ELI5: Explain Like I'm 5

Timeline of the American Revolution

Hey kiddo! Today, we are going to talk about the timeline of the American Revolution. The American Revolution was a time when the 13 colonies fought against the British to become an independent country called the United States of America.

Let's start from the beginning. In 1765, the British government passed a law called the Stamp Act. This law made the American colonists pay a tax on all the printed materials they used, like newspapers and legal documents. The colonists did not like this law because they believed they should only be taxed by their own elected representatives, not the British government.

In 1773, a group of colonists dressed up like Native Americans and dumped hundreds of tea chests into the Boston Harbor. This event is called the Boston Tea Party, and it was a protest against the Tea Act. This law allowed the British East India Company to sell tea directly to the colonists, without having to pay taxes to the British government. The colonists saw this as unfair competition and protest.

Then, in 1775, fighting broke out between the colonists and the British army at Lexington and Concord. This was the start of the American Revolution. In June 1775, the Continental Congress appointed George Washington as the commander-in-chief of the Continental Army, composed of soldiers from all the colonies.

The next year, in 1776, the colonists formally declared their independence with the signing of the Declaration of Independence on July 4. The Declaration of Independence explained why the colonists no longer wanted to be ruled by the British government and wanted their own country.

The war dragged on, and in 1781, the Revolutionary War ended with the Battle of Yorktown. American and French troops surrounded and defeated the British army, which led to the British negotiating a peace treaty with the United States.

Finally, in 1783, the Treaty of Paris was signed, formalizing the independence of the United States from Britain. This treaty also established the borders of the new country and gave the United States control over lands that would become modern-day states like Ohio, Indiana, and Illinois.

And that, my dear kiddo, is the timeline of the American Revolution. It was a time of struggle and determination, and it led to the birth of the United States of America.