The American Revolution refers both to the armed conflict between Great Britain and thirteen of its North American colonies (1775–1783) and to the broader political transformation that produced an independent United States grounded in republican and constitutional government.
Tensions built through the 1760s and early 1770s over Parliament's attempts to tax the colonies without colonial representation. Key flashpoints included the Stamp Act (1765), the Townshend duties, the Boston Massacre (1770), and the Boston Tea Party (1773), which provoked Britain's Coercive Acts. The First Continental Congress convened in Philadelphia in 1774. Fighting began at Lexington and Concord on 19 April 1775.
The Second Continental Congress adopted the Declaration of Independence on 4 July 1776, drafted principally by Thomas Jefferson and asserting natural rights, government by consent, and a right of revolution. Militarily, the Continental Army under George Washington combined defensive maneuver with set-piece engagements. The American victory at Saratoga (1777) secured a decisive Franco-American alliance in 1778, later joined by Spain and the Dutch Republic against Britain. The siege of Yorktown in October 1781, where Franco-American forces compelled Cornwallis to surrender, effectively ended major hostilities.
The Treaty of Paris, signed 3 September 1783, recognized U.S. independence and set borders to the Mississippi River. Domestically, the Revolution produced the Articles of Confederation (ratified 1781) and ultimately the U.S. Constitution (1787, ratified 1788) and Bill of Rights (1791).
For IR and Model UN purposes, the Revolution is frequently cited as:
- an early modern instance of self-determination and anti-colonial secession;
- a founding case in the development of republican and liberal constitutional thought;
- a demonstration of how external alliances (notably French intervention) can decisively shape an insurgency's outcome.
Its principles influenced the French Revolution, Latin American independence movements, and later decolonization rhetoric.
Example
In July 1776, the Second Continental Congress adopted the Declaration of Independence in Philadelphia, formally severing the thirteen colonies from the British Crown.
Frequently asked questions
Fighting began at Lexington and Concord on 19 April 1775 and was formally concluded by the Treaty of Paris on 3 September 1783.
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