US History › Section C · Toward independence › Topic C.5
Fighting begins and independence is declared
In April 1775 an attempt to seize militia supplies outside Boston turned into a war. Fifteen months later, colonists who had insisted they were loyal British subjects declared themselves an independent nation, and explained why in a document that still shapes American ideals.
In this topic
- Boston under General Gage
- Lexington and Concord
- Congress takes charge
- Reconciliation fails
- Dunmore's Proclamation
- Worked example: how Dunmore's offer changed Virginia
- Common Sense
- Voting for independence
- What the Declaration says
- Worked example: the Declaration's promise and its limits
- Common mistakes to avoid
- Key takeaways
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