Foundations of Democracy and American Independence

Vocabulary flashcards covering Ancient Greek democracy, American colonial settlement, religious movements, colonial self-governance, British taxes, growing resistance, and the timeline leading to American independence.

Democracy

A government ruled by its citizens.

Direct Democracy

A form of government used in Athens around the 5th century BCE where citizens participated directly in government decisions.

Citizens (Ancient Athens)

Free adult males in Athens who were eligible to participate in government decisions.

Assembly

The governing body in ancient Athens through which important decisions were made.

Council of 500

A body in ancient Athens that helped prepare matters for the Assembly.

Jamestown (1607)

The first permanent English settlement.

Pilgrims (1620)

Colonists who came to North America for religious freedom and wanted to worship in their own way.

Puritans

A religious group that wanted to reform the Church of England.

Great Awakening (1730s–1740s)

A religious movement that encouraged people to question traditional religious authority.

Colonial Assemblies

Government bodies in the American colonies that made many local laws and controlled taxes and spending.

French & Indian War (1754–1763)

A conflict in which Britain and the colonies fought France and its allies over land in North America, leaving Britain with large debts.

Stamp Act (1765)

A British tax on printed items such as newspapers and legal documents.

No taxation without representation

The slogan used by colonists protesting British taxes because they had no elected representatives in Parliament.

Declaratory Act (1766)

A law in which Britain stated Parliament had the right to make laws for the colonies.

Townshend Acts (1767)

British taxes on imported goods such as glass, paper, paint, and tea.

Tea Act (1773)

A law that gave the British East India Company an advantage in selling tea.

Boston Tea Party (1773)

An event where the Sons of Liberty dumped British tea into Boston Harbor.

Intolerable/Coercive Acts (1774)

British laws that punished Massachusetts and increased British control.

First Continental Congress (1774)

A meeting of colonies to respond to British actions, which sent a petition to King George III asking him to restore colonial rights.

Lexington & Concord (1775)

The first major battles of the American Revolution.

Second Continental Congress (1775)

A meeting of colonial representatives that convened as fighting continued in the American Revolution.

Common Sense (1776)

A pamphlet by Thomas Paine that argued the colonies should become independent, using ideas about government and natural rights.

Declaration of Independence (1776)

The document that declared the colonies independent from Great Britain.

Sequence of American Independence

The key order of events: French & Indian War -> Taxes -> Protests -> Boston Tea Party -> Intolerable Acts -> Continental Congress -> Lexington & Concord -> Common Sense -> Independence.