Known by some as the "Seven Years' War," the French and Indian War was the result of France and Great Britain’s conflict over the Ohio River Valley.
1770 - Boston Massacre
The Sugar Act reduced the rate of taxation on molasses, but it also increased taxation on other goods. In particular, the Sugar Act taxed sugar, coffee, wine, and textiles.
1773 - Boston Tea Party
In 1767, seeking more control over the colonies, British Parliament passed a series of laws called the Townshend Acts. These acts put a tax on many popular imports to America, such as glass, lead, paper, and tea.
1754-1763 - French and Indian War
British soldiers stood guard where the British stored tax money. A group of colonists, angry at the soldiers and the taxes they had to pay, began shouting and throwing rocks at the soldiers. One of the rocks hit a soldier, and the soldier fired.
The British government began taxing the colonists’ imports of products such as sugar, coffee, and paper. Many colonists felt the taxes were unfair because the English Bill of Rights stated that citizens could not be taxed without having their own representatives in the British Parliament.
The battles of Lexington and Concord marked the official start of the American Revolution. They occurred on April 19, 1775, when the British tried to seize American military supplies in Concord, Massachusetts. The colonists had been alerted to the plan, thanks in part to the now-famous ride by Paul Revere.