War of Independence

As per the Treaty of 1763, Spain left Florida, taking Spaniards and runaway slaves to Cuba. Spain received and fortified Louisiana to protect against attack from other European nations. Realignment in the Spanish borderland was done for the protection of the silver mines in Mexico from the British.

The Grenville and Townsend Acts, as with other acts of colonial taxation, attempted to raise monies for the support colonial governments which caused colonial protests. Colonists responded by protesting and boycotting British goods. The presence of the British Army and Navy led to the Boston Massacre and GaspÐ"©e Incident. These events only pushed the colonists closer to rebellion. By enacting the Coercive/Intolerable Acts Britain bound the colonies closer together.

Resistance became a war for independence after Lexington and Concord. To broaden the appeal of the rebellion, the Continental Congress appointed George Washington commander-in-chief of the Continental Army. African Americans served in the rebellion on both sides. The signing of the Declaration of Independence turned a rebellion into a revolution.

War in the North gave the few victories needed to sustain the Revolution. The British captured New York City and Philadelphia, but an American victory at Trenton kept the revolution alive. The American victory at Saratoga brought France into the war against the British. The failing wartime economy nearly tore the new nation apart.

The war moved south and into the frontier. Native Americans joined the British to protect their homeland. Lord Cornwallis marched north from Georgia only to be trapped at Yorktown. The Treaty of Paris ended the American Revolution, but left new allies with mistrust.