Albany Plan-
Albany Plan of Union 1754. The Albany Plan of Union was a plan to place the British North American colonies under a more centralized government. The plan was adopted on July 10, 1754, by representatives from seven of the British North American colonies. A
Edward Braddock
was major-general in the British Army. He was dispatched to America in 1754 to restore and strengthen British positions in the Ohio Valley and the Great Lakes region after the defeat of George Washington at Fort Necessity. Overestimating the abilities of
James Wolfe
a colonel in the British Army led the successful attack against Quebec in 1759, all but ending the French and Indian War. Born into a military family, he joined the army at age 14, and saw combat at 16. Posted to North America in 1757, he was given the lo
William Pitt
was British secretary of state during the French and Indian War and later served as Prime Minister of Great Britain. Named secretary of state in 1757Pitt resolved to commit whatever resources were necessary to defeat the French in North America and on the
Iroquois Confederacy
The five Iroquois nations characterizing themselves as "the people of the longhouse," were the Mohawk, Oneida, Onondaga, Cayuga, and Seneca. After the Tuscarora joined in 1722, the confederacy became known to the English as the Six Nations and was recogni
Treaty of Paris (1763)
The treaty ending the French and Indian War in 1763; it gave all of French Canada and Spanish Florida to Britain. The Treaty of Paris of 1763 ended the French and Indian War/Seven Years' War between Great Britain and France as well as their respective all
Pontiac's Rebellion
was a war waged by Indians of the Great Lakes region against British rule after the French and Indian War. The Indians who had formed alliances with the defeated French, were dissatisfied with treatment from British officials. Unlike their French allies,
Proclamation of 1763
On October 7 1763, King George III issued a proclamation that forbade colonial settlement west of the Appalachian Mountains. In so doing, he hoped to placate Native Americans who had sided against him during the recently concluded Seven Years' War. Enforc
Paxton Boys
Settlers in Paxton Pennsylvania, who massacred Conestoga Indians in 1763 and then marched on Philadelphia to demand that the colonial government provide better defense against the Indians. The Paxton Boys were known as a vigilante group who had been respo
Sugar Act
British law of 1764 that taxed sugar and other colonial imports to pay for some of Britain's expenses in protecting the colonies. The Sugar Act. Titled The American Revenue Act of 1764. On April 5 1764, Parliament passed a modified version of the Sugar an
Stamp Act
British law of 1765 that directly taxed a variety of items including newspaper, playing cards and legal documents. An act of the British Parliament in 1756 that exacted revenue from the American colonies by imposing a stamp duty on newspapers and legal an
Stamp Act Congress
The Stamp Act Congress or First Congress of the American Colonies, was a meeting held between October 7 and 25, 1765 in New York City. The men who attended the meeting consisted of representatives from 9 of the British Colonies in North America. The objec
Samuel Adams
Massachusetts revolutionary leader and propagandist who organized opposition to British policies after 1764. Samuel Adams was born on September 27 1722 in Boston, Massachusetts. A strong opponent of British taxation, he helped organize resistance to the S
Writs of Assistance
in English and American colonial history a general search warrant issued by superior provincial courts to assist the British government in enforcing trade and navigation laws. Such warrants authorized customhouse officers (with the assistance of a sheriff
Townshend Acts
A series of measures introduced into the English Parliament by Chancellor of the Exchequer Charles Townshend in 1767 the Townshend Acts imposed duties on glass, lead, paints, paper and tea imported into the colonies. Townshend hoped the acts would defray
Quartering Act
The colonies to house British soldiers in barracks provided by the colonies. If the barracks were too small to house all the soldiers then localities were to accommodate the soldiers in local inns, livery stables, ale houses, victualling houses, and the h
Virtual Representation
The concept of virtual representation was employed by Prime Minister George Grenville to explain why Parliament could legally tax the colonists even though the colonists could not elect any members of Parliament. The theory of virtual representation held
George Grenville
British prime minister who sought to tighten controls over the colonies and to impose taxes to raise revenues. English politician whose policy of taxing the American colonies initiated by his Revenue Act of 1764 and the Stamp Act of 1765, started the trai
No taxation without representation
Unlike their British brethren the people living in the 13 colonies did not have direct representatives in the British parliament. Because of that, the colonists had no way to vote for how they would be taxed or who would represent them. And because of thi
Boston Tea Party
This famed act of American colonial defiance served as a protest against taxation. Seeking to boost the troubled East India Company British Parliament adjusted import duties with the passage of the Tea Act in 1773. While consignees in Charleston, New York
