history - confederation, independence, constitutional convention Save

what was the general view of the English, regarding the colonies?

English viewed colonies as part of the English Empire

what did the English expect the Colonists to do?

expected them to contribute to costs of protecting the Empire, be loyal/main trading partners

what were the 3 things included in the costs of the empire?

• soldiers + ships to protect and control the empire's colonies

• protect the colonies (French + Indian war cost money)

• to protect trade by land and sea

how did the colonists view themselves in relation to the British?

viewed themselves as equal to the British

how did the colonists view their trading relationship and the issue of their rights/freedom in relation to British empire?

• believed they had right to trade with the nations that gave them the best deal

• when they felt their rights were violated, began to resist in many way

what ways did the colonists resist the British empire's control?

• boycott British goods, bought from other nations

• smuggled in goods to avoid tax

• wrote letters to the King George III

why did the British place taxes on the colonies?

- to pay for costs of the empire (including protecting colonies during the French + Indian war, fought over Ohio Valley region)

were the taxes in the colonies higher or lower than taxes on British citizens in England?

taxes were lower on English citizens

what was the result of the British putting more soldiers in the colonies?

British tried to control colonies by increasing soldiers in the colonies, led to first Battle at Lexington and Concord in 1775

why was taxation the key issue that the colonists felt was unacceptable?

taxation acts passed by the British parliament were done without colonial representation in Parliament

what was the slogan used by the colonists to rally the colonists to resist against the British?

"No taxation without representation"

Where did the leaders of the colonies meet in 1776?

Philadelphia

what was the meeting held in Philly, following the Battle of Lexington and Concord, called?

"Second Continental Congress"

What year was the second continental congress held in Philly?

1776

what 3 things were done at the second continental congress?

1: creation of continental army (George Washington named General)

2: committee was formed to write Declaration of Independence (essentially declaration of war)

3: committee formed to create the new gov't that would be put in place following victory of Revolutionary War

who was the main author of the Declaration of Independence?

Thomas Jefferson

What were the main 3 ideas of the Declaration of Independence? (based on enlightenment, Locke, Hobbes)

1: job of gov't is to protect the rights of the ppl

2: people have 3 inalienable rights (life, liberty, and property)

3: if gov't does not protect those rights, gov't could be overthrown and new gov't established

who acted as the gov't during Rev. War?

Second Continental Congress

define Confederation

confederation - a loose union of states (type of gov't created by sec. continental congress)

what year does the Rev. War end and the Articles of Confederation go inter effect?

1781

who was given more power under the new confederation of American: national gov't or state gov'ts?

state gov't

why did the confederation create a weak national gov't by giving more power to states?

• colonial leaders did not want a repeat of the abuse of power by the King George III

• they didn't want a strong central (or national) gov't

what was the single branch of national gov't under the Articles of Confederation?

Legislative branch

what was the nae of the single national branch of gov't under the Articles of Confederation?

Confederation Congress

what was the power of the confederation congress?

congress could pass laws

could the conf. congress enforce the laws they passed/ who could pass them?

laws passed by congress were supposed to be enforced by state gov'ts

how many reps could each state have in the conf. congress?

each state could have 2-7 reps

regardless of # of reps, how many votes did each state have in the conf. congress?

only had one vote

How many votes were required by the conf. congress to pass a law?

9 of 13 states (?)

how many states had to vote for a change to the whole confederation?

all 13 states had to agree on change to be made to confederation itself

why was not having an executive branch at the national level a problem for the confederation?

meant laws could be made by congress, but could not enforce them

how do the problems with taxation show why having no executive branch was a serious issue?

national govt could vote for taxes, but states disregarded this

what were the 3 key things the national govt could not pay for because the state govts would not collect the tax money?

• money to pay for debts (like war)

• money to pay soldiers who already fought in Rev. War

• money to pay for costs of the running govt (including having an army, made nation vulnerable)

what major powers did the confederation not have regarding trade & relationships with other nations?

1. National govt had to power to regulate trade between states

2. national govt had to power to regulate trade between other nations

3. national govt could make treaties w other nations, but had to power to enforce them

what are the 3 ways that the independent actions of the states began to tear the confederation apart?

1. states were trading with other nations independent of one another

2. boundaries become an issue of dispute between states

3. states were making and using their own currencies

define currency

currency - another term for money

why did Shay's rebellion (in MA) happen?

farmers were upset they hadn't been paid for being soldiers in Rev. War and some lost homes/farms because of it

while the govt of MA was able to stop the rebellion, what is the result?

The leaders of the confederation are concerned about the nation holding together and call a meeting to discuss their concerns