The American Pageant Chapter 7 Key Terms and People to Know

Republicanism

The political orientation of those who hold that a republic is the best form of government.

Radical Whigs

A group of British political commentators. They were very nervous about the power of Parliament and the arbitrary powers of the monarch. They warned the colonists to be always on the lookout for a violation of their rights.

Mercantilism

An economic system (Europe in 18th C) to increase a nation's wealth by government regulation of all of the nation's commercial interests.

Sugar Act

Halved the duty on foreign made molasses, placed duties on certain imports, and strenghtened the enforcement of the law allowing prosecutors to try smuggling cases in a vice-admiralty court.

Quartering Act

An act passed by the British that allowed British troops to live in the homes of the colonists.

Stamp Tax

Passed by Parliament in 1765, it required colonists to purchase a small stamp to be affixed to legal and other documents.

Admiralty Courts

British courts originally established to try cases involving smuggling or violations of the Navigation Acts which the British government sometimes used to try American criminals in the colonies. Trials in Admiralty Courts were heard by judges without a jury.

Stamp Act Congress

Group of colonists who protested the Stamp Act, saying that Parliament couldn't tax without colonist' consent.

Nonimportation Agreements

Agreements not to import goods from Great Britain. They were designed to put pressure on the British economy and force the repeal of unpopular parliamentary acts.

Sons of Liberty

Secret societies formed to protest new taxes passed by Parliament. Led the Boston Tea Party and threatened tax collectors.

Daughters of Liberty

An organization formed by women prior to the American Revolution. They got together to protest treatment of the colonies by their British Rulers.

Declaratory Act

Act passed in 1766 just after the repeal of the Stamp Act. Stated that Parliament could legislate for the colonies in all cases.

Townshend Acts

A tax that the British Parliament placed on leads, glass, paint and tea.

Boston Massacre

A riot in Boston (March 5, 1770) arising from the resentment of Boston colonists toward British troops quartered in the city, in which the troops fired on the mob and killed several persons.

Committees of Correspondence

Organization founded by Samuel Adams consisting of a system of communication between patriot leaders in New England and throughout the colonies.

Boston Tea Party

Demonstration (1773) by citizens of Boston who (disguised as Indians) raided three British ships in Boston harbor and dumped hundreds of chests of tea into the harbor.

Intolerable Acts

A series of laws set up by Parliament to punish Massachusetts for its protests against the British.

Quebec Act

Extended boundaries of Quebec and granted equal rights to Catholics and recognized legality Catholic Church in the territory; colonists feared this meant that a pope would soon oversee the colonies.

First Continental Congress

Delegates from all colonies except Georgia met to discuss problems with britain and to promote independence.

The Association

A document produced by the Continental Congress in 1775 that called for a complete boycott of British goods. This included non-importation, non-exportation and non-consumption. It was the closest approach to a written constitution yet from the colonies. It was hoped to bring back the days before Parliamentary taxation. Those who violated The Association in America were tarred and feathered.

Battles of Lexington and Concord

The battles of Lexington and Concord initiated the Revolutionary War between the American colonists and the British. British governor Thomas Gage sent troops to Concord to stop the colonists who were loading arms. The next day, on April 19, 1775, the first shots were fired in Lexington, starting the war. The battles resulted in a British retreat to Boston.

Valley Forge

The site where George Washington and his troops endured a harsh winter without proper food, shelter, or clothing.

John Hancock

American revolutionary patriot who was president of the Continental Congress.

George Grenville

Became prime minister of Britain in 1763 he persuaded the Parliament to pass a law allowing smugglers to be sent to vice-admiralty courts which were run by British officers and had no jury. He did this to end smuggling.

Charles (Champagne Charley) Townshend

Gifted public speaker who seized control of British ministry and passed Townshend Acts.

Crispus Attucks

Killed in Boston Massacre, black laborer, only African-American person killed in Boston Massacre.

George III

English monarch at the time of the revolution. He was the main opposition for the colonies due to his stubborn attitude and unwillingness to hear out colonial requests/grievances.

Lord North

Prime Minister of England from 1770 to 1782. Although he repealed the Townshend Acts, he generally went along with King George III's repressive policies towards the colonies even though he personally considered them wrong. He hoped for an early peace during the Revolutionary War and resigned after Cornwallis' surrender in 1781.

Samuel Adams

Founder of the Sons of Liberty and one of the most vocal patriots for independence; signed the Declaration of Independence.

Thomas Hutchinson

Governor of Boston who ordered cargo of tea to be unloaded in Boston despite colonial objection.

Marquis de Lafayette

French soldier who served under George Washington in the American Revolution (1757-1834).

Baron von Steuben

A stern, Prussian drillmaster that taught American soldiers during the Revolutionary War how to successfully fight the British.

Lord Dunmore

He promised freedom to any enslaved Black in Virginia for joining the British army.