2. Battles of Lexington and Concord
The Revolutionary War in America led to the birth
of a new nation. The war, also known as the
American Revolution, began on April 19, 1775
with the Battles of Lexington and Concord.
3. Growing Tension in the Colonies
For about a decade, tension had been mounting
between Great Britain and the American Colonies.
The colonists had grown used to a self-government.
4. The Stamp Act
The British government began passing a series of laws to
increase its control over the colonies. These laws, such
as the Stamp Act, ordered the colonists to pay taxes
without their consent.
5. Taxation Without Representation
The colonists became angry because they had
no representatives in the British government to
vote on these unfair laws.
6. The Boston Tea Party
The colonists began to protest. In 1773 a group
of men dressed up as Native Americans, climbed
aboard tea ships in Boston Harbor, split open
hundreds of boxes and dumped 90,000 pounds
of loose tea into the harbor.
7. April 19, 1775
Soon after, The American Revolution began as open
conflict between the United Thirteen Colonies and
Great Britain. The Continentals were like a small man
about to do battle with a giant. How could the
colonies defeat such a large army?
8. The Continental Army
When the war began, there was no American army.
Instead, the colonies had their own militias. The
militias were part-time soldiers made up of farmers
and merchants.
9. The British Army
The British Army was one of the strongest armed forces
in the world. They were large and professional.
10. Motivation to Win
The Continental soldiers had a special advantage over
the British. They had a stronger motivation to win. They
were defending their rights as described in the
Declaration of Independence.
11. The Battle of Yorktown
In the summer of 1781, the Continentals and their French
allies trapped British supply ships in the port of Yorktown.
After a week of heavy cannon fire, the British surrendered.
12. The Treaty of Paris
In September 1783, the war finally ended with a set of
agreements called the Treaty of Paris. Britain agreed to
recognize the United States as an independent nation.
