Key APUSH Terms

Columbian Exchange

The widespread transfer of plants, animals, diseases, etc. between the Americas and the Old World following Christopher Columbus's voyages in the late 15th century.

Encomienda System

A labor system established by the Spanish in the Americas that granted colonists the right to demand tribute and forced labor from indigenous populations.

Puritans

A religious group that sought to purify the Church of England during the 16th and 17th centuries. They established colonies in New England, notably the Massachusetts Bay Colony.

Pilgrims

A separatist group from England that founded the Plymouth Colony in 1620 seeking religious freedom.

Triangular Trade

A transatlantic trade system involving the exchange of slaves, cash crops, and manufactured goods between Europe, Africa, and the Americas.

Mercantilism

An economic theory that emphasizes the role of government in regulating the economy to enhance state power by increasing wealth through trade.

Roanoke Island

The site of the first attempted English settlement in North America, established in 1585 but famously vanished by 1590.

Jamestown, VA

The first permanent English settlement in North America, established in 1607.

Mayflower Compact

An agreement for self-governance made by the Pilgrims on the Mayflower in 1620, establishing a framework for political governance in the new colony.

Bacon’s Rebellion

A 1676 uprising in Virginia led by Nathaniel Bacon against Governor William Berkeley's administration. It was fueled by frustrations over land policies and conflicts with Native Americans.

Pueblo Revolt (1680)

A successful uprising of the Pueblo people against Spanish colonizers in present-day New Mexico, aimed at reclaiming their cultural and religious practices.

First Great Awakening

An intense religious revival movement in the American colonies during the early to mid-18th century, characterized by emotional sermons and a focus on individual piety, challenging traditional authority and promoting a more personal relationship with God.

Seven Years’ War

A global conflict known as the French and Indian War in North America, fought between 1756 and 1763. It involved major powers, including Britain and France, and significantly impacted colonial relations and expansion.

Proclamation of 1763

A declaration issued by the British Crown that prohibited colonial settlement west of the Appalachian Mountains, aiming to stabilize relations with Native Americans after the Seven Years' War.

Stamp Act

A 1765 law passed by the British Parliament requiring colonists to pay a tax on all printed materials, which sparked widespread protest and helped unify the colonies against British taxation.

Townshend Acts

A series of laws enacted in 1767 by the British Parliament, imposing taxes on goods imported to the American colonies, leading to heightened tensions and resistance among colonists.

Boston Massacre

An incident in 1770 where British soldiers killed five colonists during a confrontation, escalating anti-British sentiments.

Boston Tea Party

A 1773 protest by the American colonists against British taxation, where they disguised as Native Americans and dumped tea into Boston Harbor.

Declaration of Independence

The document adopted on July 4, 1776, that announced the thirteen American colonies' break from British rule.

Articles of Confederation

The first constitution of the United States, ratified in 1781, which established a weak central government and was later replaced by the U.S. Constitution.

Constitution

The supreme law of the United States, drafted in 1787, establishing the framework of the national government and fundamental rights of citizens.

Bill of Rights

The first ten amendments to the U.S. Constitution, adopted in 1791.

Washington’s Farewell Address

A letter written by George Washington in 1796 advising against political parties and foreign alliances.

XYZ Affair

A diplomatic incident in 1797-1798 where French agents demanded bribes from American diplomats, leading to an undeclared naval conflict between the U.S. and France.

Alien & Sedition Acts

Laws passed in 1798 that restricted the rights of immigrants and limited free speech against the government.

Louisiana Purchase

The acquisition of territory from France in 1803, which doubled the size of the United States and secured control of the Mississippi River.

War of 1812

A conflict fought between the United States and Great Britain from 1812 to 1815, primarily over maritime rights, trade restrictions, and territorial expansion.

Missouri Compromise

An agreement passed in 1820 to maintain the balance between slave and free states, admitting Missouri as a slave state and Maine as a free state, and establishing a line to limit the spread of slavery in future territories.

