European Colonies and Creating Anglo America Vocabulary

Vocabulary practice cards reviewing essential terms, key figures, and concepts from colonial American history and early Anglo-American expansion.

Indentured Servants

Englishmen who agreed to become a slave for 6-7 years in exchange for free passage and land in the US.

New England Colonies

Colonies in the Northeast founded by Puritans, including Massachusetts, Connecticut, Rhode Island, and New Hampshire.

Jamestown

The 1st permanent English settlement, made in 1607 in Virginia.

Powhatan & Pocahontas

Powhatan was a powerful leader in Virginia; Pocahontas was his daughter and a symbol of English and Native unity and peace.

Chesapeake Colonies

Virginia and Maryland, with economics depending on enslaved labor and tobacco.

Tobacco

A profitable cash crop introduced by John Rolfe that served as the economic foundation and gold substitute for Virginia.

1619

The 1st year the Virginia Representative assembly (House of Burgesses) met, and the 1st recorded year African slaves came to Virginia.

Headright System

A system that gave 50 acres of land to people who paid passage for workers.

Plantation

A large agricultural estate producing cash crops.

House of Burgesses

Elected representative assembly in Virginia, serving as the 1st government in New World America.

King Phillips War

A conflict between settlers and Natives led by Metacom (King Phillips), which the settlers ended up winning.

Puritans / Congregationalists

Religious Protestants who wanted to completely rid the church of Catholic influence, listen only to the Bible, and were the 1st to pull away from England.

John Winthrop

A Puritan who founded Massachusetts and described it as a 'City upon a hill'.

Mayflower Compact

An agreement made by Plymouth Pilgrims in 1620 establishing democratic self-government.

Pequot War

A 1630 conflict between the Pequot and settlers, resulting in settlers and Mohawks defeating the Pequots.

Roger Williams

A critic of Massachusetts Puritan leaders for interfering in religion and with Natives, who eventually formed Rhode Island.

Dissenters

Protestants that do not belong in the Church.

Anne Hutchinson

A religious dissenter who criticized Massachusetts Puritan leaders, highlighting issues with Massachusetts 'religious freedoms'.

Middle Colonies

New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and Delaware, characterized by diverse populations, religious freedom, fertile land, and good trading networks.

Southern Colonies

Virginia, Maryland, Carolinas, and Georgia, with economics relying on tobacco, rice, and enslaved labor.

Dominion of New England

Created when James II combined Massachusetts, Plymouth, New Hampshire, Maine, Rhode Island, and Connecticut; settlers were angered by losing self-government, and it broke apart after the Glorious Revolution.

Salem Witch Trials

Events where young women were accused of witchcraft in Massachusetts, reflecting religious and social tension in the community.

Middle Passage

The Atlantic voyage where Africans were transported, forming only 1 part of the larger Atlantic slave trade.

Triangular Trade Network

An interconnected Atlantic trade network among Europe, Africa, and the Americas through which enslaved Africans and colonial products moved.

Bacon's Rebellion

A rebellion in Virginia led by Nathaniel Bacon that drove out Natives and cut taxes for more land.

Mercantilism

An economic policy where countries support businesses as much as possible, use colonies for raw materials, export more than import, and limit foreign goods.

Navigation Acts

Laws regulating foreign influence by forcing all trade to and from English ships and charging taxes.

Joint-stock / Charter Colonies

Colonies established when joint stock raised money from investors, governed under a charter granted by the English Crown.

Proprietary Colonies

Colonies granted by the King to proprietors, which could be an individual or a group.

Royal Colonies

Colonies under direct authority of the English Crown, with governors appointed by the King.

Stone Rebellion

A rebellion by slaves in South Carolina that was suppressed, leading to tightened slave laws.

Salutary Neglect

A British policy allowing colonies trade and political autonomy.

Enlightenment

A movement shifting focus from faith and religious authority toward logic, science, republicanism, natural rights, and the scientific method.

1st Great Awakening

A religious revival in local villages that swept through the colonies.

John Edwards

A Congregationalist minister who helped spark the 1st Great Awakening throughout the colonies.

George Whitefield

An Anglican cleric and leader of the 1st Great Awakening who became America's 1st celebrity.