APUSH ch2 quiz

Huguenots

French Protestant dissenters who gained limited toleration under the Edict of Nantes (1598). When Louis XIV revoked the edict in 1685, many fled France, with some migrating to British North America, adding to the colonies’ religious diversity.

Coureurs de bois

Independent French fur trappers (“runners of the woods”) who roamed North America. They established widespread trading networks but also disrupted Native cultures and health through disease, alcohol, and economic dependency.

New Netherland

Dutch colony centered in New Amsterdam (modern New York City). Known for economic prosperity and diverse populations. It was seized by the English in 1664 and absorbed into their colonial system.

Protestant Reformation

Movement launched by Martin Luther in Germany challenging Catholic authority, indulgences, and Latin‑only scripture. In England, it began when Henry VIII broke from Rome in the 1530s, reshaping religious and political life.

Roanoke Island

Sir Walter Raleigh’s failed attempt at establishing an English colony off North Carolina. The settlement mysteriously disappeared, becoming known as the “Lost Colony.”

Spanish Armada

Massive Spanish fleet defeated by England in 1588. Its loss marked the decline of Spanish naval dominance and the rise of England as a major colonial power.

Primogeniture

Legal tradition granting all inheritance to the eldest son. Younger sons, lacking land or prospects, often sought opportunity in exploration and colonization, fueling migration to the Americas.

Joint-Stock Company

Business model where multiple investors pooled money for short‑term commercial ventures. Crucial for funding early English colonization, spreading risk and enabling large projects.

Virginia Company

Joint‑stock company granted a charter by King James I to establish settlements in Virginia. It founded Jamestown and sought profit through gold, trade, and later tobacco.

Charter

Legal document granting rights and defining governance for a colony or organization. English colonial charters guaranteed settlers the “rights of Englishmen,” strengthening early loyalty to Britain.

Jamestown

Founded in 1607 by the Virginia Company, it became the first permanent English settlement in North America. Survived early starvation and conflict, later thriving through tobacco cultivation.

First Anglo-Powhatan War

Conflict between Virginia settlers and the Powhatan Confederacy. English forces used brutal tactics—burning villages and crops—similar to methods used in Ireland. Ended with a temporary peace sealed by Pocahontas’s marriage to John Rolfe.

Second Anglo-Powhatan War

Native Americans’ final attempt (1644) to expel Virginia colonists. Their defeat led to a treaty that formally separated Native and English lands, signaling the end of Powhatan power.

Iroquois Confederacy

Alliance of five tribes—Mohawk, Oneida, Onondaga, Cayuga, Seneca—in present‑day New York. Known for political unity, military strength, and strategic diplomacy with European powers.

Tuscarora War

War beginning with Tuscarora attacks on New Bern, North Carolina. After defeat, surviving Tuscaroras migrated north and eventually joined the Iroquois Confederacy as its sixth nation.

Yamasse Indians

Defeated by South Carolina colonists in the Yamasee War (1715–1716). Their destruction marked the collapse of the last major coastal Native groups in the southern colonies.