US History simple timeline

Timeline of major events and periods

Major wars & events general timeline


Dates	Major War	Dates	Major Events / Minor Wars
1754-1763	French-Indian War	1763-1783	American Revolution
1775-1781	Revolutionary War	1789	US Constitution adopted
1846-48	Mexican-American War	1812-15	War of 1812
1861-65	U.S. Civil War	1850	"Compromise of 1850"
1861-65	U.S. Civil War	1865-1877	Reconstruction period
1917-18	WWI	1898	Spanish-American War
1941-45	WWII	1930s	Great Depression
1941-45	WWII	1950s-60s	Civil Rights Movement
1946-1989	Cold War	1950-1953	Korean War
1965-1972	Vietnam: U.S. ground & aeriel war	1959-65	Vietnam War: US intervention
2002-2021	Afghanistan War	2003-11	Iraq War/ "War on Terror"



1754-1763	French-Indian War	BIG IDEAS: caused by westward expansion of colonists into French territory west of the Appalachian Mts Britain (England) defeated France and seized all of Canada and lands east of the Mississippi
1763-83	American Revolution	BIG IDEAS: after French-Indian War, England imposed new taxes on the colonists imposed rules and restrictions on trade prohibited the colonists from settling in the new lands west of the Appalachian Mts ("Indian Territory) the colonists begin to protest key events of the American Revolution 1765: Stamp Act, tax and regulations imposed by Britain a series of other taxes were imposed, such as the "Tea Act" as well as a law to force Americans to house ("Quartering Act") British soldiers and appointments of colonial governors by the King and not from colonial vote 1770: Boston Massacre, British soldiers shoot into crowd of protesters 1773: Boston Tea Party, protest against trade restrictions 1885: "Common Sense" by Thomas Paine, argues against monarchy (king) 1776: Declaration of Independence, colonies declare independence from England
1775-83	American Revolutionary War	BIG IDEAS: in 1775 fighting started between colonial "militia" (private soldiers) and British soldiers in Massachusetts the f on July 4, 1776, representatives of the 13 colonies signed the "Declaration of Independence" which "declared" (stated as fact) that the colonies were now independent from Britain