APUSH Unit 2 Terms list #1

Middle Passage

The forced voyage of enslaved Africans across the Atlantic to the Americas; significant because it was a brutal part of the transatlantic slave trade and led to millions of deaths and suffering.

John Calvin

A Protestant reformer whose ideas about predestination and strict religious discipline influenced Puritan beliefs in the American colonies; significant for shaping colonial religious practices.

John Rolfe

Jamestown colonist who introduced tobacco cultivation to Virginia; significant because tobacco became a profitable cash crop and saved the colony economically.

Captain John Smith

Leader at Jamestown who helped the colony survive its early years through strict discipline and trade with Native Americans; significant for ensuring the colony’s survival.

House of Burgesses

The first representative legislative assembly in the American colonies, established in Virginia in 1619; significant as a model for self-government.

Indian War 1622

A major conflict between Virginia colonists and Powhatan Indians; significant because it led to the destruction of many settlements and changed colonial policies toward Native Americans.

Lord Baltimore

Founder of Maryland (Cecil Calvert); significant for establishing Maryland as a haven for Catholics and promoting religious tolerance.

Toleration Act of 1649

Maryland law granting religious freedom to all Christians; significant as one of the first laws protecting religious liberty in America.

Indentured Servitude

A system where people worked for a set number of years in exchange for passage to America; significant as an early labor system before slavery became dominant.

Great Migration

The movement of thousands of Puritans from England to Massachusetts Bay Colony in the 1630s; significant for shaping New England’s society and culture.

Puritans

English Protestants who wanted to "purify" the Church of England; significant for founding Massachusetts Bay and influencing American religious and social life.

Pilgrims

English Separatists who founded Plymouth Colony in 1620; significant for seeking religious freedom and creating the Mayflower Compact.

John Winthrop

First governor of Massachusetts Bay Colony; significant for his vision of the colony as a “city upon a hill” and Puritan leadership.

Mayflower Compact

Agreement signed by Pilgrims in 1620 to form a self-governing community; significant as an early step toward democracy in America.

William Bradford

Longtime governor of Plymouth Colony; significant for helping the colony survive and documenting its history.

Congregational Church

A Protestant church system where each congregation governs itself; significant as the main church of New England Puritans.

Roger Williams

Founder of Rhode Island who advocated for separation of church and state and religious freedom; significant for promoting religious tolerance.

Anne Hutchinson

Puritan woman banished from Massachusetts for challenging church authority; significant for advocating religious freedom and women’s roles.

Fundamental order of Conneticut

First written constitution in America (1639); significant for establishing a framework for self-government.

Iroquois Confederation

Alliance of five (later six) Native American nations in New York; significant for its political organization and influence in colonial affairs.

Metacom/King Phillip

Wampanoag leader who led King Philip’s War against New England colonists; significant for being one of the most devastating conflicts between colonists and Native Americans.

Pequot War

Conflict between New England settlers and Pequot tribe (1636-1637); significant for nearly destroying the Pequot and shifting power in the region.

Bacon's Rebellion

1676 revolt by Virginia settlers led by Nathaniel Bacon against colonial government; significant for exposing tensions between settlers and leaders, and leading to increased use of enslaved labor.

Sir William Berkeley

Governor of Virginia during Bacon’s Rebellion; significant for his policies favoring wealthy planters and his harsh response to the rebellion.

Royal Colony

A colony controlled directly by the English crown; significant because it meant less local autonomy and more royal oversight.

Headright System

Land grant program giving settlers land for bringing themselves and others to Virginia; significant for encouraging immigration and growth of plantations.