APUSH Unit 3 Notes: Independence and the Revolutionary Era (1754–1800)

British subjects

How most English-speaking colonists saw themselves in 1763: loyal members of the British Empire with rights they believed were protected by English constitutional tradition.

Representative government

The principle that political decisions (including taxation) should be made by elected representatives who reflect the people being governed.

Consent to taxation

The constitutional idea that taxes are legitimate only if approved by a representative body of the people being taxed.

Local self-rule

Colonists’ expectation that local legislatures and communities should manage most internal affairs without heavy imperial interference.

French and Indian War (ended 1763)

Conflict after which Britain faced major debt and new territorial responsibilities, leading it to tighten imperial control and seek more colonial revenue.

Proclamation of 1763

British policy limiting settlement west of the Appalachians to reduce conflict with Native Americans; many colonists saw it as blocking land and economic opportunity.

Sugar Act (1764)

Revenue measure paired with stricter customs enforcement to curb smuggling; raised colonial fears of expanded imperial intrusion and enforcement power.

Stamp Act (1765)

Direct tax on printed materials that sparked major resistance by raising the question of whether Parliament could tax colonists who elected no members of Parliament.

Declaratory Act (1766)

Law passed after repealing the Stamp Act asserting Parliament’s authority to legislate for the colonies “in all cases whatsoever.”

Townshend Acts (1767)

Import duties (e.g., on paper, paint, tea) that renewed colonial resistance, including organized nonimportation campaigns.

Tea Act (1773)

Law that lowered tea prices but favored the British East India Company; many colonists opposed the precedent of accepting taxed tea and Parliament’s taxing power.

Coercive (Intolerable) Acts (1774)

Punitive measures against Massachusetts after the Boston Tea Party that helped unify colonists by suggesting Britain could undermine self-government anywhere.

Committees of correspondence

Intercolonial communication networks that spread information and coordinated resistance, making protest more organized and effective.

First Continental Congress (1774)

Intercolonial meeting formed in response to the Intolerable Acts, marking a shift from isolated protests to coordinated colonial cooperation.

Nonimportation (boycotts)

Economic resistance strategy in which colonists refused to buy British goods to pressure Britain and mobilize community participation.

Sons of Liberty

Group that organized protests and sometimes used intimidation or violence to resist British policies and discourage enforcement.

No taxation without representation

Colonial constitutional claim that taxes should be approved by a legislature that represents the taxed, not imposed by a distant body with no elected colonial members.

Virtual representation

British argument that Parliament represented the interests of the entire empire, even for people who did not vote for its members; widely rejected by many colonists.

Parliamentary sovereignty

British belief that Parliament was the supreme lawmaking authority throughout the empire, conflicting with colonial claims about local rights and legislatures.

Lexington and Concord (April 1775)

First major fighting of the Revolution, triggered when British troops moved to seize colonial military supplies and were met by militia.

Second Continental Congress (1775)

Body that coordinated the war effort, created the Continental Army, and chose George Washington as commander.

Thomas Paine’s Common Sense (1776)

Influential pamphlet arguing in plain language against monarchy and for independence, helping shift opinion toward full separation from Britain.

Declaration of Independence (July 4, 1776)

Document that justified separation by asserting government exists to protect unalienable rights and requires consent of the governed, and by listing grievances against Britain.

Saratoga (1777)

Major American victory that boosted Patriot morale and helped secure an open alliance with France.

Alliance with France (1778)

Crucial partnership providing naval and financial support that turned the war into a broader international conflict and increased Britain’s costs.