British Colonial America and the French Revolution

Vocabulary practice flashcards covering the key terms, policies, acts, and events of the American and French Revolutions.

Thirteen Colonies

The British colonies in North America consisting of Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina, Virginia, Maryland, Delaware, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, New York, New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and Connecticut.

Navigation Act (1651)

A British trade law that restricted the commerce of essential colonial goods and designated Great Britain as the primary trade center.

Quartering Act

A British policy mandating that American colonists provide housing and food for British soldiers.

Stamp Act (1765)

A British statute that imposed taxes on legal documents, newspapers, and other printed publications in the American colonies.

Townshend Act

British taxation legislation that placed duties on glass, lead/paint, paper, and tea imported into the colonies.

Tea Act (1733, according to material)

British legislation strongly opposed by colonists who viewed it as an attempt to enforce a tea monopoly and assert Britain's right to tax the colonies.

Boston Massacre

A violent clash on March 5, 1770, between British soldiers and protesters in Boston that resulted in the shooting deaths of $5$ civilians.

Boston Tea Party

A protest against the Tea Act where American colonists dumped approximately $342$ chests of tea into Boston Harbor.

Old Regime (Ancien Régime)

The pre-revolutionary social and political structure of 18th-century France that divided society into three rigid estates.

First Estate

The Catholic clergy in pre-revolutionary France who held extensive landholdings, privileges, and minimal tax obligations.

Second Estate

The nobility in pre-revolutionary France who owned large estates, enjoyed special social privileges, and resisted tax reforms.

Third Estate

The vast majority of the French population—comprising peasants, urban workers, and the bourgeoisie—who bore the heavy burden of paying taxes.

Bourgeoisie

The educated, well-off middle class of the Third Estate—including merchants, factory owners, doctors, lawyers, and writers—influenced by Enlightenment ideals.

Estates-General

A representative assembly of all three French estates summoned by King Louis XVI at Versailles on May 5, 1789, to address the financial crisis.

Tennis Court Oath

A pledge taken by the representatives of the Third Estate vowing not to disband until they had drafted a new constitution for France.

Bastille

A medieval fortress and prison in Paris symbolizing monarchical tyranny, stormed by French citizens on July 14, 1789.

Declaration of the Rights of Man

A foundational charter adopted by the National Assembly on August 27, 1789, asserting natural rights to liberty, equality, and freedom of speech and religion, though excluding women.

Women's March to Versailles

A demonstration on October 5, 1789, where thousands of Parisian women and supporters marched to Versailles protesting the high cost of food and bread shortages.

Legislative Assembly

The French lawmaking body established under the September 1791 constitution following the restriction of royal authority.

National Convention

The governing assembly of France from 1792 to 1795 that abolished the monarchy, established the republic, and oversaw the Reign of Terror.

Reign of Terror

A period beginning in September 1793 marked by severe repression, during which an estimated $20{,}000$ to $40{,}000$ alleged counter-revolutionaries were executed.

Maximilien Robespierre

A prominent Jacobin leader during the French Revolution whose execution by guillotine on July 27, 1794, brought an end to the Reign of Terror.

The Directory

A five-member executive committee established by the French Constitution of 1795 alongside a bicameral legislature, which struggled with inflation and economic instability.

Napoleon Bonaparte

A French general and politician who took power in a November 1799 coup, instituted wide-ranging reforms, and expanded French dominance across Europe.

Napoleonic Code

A uniform system of civil laws established for France under the leadership of Napoleon Bonaparte.