APUSH Unit 3 Vocab

French and Indian War(Seven Years’ War)

Began in 1754 and ended in 1763. French provoked the war by building a chain of forts in the Ohio River Valley. They wanted to halt westward growth of the British colonies. Virginia’s governor sent George Washington and gained a small victory but eventually surrendered to a superior force of Frenchmen and their American Indian Allies. General Edward Braddock was defeated and the French repulsed a British Invasion of French Canada in 1756. The Albany Plan of Union was a system that supplied troops and taxes. William Pitt, British Prime Minister, focused on conquering Canada. They negotiated a treaty of the Peace of Paris in 1763.

Albany Plan

Developed by Benjamin Franklin that provided for an intercolonial government and a system for recruiting troops and collecting taxes from the various colonies for their common defense.

Treaty of Paris(1763)

Ended the French and Indian War/ Seven Years’ War. The European powers negotiated in 1763 which led to British acquiring French Canada and Spanish Florida.

The Enlightenment

In the 1700s, some educated Americans felt attracted to a European movement in literature and philosophy. Relied on reason that could solve most of humanities life problems.

Natural Rights and Social Contract Theory

The concept of an agreement among people to form a government to promote liberty and equality

Republicanism

the ideology of governing the nation as a republic, where the head of state is not appointed through hereditary means, but usually through an election

Pontiac’s Rebellion

Chief Pontiac led an attack against colonial settlements on the western frontier. The American Indians were angry by the growing number of western movement of English settlers onto their land. Pontiac’s alliance of American Indians in the Ohio River Valley destroyed forts and settlements from New York to Virginia. Rather than relying on colonial forces to retaliate, the British sent regular British troops to put down an uprising.

Proclamation Act of 1763

Prohibited colonists from settling west of the Appalachian Mountains. The British hoped that limiting settlements would prevent future hostilities between colonists and American Indians. The colonists were angry and defiant.

Sugar Act

Placed duties on foreign sugar trade and certain luxuries. Wanted to regulate the sugar trade and to raise revenue. A companion law also provided for stricter enforcement of the Navigation Acts to stop smuggling.

Quartering Act

Required the colonists to provide food and living quarters for the British soldiers stationed in the colonies.

Stamp Act

Required that revenue stamps be placed on most printed paper in the colonies. It was the first direct tax-collected from those who used the goods-paid by the people in the colonies.

Stamp Act Congress

Representatives from nine colonies met in New York in 1765 and they resolved that only their own elected representatives had the legal authority to approve taxes.

Townshend Acts

To be collected on colonial imports of tea, glass, and paper. It would help pay crown officials in the colonies.

Tea Act

Made the price of the company’s tea-even with the tax included-cheaper than that of smuggled Dutch tea

Intolerable Acts

In response to the Boston Tea Party, the British enacted a series of Coercive Acts

Port Act closed the port of Boston, prohibiting trade in or out of the harbor until the destroyed tea was payed for. The Massachusetts Government Act reduced the power of the Massachusetts legislature while increasing the power of the royal governor. The Administration of Justice Act allowed royal officials accused of crimes to be tried in Great Britain instead of in the colonies.

Sons of Liberty

A secret society organized for the purpose of intimidating tax agents. Destroyed revenue stamps and feathered revenue officials.

Daughters of Liberty

Group of women organized to oppose British actions like boycotting British goods, providing supplies for army, and fought in battle rarely

Committees of Correspondence

The view that British officials were undermining colonial liberties. Initiated by Samuel Adams in 1772. Organized committees that would regularly exchange letters about suspicious or potentially threatening British activities.

Boston Massacre

A crowd of colonists harassed the guards near the customs house. The guards fired into the crowd, killing five. Samuel Adam angrily denounced the shooting incident as a “massacre” and used it to inflame anti-British feeling.

Boston Tea Party

Because of the tea act, a group of Bostonians took action. Disguised as American Indians, they boarded the British ships and dumped 342 chests of tea in the harbor.

First Continental Congress

All colonies except Georgia sent delegates to a convention in Philadelphia in September 1774. The purpose was to respond to what the delegates viewed as British’s alarming threats to their liberties.

Second Continental Congress

Met in Philadelphia on May 10, 1775, and the congress was divided. One group of delegates from New England thought they should declare independence while another group from the middle colonies hoped the conflict could be resolved by negotiating a new relationship with Great Britain.

Olive Branch Petition

Delegates pledged their loyalty and asked the king to intercede with Parliament to secure peace and protection of colonial rights, and King George III dismissed it.

Common Sense

In 1776, one of the most influential pamphlets ever written was published. The author was Thomas Paine wrote a treatise on the nature of government and that lawful states were the ones that derived their just powers from those who put them in power.

Declaration of Independence and the Committee of Five

Five delegates including Thomas Jefferson, formed a committee to write a statement in support of Lee’s resolution to be independent. Listed specific grievances against George III. It called for independence on July 2. And adopted Jefferson’s work on July 4, 1776.

Loyalists (Tories)

Those who maintained allegiance to the King. They fought with the British soldiers and this divided the war and families.

Patriots

40 percent actively joined the struggle against the British. They were from New England states and Virginia.

Valley Forge

At the end of 1777, British occupied both New York and Philadelphia. After losing Philadelphia, Washington’s demoralized troops suffered through a severe winter and camped at this place.

Republican Motherhood

Educating women so that they could teach their children the values of the new republic and their roles as citizens.

