1. Proclamation of 1763
British Action
Banned all settlement west of the Appalachian Mountains
Colonial Reaction
Colonists felt that Britain did not really care about the success of the colonists
British couldn’t enforce it- Colonists moved anyways

2. Writs of Assistance British Action Colonial Reaction
British search warrant in American colonies in 1760’s signed by King George III
First introduced in Massachusetts in 1751
Allowed for any British officer to search any house or ship for smuggled goods
Colonial Reaction
Boston Merchants OUTRAGED!!

3. Sugar Act 1764 British Action Colonial Reaction
Cut the tax in half for foreign made molasses
placed duties on other imports
allowed smugglers to be prosecuted in British Courts
Smugglers tried by Admiralty Courts- NOT JURIES
Colonial Reaction
Colonists felt laws were unfair
Angry that bureaucracy doubled in size to collect taxes & arrest smugglers

4. Stamp Act – March 1765 British Action Colonial Reaction
1st DIRECT tax on colonists
Required special stamped paper for legal documents
Colonial Reaction
Stamp Act Protests- colonists unite- Mobs
“Sons of Liberty” created – prone to violence – Sam Adams leader in Boston
Colonists harassed customs workers & stamp agents
Virginia passed ordinance that stated only Virginia assembly could tax colonists
Stamp Act Congress- issued Declaration of Rights & Grievances – said Parliament could NOT tax colonists b/c they were not represented
British Action AFTER…
Parliament repealed the Stamp Act & Passed the DECLARATORY ACT- says Parliament can do whatever they want

5. Townshend Acts 1767 British Action Colonial Reaction
Taxes on imported goods- paper, paint, glass, tea, etc.
INDIRECT TAX
$$ for Colonial governors & officials
Colonial Reaction
NO TAXATION WITHOUT REPRESENTATION
Boycotts against imported goods
Smuggling goods
Daughters of Liberty “Spinning bees”

6. Boston Massacre – March 1770
British Action
Fight broke out b/c of job competition between colonists & British soldiers
Crispus Attucks & 4 other unarmed colonists taunted & then killed by armed British guards
Colonial Reaction
Sam Adams & other colonists called it a “massacre” to try & stir up hatred for the British
Committees of Correspondence start writing letters to communicate between colonies about threats to liberty
BRITISH ACTION AFTER….
Repeal Townshend Acts & Remove Troops - well except for the TEA Act

7. Tea Act - 1773 British Action Colonial Reaction
British East India company was suffering from colonial Boycotts- allowed them to sell tea to colonists tax free – lowered price but…
Tea Act cut colonial merchants out of the tea trade
Colonial Reaction
Boston Tea Party
December 16, 1773
Group of Boston rebels disguised as Native Americans dumped 18,000 pounds of tea into the Boston Harbor

8. Intolerable (Coercive) Acts 1774
British Action
Response to Boston Tea Party
Shut down Boston Harbor
Quartering Act
Boston under Martial Law
Thomas Gage made Governor of Massachusetts
Colonial Reaction
Further infuriation
1st Continental Congress September 1774
Declaration of Colonial Rights & Grievances- condemned Coercive acts, denied Parliament’s right to tax colonies, but promised obedience to the King
If British use force against colonists- they WILL fight back

9. Lexington & Concord
Gov. Gage found out “minutemen” were stockpiling weapons in Concord & Lexington – military preparations
British planed to march from Boston to Concord to seize the weapons
April 18, Paul Revere went to alert colonists of British plan
April 19, 1775 shots Lexington – only lasts 15 minute
No shots Concord
British Redcoats marched back to Boston & met 3,000-4,000 minutemen
Humiliating day for well trained British soldiers