Virginia History Time Line
18th Century

The French and Indian War began when the French soldiers attacked Fort Necessity. Fort Necessity was built as its name suggests, hastily and out of necessity, so the colonists could defend themselves against the French. The very young Major George Washington, just twenty years old, lead the militia. They fought hard for ten hours, but the French army was stronger, and were victorious in this battle. The Indians fought with the French in this war against the British and the colonists. The Indians liked the French better because they were traders and did not push the Indians off their land. They were angry with British colonists who were mostly farmers.

This war dragged on for almost ten years. The British had trouble fighting the traditional way, in straight lines with bright red uniforms. The French, however, fought like the Indians showed them, behind trees. The British suffered a major defeat at Fort Duquesne where General Braddock was killed. Still, George Washington was determined to win, and he built more forts. Britain finally won the war in 1763. In the treaty that ended the war, France gave up Canada and the land east of the Mississippi River. They kept control of the port city of New Orleans and the land west of the Mississippi River.

The Stamp Act was passed in March in the year of 1765. The tax was passed forth so the British king, King George III, could pay for the troops to watch the colonies. It required the colonists to buy stamps for newspapers, calendars, and marriage licenses. If a person's papers didn't have stamps, he or she could be fined or jailed. A young independent man named Patrick Henry spoke against the Stamp Act because he thought it was taking away their freedom. Later that year, the tax was repealed. Those are the events of the Stamp Act.

Virginia realized that it was important to work together with the other colonies. To help them do this, they set up the Committees of Correspondence. The word correspondence means writing letters. These letters helped the colonists share ideas and communicate with one another, since they didn't have radio, TV, telephones, or internet like we do today. This form of communication really helped unite the colonies.

The First Continental Congress meeting was held in Philadelphia. It was held to write a nasty letter to King George asking him to stop the blockade in the Boston harbor. They also asked all the colonists to stop trading with Britain. John Adams, Samuel Adams, George Washington, Benjamin Franklin, and Patrick Henry were the members of this first Continental Congress, with Peyton Randolph being the first president.  

The Declaration of Independence was a document that stated the colonists' demand for freedom. It is now known as one of the most important documents ever written in the United States of America and one of the most famous too. The document was written in 1776 by Virginian Thomas Jefferson. (The colonists wrote this document for reasonable needs.) One reason is that the colonists had no representation and then the British government made taxes without their votes or opinion.

In 1779, Williamsburg was not the capital of Virginia anymore. The capital moved inland to Richmond because lawmakers feared an attack on the capital by the British Navy. They thought an inland location would be safer.

The Revolutionary War ended in Yorktown. General Charles Cornwallis was on the British side. George Washington was the general who was fighting against the British. The French also were against the British too. Cornwallis set up his headquarters at Yorktown to rest but Cornwallis and his troops did not know that he was being surrounded by George Washington troops and the French. Washington trapped Cornwallis and the British troops sent a letter which said that they surrendered and requested Cornwallis be released.

Thomas Jefferson wrote the Virginia Statute of Religious Freedom, which was passed in 1786. This law gave Virginians the right to have whatever religion that they wanted, and allowed them to go to the church of their choice. Before this law, all citizens had to attend the Church of England. They also had to pay taxes to pay for that church. Thomas Jefferson's law made people very happy.

In 1787, leaders from every state met in Philadelphia to write a plan for the new government. This meeting was called the Constitutional Convention. Each state sent people to represent them. The delegates argued about whether the plan should have strong states' rights or stronger federal control. They decided to use the Virginia Constitution as a model for the plan they would write. James Madison convinced the delegates that they needed to agree on one plan. That is why he is known as "The Father of the Constitution". On September 17, 1787, the Constitution of the United States was signed. Later, the 13 states voted so it could become a law. The new Constitution divided the government into three branches: the judicial, the legislative, and the executive.

George Washington was our first president. He became president in 1789. One reason why he became president was because he was a very famous general in the Revolutionary War. He was unanimously elected as president. George Washington was 57 at the time and was the only president to be inaugurated in two cities, New York and Philadelphia. He was the only president that did not live at the White House. That's because the workmen weren't finished building it while he was president. He lived in his home at Mount Vernon in Virginia.