American Revolution

Learn the basics about the Townshend Acts, a series of laws that intensified colonial rage toward the British crown in the 1760s.

Paul Revere was a Patriot leader and symbol of the American Revolution. Find out more about the man who infamously warned the minutemen of a British invasion in 1775 in this video.

A two pronged attack by French & American forces defeats General Cornwallis in Virginia. Two years later, the Treaty of Paris will officially end the war

Get the story of how a fledgling, largely disconnected nation won its freedom from the greatest military force of its time.

While an apprentice in his older brother's print shop, Ben Franklin authored a column under the pen name Silence Dogood.

In 1773, a group of colonists protested 13 years of increasing British oppression by attacking merchant ships in Boston Harbor.

Ben Franklin had a passion for smart, beautiful women, but does the truth support the myth about his prolific romantic appetite?

After escaping slavery, Crispus Attucks finds himself confronting British soldiers at the forefront of the Boston Massacre.

Peter Salem makes history by killing a British officer during the siege of Boston.

The Revolution has been won, but for Washington, the problems, even within his own army, are just beginning.

While in England, Ben Franklin may have been a member of a secret underground society known as the Hellfire Club.

To many in the Continental Congress, war was unthinkable. So why did they finally create this revolutionary document?

Alexander Hamilton's support of Thomas Jefferson over Aaron Burr in the 1800 U.S. presidential election eventually led to his own demise. Find out more about the first Secretary of the Treasury in this video.

How would you sum up the American Revolution in just one word?

Americans owe much of the U.S. financial system—including a unified national mint—to Alexander Hamilton.

Shots fired by British soldiers in the streets of Boston in 1770 would spark the American Revolution.

General Washington led 20,000 American and French troops to victory at Valley Forge.

At the time of the Revolution, America had no money, no military and barely a chance at success. Even George Washington was not immediately seen as a strong military commander, often making mistakes.

As British General William Howe anticipates surrender, General Washington fleas across the East River under cover of darkness.

Learn about the Revolutionary War conflicts that turned the tide for the colonies and sealed an American hero’s legacy.

The British were forced to surrender 2 days after patriot soldiers captured the fort at Yorktown in 1781.

The shooting of several men by British soldiers in 1770 inflames passions in the colonies.

In April 1775, when British troops are sent to confiscate colonial weapons, they run into an untrained and angry militia. This ragtag army defeats 700 British soldiers and the surprise victory bolsters their confidence for the war ahead.

Little-known details of Franklin's past, shedding new light on his eccentric behaviors and how they enabled him to help save the American Revolution.

The Pennsylvania scientist and diplomat signs both the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution.

After retiring from politics age 42, Ben Franklin became an innovator in the field of science through his study of electricity and his invention of the lightning rod.

From the 1760's onward, colonial anger grows as the British pass a series of taxes and laws. With each one, the two groups move closer to war.

In 1777, the colonists force the surrender of 6,000 British troops in New York State. This first major victory convinces France to enter the conflict on the Americans side.

Did you know that Paul Revere didn't ride alone, and there were women on the Revolutionary War battlefields? Find out more about the war's lesser-known patriots.

From 1732 until 1758, Benjamin Franklin published Poor Richard’s Almanac, which featured a collection of Franklin’s thoughts and proverbs. In 1758, he collected the best advice into an essay titled The Way to Wealth.

Benjamin Franklin was an accomplished revolutionary, but his private life reveals a complex personality.

Shortly after gaining its independence, the United States goes to war with England over its seizure of U.S. ships and sailors.

Our Founding Fathers were responsible for a lot more than the Declaration of Independence. Learn about their legacy of innovation.

A fatal lack of ammunition dooms the colonists chances in an early American Revolutionary battle near Boston.

The Tea Act of 1773, an act of Great Britain's Parliament, was the catalyst for some of the most important moments of the lead-up to the Revolutionary War.

The 1st Rhode Island Regiment broke barriers in the Revolutionary War as the first predominantly Black unit in the Continental Army.

Why does the American flag have 13 stripes? Get all the facts and figures on “Old Glory.”