American Revolution

Between 1775 and 1783 thirteen British colonies in North America won independence and founded the United States, the first large modern republic.

Overview

Disputes over taxation and representation after the Seven Years War radicalized colonial politics from Boston to Virginia. Fighting began at Lexington and Concord in April 1775, and the Declaration of Independence followed in July 1776. George Washington kept the Continental Army alive through years of defeat, while the French alliance secured after Saratoga in 1777 provided the navy, money, and troops that made victory at Yorktown in 1781 possible. The Treaty of Paris recognized independence in 1783. The revolution produced written constitutions, a bill of rights, and unresolved contradictions over slavery that shaped later centuries. Its ideas of self-government influenced revolutions in France, Latin America, and far beyond.