Committees of Correspondence
The Committees of Correspondence were formed throughout the colonies as a means of coordinating action against Great Britain. Many were formed by the legislatures of the respective colonies others by extra-governmental associations such as the Sons of Lib
Gaspee Incident
Shortly before midnight on June 91772, approximately sixty armed men from Providence, Rhode Island set out in eight longboats for Namquid Point where His Majesty's Ship Gaspee had run aground. The majority of these men, who comprised the social elite of P
Coercive Acts
Properly known as the Restraining Acts the Coercive Acts, as they were popularly known in England, were introduced in 1774 by the new government of Lord North, who acted with the direct encouragement of George III. Several voices of caution had been raise
Quebec Act
1774, passed by the British Parliament to institute a permanent administration in Canada replacing the temporary government created at the time of the Proclamation of 1763. It gave the French Canadians complete religious freedom and restored the French fo
Lord North
originally Frederick North held many elite British offices before becoming Prime Minister in 1770. North maintained that post throughout the buildup to the Revolution and the battles that followed, until the decisive British defeat at Yorktown in 1781, af
First Continental Congress
In 1774 the colonies held the First Continental Congress. Representatives from each colony, except Georgia, met in Philadelphia. The royal governor in Georgia succeeded in blocking delegates from being sent to the congress. The representatives gathered to
Lexington
At dawn on April 19 some 700 British troops arrived in Lexington and came upon 77 militiamen gathered on the town green. A British major yelled, "Throw down your arms! Ye villains, ye rebels." The heavily outnumbered militiamen had just been ordered by th
Concord
Concord to search for armsnot realizing that the vast majority had already been relocated. They decided to burn what little they found, and the fire got slightly out of control. Hundreds of militiamen occupying the high ground outside of Concord incorrect
Thomas Paine
regarding the place of religion in society; "Rights of Man," a piece defending the French Revolution; and "Common Sense," which was published during the American Revolution. "Common Sense," Paine's most influential piece, brought his ideas to a vast audie
Battle of Bunker Hill
British assault on American troops on Breed's Hill near Boston in June 1775; the British won the battle but suffered heavy losses. On June 171775, early in the Revolutionary War (1775-83), the British defeated the Americans at the Battle of Bunker Hill in
Patrick Henry
Member of the Virginia House of Burgesses and American Revolutionary leader noted for his oratorical skills. Born on May 29 (May 18 Old Style), 1736 in Studley, Virginia, Patrick Henry was an American Revolution-era orator best known for his quote "Give m
Second Continental Congress
From 1774 to 1789 the Continental Congress served as the government of the 13 American colonies and later the United States. The First Continental Congress, which was comprised of delegates from the colonies, met in 1774 in reaction to the Coercive Acts,
Olive Branch Petition
John Dickinson drafted the Olive Branch Petitionwhich was adopted by the Second Continental Congress on July 5 and submitted to King George on July 8, 1775. It was an attempt to assert the rights of the colonists while maintaining their loyalty to the Bri
American Prohibitory Acts
The American Prohibitory Act of 1775 declared "all manner of (the American colonies') trade and commerce is and shall be prohibited;" that any ships found trading "shall be forfeited to his Majestyas if the same were the ships and effects of open enemies;
Lee's Resolution
Resolution introduced in the Continental Congress by Richard Henry Lee(Virginia) proposing a Declaration of Independence June 7, 1776He said, That these United Colonies are, and of right ought to be, free and independent States, that they are absolved fro
John Dickinson
Dubbed the "penman of the Revolution" John Dickinson was born in 1732 and won fame in 1767 as the author of "Letters from a Farmer in Pennsylvania, to the Inhabitants of the British Colonies." The letters helped turn public opinion against the Townshend A
Fort Ticonderoga
Located on Lake Champlain in northeastern New York Fort Ticonderoga served as a key point of access to both Canada and the Hudson River Valley during the French and Indian War. On May 10, 1775, Benedict Arnold of Massachusetts joined Ethan Allen and the G
Nathaniel Greene
was a general in the American Revolution who also served in the Rhode Island assembly. He fought with George Washington at the battles of TrentonBrandywine, Germantown, and Valley Forge. In 1780, after General Horatio Gates was defeated at Camden, Greene
Treaty of Alliance (1778)
Meeting at the Hotel de Crillon on February 61778, Franklin, along with fellow commissioners Silas Deane and Arthur Lee signed the treaty for the United States while France was represented by Conrad Alexandre G�rard de Rayneval. In addition, the men signe
Loyalists
a person who remains loyal to the established ruler or government especially in the face of a revolt. A colonist of the American revolutionary period who supported the British cause.
