APUSH Ch. 6 Vocab: PART 1

Battle of Long Island (1776)

first major engagement of the new Continental army against 32,000 British troops; Washington’s army was defeated and forced to retreat to Manhattan Island

Battle of Saratoga (1777)

a multistage battle in New York ending with the surrender of British general John Burgoyne. The victory ensured the diplomatic success of American representatives in Paris, who won a military alliance with France.

Valley Forge

a military camp in which George Washington’s army of 12,000 soldiers and hundreds of camp followers suffered horribly in the winter of 1777-1778

Philipsburg Proclamation

a 1779 Proclamation that declared that any slave who deserted a rebel master would receive protection, freedom, and land from Great Britain

Battle of Yorktown (1781)

A battle in which French and American troops and a French fleet trapped the British army under the command of General Charles Cornwallis at Yorktown, Virginia. The Franco-American victory broke the resolve of the British government and led to peace negotiations.

Currency tax

a hidden tax on farmers and artisans who accepted Continental bills and payment for supplies and on the thousands of soldiers who took them as pay. Inflation caused Continental currency to lose much of its value during the war, implicitly taxing those who accepted it as payment.

Treaty of Paris of 1783

The treaty that ended the Revolutionary War. By its terms, Great Britain formally recognized American independence and relinquished its claims to land south of the Great Lakes and east of the Mississippi River

Pennsylvania constitution of 1776

Granted all taxpaying men the right to vote and hold office and created a unicameral (one-house) legislature with complete power; there was no governor to exercise a veto. Also mandated a system of elementary education and protected citizens from imprisonment for debt.