Monroe Doctrine

A policy established in 1823 asserting that the Western Hemisphere was off-limits to new European colonization and that any interference would be seen as a threat.

Nullification Crisis

A political crisis in the early 1830s when South Carolina declared that it could nullify federal tariffs, leading to a confrontation with the federal government.

Indian Removal Act

Legislation passed in 1830 that authorized the forced removal of Native American tribes from their lands east of the Mississippi River to designated territories in the west.

Trail of Tears

The forced relocation of Native American tribes from their ancestral lands to designated Indian Territory, leading to severe hardship and significant loss of life in the 1830s.

Nat Turner Rebellion

Also known as Nat Turner's Slave Rebellion, it was a violent uprising in Virginia in 1831 led by enslaved preacher Nat Turner, aimed at overthrowing the institution of slavery.

Jacksonian Democracy

A political movement during the 1820s and 1830s promoting greater democracy for the common man, characterized by increased voter participation and the expansion of suffrage.

The American System

An economic plan proposed by Henry Clay in the early 19th century, promoting infrastructure improvements, a national bank, and protective tariffs to facilitate economic growth and unify the nation.

Second Great Awakening

A religious revival movement in the early 19th century that emphasized personal salvation, emotional worship, and the importance of individual faith, contributing to social reforms.

Market Revolution

A period of rapid economic change in the early 19th century, characterized by advancements in transportation, technology, and the growth of factories, which transformed the American economy and society.

Seneca Falls Convention

A gathering held in 1848 to advocate for women's rights, marking the beginning of the women's suffrage movement in the United States.

Manifest Destiny

The 19th-century belief that American expansion across the continent was both justified and inevitable.

Mexican-American War

A conflict between the United States and Mexico from 1846 to 1848, primarily over territorial disputes following the annexation of Texas, which resulted in significant land gains for the U.S.

Compromise of 1850

A series of laws passed to resolve territorial issues after the Mexican-American War, including the admission of California as a free state and the implementation of the Fugitive Slave Act.

Fugitive Slave Act

A law that required the return of escaped slaves to their owners, part of the Compromise of 1850, which intensified sectional tensions.

Kansas-Nebraska Act

Legislation passed in 1854 that created the territories of Kansas and Nebraska, allowing settlers in those territories to determine through popular sovereignty whether they would allow slavery.

Bleeding Kansas

A series of violent political confrontations in the U.S. between 1854 and 1859, arising from the debate over the legality of slavery in the proposed state of Kansas.

Dred Scott Decision

The 1857 Supreme Court ruling that declared African Americans were not citizens and that Congress could not prohibit slavery in the territories.

Homestead Act

Legislation enacted in 1862 that provided 160 acres of public land to settlers for a small fee, provided they improve the land by building a dwelling and cultivating crops.

Emancipation Proclimation

An executive order issued by President Abraham Lincoln in 1863 that declared the freedom of all enslaved people in the Confederate states.

Reconstruction Acts

A series of laws passed in 1867 that aimed to reorganize the Southern states after the Civil War and enforce the rights of newly freed African Americans.

Transcontinental Railroad

A historic railroad system that connected the eastern United States with the Pacific Coast, completed in 1869, facilitating western expansion and commerce.

Compromise of 1877

An informal agreement that settled the disputed 1876 presidential election, resulting in the withdrawal of federal troops from the South and effectively ending Reconstruction.

Dawes Act

Legislation passed in 1887 aimed at assimilating Native Americans by allotting them individual plots of land and promoting farming.

Populist Party

A political party formed in the 1890s that sought to represent the interests of farmers and laborers, advocating for reforms such as the regulation of railroads, a graduated income tax, and the direct election of senators.

Social Darwinism

A social theory that applied the concept of "survival of the fittest" to human societies, justifying various harmful practices and ideologies

Plessy v. Ferguson

A landmark Supreme Court case from 1896 that upheld racial segregation under the "separate but equal" doctrine, validating laws that enforced racial discrimination.

