Enlightenment and America Flashcards

A comprehensive vocabulary flashcard set covering key terms, historical figures, and political principles from the Scientific Revolution, the Enlightenment, and the American Revolution based on lecture notes.

Scientific Revolution

A period beginning in Europe in 1543 marked by a huge change or movement in modern science, emphasizing experiments, reason, and new methods for gathering data.

Scientific Method

A process introduced by Sir Francis Bacon for gathering and analyzing data using experiments and reason, involving observation, research questions, hypotheses, experiments, and conclusions.

Sir Francis Bacon

An English thinker who changed the approach to science by creating the Scientific Method.

Nicolaus Copernicus

A scientist who published a book in 1543 proposing the heliocentric theory that planets revolve around the sun.

Heliocentric

The astronomical theory stating that the planets revolve around the sun.

Geocentric

The historical belief that the planets and the sun revolve around the Earth.

Theory

An idea that has not been proven or widely accepted yet.

Johannes Kepler

A mathematician and astronomer who used mathematics to prove Copernicus correct and showed that planets orbit in ellipses rather than complete circles.

Galileo

An Italian scientist who improved the telescope to study the sky, confirmed Copernicus' heliocentric theory, and was imprisoned for life for heresy by the Catholic Church.

Isaac Newton

An English scientist born in 1643 who wrote about gravity and the three laws of motion in 1687.

Gravity

A word created by Isaac Newton to describe the force that causes objects to fall.

The Enlightenment

A period during the 1600s–1700s characterized by a new way of thinking about society, politics, and human nature through reason and individual rights rather than tradition and absolute power.

Absolute Monarchs

Rulers who possess complete power over their kingdoms and subjects, controlling laws, economies, and military forces.

Natural Rights

The basic, fundamental rights that all human beings are born with.

Thomas Hobbes

An English philosopher who lived through the English Civil War, wrote Leviathan, and argued that humans are naturally selfish and violent, requiring a strong government to maintain order.

Hobbes' Social Contract

An agreement in which people give up some freedom to a government in exchange for protection, order, and control.

John Locke

An English philosopher who wrote Two Treatises of Government, believing that people are moral and reasonable, and inherently possess natural rights to life, liberty, and property.

Locke's Social Contract

An agreement where government derives its power from the people to protect their natural rights, and the people retain the right to replace a government that fails to do so.

Baron de Montesquieu

A French thinker who wrote The Spirit of the Laws and proposed the separation of powers into legislative, executive, and judicial branches to prevent tyranny.

Separation of Powers

The division of government power among executive, legislative, and judicial branches to maintain liberty and prevent any single authority from holding total power.

Jean-Jacques Rousseau

A French philosopher who wrote The Social Contract, asserting that people are naturally good but corrupted by society, and government power should reflect the general will.

Voltaire

A French writer and philosopher who used wit and satire to oppose absolute monarchy, injustice, and church authority while advocating reason.

Satire

The use of humor, wit, or sarcasm to critique and discuss people and ideas.

Mary Wollstonecraft

An English writer and early advocate for gender equality who wrote A Vindication of the Rights of Woman, demanding educational and political rights for women.

Adam Smith

An Enlightenment philosopher who advocated for free markets to foster strong national economies.

Popular Sovereignty

The political principle stated in the Declaration of Independence that government authority is derived from the consent of the governed.

Battle of Trenton

A Revolutionary War battle in which George Washington led a smaller militia force to retake New York from Hessian forces the day after Christmas.

Battle of Saratoga

A battle in which the Continental Army, led by Benedict Arnold, caught British forces unaware at Bemis Heights.

Battle of Germantown

A planned sneak attack by Nathaniel Green that failed when heavy fog confused Continental soldiers, causing them to run into one another.

Battle of Yorktown

The final major Revolutionary War battle where American and French forces trapped British General Lord Cornwallis in Virginia, forcing his surrender.

Shays' Rebellion

An uprising of armed Continental Army veterans protesting taxes and civil unrest, which demonstrated the weakness of the central government under the Articles of Confederation.

Federalists

Delegates at the Constitutional Convention who advocated for a strong central government.

Anti-Federalists

Delegates at the Constitutional Convention who favored maintaining a weak federal government similar to the Articles of Confederation.

Northwest Ordinance

An act ratified by the Constitutional Convention allowing land won from England to be sold to settlers, establishing six future states and setting the Ohio River as a boundary line prohibiting slavery to its north.

Executive Branch

The government branch headed by the President, who serves as Commander-in-Chief of the armed forces and has veto power over legislative bills.

Legislative Branch

The government branch composed of Congress (the House of Representatives and the Senate) responsible for drafting laws.

Judicial Branch

The government branch consisting of the highest court in the land, staffed by justices appointed by the President.