History Exam 1

Columbian Exchange

exchange of animals, plants, people, goods, and disease between Africa, Asia, Europe, and the Americas

Mayflower Compact

the first written constitution adopted in North America, written by the Pilgrims upon their arrival in Plymouth

Continental Congress

congress convened in Philadelphia in 1774 in response to the coercive acts. the delegates hoped to reestablish the freedoms colonists had enjoyed in earlier times

Second Continental Congress

assembly of colonial representatives in 1775 that served as a national government during the revolutionary war. despite limited formal powers, the CC coordinated the war effort and conducted negotiations with outside powers. selected George Washington as commander. eventually approved the declaration of independence

French and Indian War

• 1754-1763

• seven years war in GB and Europe

• led to huge expansion of British territory in North America and to increasing demands from American colonists for more control over their own lives

• conflict between Britain and rance

• britain won but accumulated a lot of debt

Proclamation Line of 1763

established by parliament to limit westward expansion and thereby diminish such hostilities

Captain John Smith

led 104 Englishmen into Chesapeake bay in April 1607 and founded a settlement south of the York River. Named it Jamestown and claimed the land for England.

Christopher Columbus

Italian explorer who sailed for Spain in 1492

wanted to find a westward route to asia

voyages began sustained European contact with the americas

arrival led to major changes for indigenous peoples and europe

Spanish conquest of Aztec and Inca Empires

Aztecs:

• led by Hernan Cortes

• defeated in 1521

• disease, Spanish weapons, and indigenous groups who opposed the Aztecs help the Spanish

Incas:

• led by Francisco Pizarro

• captured Incan emperor and utilized hierarchical nature against itself

Pilgrims

Group of English religious dissenters who established a settlement at Plymouth, Massachusetts, in 1620. Unlike more mainstream Protestants, the Pilgrims were separatists who aimed to sever all connections with the Church of England.

Puritans

Radical English Protestants who hoped to reform the Church of England. The first Puritan settlers in the Americas arrived in Massachusetts in 1630.

Three types of English colonies

royal, charter, proprietary

Stono Rebellion

1739 uprising by enslaved africans and African Americans in South Carolina. in the aftermath of the uprising, white fear of slave revolts intensified

Battle of Saratoga

key revolutionary war battle fought at Saratoga, New York. the patriot victory there in October 1777 provided hope that the colonists could prevail and increased the chances that the French would formally join the patriot side

Amerigo Vespucci

america was named after of him, first recognized that the lands Columbus reached were part of a separate continent

Great Awakening

series of religious revivals in colonial America that began in 1720 and lasted to about 1750

emphasized personal religious experience and emotional preaching

George Whitfield was one of its best-known preachers

Stamp Act

1765 act of parliament that imposed a duty on all transactions involving paper items. prompted widespread, coordinated protests and was eventually repealed

colonists protested because they had no elected representative in parliament

Middle Passage

the brutal voyage of slave ships laden with human cargo from Africa to the americas. the voyage was the middle segment in a triangular journey that began in Europe, went first to Africa, then to the americas, and finally back to europe

Indentured servants

laborers who signed a contract to work without wages for a set period in exchange for travel to the American colonies, food, shelter, and basic supplies

Battle of Yorktown

decisive battle in which the surrender of British forces on October 19, 1781, at Yorktown, Virginia, effectively sealed the patriot victory in the revolutionary war

Treaty (Peace) of Paris

1763 peace treaty that brought the seven years war to a close. under the terms of the treaty, Britain gained control of North America east of the Mississippi River and of present-day canada

Northwest Ordinance

act of the confederation congress that provided for the survey, sale, and eventual division into states of the northwest territory. the 1787 act clarified the process by which territories could become states

Three-fifths compromise

compromise between northern and southern delegates to the 1787 constitutional convention to count enslaved persons as three-fifths of a free person in apportioning representation in the house of representatives and taxation by the federal government

Lousiana Purchase

u.s. government’s 1803 purchase from France of the vast territory stretching from the Mississippi River to the Rocky Mountains and from new Orleans to present-day Montana, doubling the size of the nation

Declaration of Independence

document declaring the independence of the colonies from great Britain. drafted by Thomas Jefferson and then debated and revised by the continental congress, the declaration was made public on July 4, 1776

Benjamin Franklin

American founding father, helped write the declaration of independence, negotiations peace with France during American revolution, helped draft us constitution

Marquise de Lafayette

fought for both America and France

Bill of Rights

the first ten amendments to the constitution. these ten amendments helped reassure Americans who feared that the federal government established under the constitution would infringe on the rights of individuals and states

Democratic-Republicans

political party that emerged out of opposition to federalist policies in the 1790s. they chose Thomas Jefferson as their presidential candidate in 1796, 1800, and 1804

Federalists

supporters of ratification of the constitution, many of whom came from urban and commercial backgrounds

Articles of Confederation

plan for national government proposed by the continental congress in 1777 and ratified in march 1781. they gave the national government limited powers, reflecting widespread fear of centralized authority

Sons of Liberty

Boston organization first formed to protest the stamp act. they spread to other colonies and played an important role in the unrest leading to the American revolution

Samuel Adams is important leader

Coercive Acts (Intolerable Acts)

1774 act of parliament passed in response to the Boston tea party. the coercive acts were meant to force the colonists into submission, but they only resulted in increased resistance. colonial patriots called them the intolerable acts

Boston Massacre

1770 clash between colonial protesters and British soldiers in Boston that led to the death of five colonists. the bloody conflict was used to promote the patriot clause

Benedict Arnold

general for American colonies during American revolutionary war who became the most famous traitor in us after switching loyalty to the British

George Washington

first president, military leader, founding father, commander of the continental army

John Adams

founding father and second president of the us, lawyer, VP for Washington

Samuel Adams

founding father, politician, and political writer from Boston who helped lead the American colonies to break away from great Britain, helped start sons of liberty

Iroquois Confederacy

powerful political and cultural alliance of indigenous peoples in northeastern north america

Dunmore’s Proclamation

1775 proclamation issued by the British commander lord dunmore that offered freedom to all enslaved African Americans who joined the British army. this heightened concerns among some patriots about the consequences of independence

Marbury vs. Madison

1803 Supreme Court decision that established the authority of the supreme court to rule on the constitutionality of federal laws

what was transported from the americas to europe

corn, potatoes, tomatoes, tobacco

what was transported between europe/africa to the americas

horses, cattle, wheat, sugar, disease such as small pox

royal colony

controlled directly by the English king

proprietary colony

given to an individual or group by the kind

corporate colony

controlled by a company