is the official beginning of the American Revolution, but it took another three years before the outbreak of the Revolutionary War.

Goals of the American Revolution

At the beginning of the American Revolution, the 13 colonies were primarily concerned with boycotting Britain’s unjust treatment. The preliminary goal was to abolish tariffs and gain a say in politics. After Boston Tea Party However, the residents of the colonies realized that they would no longer get along peacefully with their motherland and so the idea of ​​their own state was formed.

That main goal the revolution became the independence of the 13 colonies of Great Britain. Within this goal, the colonies developed the following ideals:

• right of resistance (Right of resistance): The right to rebel against the government so that a democratic order can be established
• Freedom of speech, religion and the press
• right to arms
• restricted accommodation of soldiers in private houses
• Protected by public trials and an impartial jury
• Prohibition of cruel punishments

American Revolution – The Revolutionary War

The colonies tried to achieve these goals between 1773 and 1776 through political negotiations, but also through violent struggles. You can learn what happened between the Boston Tea Party and the Declaration of Independence using the most important events below as a timeline:

• 1774:
  • introduction of Intolarable Acts («intolerable laws») by the British Crown, which thereby involved those involved in the Boston Tea Party wanted to punish.
  • First session of the Continental Congress in America (Congress with delegates from all 13 colonies): It is decided that intolerable acts to declare illegal and not to accept.

• Figure 3: Declaration of Independence

  Source: akg-images.de

  1775:

  • Unofficial start of the American Civil War with first skirmishes in the colonies against British soldiers.
  • Second session of Continental Congress: State of Defense declared and George Washington appointed Commander-in-Chief of troops.

• 1776:
  • Battles in Boston and New York against British soldiers.
  • July 4, 1776: The Colonial Declaration of Independence, written by Thomas Jefferson, goes into effect. It was signed by George Washington and all other members of Congress.

Course of the War of Independence from 1776

The War of Independence dragged on for six years, with many areas conquered first by one side and then by the other. There were about 48 battles in total and more than 4,000 soldiers died on the American side alone. To give you an overview of the course of the war and all relevant events, you will find a timeline here, which will be explained to you in more detail afterwards.

Figure 4: Timeline Revolutionary War

• 1775 to 1776:
  • British soldiers win the Battle of Quebec in Canada.
  • February to June 1776: Battle of New York, also won by British soldiers.
  • July 4, 1776: Declaration of Independence of the 13 colonies/United States – official start of the War of Independence.
  • Bad chances for the colonists who don’t have an organized army.
  • Several victories by British soldiers.
  • Under George Washington’s leadership, America’s colonies are doing better than expected.

• 1777:
  • The colonists are winning more and more battles under George Washington’s leadership.Both armies are now equally strong.
  • October: Battles of Saratoga are won by the Americans = turning point of the war.
  • Later battles are again won by the British troops.

• 1778:
  • A Alliance between France and the United States is closed, causing France to nullify British supremacy at sea.

• 1781:
  • October: Battle of Yorktown is won by American and French troops.
  • October 19, 1781: The British sign the Surrender.

• 1782:
  • Peace negotiations between the United States and Great Britain begin.

• 1783:
  • Of the Peace of Paris is officially decided and the war is over.

Consequences of the American Revolution

The consequences of the War of Independence and the entire American Revolution are clearly recognizable: the colonies won theirs independence and became the United States of America, recognized by Great Britain in 1783. Americans now did not have to pay taxes or tariffs to their former motherland, but could design their own government and laws.

Furthermore, the territory between the Appalachian Mountains and the Mississippi was awarded to the United States of America, whereby the expansion to the west of the continent could be continued. George Washington stayed at the…