Timeline of the American Revolution

Timeline of the American Revolution—timeline of the political upheaval culminating in the 18th century in which Thirteen Colonies in North America joined for independence from the British Empire, and after victory in the Revolutionary War combined to form the United States of America. The American Revolution includes political, social, and military aspects. The revolutionary era is generally considered to have begun in the wake of the French and Indian War (1754-1763), as the British government abandoned its longstanding practice of salutary neglect of the colonies, now seeking greater control over them. Ten thousand regular British army troops were left stationed in North America after the war ended. Parliament passed measures to increase revenues from the colonies. The Stamp Act in 1765 and ended with the ratification of the United States Bill of Rights in 1791. The military phase of the revolution, the American Revolutionary War, lasted from 1775 to 1783, but the land war effectively ended with the British surrender at Yorktown, Virginia October 19, 1781. Britain continued the international conflict after Yorktown, fighting naval engagements with France and Spain until the signing of the Peace Treaty of Paris in 1783. Historical background to the break between the Thirteen Colonies and Britain includes a chronology of the dynasties of Britain, ideas of kingship, its relation to Parliament; establishment of colonies with assemblies ruling local affairs, including taxation. British American colonists had the historical example a century before, 1649-1660, Commonwealth of England, the Interregnum. Charles I had ruled as an autocrat, without Parliament, and abused power. Wars ensued, which the king lost. Parliament put him on trial and executed him, establishing a republic with a written constitution. American colonists in the 18th century saw the erosion of their rights as freeborn English subjects, which were enshrined in English law, particularly the Magna Carta (1215), Habeas corpus, and the English Bill of Rights (1689).


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