AP US History: Key Concepts from Periods 2-5

Encomienda

Spanish labor system forcing Native Americans to work for colonists.

Caste System

Racial hierarchy in Spanish America (Europeans on top, Natives/Africans below).

European Colonization

European nations settling and controlling the Americas.

Maize

Corn; major Native American crop that supported population growth.

Columbian Exchange

Transfer of plants, animals, diseases, and people between Old World and New World.

Jamestown (1607)

First permanent English colony in North America.

House of Burgesses

First representative assembly in colonial America (Virginia).

Mayflower Compact

Agreement for self-government by the Pilgrims.

Tobacco

Cash crop that saved Jamestown; boosted plantation economy.

Massachusetts Bay Colony

Puritan colony for religious community.

"City Upon a Hill"

Winthrop's idea: Puritans as a model Christian society.

King Philip's War

Conflict between New England colonists and Native Americans.

Puritans vs. Pilgrims

Puritans wanted to reform the Church; Pilgrims wanted to separate.

Indentured Servants

People who worked for passage to America.

Bacon's Rebellion

Virginia rebellion of poor farmers; led to increased slavery.

Mercantilism

Economic system where colonies exist to benefit the mother country.

Salutary Neglect

Britain ignoring strict laws on colonies, allowing autonomy.

Atlantic Slave Trade

Forced transport of Africans to the Americas.

Middle Passage

Brutal journey enslaved Africans took across the Atlantic.

Stono Rebellion

Slave revolt in South Carolina (1739).

Enlightenment

Movement emphasizing reason, science, and human rights.

First Great Awakening

Religious revival stressing emotion and individual faith.

Jonathan Edwards & George Whitefield

Major preachers of the Great Awakening.

Pueblo Revolt

Native uprising against Spanish rule in New Mexico.

Seven Years' War / French & Indian War

Britain vs. France; Britain wins control of North America.

Pontiac's Rebellion

Native uprising against British control after the war.

Proclamation of 1763

Colonists banned from settling west of Appalachians.

Republicanism & Liberty

Ideas of self-government, civic virtue, individual rights.

Stamp Act

Tax on printed goods; caused colonial protests.

"No Taxation Without Representation"

Colonists' belief they shouldn't be taxed without political voice.

Boston Massacre

British soldiers kill colonists during protest.

Tea Act / Boston Tea Party

Tax on tea → colonists dump tea in harbor.

First Continental Congress

Colonies meet to respond to British policies.

Second Continental Congress

Managed the Revolutionary War; created Declaration of Independence.

Common Sense

Paine's pamphlet urging independence.

Olive Branch Petition

Last attempt for peace with Britain.

Declaration of Independence

Statement of colonial independence and natural rights.

Patriots / Loyalists / Neutral

For independence / for Britain / undecided.

Republican Motherhood

Idea that women should raise virtuous citizens.

Articles of Confederation

First US government; weak central power.

Virginia & New Jersey Plans

Big state vs small state plans for Congress.

Federalism

Power shared between states and national government.

Three-Fifths Compromise

Counted enslaved people as 3/5 for representation.

Checks and Balances

System preventing any branch from dominating.

Federalists & Anti-Federalists

For Constitution vs. against strong central gov.

Whiskey Rebellion

Farmers protest whiskey tax; Washington crushes it.

Washington's Farewell Address

Warned against parties + foreign alliances.

Alien & Sedition Acts

Limited speech and immigration under Adams.

Election of 1800

Peaceful transfer of power; Jefferson wins.

Louisiana Purchase

US buys land from France, doubling size.

Federalists & Republicans

Two parties: strong gov vs. state power.

Marbury v. Madison

Established judicial review.

Erie Canal

Connected Great Lakes to Atlantic; boosted trade.

Cotton Kingdom / Cotton Gin

Growth of cotton + invention that expanded slavery.

American System

Clay's plan: tariffs, roads, national bank.

Lowell Mills / Factory Women

Early factory system using young women workers.

Nativism

Anti-immigrant sentiment.

Cult of Domesticity

Women's role as homemakers and caregivers.

War of 1812

US vs Britain; boosted US nationalism.

Era of Good Feelings

Time of one-party rule and unity.

Missouri Compromise

Missouri slave, Maine free; line for future slavery.

Monroe Doctrine

Europe must stay out of the Americas.

Corrupt Bargain

1824 election deal between Adams and Clay.

Jacksonian Democracy

Expanded democracy for white men; strong presidency.

White Male Suffrage

More white men gained the vote.

Indian Removal Act

Forced Native relocation west.

Spoils System

Giving government jobs to supporters.

Nullification Crisis

SC claims states can cancel federal laws.

Worcester v. Georgia

Court said Natives have rights; ignored by Jackson.

Second Bank of the U.S.

National bank Jackson opposed.

Trail of Tears

Forced Cherokee removal causing thousands of deaths.

Whigs vs Democrats

Anti-Jackson party vs Jackson's party.

Utopian Communities

Ideal societies like Shakers and Brook Farm.

American Colonization Society

Wanted free Blacks sent to Africa.

Abolitionists

People wanting to end slavery.

William Lloyd Garrison

Radical abolitionist, wrote The Liberator.

Frederick Douglass

Former enslaved man, powerful speaker and writer.

Slave Rebellions

Major uprisings by Denmark Vesey, Nat Turner.

Manifest Destiny

Belief US should expand west.

Mexican-American War

US wins land from Mexico.

Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo

Ends war; US gains Southwest.

Seneca Falls Convention

First women's rights convention.

California Gold Rush

Mass migration for gold in 1849.

Wilmot Proviso

Proposed to ban slavery in Mexican Cession (failed).

Underground Railroad

Network helping enslaved people escape.

Harriet Tubman

Key conductor of the Underground Railroad.

Uncle Tom's Cabin

Antislavery novel by Stowe.

Compromise of 1850

California free; strict Fugitive Slave Act.

Fugitive Slave Act

Required return of escaped slaves.

Popular Sovereignty

States vote on slavery.

Kansas-Nebraska Act

Allowed pop. sovereignty; led to conflict.

Bleeding Kansas

Violent clashes over slavery.

Collapse of Whigs → Republican Party

New party formed opposing slavery's spread.

Republicans vs Democrats

Republicans anti-slavery expansion; Democrats split.

Dred Scott v. Sanford

Supreme Court says Blacks aren't citizens; Congress can't ban slavery.

Lincoln-Douglas Debates

Debates over slavery and expansion.

Election of 1860

Lincoln wins; South secedes.

Free Soil Ideology

Opposed spread of slavery to new territories.

Emancipation Proclamation

Freed slaves in Confederacy.

Gettysburg Address

Lincoln's speech redefining war purpose.