Patriots
(also known as Rebels Revolutionaries, Congress-Men, or American Whigs) were those colonists of the Thirteen Colonies who violently rebelled against British control during the American Revolution and in July 1776 declared the United States of America an i
Nathan Hale
was born in Coventry Connecticut, on June 6, 1755. After graduating from Yale University, Hale became a schoolteacher. When war began to brew in the American colonies, he joined a Connecticut regiment and served in the siege of Boston, and was made a capt
Continentals
the Revolutionary War Army authorized by the Continental Congress in 1775 and led by George Washington.
Charles Cornwallis
led several successful early campaigns during the American Revolution securing British victories at New York, Brandywine and Camden. In 1781, as second in command to Gen. Henry Clinton, he moved his forces to Virginia, where he was defeated at the Battle
John Paul Jones
Famed naval officer John Paul Jones was born in Scotland in 1742. His career at sea began at age 13 and by 21 he was the captain of a ship sailing between the West Indies and British ports. Jones joined the Continental navy during the American Revolution,
George Roger Clark
was born in Albemarle County Virginia, on November 19, 1752. During the Revolutionary War, he became the "Conqueror of the Old Northwest," capturing territory that expanded America's frontier. After the war, Clark was left penniless due to debts he had in
Battle of Trenton and Princeton
General George Washington's army crossed the icy Delaware on Christmas Day 1776 and over the course of the next 10 days, won two crucial battles of the American Revolution. In the Battle of Trenton (December 26), Washington defeated a formidable garrison
Valley Forge
No battle was fought at Valley Forge. Yet it was the turning point of the Revolutionary War. It was here that the Continental army was desperately against the ropes � bloody, beaten, battle-weary � and ready to quit. Even General Washington conceded, "If
Battle of Saratoga
Fought eighteen days apart in the fall of 1777 the two Battles of Saratoga were a turning point in the American Revolution. On September 19th, British General John Burgoyne achieved a small, but costly victory over American forces led by Horatio Gates and
Hessians
from former Landgraviate of Hessen-Kasselwestern Germany; its soldiers being hired out by the ruler to fight for other countries, especially the British during the American Revolution, the name Hessians (unjustly) became synonymous with "mercenaries.
Baron Friedrich von Steuben
He served in the army under Frederick the Great in the Seven Years War. In 1763 however, he was discharged from the army as a captain. No one knows why. Baron Von Steuben worked for the German courts after his military service. He then unsuccessfully to j
Militia
a military force that is raised from the civil population to supplement a regular army in an emergency. A military force that engages in rebel or terrorist activities typically in opposition to a regular army. All able-bodied civilians eligible by law for
Charles Lee-
Based on his prior military exploits Lee fully expected to be made the commander-in-chief of the new Continental Army. Though Congress was pleased to have an officer with Lee's experience join the cause, it was put off by his slovenly appearance, desire t
Graft
is defined as the act of taking advantage of your political position or government job by taking money or property in dishonest or fraudulent ways.
Black Market
Economic activity that takes place outside government-sanctioned channels. Black market transactions usually occur "under the table" to let participants avoid government price controls or taxes. The black market is also the venue where highly controlled s
Benedict Arnold
was an early American hero of the Revolutionary War (1775-83) who later became one of the most infamous traitors in U.S. history after he switched sides and fought for the British. At the outbreak of the war Arnold participated in the capture of the Briti
Francis Marion
American Revolutionary soldier known as the Swamp Fox, b. near Georgetown, S.C. He was a planter and Indian fighter before joining (1775) William Moultrie's regiment at the start of the American Revolution. In 1779 he fought under Benjamin Lincoln at Sava
Yorktown
was the last major battle in the American Revolution. British general Cornwallis was against French general Marquis de Lafayette and General George Washington. French admiral DeGrasse was commander of the French naval fleet and defeated the British navyth
Thomas Hutchinson
American colonial politician judge and historian Thomas Hutchinson (1711-1780) was born into a prominent Boston family. He began his career in local politics in 1737, and was named speaker of the Massachusetts House of Representatives in 1746. Hutchinson
John Hancock
Born on January 231737, in Braintree, Massachusetts, John Hancock inherited a thriving trading business in Boston and would, with Samuel Adams, become a major figure in colonial agitation against British rule. He was the first to sign the Declaration of I
Treaty of Paris (1783)
negotiated between the United States and Great Britain, ended the revolutionary war and recognized American independence. The Continental Congress named a five-member commission to negotiate a treaty-John Adams, Benjamin Franklin, John Jay, Thomas Jeffers
Salutary Neglect-
was a long-standing British Policy in the 13 colonies which allowed the colonists to flout or violate, the laws associated with trade. There were no effective enforcement agencies and it was expensive to send British troops to America. The British policy