Open Door Policy

A U.S. diplomatic policy established in 1899 that aimed to ensure equal trade opportunities for all nations in China and to prevent colonial powers from monopolizing Chinese markets.

Platt Ammendment

A provision added to the Cuban Constitution in 1901 that allowed the United States to intervene in Cuban affairs and established Guantanamo Bay as a U.S. naval base.

Roosevelt Corallary

An extension of the Monroe Doctrine articulated by President Theodore Roosevelt in 1904, stating that the United States would intervene in Latin American nations to maintain stability and prevent European intervention.

Progressive Era

A period from the 1890s to the 1920s marked by social activism and political reform in the United States, focusing on addressing issues such as corruption, labor rights, women's suffrage, and government regulation of the economy.

Fourteen Points

A statement of principles for peace used to end World War I, outlined by President Woodrow Wilson in 1918, advocating for self-determination, free trade, and the establishment of the League of Nations.

Neutrality Acts

Legislation passed in the 1930s aimed at preventing the United States from becoming involved in international conflicts by restricting arms sales and financial assistance to belligerent nations.

Social Security Act

A 1935 law that created a system of old-age benefits for workers, unemployment insurance, and aid for dependent mothers and children, aimed at providing economic security.

Lend-Lease Act

1941 act that allowed the U.S. to supply arms and resources to allied nations without direct military involvement in the war.

GI Bill

A law passed in 1944 providing various benefits to returning World War II veterans, including education assistance, low-interest home loans, and unemployment compensation.

Truman Doctrine

A U.S. policy established in 1947 that aimed to contain communism by providing political, military, and economic assistance to countries resisting Soviet influence.

Marshall Plan

A U.S. program initiated in 1948 aimed at providing economic assistance to European countries for recovery after World War II, in order to prevent the spread of communism.

Korean War

A conflict between North and South Korea from 1950 to 1953, where the United States intervened on behalf of South Korea to counter the spread of communism backed by North Korea and China.

McCarthyism

A period in the early 1950s characterized by intense anti-communist suspicion and accusations led by Senator Joseph McCarthy, targeting alleged communists in government and other sectors.

Brown v. Board of Education

a landmark Supreme Court case in 1954 that declared racial segregation in public schools unconstitutional, effectively overturning Plessy v. Ferguson.

Vietnam War

A prolonged conflict from the late 1950s to 1975 involving North Vietnam and its communist allies against South Vietnam and the United States, ultimately leading to the fall of Saigon and the reunification of Vietnam under communist control.

Bay of Pigs

A failed military invasion of Cuba in 1961 by a CIA-backed paramilitary group of Cuban exiles, aiming to overthrow Fidel Castro's regime.

Cuban Missile Crisis

A 13-day confrontation in October 1962 between the United States and the Soviet Union over the presence of missile sites in Cuba, which brought the two superpowers to the brink of nuclear war.

The Great Society

A set of domestic programs launched by President Lyndon B. Johnson in the 1960s aimed at eliminating poverty and racial injustice, including initiatives in education, health care, and civil rights.

Tet Offensive

A major turning point in the Vietnam War; a series of surprise attacks by North Vietnamese and Viet Cong forces on January 30, 1968. Challenged U.S. public support for the war despite being a military failure for the North.

Detente

Aimed to reduce Cold War tensions through Diplomacy and arms control agreements. The period of eased tensions and improved relations between the United States and the Soviet Union during the Cold War, primarily in the late 1960s and 1970s.

Watergate Scandal

A political scandal involving a break-in at the Democratic National Committee headquarters and subsequent cover-up by President Nixon's administration, leading to Nixon's resignation in 1974.

Reaganomics

Economic policies promoted by President Ronald Reagan in the 1980s, focusing on tax cuts, deregulation, and reducing government spending to stimulate economic growth.

Great Recession

The term used to describe the significant decline in economic activity during the late 2000s, marked by a severe downturn in housing, financial sectors, and high unemployment rates.