American revolution Ultimate Study Guide

French and Indian War

A conflict from 1754 to 1763 between Great Britain and France, also known as the Seven Years' War.

Proclamation of 1763

A decree issued by Great Britain designating lands west of the Appalachian Mountains as reserved for Native Americans.

Sugar Act of 1764

A law that imposed a strict customs tax on imports of foreign molasses and sugar into North America.

Stamp Act of 1765

A tax levied by the British Parliament on all official documents and commercial paper products in the colonies.

Sons of Liberty

An organization founded by Samuel Adams to resist British taxation and policy through civil and political opposition.

Declaratory Act

A law passed by Parliament asserting its authority to impose laws and taxes on the American colonies.

Boston Massacre

An incident on March 5, 1770, where British soldiers killed five colonists during a confrontation in Boston.

Tea Act of 1773

A law granting the British East India Company a monopoly on tea sales in America, leading to colonial protests.

Boston Tea Party

A protest on December 16, 1773, in which colonists dumped 342 chests of tea into Boston Harbor to oppose the Tea Act.

Coercive Acts

Also known as the Intolerable Acts, laws passed in 1774 to punish Massachusetts for the Boston Tea Party.

Second Continental Congress

A meeting of colonial delegates in May 1775 that resulted in the formation of the Continental Army.

Declaration of Independence

A document drafted by Thomas Jefferson in 1776 asserting the American colonies' right to separate from Great Britain.

Treaty of Paris 1783

The agreement that formally ended the American Revolutionary War and recognized American independence.