Chapter 4 - The War for Independence

Stamp Act

1765; law that taxed printed goods, including: playing cards, documents, newspapers, etc.

Sons of Liberty

A group of colonists who formed a secret society to oppose British policies at the time of the American Revolution

Stamp Act Congress

A meeting of delegations from many of the colonies, the congress was formed to protest the newly passed Stamp Act It adopted a declaration of rights as well as sent letters of complaints to the king and parliament, and it showed signs of colonial unity and organized resistance.

Townshend Acts

A tax that the British Parliament passed in 1767 that was placed on leads, glass, paint and tea

"No Taxation without Representation"

Slogan of the colonists who did not want to be taxed if they did not have a representative in Britain's Parliament.

Boston Massacre

The first bloodshed of the American Revolution (1770), as British guards at the Boston Customs House opened fire on a crowd killing five Americans

Tea Act

Law passed by parliament allowing the British East India Company to sell its low-cost tea directly to the colonies - undermining colonial tea merchants; led to the Boston Tea Party

Boston Tea Party

A 1773 protest against British taxes in which Boston colonists disguised as Mohawks dumped valuable tea into Boston Harbor.

Intolerable Acts

in response to Boston Tea Party, 4 acts passed in 1774, Port of Boston closed, reduced power of assemblies in colonies, permitted royal officers to be tried elsewhere, provided for quartering of troop's in barns and empty houses

Crispus Attucks

A free black man who was the first person killed in the Revolution at the Boston Massacre.

First Continental Congress

September 1774, delegates from twelve colonies sent representatives to Philadelphia to discuss a response to the Intolerable Acts

Minutemen

Member of a militia during the American Revolution who could be ready to fight in sixty seconds

Lexington and Concord

first battles of the Revolutionary War

Paul Revere

A patriot who helped warn colonists about British movements

Second Continental Congress

They organized the continental Army, selected George Washington to lead the army, authorized the printing of paper money, and organized a committee to deal with foreign nations.

George Washington

Commander of the Continental Army

Battle of Bunker Hill

In 1775, first major battle of the Revolutionary War. Would also prove to be the deadliest battle.

Thomas Gage

British general who led the ill-fated attack on Breed's Hill in June of 1775

Olive Branch Petition

Document sent by the Second Continental Congress to King George III urging a return to "the former harmony" between Britain and the colonies.

Common Sense

A pamphlet written by Thomas Paine that claimed the colonies had a right to be an independent nation

Richard Henry Lee

A member of the Philadelphia Congress during the late 1770's. On June 7, 1776 he declared, "These United colonies are, and of right ought to be, free and independent states." This resolution was the start of the Declaration of Independence and end to British relations.

Thomas Paine

Author of Common Sense

Declaration of Independence

Drafted by Thomas Jefferson, this document drew on John Locke's natural rights to Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness.

John Locke

English philosopher who inspired the Declaration of Independence with his idea of "natural rights."

Thomas Jefferson

Author of the Declaration of Independence

Patriots

Colonists who wanted independence from Britain

Loyalists

American colonists who remained loyal to Britain and opposed the war for independence

Valley Forge

Place where Washington's army spent the winter of 1777-1778, a 4th of troops died here from disease and malnutriton

Hessians

German mercenaries who fought for the British during the American Revolution

General William Howe

He took command of British troops in North America after the Battle of Bunker Hill. He captured New York and Philadelphia, but botched the plan to isolate the New England colonies in 1777. He resigned in 1778.

Battle of New York

Gen. Howe and Brother Adm. Howe attack colonists in Long Island. Washigton's men march to LI. British drive Washington out of Brooklym Heights. Washington tries to attack and is pushed back to White Plains. Where he loses another attack. Until they retreat to Hudson River across to NJ.

Battle of Trenton

On Christmas day at night, Washington's soldiers began crossing the Delaware River. The next morning, they surprise attacked the British mercenaries which were Hessians.

Philadelphia

American capital that was captured by William Howe following the Battle of Brandywine

Battle of Saratoga

Turning point of the American Revolution. It was very important because it convinced the French to give the U.S. military support. It lifted American spirits, ended the British threat in New England by taking control of the Hudson River, and, most importantly, showed the French that the Americans had the potential to beat their enemy, Great Britain.

Ethan Allen

leader of a Patriot group of fighters known as the Green Mountain Boys

France

Which European country vowed to help the Americans following the Battle of Saratoga?

Robert Morris

Superintendent of finance in the final years of the Revolutionary War. Became known as the Financier of the Revolution

Mary Ludwig Hays McCauley

is better known by her nickname "Molly Pitcher."She was known for the help she gave soldiers in the Revolutionary War.

Baron Friedrich von Steuben

Prussian soldier who helped train American forces at Valley Forge in the American Revolutionary War.

Marquis de Lafayette

French soldier who joined General Washington's staff and became a general in the Continental Army.

Battle of Charles Town

The "greatest British victory" of the American Revolution

Battle of Cowpens

An overwhelming victory by American Revolutionary forces under Brigadier General Daniel Morgan, in the Southern campaign of the American Revolutionary War.

Nathanael Greene

Washington's most able general, commanded the Continental army in the South

Charles Cornwallis

Commanding general of the British forces that were defeated at Yorktown in 1781, ending the American Revolution.

Battle of Guilford Courthouse

British victory for General Cornwallis in North Carolina, but it cost him 1/4 of his troops

Battle of Yorktown

Last major battle of the Revolutionary War. Cornwallis and his troops were trapped in the Chesapeake Bay by the French fleet. Surrounded by the French navy and the American army. He surrendered October 19, 1781.

Treaty of Paris 1783

This treaty ended the Revolutionary War, recognized the independence of the American colonies, and granted the colonies the territory from the southern border of Canada to the northern border of Florida, and from the Atlantic coast to the Mississippi River