APUSH Chapter 4: The Empire in Transition (1754–1775)

What were the primary dates of the French and Indian War?

1754-1763.

What was the main cause of conflict in the Ohio River Valley before 1754?

Competing British and French territorial claims and lucrative fur trade control.

What action did George Washington take in the Ohio Valley in 1754?

Led Virginia troops against French forces, resulting in his surrender at Fort Necessity.

What was the primary goal of the Albany Congress of 1754?

To coordinate colonial defense and strengthen relations with the Iroquois Confederacy.

Who proposed the Albany Plan of Union, and what was its outcome?

Benjamin Franklin proposed it; colonial assemblies and British officials both rejected it.

How did Native American nations utilize alliances during the Seven Years' War?

They allied with European powers to protect territory, trade, and political independence.

What role did William Pitt play during the French and Indian War?

As British political leader, he increased military commitment, securing victory over France.

What were the main territorial terms of the Treaty of Paris (1763)?

France surrendered Canada and eastern Mississippi claims to Britain; Spain ceded Florida.

What did the Proclamation of 1763 prohibit?

Colonial settlement west of the Appalachian Mountains.

Why did Britain issue the Proclamation of 1763?

To prevent costly conflicts between American colonists and Native American tribes.

How did British war debt after 1763 impact colonial policy?

Britain attempted to tax and control colonies to pay for imperial defense.

What was the main purpose of the Sugar Act of 1764?

To raise revenue and curb smuggling by revising duties on sugar products.

What restriction did the Currency Act of 1764 impose on colonies?

It restricted colonies from issuing paper money as legal tender for debts.

Why was the Stamp Act of 1765 distinct from previous British taxes?

It was the first direct internal tax imposed directly on colonial printed materials.

What principle did the colonial slogan 'No taxation without representation' assert?

Only elected colonial assemblies had the constitutional authority to tax colonists.

What was the British theory of 'Virtual Representation'?

Members of Parliament represented all British subjects, including unrepresented colonists.

What was the historical significance of the Stamp Act Congress (1765)?

It represented an early step toward unified colonial resistance through joint petitioning.

How did the Sons of Liberty resist British taxation?

Through street protests, intimidation of stamp distributors, and destruction of official property.

How did the Daughters of Liberty support colonial nonimportation?

They produced homespun cloth and promoted boycotts of imported British goods.

What was the Declaratory Act of 1766?

Law asserting Parliament's supreme authority to bind the colonies in all cases whatsoever.

What items were taxed under the Townshend Acts of 1767?

Imported goods including glass, lead, paint, paper, and tea.

What were Writs of Assistance?

Broad search warrants allowing British customs officials to search for smuggled goods.

Who wrote 'Letters from a Farmer in Pennsylvania' opposing the Townshend duties?

John Dickinson.

What caused the Boston Massacre on March 5, 1770?

Hostility and economic friction between Boston civilians and stationed British soldiers.

Who was Crispus Attucks?

A casualty of the Boston Massacre, widely cited as the first killed.

How did Paul Revere influence colonial opinion after the Boston Massacre?

He created a widely circulated engraving depicting British soldiers aggressively firing on civilians.

Why did Britain retain the tea tax after repealing the Townshend duties in 1770?

To maintain Parliament's constitutional right to tax the American colonies.

What was the primary function of Committees of Correspondence?

To share news of British policies and coordinate intercolonial resistance activities.

What was the Gaspee Affair of 1772?

Rhode Island colonists attacked and burned a grounded British customs schooner.

What was the main purpose of the Tea Act of 1773?

To bailout the East India Company by allowing direct tea sales to colonies.

Why did colonists oppose the Tea Act despite lower tea prices?

It maintained the unrepresented tax and threatened local colonial merchants' businesses.

When did the Boston Tea Party occur?

December 16, 1773.

How did Parliament penalize Massachusetts through the Coercive Acts of 1774?

Closed Boston Harbor, limited self-government, and expanded quartering of royal troops.

Why did colonists object to the Quebec Act of 1774?

It expanded Catholic Quebec southward into western territory claimed by Protestant colonists.

Which colony did NOT send delegates to the First Continental Congress in 1774?

Georgia.

What was the primary function of the Continental Association created in 1774?

To strictly enforce complete colonial economic boycotts of British imports and exports.

Who were the Minutemen?

Colonial militia members trained to mobilize immediately in armed emergency situations.

What was the immediate cause of the Battles of Lexington and Concord on April 19, 1775?

British troops marched to seize stockpiled colonial military supplies in Concord.

Who served as the military commander of Massachusetts during the escalation of 1774-1775?

General Thomas Gage.