Conflict and American Independence

APUSH Period 3 review based on Princeton review book.

Scots-Irish

Protestant colonial settlers who emigrated from Ireland but were ethnically Scottish. They settled mainly in the Appalachians, from Pennsylvania to Georgia.

Pontiac's Rebellion (or Pontiac's Uprising)

Ottawa war chief Pontiac rallied a group of tribes in the Ohio Valley and attacked colonial outposts as a response to the English raising the price of goods and ceasing rent payments on western forts.

Paxton Boys

Group of Scots-Irish frontiersmen in Pennsylvania who murdered several members of the Susquehannock tribe in response to Pontiac's Rebellion.

Proclamation of 1763

Forbade settlement west of the rivers running through the Appalachians, agitating colonial settlers who regarded it as unwarranted British interference in colonial affairs.

Sugar Act of 1764

Established new duties and provisions aimed at deterring molasses smugglers, angering colonists due to stricter enforcement and trials in vice-admiralty courts.

Currency Act

Forbade the colonies to issue paper money, contributing to discontent alongside the Sugar Act and Proclamation of 1763.

Stamp Act of 1765

Tax specifically aimed at raising revenue, covering all legal documents and licenses, affecting a broad base, particularly lawyers, and goods produced within the colonies.

The Rights of the British Colonies Asserted and Proved

Pamphlet by James Otis that laid out the colonists' argument against the Stamp Act taxes and became a bestseller, arguing for either representation in Parliament or a greater degree of self-government for the colonies

Virtual Representation

Members of Parliament represented all British subjects regardless of who elected them

Virginia Stamp Act Resolves

Protested the Stamp Act tax and asserted the colonists' right to a large measure of self-government.

Declaratory Act

Asserted the British government's right to tax and legislate in all cases anywhere in the colonies.

Townshend Acts

Taxed goods imported directly from Britain, set aside tax for payment of tax collectors, created more vice-admiralty courts, suspended the New York legislature, and instituted writs of assistance.

Nonconsumption and Nonimportation

Boycotts of British goods, such as British linen and tea.

Massachusetts Circular Letter

Asked that all other assemblies protest the new measures in unison.

Albany Plan of Union

Provided for an intercolonial government and a system for collecting taxes for the colonies' defense.

French and Indian War

Name colonists called the war between the British and the French who had Native American allies.

Quartering Act of 1765

Required colonists to be responsible for the cost of feeding and housing British troops.

Boston Massacre

British soldiers fired on a crowd, killing five.

Committees of Correspondence

Trade ideas and inform one another of the political mood.

Boston Tea Party

Dumped tea into the Boston Harbor.

Coercive Acts (Intolerable Acts)

Closed Boston Harbor to all but essential trade, tightened English control over the Massachusetts government and courts, and put British soldiers in civilian homes.

Quebec Act

Granted greater liberties to Catholics and extended the boundaries of the Quebec Territory, angering Protestant colonists and impeding westward expansion.

First Continental Congress

A meeting of delegates from all colonies except Georgia to discuss grievances and formulate a colonial position on the relationship between the royal government and colonial governments.

Continental Association

Committees set up by towns to enforce the boycott on British goods, which later became de facto governments.

Minutemen

Colonial militia who could be ready to fight on a minute's notice.

Loyalists

Those remaining loyal to the Crown, including government officials, devout Anglicans, merchants dependent on trade with England, and some religious and ethnic minorities.

Olive Branch Petition

A petition adopted by the Continental Congress on July 5, 1775, as a last-ditch attempt to avoid armed conflict with Britain.

Common Sense

A pamphlet published by Thomas Paine in January 1776, advocating colonial independence and republicanism over monarchy.

Battle of Saratoga

A decisive victory for American troops against British troops, leading to a formal alliance with the French government.

Battle of Yorktown

The symbolic end to the American Revolution, where General Cornwallis surrendered to George Washington's troops and the French navy.

Treaty of Paris

Signed at the end of 1783, granting the United States independence and generous territorial rights.

Articles of Confederation

The first national constitution, sent to the colonies for ratification in 1777, intentionally creating a weak central government.

Protective Tariff

Would impose duties on imported goods; the additional cost would be added to the selling price, thereby raising the cost of foreign products.

The Virginia Plan

Called to create a three-tiered federal government with an executive branch led by a president, a legislative branch composed of a bicameral (two house) Congress, and a judicial branch composed of a Supreme Court.

Electoral College

A body of prominent political leaders that represented the popular vote of each state. The electoral count is the sum of their senators (two) and their representatives (determined by state population).

Great Compromise (Connecticut Compromise)

Blended the Virginia Plan and the New Jersey plan to have a bicameral legislature, and the Constitution. This bicameral legislature included a lower house (the House of Representatives) elected by the people and the upper house (the Senate) elected by the state legislatures.

