British And Colonists example essay topic

1. Mercantilism was the economic theory and practice common in Europe from the 16th to the 18th century that promoted governmental regulation of a nation's economy for the purpose of augmenting state power at the expense of enemy nations. 2. Bounties were payments made to encourage production of certain goods in the colonies.

3. The French and Indian War was part of a great war for empire, a determined and eventually successful attempt by the British to attain a dominant position in North America, the West Indies. 4. Pontiac's Rebellion in this the Indians of the Americas united under one leader to prevent further invasions in their land by British and French forces. 5. The Proclamation of 1763 was a program intended to reduce conflict between the settlers and the Indians in the western lands formerly claimed by France that now belonged to the British.

6. The Sugar Act 1764 was another program where Parliament hoped to raise money to help pay expenses of protecting and securing the colonies against attach from Indians and other nations' troops. 7. The Currency Act of 1764 was yet another act passed by Parliament, which forbade the colonies to issue their own paper money. And, future tax payments were to be made by gold and silver coins. 8.

The Quartering Act 1765 was the act that required the colonial authorities to provide barracks and supplies for British troops stationed in America 9. The Stamp Act was much like the Sugar act in trying to raise revenue to pay for defense of the colonies. The Stamp Act levied taxes on all licenses. 10.

Repeal of the Stamp Act took place in 1766 when British officials accepted the news of colonial resistance to the act with mixed feelings. The British felt pressure by their own people who agreed with colonial resistance. 11. The Declaratory Act immediately followed the Stamp Act, and with this Parliament stated that it had full power to make laws that bound colonies and people of America in all cases present. 12. The Boston Massacre is the name given to a mishap that occurred on March 5, 1770.

Where British soldiers were surrounded by a crowd and in the confusion an order to fire was made and 5 colonist were hit, 3 dead and 2 wounded. This seemed to be the spark to light the fire of revolution. 13. The Committees of Correspondence held special town meetings led by Samuel Adams, their aim was to inform the known world and other colonies of what was happening and this became a very affective part of the colonial Americas. 14.

The Tea Act gave right to a certain British tea company to control a monopoly of the tea industry in the colonies. This angered colonists further and rebellion was on its way. 15. The Boston Tea Party was just one way the colonists showed reluctance towards the new tea laws. Colonists, disguised as Indians, boarded a British ship with tea cargo and threw 342 chests of tea into the ocean.

16. The First Continental Congress was a meeting assembled in Philadelphia where delegates from all the colonies discussed matters of the British government and its misgoverning of the colonies. They gave British officials a few months to make changes in favor of the colonists before the colonists halted all trade with the British. 17. The Battles at Lexington and Concord were the first battles of the Revolutionary War. The British wanted to surprise the colonists and capture Samuel Adams and John Hancock at Lexington and to march onto Concord where they planned to seize the military supplies of the colonists.

The British attempt ended in colonial victory. 18. The Captures of Forts Ticonderoga and Crown Point were the doings of Ethan Allen and his "Green Mountain Boys". They captured the forts and sent the supplies to Boston. 19. The Second Continental Congress was a meeting in the spring of 1775 that was to meet if the British had not made any changes demanded by colonists.

There were radical members who wanted war and moderates who wanted to settle the dispute in paper work. Either way rebellion was declared. 20. The Battle of Bunker Hill occurred June 17, 1775.

Before George Washington could reach Boston to command the militia British General Gage had attacked Breed's Hill where the colonists lost 450 men, the British lost about 1,000, this was devastating to both sides. 21. Common Sense is published in 1776 by former British Political writer Thomas Paine. Paine had filled his pamphlet with "simple facts, plain arguments, and common sense". His writing helped to urge the colonial separation and independence from Great Britain. 22.

The British evacuation of Boston was a decision made by General Sir William Howe. Washington occupied Dorchester Heights, overlooking Boston. The British decided it was useless to try and hold Boston. The entire British navy, and garrison with some 1,000 Loyalist citizens left Boston. 23. Envoy sent to France for aid in 1775.

The colonists sent diplomatic agents to request aid from foreign countries to strengthen the colonial position. 24. The Declaration of Independence was officially adopted by Congress and the colonies had declared independence from Great Britain taking the name of The United States. Many rejoiced in the news but Loyalist citizens were quite upset by the move.

25. Warfare around New York City broke out on July 2, 1776. General Sir William Howe landed British and Hessian troops on Staten Island. By the end of August British forces in New York exceeded 30,000. The British had definite control of New York. 26.

The Battles of Trenton and Princeton were triumphant acts of Washington in the winter of 1776-77. He captured of 1,000 Hessians on Christmas Morning and defeated British opposition. Washington went on to later conquer Trenton. These battles ruined the British plans to end the war in the winter of 1776-77.27. The Battle of Saratoga was a decisive battle fought in 1777 between the British and colonists in New York.

General John Burgoyne was supposed to meet Lieutenant Colonel Barry St. Leger and General Howe at Albany and destroy the Americans there. The British leaders underestimated the wilderness and the British Army was defeated badly at Bemis Heights. 28. The Battle of Brandywine Creek was one the first battles fought with French aid. It took place in 1777. The British overcame the Americans at this battle on their way to Philadelphia where they would stay for the winter or 1777-78.29.

The Battle of Germantown was another battle fought with the British and colonists when the British made their way to Philadelphia. The British, like at Brandywine Creek defeated the colonist forces. 30. The Winter of 1777-78 at Valley Forge was tough on all the American soldiers. The army had trouble getting supplies because few farmers and merchants would accept the Continental money.

The troops were always exhausted and cold. 31. France became an ally in 1778 with the signing of a treaty on February 6. The two countries agreed to be commercial partners and France officially recognized the United States as a country.

In addition, France pledged weapons and money to the American cause. 32. Guerrilla warfare in the South took place from 1780 to 1781. The guerillas were not part of the regular army; they were farmers and hunters who led surprise attacks against the British. Francis Marion, Andrew Pickens, and Thomas Sumter were notables.

33. The Battle of Kings Mountain took place in South Carolina in 1780. A frontier militia led by Isaac Shelby, John Sevier, and others defeated a party of Loyalists. 34. The Battle of Cowpens was one of the deciding battles for control of the South. In 1781, General Daniel Morgan used a mock retreat and a well-timed cavalry charge to destroy a third of the British army in South Carolina.

35. The Battle of Guilford Court House took place in March 1781 in North Carolina. The British General Cornwallis did win, but his army's losses were so severe that he had to withdraw to the coast. 36.

The Battle of Yorktown was the last major battle of the Revolutionary War. In September and October 1781, George Washington led French and American forces on land, while the French fleet from the West Indies led by Admiral de Grasse blocked Cornwallis' escape from his fortifications at Yorktown, Virginia. Cornwallis surrendered on October 19, 1781.37. The Treaty of Paris in 1783 was the formal end of the Revolutionary War. It the United States its independence, gave all land east of the Mississippi River in the new United States, and gave the right to fish in the Gulf of St. Lawrence and off the coast of Newfoundland.