Period 3 (1754-1800) Key Concepts and Terms

Vocabulary flashcards based on the Period 3 (1754-1800) AP US History framework covering British policies, colonial unrest, philosophy, the Revolutionary War, constitutional developments, early presidency disputes, and foreign policy.

Patrick Henry

A prominent Virginia political leader and orator who voiced strong opposition to British taxation of the colonies.

Stamp Act Congress

A meeting held in 1765 in New York by colonial representatives to protest the Stamp Act, maintaining that only colonial assemblies had the authority to tax the colonies.

Sons and Daughters of Liberty

Secret colonial political organizations formed to oppose British taxation policies and enforce non-importation agreements.

Letters from a Pennsylvania Farmer

A series of widely read essays written by John Dickinson arguing against parliamentary taxation of the colonies without representation.

Massachusetts Circular Letter

A statement written by Samuel Adams and James Otis in 1768 urging colonial legislatures to petition Parliament against the Townshend Acts.

Committees of Correspondence

Intercolonial shadow governments organized to facilitate communication and coordinate colonial resistance against British authority.

Intolerable Acts

A series of punitive laws passed by the British Parliament in 1774, known in Britain as the Coercive Acts, enacted to punish Massachusetts after the Boston Tea Party.

Enlightenment

An 18th-century intellectual movement emphasizing reason, science, and individual rights, which heavily influenced American political thought.

Deism

An Enlightenment-era religious philosophy proposing that a rational God created the universe according to natural laws but does not intervene directly in human affairs.

John Locke

An English philosopher whose writings on natural rights (life, liberty, property) and the social contract served as a foundational basis for the Declaration of Independence.

Thomas Paine, Common Sense

A highly influential 1776 pamphlet written by Thomas Paine arguing for complete independence from Great Britain and the establishment of a democratic republic.

Patriots and Loyalists (Tories)

Patriots supported American independence from Great Britain, while Loyalists (Tories) remained loyal to the British Crown during the American Revolution.

Shays' Rebellion

A 1786–1787 armed uprising of western Massachusetts farmers protesting state tax collection and debt collection, which exposed the weaknesses of the Articles of Confederation.

Judiciary Act (1789)

An act passed by Congress establishing the structure of the federal court system, creating lower federal district and circuit courts under the Supreme Court.

Whiskey Rebellion

A 1794 armed protest by farmers in western Pennsylvania against a federal excise tax on whiskey, which President Washington suppressed with a federalized militia.

Revolution of 1800

The peaceful election transfer of political control from the Federalist Party to Thomas Jefferson's Democratic-Republicans.

Northwest Ordinance of 1787

Legislation establishing a structured process for admitting new states from the Northwest Territory, prohibiting slavery, and setting aside land for public education.

salutary neglect

The informal 17th- and 18th-century British policy of lenient enforcement of parliamentary trade laws in the American colonies.

Sugar Act (1764)

British law placing duties on imported foreign sugar and luxury goods entering the colonies to raise revenue for the crown.

Quartering Act (1765)

British law requiring American colonists to provide food and housing for British soldiers stationed in the colonies.

Stamp Act (1765)

The first direct tax levied by Parliament on American colonists, requiring revenue stamps on printed paper products.

Declaratory Act (1766)

Act passed concurrently with the repeal of the Stamp Act, affirming Parliament's absolute authority to bind and legislate for the colonies in all cases whatsoever.

Townshend Acts (1767)

Parliamentary revenue acts placing duties on colonial imports of glass, lead, paint, paper, and tea.

Writs of Assistance

General search warrants issued to British customs officials allowing them to inspect colonial premises and vessels for smuggled goods.

Quebec Act (1774)

British law extending Quebec's boundary into the Ohio Valley, establishing Roman Catholicism, and maintaining non-representative administration in the territory.

Battle of Saratoga

A major 1777 American military victory in New York that proved to be the turning point of the Revolutionary War by securing a formal alliance with France.

Articles of Confederation

The first written constitution of the United States, establishing a weak national government composed of a unicameral legislature without an executive or judicial branch.

Connecticut Plan; Great Compromise

The Constitutional Convention agreement creating a bicameral Congress with equal representation in the Senate and proportional representation in the House of Representatives.

Three-Fifths Compromise

An agreement at the Constitutional Convention counting three-fifths of the enslaved population for representation in Congress and taxation.

Pontiac's Rebellion

A 1763 Native American uprising against British expansion into the Ohio River region following the French and Indian War.

Proclamation of 1763

A British royal decree barring colonial settlement west of the Appalachian Mountains to reduce conflict with Native Americans.

Albany Plan of Union (1754)

Benjamin Franklin's proposal during the Albany Congress calling for a centralized colonial union for common defense, which was rejected by colonial assemblies.

First Continental Congress (1774)

A assembly of delegates from twelve colonies convened in Philadelphia to coordinate response measures against the Intolerable Acts.

Second Continental Congress (1775)

The governing assembly of American colonies during the Revolutionary War that established the Continental Army, issued paper money, and adopted the Declaration of Independence.

Olive Branch Petition

A final appeal adopted by the Second Continental Congress in July 1775 seeking peaceful reconciliation with King George III, which was rejected.

The Federalist Papers

A series of 85 essays written by Alexander Hamilton, James Madison, and John Jay under the pseudonym Publius promoting the ratification of the United States Constitution.

Alien and Sedition Acts

1798 laws passed by the Federalist-controlled Congress increasing citizenship residency requirements and criminalizing public criticism of the government.

Kentucky and Virginia Resolutions

Resolutions written secretly by Thomas Jefferson and James Madison asserting that states could nullify unconstitutional federal laws such as the Alien and Sedition Acts.

Proclamation of Neutrality (1793)

An official declaration issued by President Washington announcing American neutrality in the conflict between Revolutionary France and Great Britain.

Jay Treaty (1794)

An agreement negotiated by John Jay with Great Britain securing British evacuation of Western forts while leaving the issue of impressment unresolved.

Pinckney Treaty (1795)

A treaty negotiated with Spain defining the Florida boundary and securing American navigation rights on the Mississippi River along with the right of deposit at New Orleans.

XYZ Affair

A 1797 diplomatic incident in which French representatives demanded bribes from American diplomats, resulting in an undeclared naval conflict known as the Quasi-War.