APUSH Period 2-3

Stamp Act

An act that put taxes on printed documents, allowing Britain to collect 10 times the revenue

Declaration of Independence

The formal justification for separating from the British Empire

Abigail Adams

The wife of John Adams and voice of the grievances of women, she told her husband to consider the ladies

Battle of Fallen Timbers

a battle in which Americans defeated the Indians in the Ohio valley, the result was land for the US and loss of land for the Indians

The Federalist Papers

a collection of documents written by federalists in support of the constitution

New Jersey Plan

a plan presented that would give all states equal representation in the house(Senate), but also give congress the expanded power to tax and regulate commerce, this plan was rejected

Whiskey Rebellion

a rebellion of farmers against the national government

Salem witch craft trials

a series of trials in which women, typically old or widowed, were accused of practicing black magic. this event highlight the paranoia of puritans

indentured servant

one who paid their voyage across the Atlantic by working for a set number of years, then afterward being freed but often ended up jobless

evangelist

one who preaches the gospel, especially important in the colonies after the Great Awakening

Loyalists

people who believed the colonies should not separate from the crown, an account of the immense power of the British and their view of themselves as Englishmen

Republicans

promoted a vision of an agrarian republic,, in which most own farmland, wary of urbanization

Alien and Sedition Acts

put obstacles in front of those wanting to become US citizens, sedition act gave the government power to silence almost all opposition

triangular trade

the Atlantic exchange between England, Africa, the colonies, and Caribbean

First Continental Congress

A meeting of delegates from all colonies except Georgia in Philadelphia, they addressed grievances and made a plan for military preparation, agreed to boycotts, and agreed to meet in the spring

Hessians

German mercenary soldiers hired by the British to fight in the colonies

Virginia Plan

James Madison's plan, shaped the way the convention decided to design the new government

Sugar Act

Raised the duty on sugar while lowering the duty on molasses, it also established courts to fight smuggling

Bill of Rights

The first ten amendments of the constitution, placing restrictions on the government

George Washington

The leader of the patriot forces, and future president of the United States

Enlightenment

a European thought movement that focused on individuality and reason

Saratoga

a battle at which General Horatio gates forced John Burgoyne to surrender

Articles of Confederation

a document binding the colonies together in a league of friendship under a central government that had no power to tax, this document focused on states rights and each state acted more like its own nation than a piece of a larger nation

John Adams

a leading federalist, became vice president

John Peter Zenger

a new york publisher tried for criticism of authority, his trial found that criticism was not libelous if it was factually substantiated

Common Sense

a pamphlet written by Thomas Paine to convince people that separation from the British was only common sense

Sons of Liberty

a patriotic group that participated in mobs

Cotton Mather

a puritan who experimented with disease inoculation

Shay's Rebellion

a rebellion of farmers who requested for money, tax relief, and such, they hoped to seize weapons from Springfield. The event showed lawmakers that the country was in dire need of a new constitution

Great Awakening

a revival of religion in the colonies that emphasized the potential for every person to break from their past and start anew, this appealed to women and men with little to no land.

Stono Rebellion

a slave rebellion in 1739 where over 100 seized power in South Carolina

checks and balances

a system that keeps the various branches of the government in check so that none get too much power

Albany plan

a treaty made by colonists with the Iroquois, it was not approved, war had already begun

French and Indian War

a war between the British and French starting in America due to Anglo-French conflicts, it eventually expanded into Europe

Daughters of Liberty

a women's patriotic organization

Northwest Ordinance

abandoned the ten districts of Ohio and created a single Northwest territory

Jay's Treaty

after the British and French went to war, the British began seizing American ships, John Jay was sent to negotiate , his treaty gave American Sovereignty over the Northwest as well as a good commercial relationship

Benedict Arnold

an American General conspiring with the British to fight against the patriot cause

Tea Act

an act gave the British East India company the right to sell tea free of tax within the colonies, which angered colonies due to principle rather than economics

Proclamation of 1763

an act preventing the westward expansion of colonists, was largely ignored

covenant

an agreement binding members of puritan townships together religiously and socially

Alexander Hamilton

an aristocratic political philosopher who believed that the government needed the support of an elite ruling class, he also wanted a national bank, he made many enemies

Jonathan Edwards

an evangelist of the Great Awakening who preached traditional puritan values

George Whitefield

an evangelist preacher who toured the colonies

Boston Massacre

an event in which angry colonists antagonized a group of soldiers, at the end five colonists had died

quasi war

an undeclared war, during the 18th century America fought a quasi war with France, and caught French ships, it ended in new commercial agreements

Anti-federalists

believed they were the defenders of the principles of the revolution, complained that the constitution lacked a Bill of Rights and would give the government dictatorial power

Coercive Acts (intolerable acts)

closed port of Boston, reduce power of self government in Massachusetts, permitting officers to be tried in other colonies or England, quartering troops

Boston Tea Party

colonists reaction to the tea tax, which was actually the British taking the tax off imported British East India tea.

federalists

committed to a national government, had many great political philosophers, Alexander Hamilton, James Madison, and John Jay

committees of correspondence

committees set up to respond to the acts of the royal government, they laid the groundwork for further cooperation among colonists

James Madison

created the Virginia plan, argued that a large republic would be less likely to form a tyranny, central to his idea were powers checking eachother

Second Continental Congress

delegates from all states except Georgia agreed to support the war, but initially disagreed whether the goal was independence or reconciliation

Patrick Henry

gave a dramatic speech in the house of burgesses designed to get American action against the crown

slave codes

laws that granted slave owners absolute authority over their slaves

Virginia and Kentucky Resolutions

resolutions that justified action against the federal government by states, gave states right to nullify laws

Seven Years War

the French and Indian war as it is known in Europe

Great Compromise

the counting of slaves for 3/5 of a person for the populations of the south

federalism

the division between the national and state governments

republicanism

the idea that power should come from the people rather than a supreme authority

George III

the immature and instable king of Britain leading up to the revolutionary war

Constitution

the outline for the United States government, created during a convention to fix the articles of confederation

middle passage

the route slaves took to arrive in the colonies

primogeniture

the tradition of passing land to the firstborn son

Thomas Jefferson

the writer of the Declaration of Independence, he took influence from many of the ideas circulating about the colonies

Revolution of 1800

when Jefferson was elected to president, they saw this as a defeat of Tyranny

XYZ Affair

when three French agents requested a loan for France and a bribe for French officials, their names were replaced with XYZ. John Adams was in France to repair weak relations

Yorktown

where American forces caught Cornwallis and trapped him