AP US History Review - Road to Revolution and New Nation

Flashcards reviewing the major events, figures, and concepts related to the American Revolution and the establishment of a new nation, based on lecture notes.

What was the major theme of the AP US History unit covering 1754-1800?

How America was transformed from British colonies into an independent nation with a distinct national identity.

What event in 1754 marked the beginning of the period covered in the lecture?

The French and Indian War.

Why did the British colonists and the French begin to buttheads prior to the French and Indian War?

British colonists were concerned about French encroachment in the Ohio River Valley, while the French felt the same about British encroachment on their territory.

What proposal was made at the congress called for by the British government to address frontier defense?

Benjamin Franklin's Albany Plan of Union.

What was the main goal of the Albany Plan of Union?

To create a more centralized government for the colonies to better coordinate Western defense.

Why was the Albany Plan of Union rejected by the colonies?

The colonies did not want to be taxed to raise troops.

What treaty ended the French and Indian War in 1763?

The Peace of Paris.

What were the major results of the Peace of Paris in 1763 regarding North America?

The French were almost completely ousted from North America, the Louisiana territory given to Spain, and the British more than doubled their land holdings east of the Mississippi River.

What did the colonists do at the end of the French and Indian War that angered the American Indians?

They began pushing westward into the Ohio River Valley.

Who was the Ottawa leader who led raids against encroaching colonists after the French and Indian War?

Pontiac.

What was the main goal of the Royal Proclamation of 1763?

To prevent conflict between colonists and American Indians by forbidding colonists from taking land west of the Appalachian Mountains.

Why did the Royal Proclamation of 1763 frustrate the colonists?

They felt entitled to the land west of the Appalachian Mountains after fighting in the French and Indian War.

How did the British government plan to pay for the debt incurred during the French and Indian War?

By taxing the colonies.

What was the British policy of largely allowing the colonists to manage their own affairs prior to the French and Indian War called?

Salutary Neglect.

What was one of the key effects of salutary neglect?

It gave the colonists a sense that they were managing their own affairs without much involvement from parliament.

What did the British do to enforce trade laws more strictly after the French and Indian War?

Enacted stricter enforcement of the Navigation Acts that already existed.

What was the Quartering Act of 1765?

A law requiring colonists to house and feed imperial troops.

What items were taxed under the Sugar Act?

Coffee, wine, and other luxury items, as well as enforced taxes on molasses.

What items were taxed under the Stamp Act of 1765?

All paper items, such as newspapers, playing cards, and contracts.

What was virtual representation, as argued by British leaders?

The idea that members of Parliament represented all classes of British citizens, not necessarily every locality, including the American colonists.

What groups formed in response to the Stamp Act?

The Sons of Liberty and the Daughters of Liberty.

What was the Stamp Act Congress?

A meeting of 27 delegates from nine colonies in New York to petition the British parliament to repeal the Stamp Act.

What was the central argument of the Stamp Act Congress's petition?

Taxation without representation is tyranny.

What was the Declaratory Act?

A declaration by Parliament that they had the right to pass any law they wanted to in the colonies.

What items were taxed under the Townshend Acts of 1767?

Items imported to the colonies, like paper, glass, and tea.

What was the main tactic used by colonists to protest the Townshend Acts?

Boycotting British goods.

What role did women play in the protests against the Townshend Acts?

They spun their own cloth and brewed their own herbal tea instead of buying imported goods.

What event occurred in 1770 where British soldiers killed colonists?

The Boston Massacre.

What was the Tea Act of 1773?

It gave the British East India Company exclusive rights to buy and ship tea in the colonies.

What event occurred in response to the Tea Act of 1773?

The Boston Tea Party, where colonists dumped tea into the Boston Harbor.

What was the name the colonist gave to the Coercive Acts passed in retaliation to the Boston Tea party?

The Intolerable Acts.

What was the main goal of the First Continental Congress of 1774?

To resist further violations of the colonies' liberties at the hands of Parliament.

What intellectual movement influenced colonial leaders' thoughts about government?

Enlightenment thought.

What are natural rights, according to Enlightenment thought?

Rights endowed to all human beings by God, which a government can never take away.

What is the social contract theory?

The power to govern is in the hands of the people, who willingly give some power to a government capable of protecting their natural rights.

What is the superiority of the republican form of government?

The separation of powers in a government that enabled the various branches to check and balance the power of the others.

What pamphlet, published in 1776, argued for American independence?

Common Sense by Thomas Paine.

Who was tasked with writing the Declaration of Independence?

Thomas Jefferson.

What are the unalienable rights mentioned in the Declaration of Independence?

Life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.

When was the Declaration of Independence adopted?

July 2, 1776, and made public on July 4, 1776.

Who were the loyalists during the American Revolution?

Colonists who did not want to separate from Britain and wanted to remain loyal to the crown.

Who was named as the commander of the Continental Army?

George Washington.

What battle is considered the turning point of the Revolutionary War?

The Battle of Saratoga.

Why was the Battle of Saratoga a turning point in the Revolutionary War?

It convinced the French to ally with the Americans against the British.

What battle led to the British army's surrender?

The Battle of Yorktown in 1781.

What document outlined the first government of the newly formed United States?

The Articles of Confederation.

What were the key features of the government under the Articles of Confederation?

All power was in the legislative body, there was no executive or judicial branch, no national military force, and limited power to tax.

What was the Northwest Ordinance of 1787?

Legislation that provided a plan for unformed territories to be occupied and apply for statehood and abolished slavery in the Northwest Territory.

What event highlighted the weakness of the Articles of Confederation?

Shays' Rebellion.

What was Shays' Rebellion?

An uprising of farmers in Massachusetts led by Daniel Shays due to debt and high taxes.

Why did Shays' Rebellion highlight the weakness of the Articles?

It demonstrated the lack of a national army to quell the rebellion.

What was the original purpose of the Constitutional Convention of 1787?

To revise the Articles of Confederation.

What were the two main factions that formed during the Constitutional Convention?

The Federalists and the Anti-Federalists.

What did the Virginia Plan propose?

Representation in government by population.

What did the New Jersey Plan propose?

Equal representation for each state.

What was the Great Compromise?

The legislative branch would be split into two houses: the House of Representatives (representation by population) and the Senate (equal votes per state).

What was the Three-Fifths Compromise?

For purposes of representation, three-fifths of the enslaved people in a state would be counted.

What were the Federalist Papers?

Essays written by Alexander Hamilton, John Jay, and James Madison to persuade the American public of the merits of the Constitution.

Why did the Anti-Federalists oppose the Constitution?

It lacked a Bill of Rights to protect individual liberties.

What is republican motherhood?

The idea that women could best influence political realities by raising virtuous sons instructed in the principles of liberty.

Who was the first Secretary of the Treasury?

Alexander Hamilton.

What was the Whiskey Rebellion?

A revolt by frontier farmers against Hamilton's tax on whiskey.