Treaty of Paris (1783)

Britain would recognize the existence of the United States as an independent nation. The Mississippi River would be the western boundary of that nation. Americans would have fishing rights off the coast of Canada. Americans would pay debts owed to British merchants and honor loyalists claims for property confiscated during the war.

Articles of Confederation

There was a large challenge of uniting the colonies because of distrust and fear of British government. This led to an intentionally weak form of central government under a document that was written by Second Continental Congress during the Revolutionary War.

Battle of Fallen Timbers

In 1794, the US army, led by the General Anthony Wayne, defeated the confederacy tribes in northwestern Ohio because the British were supplying the American Indians with arms and encouraging them to attack the settlers

Treaty of Greenville

The chiefs of the defeated peoples agreed to surrender claims to the Ohio territory and promised it to be open up to settlement

Land Ordinance (1785)

Provided that the acreage of the Old Northwest should be sold and that the proceeds should be used to help pay off the national debt

Northwest Ordinance(1787)

Enacted under the Articles of Confederation, provided a mechanism for migration and settlement. It planned for the sale of government land, an orderly adoption of western territory into new states, public education, and outlawed slavery in the territory.

Shays’ Rebellion

Flared up in western Massachusetts in 1786. Impoverished backcountry farmers, many of them Revolutionary war veterans, were losing their farms through morgage foreclosures and tax delinquencies. Desperate debtors demanded the state issue paper money, lighten taxes, and suspend property takeovers. Several skirmishes occurred and some died.

Constitutional Convention

Benjamin Franklin attempted to overcome the skepticism of the other delegates about the documents they created. It would establish a central government strong enough to hold 13 states together. Several problems led to a convention that wrote a new constitution.

Federalism

A system with a strong but limited central government.

Limited Government

Conflict continued to rage about the nature of the government. Some, such Thomas Jefferson and James Madison supported this.

Great Compromise

Provided for a bicameral (two-house) Congress. Came to because the Virginia Plan favored the larger states get more representation while the New Jersey which favored the smaller states. States would have equal representation, but the House of Representatives would be represented by population size.

3/5s Compromise

Counted each slave individual as three-fifths of a person for the purposes of determining a states level of taxation and representation.

Slave Trade Compromise

Resolved the controversial issue of commerce relating to the Slave Trade emerged at the constitutional convention. They would wait 20 years(1808) to decide.

Anti-Federalists

Opponents who feared that that new government would be too strong which tended to be small farmers and settlers of western frontiers.

Federalists

Supporters of the constitution and its strong government.

The Federalists Papers

Written by James Madison, Alexander Hamilton, and John Jay. The 85 essays published in a book presented cogent reasons for believing practicality of each major provision of the Constitution.

Bill of Rights

Drafted largely by James Madison, the ten ratified by the states in 1791. Protected against abuses by the central government

Hamilton’s Economic Plan(funding at the Par, assumption, tariff, excise taxes, Bank of the US)

Pay off national debt at face value and have the federal government assume the war debts of the states. Protect the young nations infant industries and collect adequate revenues at the same time by imposing high tariffs on imported goods. Create a national bank for depositing government funds and printing bank notes that would provide the basis for a stable U.S. currency.

Whiskey Rebellion

Hamilton persuaded Congress pass excise taxes, particularly on the sale of whiskey. In western Pennsylvania, the refusal of a group of farmers to pay the federal tax on whiskey seemed to pose a major challenge to the viability of the US government under the constitution. They attacked the revenue collections. Washington federalized 15000 state militia and placed them under Hamilton.

French Revolution and Reign of Terror

Overthrew absolute monarchy of the Bourbons and the system of aristocratic privileges in France. During a violent time in the revolution where the revolutionary government orchestrated mass executions of those are enemies of the revolution which caused fear and panic.

Neutrality Proclamation

Washington believed that the young nation was not strong enough to engage in a European war.

Jay’s Treaty

Treaty in which Britain agreed to evacuate its posts but included nothing about impressment (getting American seaman to join Britain navy). Narrowly ratified by the Senate, it angered the American supporters of France

Pinkney Treaty

Spain decided to consolidate its holdings in North America. The US minister to Spain negotiated a treaty that Spain opened the lower Mississippi River and New Orleans to American trade. The right of deposit was granted to Americans so they could transfer cargoes in New Orleans without paying duties to the Spanish government. Spain accepted the US claim that Florida’s norther boundary should be at the 31st parallel.

Washington’s Farewell Address

Retired president that spoke to not get involved in European affairs, do not make “permanent alliances” in foreign affairs, do not form political parties, and do not fall into sectionalism.

XYZ Affair

Americans were angered that French warships and privateers were seizing US merchant ships. Adams sent his delegation to Paris to negotiate. French requested bribes as the basis for entering in negotiations and Americans refused. Many Americans clamored war against France.

Alien Laws

Authorized the president to deport aliens considered dangerous and to detain enemy aliens in time of war.

Sedition Act

Made it illegal for newspaper editors to criticize the president or Congress and imposed fines or imprisonment for editors who violated the law.

Virginia and Kentucky Resolution

argued the alien and sedition acts violated rights guaranteed by the first amendment. Kentucky legislature adopted a resolution and so did Virginia that declared that states entered into a compact. If any act of the federal government broke the compact, a state could nullify the federal law.

Revolution of 1800

In the United States, Presidential election of 1800, Vice president Thomas Jefferson defeated incumbent John Adams. The election was a realigning election that ushered in a generation of Democratic-Republican Party rule and the eventual demise of the Federalist Party.