US HISTORY MIDTERM

Christopher Columbus

Christopher Columbus

- Italian navigator who was funded by the Spanish Government to find a passage to the Far East
- He is given credit for discovering the "New World," even though at his death he believed he had made it to India
- He made four voyages to the "New World"
- first sighting of land was on October 12, 1492, and three other journeys until the time of his death in 1503

John Smith

- English explorer who helped found the colony at Jamestown, Virginia

Pocahontas

- A native Indian of America, daughter of Chief Powahatan
- was one of the first to marry an Englishman, John Rolfe, and return to England with him
- Pocahontas' brave actions in saving an Englishman paved the way for many positive English and Native relations.

William Bradford

- A Pilgrim and the second governor of the Plymouth colony, 1621-1657
- He developed private land ownership and helped colonists get out of debt
- He helped the colony survive droughts, crop failures, and Indian attacks.

Roger Williams

- He founded Rhode Island for separation of Church and State
- He believed that the Puritans were too powerful
- Ordered to leave the Massachusetts Bay Colony for his religious beliefs

Anne Hutchinson

- A Puritan woman
- disagreed with the Puritan Church in Massachusetts Bay Colony
- Her actions resulted in her banishment from the colony
- took part in the formation of Rhode Island
- displayed the importance of questioning authority

William Penn

- A Quaker that founded Pennsylvania
- did this to establish a place where his people and others could live in peace and be free from persecution

Jonathan Edwards

- Preacher during the First Great Awakening
- "Sinners in the hands of angry god"

King George III

- King of England during the American Revolution

George Washington

- 1st President of the United States
- commander-in-chief of the Continental Army during the American Revolution (1732-1799)

Thomas Jefferson

- 3rd President of the United States
- an author of the declaration of independence

Benjamin Franklin

- American intellectual, inventor, and politician
- He helped to negotiate French support for the American Revolution

John Adams

- America's first Vice-President
- second President
- Sponsor of the American Revolution in Massachusetts
- wrote the Massachusetts guarantee that freedom of press "ought not to be restrained."

Abigail Adams

- Wife of John Adams
- During the Revolutionary War, she wrote letters to her husband describing life on the homefront
- She urged her husband to remember America's women in the new government he was helping to create

James Madison

- "Father of the Constitution"
- Federalist leader
- fourth President of the United States.

Alexander Hamilton

- First Secretary of the Treasury
- He advocated creation of a national bank
- assumption of state debts by the federal government
- tariff system to pay off the national debt

John Jay

- United States diplomat and jurist
- negotiated peace treaties with Britain
- served as the first chief justice of the United States Supreme Court (1745-1829)

Patrick Henry

- a leader of the American Revolution and a famous orator who spoke out against British rule of the American colonies (1736-1799)
- "Give me liberty or give me death"

Samuel Adams

- American Revolutionary leader and patriot
- Founder of the Sons of Liberty
- one of the most vocal patriots for independence
- signed the Declaration of Independence

Paul Revere

- A patriot who helped warn colonists about British movements
- known for his midnight ride

Thomas Paine

- American Revolutionary leader who supported the American colonist's fight for independence
- supported the French Revolution
- author of common sense

John Marshall

- American jurist and politician who served as the chief justice of the U.S. Supreme Court
- helped establish the practice of judicial review

Columbian Exchange

Transfer of plants, animals, and diseases post-Columbus.

Jamestown

First permanent English settlement, established in 1607.

Tobacco

Cash crop that ensured Jamestown's economic survival.

Pilgrims

English separatists who founded Plymouth Colony in 1620.

Wampanoag

Native American tribe allied with the Pilgrims.

Thanksgiving

Celebration by Pilgrims and Wampanoag in 1621.

Puritans

Protestants seeking to reform the Church of England.

Massachusetts Bay Colony

Founded by Puritans in 1630 for religious freedom.

Mayflower Compact

1620 agreement for self-governance by Pilgrims.

Indentured Servants

Workers exchanged labor for passage to America.

Triangular Trade

Transatlantic exchange of goods, slaves, and raw materials.

Middle Passage

Brutal journey transporting African slaves to Americas.

French and Indian War

Conflict (1754-1763) between France and Britain in North America.

Proclamation of 1763

British decree limiting colonial expansion westward.

Stamp Act of 1765

Tax on printed materials, igniting colonial protests.

Boston Massacre

1770 incident where British soldiers killed five colonists.

Boston Tea Party

1773 protest against British Tea Act, tea dumped.

Intolerable Acts

1774 punitive laws limiting Massachusetts self-government.

Continental Congress

Colonial meetings coordinating resistance to British rule.

Declaration of Independence

1776 document proclaiming American colonies' separation from Britain.

Revolutionary War

Conflict (1775-1783) resulting in American independence.

Treaty of Paris 1783

Agreement recognizing American independence and establishing borders.

Articles of Confederation

First governing document, created weak central government.

Constitutional Convention of 1787

Meeting to draft a stronger federal government framework.

U.S. Constitution

Established government structure with checks and balances.

Bill of Rights

First ten amendments protecting individual freedoms and rights.

Who were the supporters of the new constitution

Federalists

What did Federalists believe about governance?

The best people should rule

What type of government did Federalists advocate for?

A strong national government

Name two prominent Federalists.

Alexander Hamilton and John Adams

What did Anti-federalists believe in?

Sovereignty of the states

Who were mostly Anti-federalists?

Mostly small farmers

Why did small farmers oppose a strong government?

They feared a strong central government would undermine state power

What was the best argument of the Anti-federalists against the Constitution?

