Imperial Wars and Colonial Protest: Flashcards (1754-1774)

A set of practice flashcards covering the major events, policies, and ideas from Imperial Wars and Colonial Protest (1754–1774) to prepare for AP U.S. History.

What did the Peace of Paris (1763) accomplish in North America?

Britain gained Canada and Florida; France ceded Louisiana west of the Mississippi to Spain; Britain emerged as the dominant imperial power in North America.

What was the Albany Plan of Union and did it take effect?

A plan for an intercolonial government and a common defense/tax system drafted by Benjamin Franklin; it never took effect because colonies refused to surrender taxation powers.

What was Pontiac’s Rebellion (1763) and how did Britain respond?

A Native American uprising in the Ohio Valley against British settlements after the Seven Years’ War; Britain responded by sending regular troops to suppress the revolt.

What was the Proclamation of 1763 and why did colonists oppose it?

Prohibited settlement west of the Appalachian Mountains to stabilize frontier tensions; colonists opposed because they expected access to western lands earned after the war.

What were the main provisions of the Sugar Act (1764)?

Duties on foreign sugar and certain luxuries; strengthened enforcement of the Navigation Acts; smugglers were tried in admiralty courts without juries.

What did the Quartering Act (1765) require of the colonies?

Colonists had to provide food and living quarters for British troops stationed in the colonies.

What was the Stamp Act (1765) and why was it significant?

Direct tax requiring revenue stamps on printed materials; first direct tax on colonists; sparked widespread protests and the Stamp Act Congress.

What did the Declaratory Act (1766) declare?

Parliament’s right to tax and legislate for the colonies in all cases whatsoever.

What were the Townshend Acts (1767) and their key provisions?

Duties on imported tea, glass, and paper; revenues used to pay crown officials; writs of assistance allowed general searches; NY Assembly suspended.

What were writs of assistance?

General search warrants enabling officials to search for smuggled goods without specific warrants.

What happened during the Boston Massacre (1770) and why is it significant?

British soldiers killed five colonists; John Adams defended the soldiers; the event fueled anti-British sentiment and propaganda.

What were the Committees of Correspondence (1772) and their purpose?

Colonial committees that exchanged letters about British actions, helping coordinate resistance and later unity among colonies.

What was the Gaspee affair (1772)?

Colonists burned a British revenue schooner off Rhode Island in retaliation for enforcement practices, heightening tensions and prompting investigations.

What was the Tea Act (1773) and how did colonists respond?

Tea was made cheaper for the East India Company, but colonists refused to buy it as a protest against Parliament’s right to tax; contributed to mounting resistance.

What happened at the Boston Tea Party (1773)?

Colonists, disguised as Native Americans, dumped 342 chests of East India Company tea into Boston Harbor to protest tea taxation and monopoly.

What were the Coercive (Intolerable) Acts (1774) and the Québec Act (1774)?

Coercive Acts closed Boston port, restructured Massachusetts government, allowed trials of royal officials in Britain, expanded the Quartering Act; Québec Act extended Quebec’s boundaries and favored Catholicism, angering colonists.

What did the Québec Act (1774) do and why did colonists resent it?

Established Catholicism as the official religion in Quebec, set up a government without a representative assembly, and extended its boundary to the Ohio River; seen as a threat to republican ideas and western land claims.

What Enlightenment ideas influenced the American Revolution?

Rationalism and Deism, with thinkers like John Locke and Rousseau shaping beliefs in natural rights, liberty, and representative government.

What was the Stamp Act Congress (1765) and its significance?

Nine colonies met to organize a unified response, asserting that only elected representatives could authorize taxes.

What is the principle of "no taxation without representation" and how did it arise?

Colonists argued Parliament could regulate commerce but could not levy taxes without colonial representation; a central grievance fueling protest against British policy.