American Revolution & Founding Documents Flashcards

Vocabulary flashcards covering primary source documents and key historical events of the American Revolution from 1763 to 1783.

James Otis

The Massachusetts legislature member who, on June 8, moved to send a circular inviting all colonies to send delegates to a congress in New York.

Stamp Act Congress

A meeting held in New York on October 19, 1765, where delegates from nine colonies assembled to agree upon a Declaration of Rights and petition the King and Parliament.

Declaration of Rights of the Stamp Act Congress

A 1765 document affirming allegiance to the British Crown while asserting that colonists possessed all rights of natural-born subjects, including freedom from taxation without their consent.

Thomas Whately

A British Treasury official who published 'The Regulations Lately Made Concerning the Colonies' in 1765 to justify the Stamp Act.

Common Sense

A 1776 pamphlet written by Thomas Paine arguing that reconciliation with Great Britain was a fallacious dream and calling for immediate continental independence.

THE LAW IS KING

A principle stated by Thomas Paine in Common Sense, contrasting absolute governments where the King is law with free countries where the law ought to be ruler.

Declaration of Independence

A document unanimously adopted on July 4, 1776, by the thirteen united States of America to dissolve political ties with Great Britain and declare self-governance.

Unalienable Rights

Rights endowed to all men by their Creator, as stated in the Declaration of Independence, which include Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness.

Lord Dunmore's Proclamation

A proclamation offering freedom to enslaved individuals who agreed to fight for the British cause during the War of Independence.

Rhode Island Black Regiment

A military regiment formed in 1778 that promised freedom to enslaved persons who enlisted in the war effort.

Battle of Saratoga

A pivotal Revolutionary War engagement occurring on October 17, 1777, which subsequently led to the 1778 Treaty of Amity and Commerce.

Capture of Charleston

The May 1780 event where British General Clinton captured Charleston, South Carolina, marking arguably the lowest point in the American struggle for independence.

Battle of Cowpens

A military battle in January 1781 that resulted in a crushing defeat during the Southern campaign of the Revolutionary War.

Battle of Yorktown

The final major battle of the American Revolutionary War, which concluded on October 19, 1781.