history test 1

John Locke

(August 29, 1632 - October 28, 1704) was an English philosopher. he is widely regarded as one of the most influential Enlightenment thinkers and contributors to liberal theory. His writings influenced Voltaire and Rousseau, many Scottish Enlightenment thinkers, as well as the American revolutionaries. This influence is reflected in the American Declaration of Independence.

Seven years war

A war fought in the middle of the eighteenth century between the German kingdom of Prussia, supported by Britain, and an alliance that included Austria, France, and Russia. Prussia and Britain won, and their victory greatly increased their power.

Bacons rebellion

Bacon's Rebellion was an armed rebellion in 1676 by Virginia settlers led by Nathaniel Bacon against the rule of Governor William Berkeley.

Maryland act concerning religion

Catholics settled in Maryland under Lord Baltimore in 1632, and the Maryland General Assembly passed the historic Toleration Act in 1649, to provide religious harmony among Christians. The Toleration Act proved to be a compromise between Catholics and Protestants for toleration of all Christian religions. The Maryland Toleration Act, also known as the "Act Concerning Religion" was a law passed in 1649 by the colonial assembly of the Province of Maryland mandating religious toleration of all Christian denominations. As the first such law, it is often seen as a precursor to the First Amendment. In 1649, Maryland was the most religiously diverse of the English colonies, having been founded as a Catholic haven and populated by a large number of Protestants. The Calverts, who founded Maryland, needed to attract settlers to make the colonial venture profitable, meaning that Protestants would be immigrating. In order to protect the Catholics who originally founded the colony and who were being rapidly outnumbered, the Calverts threw their support behind the Act Concerning Religion, essentially an effort to secure religious freedom for Catholics. While the Act prevented outright persecution for a long time, it failed to prevent a political struggle over the control of the colonial assembly. Though this law protected Christian churches, it made denying the divinity of Jesus a capital crime. Thus, Maryland after the Act Concerning Religion actually had less religious toleration.

Black Legend

In 1552, Las Casas wrote an account for the decimation of the Native Indians titled A Brief Account of the Destruction of the Indies.In this document he criticized Spain for its treatment towards Native Indians. Millions of people were killed by burning alive and many were forced for labor. Las Casas said that as the primary motive of colonization was to convert the Indian to Christians, so these practices were not helping the cause. He also believed that Spain has the right to rule over Indian but not to enslave the Indians. As a solution he proposed to bring slaves from Africa. Printing was available in that time and soon his writings were translated to many European languages which exposed Spain as brutal, abusive and no tolerant colonizer. Black Legend is basically the term indicating unfavorable image of Spain in 16th and 17th century.

Why the black legend was important

It is important because English, Dutch and French used Black Legend as a potent justification to challenge Spain's predominance in america. They believed they were better rulers than Spain and they claimed that were trying to help out Indians to save them from Spain's tyranny. At that Spain was following Catholicism whereas the England was having Protestantism as its religion. So by using Black legend, English colonizers also tried to convert people to Protestantism just as Spain converted local Indian to Catholicism. In short, Black Legend provided North Europeans a reason to challenge Spain and establish their settlements in North America.

Liberalism

Liberalism is a political philosophy or worldview founded on ideas of liberty and equality.

What motivated England to colonize the new world?

New World presented people with an opportunity to earn a decent living and perhaps even to become wealthy. During the time of colonization, profitable jobs were scarce in England, and land was very difficult to obtain because it was expensive. By moving to one of the colonies, an individual had a better chance to earn a living than if they remained in England. Once in the New World many settlers earned a living by becoming farmers, hunters, and businessmen. Some of these settlers became indentured servants as well.

Religious attitudes of Maryland. How did those compare to the religious attitudes in Massachusetts and in Rhode Island? How was religious freedom defined in each of these colonies?

Settlers in Massachusetts and Rhode Island were extremely conservative separatists or puritans from the Church of England. They lived extremely strict, emotionless lives without much religious freedom. However, many left the Massachusetts bay colony for more freedom and arrived in Rhode Island for a more liberal, but still religious life style. Maryland was entirely free and was chartered as a Catholic settlement because catholics had been persecuted as well back in England. I assume they shared similar religious freedoms with Rhode Island.

Stono Rebellion

The Stono Rebellion (sometimes called Cato's Conspiracy or Cato's Rebellion) was a slave rebellion that began on 9 September 1739, in the colony of South Carolina. It was the largest slave uprising in the British mainland colonies, with 42-47 whites and 44 blacks killed.

Civil vs Natural Liberty

Winthrop, a Massachusetts governor, defended the idea of a government by the "few" acting in the name of God, with control over the people. As people of lower level were concerned about their liberty, they took John Winthrop to court. He felt the need to deliver The Little Speech, in which he after been upheld by the others, addresses his position. The natural liberty he compares as an evil liberty, in which men act as "beast and other creatures". he dislikes this liberty by the fact man can do as they feel like, most likely going against authority, god and purity. He defends civil liberty as the proper end and object of authority, in which one shall do what is honest, just and good.

Republicanism

a term for beliefs that have defined the American political experiment. In particular, republicanism stems from a form a government where the people are sovereign. In such a government, virtuous and autonomous citizens must exercise self-control for the common good.

European Enlightenment

an eighteenth-century movement in Western philosophy. It was an age of optimism, tempered by the realistic recognition of the sad state of the human condition and the need for major reforms. It was less a set of ideas than it was a set of attitudes. At its core was a critical questioning of traditional institutions, customs, and morals. Some classifications of this period also include 17th-century philosophy, which is typically known as the Age of Reason.

Headright system

originally created in 1618 in Jamestown, Virginia. It was used as a way to attract new settlers to the region and address the labor shortage. With the emergence of tobacco farming, a large supply of workers was needed. New settlers who paid their way to Virginia received 50 acres of land

Columbian Exchange

refers to a period of cultural and biological exchanges between the New and Old Worlds. Exchanges of plants, animals, diseases and technology transformed European and Native American ways of life. Beginning after Columbus' discovery in 1492 the exchange lasted throughout the years of expansion and discovery. impacted the social and cultural makeup of both sides of the Atlantic. Advancements in agricultural production, evolution of warfare, increased mortality rates and education are a few examples of the effect on both Europeans and Native Americans.

Middle Passage

the sea journey undertaken by slave ships from West Africa to the West Indies.