Background: from colonies to conflict
By the 1750s, the thirteen colonies were growing, prosperous and used to a lot of self-government. Britain mostly left them alone. That changed after the French and Indian War (1754–1763), part of the Seven Years’ War. Britain won, but it was deeply in debt and wanted the colonies to help pay for their defence.
Britain also issued the Proclamation of 1763, which limited settlement west of the Appalachian Mountains to reduce conflict with Indigenous nations. Many colonists were angry.
Taxes and protests
| Year | British action | Colonial reaction |
|---|---|---|
| 1765 | Stamp Act: tax on printed paper, such as newspapers and legal documents | protests, boycotts of British goods; Stamp Act Congress; repealed in 1766 |
| 1767 | Townshend Acts: taxes on glass, paint, paper and tea | boycotts; British troops sent to Boston |
| 1770 | tensions with soldiers | Boston Massacre: British soldiers fire on a crowd, killing five |
| 1773 | Tea Act | Boston Tea Party: colonists dump British tea into Boston Harbor |
| 1774 | Intolerable (Coercive) Acts: Boston Harbor closed, Massachusetts government restricted | First Continental Congress meets |
Colonists argued against taxation without representation: they had no elected members in the British Parliament, so they believed Parliament had no right to tax them. The British government argued that Parliament represented all British subjects.
War begins
- April 19, 1775: British soldiers marched to seize weapons at Lexington and Concord, Massachusetts. Colonial militia met them, and fighting began.
- The Second Continental Congress created the Continental Army and chose George Washington to lead it.
Declaring independence
In January 1776, Thomas Paine’s pamphlet Common Sense convinced many colonists to support independence.
On July 4, 1776, Congress adopted the Declaration of Independence, written mainly by Thomas Jefferson. It argued that:
- all men are created equal and have rights to "Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness"
- governments get their power from the consent of the governed
- when a government abuses those rights, people may change or abolish it
- King George III had committed many wrongs against the colonies
These ideals did not apply equally to everyone at the time. Enslaved people, women and Indigenous peoples were excluded, but the words later inspired movements for equality.
Patriots and Loyalists
Colonists were divided.
- Patriots supported independence.
- Loyalists stayed loyal to Britain, perhaps a fifth or more of colonists.
- Many people tried to stay neutral.
African Americans fought on both sides. Britain promised freedom to enslaved people who escaped and joined them. Indigenous nations also made difficult choices. Many, including most of the Haudenosaunee, sided with Britain, hoping to stop colonists from taking more land.
Key events of the war
| Year | Event |
|---|---|
| 1776 | Washington crosses the Delaware River and wins at Trenton |
| 1777 | American victory at Saratoga, a turning point |
| 1777–78 | Continental Army survives a harsh winter at Valley Forge |
| 1778 | France allies with the United States, sending troops, ships and money |
| 1781 | British army surrenders at Yorktown, Virginia |
| 1783 | Treaty of Paris (1783): Britain recognizes U.S. independence |
Why the colonies won
- fighting on home ground, with local support
- help from France, and later Spain and the Netherlands
- Washington’s leadership in keeping the army together
- Britain was far away and fighting a global war
Effects
- The United States became an independent country and later wrote the Constitution (1787).
- About 60,000 Loyalists left, many to British North America, settling in Nova Scotia, New Brunswick (created in 1784 partly for them) and present-day Ontario and Quebec. This greatly shaped early Canada.
- Black Loyalists settled in Nova Scotia, such as at Birchtown, though many faced discrimination; some later moved to Sierra Leone.
- Mohawk Loyalists led by Joseph Brant (Thayendanegea) settled on land along the Grand River in Ontario.
- Revolutionary ideas inspired other revolutions, including in France and Latin America.
Try it yourself
- Create a timeline of events from 1763 to 1783.
- Write two letters about the Stamp Act: one from a Patriot and one from a Loyalist.
- Rewrite the main ideas of the Declaration of Independence in your own words.
- Explain how the American Revolution helped shape Canada.
Quick recap
- British taxes after 1763 led to protests over taxation without representation.
- Fighting began at Lexington and Concord in 1775.
- The Declaration of Independence was adopted on July 4, 1776.
- With French help, the Patriots won at Yorktown in 1781; the Treaty of Paris (1783) ended the war.
- Many Loyalists moved to British North America, shaping Canada.