Three-Fifths Compromise

Each enslaved person counted as three-fifths of a person, for the populations of southern states for proportional representation in Congress, even though those enslaved people would not be citizens

Anti-Federalists

Opponents of the Constitution, portrayed the federal government under the Constitution as an all-powerful beast; tended to come from the backcountry and were particularly appalled by the absence of a bill of rights.

First Amendment

Freedom of religion, speech, press, assembly, and petition.

Second Amendment

Right to bear arms in order to maintain a well-regulated militia.

Fourth Amendment

Freedom from unreasonable search and seizure.

Fifth Amendment

Right to due process of law, freedom from self-incrimination, double jeopardy (being tried twice for the same crime).

Sixth Amendment

Rights of accused persons; for example, the right to a speedy and public trial.

Eighth Amendment

Freedom from excessive bail and from cruel and unusual punishment.

Ninth Amendment

Rights not listed are kept by the people.

Tenth Amendment:

Powers not listed are kept by the states or the people.

Shays' Rebellion

Revealed lingering resentment on the part of the backcountry farmers toward the coastal elite. Was one of the leading reasons for the Constitutional Convention, because the Articles of Confederation had created a national government that was essentially powerless to stop such rebellions.

Northwest Ordinance of 1787

Contained a bill of rights guaranteeing trial by jury, freedom of religion, and freedom from excessive punishment. Abolished slavery in the Northwest territories and set specific regulations concerning the conditions under which territories could apply for statehood. Claimed Native American land without their consent.

An Economic Interpretation of the Constitution of the United States by Charles Beard

Argued that the Constitution was written primarily to cater to the financial interests of the Founding Fathers.

The New Jersey Plan

Called for modifications, and it also called for equal representation from each state.

The Virginia Plan (James Madison)

Called for an entirely new government based on the principle of checks and balances and for the number of representatives for each state to be based upon the population of the state, giving some states an advantage.

The Federalist Papers

Anonymously authored by James Madison, Alexander Hamilton, and John Jay, and argued in favor of the Constitution. Were critical in swaying opinion in New York.

Cabinet

The heads of the various executive departments, which have grown in number over the years, and it functions as the president's chief group of advisors.

Strict Constructionists

Led by Jefferson and James Madison. Argued that the Constitution allowed Congress only those powers specifically granted to it or those necessary and proper to the execution of its enumerated powers.

Alexander Hamilton

Framing the broad (loose) constructionist position, argued that the creation of a bank was an implied power of the government because the government already had explicit power to coin money, borrow money, and collect taxes.

Hamilton's financial plan

Called for the federal government to assume the states' debts and to repay those debts by giving the debt holders land on the western frontier.

Thomas Jefferson (French Revolution)

Wanted to support the revolution and its republican ideals.

Alexander Hamilton (French Revolution)

Had aristocratic leanings and so disliked the revolutionaries, who had overthrown the French aristocracy.

The Neutrality Proclamation

Declared the U.S. intention to remain friendly and impartial toward belligerent powers during the French-English conflict.

Federalists

Those favoring a strong federal government

Democratic-Republicans

The followers of Jefferson

The Whiskey Rebellion

Began in western Pennsylvania when farmers resisted an excise tax on whiskey, which Hamilton imposed to raise revenue to defray the debt incurred by the Revolution.

Executive privilege

The right of the president to withhold information when doing so would protect national security (e.g., in the case of diplomatic files and military secrets).

The Treaty of San Lorenzo/Pinckney's Treaty

ratified by the U.S. Senate in 1796, included use of the Mississippi River, duty-free access to world markets, and the removal of any remaining Spanish forts on American soil. Spain also promised to try to prevent attacks on Western settlers from Native Americans.

Washington's Farewell Address

Warned future presidents to steer clear of permanent alliances with any portion of the foreign world. Also warned against sectional divisions, as well as political party conflict.

Republican Motherhood

The idea that women should be educated to raise virtuous male citizens in the new republic.

Private Virtue

An important quality for women, who were given the task of inspiring and teaching men to be good citizens through romance and motherhood.

XYZ Affair

An incident where French officials demanded a bribe from American diplomats before negotiations could begin, leading to anti-French sentiment in the U.S.

Alien and Sedition Acts

Laws passed by the Adams administration that allowed the government to expel foreigners and jail newspaper editors for 'scandalous and malicious writing.'

Virginia and Kentucky Resolutions

Resolutions drafted by Jefferson and Madison arguing that states had the right to judge the constitutionality of federal laws (nullification), in response to the Alien and Sedition Acts.

Nullification

The concept argued in the Virginia and Kentucky Resolutions that states could declare federal laws void if they deemed them unconstitutional.