Period 3: 1754-1800 - Imperial Wars and Colonial Protest, 1754-1774

A set of Question-and-Answer style flashcards covering the key events, acts, debates, and ideas from Imperial Wars and Colonial Protest (1754-1774) and related Enlightenment influences, as described in the notes.

What was the Albany Plan of Union and why did it fail to take effect?

A plan for an intercolonial government and shared taxation for common defense, developed by Benjamin Franklin; it failed because colonial governments and assemblies were jealous of losing taxation power.

What were the immediate consequences of the Seven Years' War for Britain and the American colonies?

Britain gained unchallenged supremacy in North America and later tightened control and taxation on the colonies, while colonists believed they could defend themselves; tensions between Britain and colonies increased.

Who was Pontiac and what was Pontiac's Rebellion?

A prominent American Indian leader who formed an alliance in the Ohio Valley to challenge British expansion; attacked forts and settlements; the British responded by sending regular troops to quell the uprising.

What did the Proclamation of 1763 do and how did colonists react?

Prohibited colonial settlement west of the Appalachian Mountains to stabilize the frontier; colonists largely ignored it and moved westward, fueling resentment toward British policy.

What was the Sugar Act (1764) and its purpose?

Revenue-raising duties on foreign sugar and certain luxuries; aimed to enforce the Navigation Acts and reduce smuggling; smugglers were to be tried in admiralty courts.

What did the Quartering Act (1765) require of the colonies?

Colonists had to provide food and housing for British soldiers stationed in the colonies.

What was the Stamp Act (1765) and why did it anger colonists?

A direct tax on printed materials in the colonies; led to widespread protest as it taxed everyday items and sparked the cry of taxation without representation.

What was the Stamp Act Congress (1765)?

A gathering of representatives from nine colonies in New York to organize colonial opposition and declare that only elected colonial assemblies could approve taxes.

Who were the Sons and Daughters of Liberty and what did they do?

Secret societies that organized protests against taxes, sometimes destroying revenue stamps and tar-and-feathering revenue officials.

What was the Declaratory Act (1766)?

Parliament asserted its right to tax and legislate for the colonies 'in all cases whatsoever,' signaling ongoing imperial authority despite repealing the Stamp Act.

What were the Townshend Acts (1767) and their main provisions?

Duties on tea, glass, and paper to raise revenue for crown officials; allowed writs of assistance to search for smugglers; suspended New York’s assembly.

What are writs of assistance?

General search warrants that allowed officials to search any location for smuggled goods without specific warrants.

What was the Massachusetts Circular Letter (1768) and its significance?

A letter urging colonies to petition Parliament to repeal the Townshend Acts; led to unrest, increased British troop presence, and heightened colonial unity.

What happened during the Boston Massacre (1770)?

British troops fired on a crowd in Boston, killing five colonists; John Adams defended the soldiers in court; event inflamed anti-British sentiment.

What were the Committees of Correspondence (1772) and their purpose?

Organized by Samuel Adams to exchange letters about suspicious British activities and coordinate colonial resistance.

What was the Gaspee affair (1772)?

Colonists burned the Gaspee, a British customs schooner, in Rhode Island; a British inquiry followed to bring those responsible to trial.

What was the Boston Tea Party (1773) and why did it occur?

Colonists, opposed to Parliament's right to tax the colonies, dumped 342 chests of East India Company tea into Boston Harbor rather than buy it.

What were the Coercive Acts (Intolerable Acts) of 1774?

A punitive package: Port Act (shut Boston Harbor), Massachusetts Government Act (shifted power to the royal governor), Administration of Justice Act (colonial officials tried in Britain), and an expanded Quartering Act.

What was the Quebec Act (1774) and why did colonists resent it?

Organized Canadian lands gained from France, established Catholicism as Quebec’s official religion, and extended boundaries to the Ohio River, undermining colonial claims and self-government.

How did Enlightenment ideas influence the American colonies?

Philosophies of Deism and Rationalism, drawing on John Locke and Rousseau, shaped ideas about liberty, government, and the rights of individuals leading up to the Revolution.