On This Day

American Revolutionary War: The United Kingdom's East India Company tea ships' cargo are burned at Annapolis, Maryland

The American Revolutionary War (April 19, 1775 – September 3, 1783), also known as the Revolutionary War or American War of Independence, was the armed conflict that comprised the final eight years...

The American Revolutionary War (April 19, 1775 – September 3, 1783), also known as the Revolutionary War or American War of Independence, was the armed conflict that comprised the final eight years of the broader American Revolution, in which American Patriot forces organized as the Continental Army and commanded by George Washington defeated the British Army. The conflict was fought in North America, the Caribbean, and the Atlantic Ocean. The war's outcome seemed uncertain for most of the war, but Washington and the Continental Army's decisive victory in the Siege of Yorktown in 1781 led King George III and the Kingdom of Great Britain to negotiate an end to the war.

Events Before

  1. US founding father Thomas Jefferson (30) marries Martha Wayles Skelton (23)

    Martha Skelton Jefferson was the wife of Thomas Jefferson from 1772 until her death in 1782. She served as First Lady of Virginia during Jefferson's term as governor from 1779 to 1781.

  2. The London Credit Exchange Company issues the first traveler's cheques, which can be used in 90 European cities

    The London Credit Exchange Company issues the first traveler's cheques, which can be used in 90 European cities

  3. Charles Edward Stuart 'the Young Pretender' (52) marries by proxy Princess Louise of Stolberg-Gedern (20)

    Princess Louise Maximiliane Caroline Emanuel of Stolberg-Gedern (20 September 1752 – 29 January 1824) was the wife of Charles Edward Stuart, the Jacobite claimant to the English and Scottish thrones.

  4. Somerset v Stewart court case finds slavery unsupported by English common law, encouraging the abolitionist movement

    Somerset v Stewart court case finds slavery unsupported by English common law, encouraging the abolitionist movement

  5. Captain James Cook begins his second voyage to the South Seas aboard HMS Resolution to search for Terra Australis (South

    Captain James Cook begins his second voyage to the South Seas aboard HMS Resolution to search for Terra Australis (Southern Continent)

Events After

  1. British House of Lords rules authors do not have perpetual copyright

    Perpetual copyright, also known as indefinite copyright, is copyright that lasts indefinitely.

  2. Chief Justice John Jay (28) weds Sarah Van Brugh Livingston (17)

    Chief Justice John Jay (28) weds Sarah Van Brugh Livingston (17)

  3. Boston Port Act: Following the passage of the act, the British government orders Port of Boston closed to punish colonis

    Boston Port Act: Following the passage of the act, the British government orders Port of Boston closed to punish colonists for the Boston Tea Party

  4. English chemist Joseph Priestley discovers oxygen by isolating it in its gaseous state

    Joseph Priestley (24 March 1733 – 6 February 1804) was an English chemist, Unitarian, natural philosopher, separatist theologian, grammarian, multi-subject educator and classical liberal political...

  5. Twelve of the thirteen American colonies adopt a trade embargo against Great Britain at the First Continental Congress i

    Twelve of the thirteen American colonies adopt a trade embargo against Great Britain at the First Continental Congress in Carpenters' Hall, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

More from the 1770s

Frequently Asked Questions

What happened on October 14, 1773?
The American Revolutionary War (April 19, 1775 – September 3, 1783), also known as the Revolutionary War or American War of Independence, was the armed conflict that comprised the final eight years of the broader American Revolution, in which American Patriot forces organized as the Continental Army and commanded by George Washington defeated the British Army. The conflict was fought in North America, the Caribbean, and the Atlantic Ocean. The war's outcome seemed uncertain for most of the war, but Washington and the Continental Army's decisive victory in the Siege of Yorktown in 1781 led King George III and the Kingdom of Great Britain to negotiate an end to the war.
Why is American Revolutionary War: The United Kingdom's East India Company tea ships... historically important?
The conflict was fought in North America, the Caribbean, and the Atlantic Ocean. The war's outcome seemed uncertain for most of the war, but Washington and the Continental Army's decisive victory in the Siege of Yorktown in 1781 led King George III and the Kingdom of Great Britain to negotiate an end to the war.

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