History Units 1-3

Social Contract

The idea that people agree to give up some individual freedoms to a government in exchange for protection of their remaining rights and order in society.​

State of Nature

A hypothetical condition with no government or laws where people have complete freedom but no protection, often used to explain why social contracts are necessary.​

Charter

A formal written document from a ruler or government that grants rights, land, or authority to a person or group, such as permission to start a colony.​

Implicit Consent

Unspoken agreement to follow rules or a government by living in a society and accepting its benefits.​

Explicit Consent

Clear, direct agreement to be governed, often given through written contracts, oaths, or formal votes.​

Christopher Columbus

An Italian sailor who sailed for Spain and, in 1492, reached the Americas while looking for a new trade route to Asia.​

Columbian Exchange

The widespread transfer of plants, animals, people, diseases, and ideas between the Eastern and Western Hemispheres after 1492.​

Old World Europe, Africa, and Asia, which sent diseases, livestock, and new crops to the Americas during the Columbian Exchange.​

New World

The Americas, which provided crops like corn, potatoes, and tomatoes to Europe, Africa, and Asia during the Columbian Exchange.​

Mercantilism

An economic system where colonies exist to benefit the mother country by supplying raw materials and buying finished goods.​

Mother Country

The European nation that controls colonies and uses them to increase its wealth and power through trade.​

Colony

A settlement or territory controlled by a distant mother country, often used for resources and markets.​

Big Three Colonizers

Spain, France, and England, the main European powers that established colonies in the Americas.​

Roanoke Colony

The first English attempt at a colony in North America, begun in the 1580s in present‑day North Carolina that mysteriously disappeared.​

Jamestown Colony

The first permanent English settlement in North America, founded in Virginia in 1607, which survived by growing tobacco for profit.​

Plymouth Colony

A New England colony founded in 1620 by English Separatist Pilgrims seeking religious freedom.​

Massachusetts Bay Colony

A larger Puritan colony founded in 1629 near present‑day Boston, created as a “city upon a hill” based on strict religious beliefs.​

New England Colonies

The northern colonial region (including Massachusetts, Connecticut, Rhode Island, New Hampshire) with cold climate, rocky soil, small farms, shipbuilding, trade, and a focus on religion and town life.​

Middle Colonies

The mid‑Atlantic colonial region (including New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware) known for fertile soil, mixed farming, trade, and more religious and ethnic diversity.​

Southern Colonies

The southernmost colonial region (including Maryland, Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia) with warm climate, long growing seasons, plantation agriculture, and heavy use of enslaved labor.​

Religious Motives in Colonies

Reasons for founding colonies based on seeking religious freedom or creating religious “ideal” communities, such as Plymouth and Massachusetts Bay.​

Economic Motives in Colonies

Reasons for founding colonies to make money through trade, resources, and cash crops, such as Jamestown’s tobacco economy.