Describe and analyze the most important historical moments in the transformation of the English colonies from a collection of loyal colonists to...

Colonial
relations with London deteriorated steadily between 1763 and 1775. After the defeat of France in
1763, the British sought to tax and control the thirteen colonies to a greater degree. The Stamp
Act (1765) and the Townshend Acts (1767) were tax-raising measures, and both incensed the
colonists.

The Boston Massacre (1770) was important. It was the first time
there had been bloodshed in the dispute with London. British troops, who had been sent to
enforce the Townshend Acts, killed five men.

The Boston Tea Party (1773) and
the Intolerable Acts (1774) helped set the stage for armed conflict by aggravating
tensions.

In 1775, war broke out with battles at Lexington and Concord.
Fighting continued into 1776. In 1776, Thomas Paine published Common Sense,
which argued strongly for independence. Then the Declaration of Independence (July 4, 1776) made
the break with London complete.

Many colonists remained loyal to Britain,
however. Perhaps as many as one-third became known as Loyalists. Many of them eventually moved
to Canada.