American Revolution Vocabulary and Concepts

Vocabulary flashcards reviewing key terms, events, and causes surrounding the American Revolutionary War era.

French and Indian War

Conflict that led to massive British territorial gains in North America and left Great Britain with significant war debt.

Stamp Act

Tax law on paper products that led to widespread protests by the Sons of Liberty until Parliament repealed it.

Proclamation of 1763

Royal decree forbidding colonial settlement west of the Appalachian Mountains, designed to prevent conflict with Indigenous peoples.

Sons of Liberty

Patriot group created to protest British taxation policies through acts like boycotts and attacking tax collectors.

Boston Massacre

Event in 1770 where British troops shot and killed five civilians during a protest.

Patriots

American colonists who opposed British rule and wanted British troops removed from the colonies.

Loyalists

American colonists who remained loyal to Great Britain and supported British rule.

First Continental Congress

1774 meeting of colonial delegates in Philadelphia to resolve grievances with Great Britain.

Boston Tea Party

1773 colonial protest in which the Sons of Liberty dumped British tea into Boston Harbor to protest the tea tax.

Lexington and Concord

First battles of the Revolutionary War, proving colonists were willing to fight for self-governance.

Paul Revere

Patriot engraver whose artwork stirred anti-British sentiment following the Boston Massacre; warned colonists before Lexington and Concord.

Townshend Acts (Cause)

Tax duties placed on glass, lead, paints, paper, and tea; enforced by writs of assistance allowing search for smuggled goods.

Townshend Acts (Effects)

Reduced colonial self-governing powers, causing widespread colonial boycotts of British goods.

Colonies in 1760

Self-governing territories with elected assemblies that passed local laws and taxes.

British Debt

Great Britain accumulated massive debt from funding the French and Indian War.

Stamp Act Repeal

Colonial protests and boycotts forced Parliament to repeal the Stamp Act.

Identity in 1774

Most people still considered themselves citizens of their individual colonies rather than a unified nation.

Intolerable Acts Trigger

Passed by Parliament specifically to punish Massachusetts for the Boston Tea Party.

Loyalist View of Boston Massacre

Believed it proved that more British soldiers were required to maintain law and order.

Significance of Lexington/Concord

Demonstrated that colonists were prepared to use military force for the right to govern themselves.