It provides NO GUARANTEE protecting liberties and the individual

What were the Alien and Sedition Acts?

Acts passed by Congress and signed into law by Adams.

What did the Alien Act do?

-Increased the amount of time immigrants had to live in the US to become citizens.
-aimed at french immigrants who supported democratic republicans

What did the Sedition Act make illegal?

It made it illegal to criticize Congress or the President.

What is a strict constructionist?

A strict constructionist interprets the Constitution very literally and pays attention to precise wording

What is a loose constructionist?

A loose constructionist interprets the Constitution more broadly and takes into account historical context and allowing for flexibility in its application

Who was the Supreme Court justice during Marbury v. Madison?

John Marshall

Who was Jeffersons secretary of state?

James Madison

Why did Marbury take Madison to court and what was the outcome?

-Madison refused to give Marbury the job he was promised
-The court ruled in favor of Marbury, but he did not receive the job because the court had no real power

What did Marbury v. Madison establish?

It established the principle of judicial review which gave the court power to review laws and actions of Congress and the President for constitutionality

What does Marbury v. Madison signify about the power of the Supreme Court?

It secures the Supreme Court's role as the highest authority in the government.

What was the Louisiana Purchase

-Jeffersons first major success
-Thomas Pinckney gets treaty access to new England ports
-James Monroe and Livingston sent to France to buy Louisiana

How did Jefferson buy Louisiana

Jefferson wrote purchase as a treaty because he had no power to buy land

Who did Jefferson send to explore the New land of Louisiana?

Jefferson puts forward expeditionary force Lewis and Clarke

What was the War of 1812?

-A war between the U.S. and Great Britain
-The US was very unprepared

What caused the War of 1812?

American outrage over the impressment of American sailors by the British, the British seizure of American ships, and British aid to the Indians attacking the Americans.

Who were the War Hawks?

Young westerners led by Henry Clay and John C. Calhoun who argued for war in Congress.

What significant event occurred in Washington, D.C. during the War of 1812?

The British invaded and burned Washington, D.C.

What was the Treaty of Ghent?

The treaty that restored the status quo after the War of 1812 and required the U.S. to give back Florida.

What was the outcome of the Battle of New Orleans?

Andrew Jackson's troops defeated the British, not knowing that a peace treaty had already been signed.

What did the War of 1812 help strengthen?

It strengthened American nationalism.

Battle of Lake Erie

-US tries to take Canada
1st attack- New York
2nd attack- Chesapeake Bay
3rd attack- New Orleans

What was significant about the Battle of Fort Henry?

Francis Key Scott was captured and while on the boat he saw American still held their flag so he wrote the stared spangled banner

What did the Monroe Doctrine state?

It asserted US independence from Europe.

What warning did the Monroe Doctrine give to European nations?

-It warned European nations that the US would protect the Western Hemisphere
-It also stated that the US would not interfere in Europe.

Who negotiated the Missouri Compromise?

Henry Clay

What was the Missouri compromise?

stated that:
Maine was a free state,
Missouri was a slave state,
everything above 3630 latitude line would be free, everything below would be slave. This applied to ONLY the Louisiana Purchase.

Indian Removal Act

-trade of land for land in east to land in west
-tells tribe either to leave or be first to leave
-Lead by Andrew Jackson

Trail of Tears

the forced removal of Cherokees and their transportation to Oklahoma

What is Manifest Destiny?

A 19th-century belief in the inevitability of US expansion westward.

What ideas is Manifest Destiny based on?

Ideas of American exceptionalism and superiority.

What did Manifest Destiny justify?

Territorial acquisition.

How was Manifest Destiny used in relation to Native Americans?

It was often used to defend the displacement of Native Americans.

Mexican American War

1846 - 1848 - President Polk declared war on Mexico over the dispute of land in Texas. At the end, American ended up with 55% of Mexico's land.

Compromise of 1850

-California entering the Union as a free state --defining Texas's border
-established New Mexico and Utah as official territories
-Banned the slave trade in the District of Columbia in exchange for a new fugitive slave law.

Fugitive slave Act

A law that made it a crime to help runaway slaves; allowed for the arrest of escaped slaves in areas where slavery was illegal and required their return to slaveholders

Kansas-Nebraska Act

a law that allowed voters in Kansas and Nebraska to choose whether to allow slavery

Dred Scott decision

-Supreme Court ruled that Scott couldn't sue bc he wasn't a citizen
-said that his argument for living in a free state. and coming back didn't make. him free

John Brown's Raid on Harper's Ferry

-John Brown's failed scheme to invade the South w/ armed slaves backed by sponsoring North abolitionists
-seized by the. federals
-Brown & remnants were caught by Robert E. Lee and the US Marines; Brown was hanged; South feared danger if it stayed in Union

Lincoln's Election

-Lincoln didn't want to interfere with slavery but wanted to stop its expansion
-supported a fugitive slave law

Secession of Southern States

Formal withdrawal of a state from the Union. South threatened to do this many times and finally would in 1861. It was in response to the election of Abraham Lincoln, who sought to contain slavery.

Confederate States of America

the southern states that seceded from the United States in 1861

US civil war

The violent conflict between Union and confederate forces over states rights and slavery.

Emancipation Proclamation

Proclamation issued by Lincoln, freeing all slaves in areas still at war with the Union.

Gettysburg Address

-A speech given by Abraham Lincoln after the Battle of Gettysburg, in which he praised the bravery of Union soldiers and renewed his commitment to winning the Civil War; supported the ideals of self-government and human rights
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