APUSH Ch. 7 + 8 Flashcards

I. Identify and state the historical significance of the following:

1. Ethan Allen 

- The leader of the Green Mountain Boys. With Benedict Arnold, he conquered the British Fort Ticonderoga and Crown Point.

2. William Howe 

- A British general who commanded Bunker Hill during the Battle of Bunker Hill. He was known for forsaking his army’s winter campaign for intimacy with the wife of one of his subordinates, a scandal that the Americans would ridicule him for. 

3. Nathanael Greene 

- The “Fighting Quaker” of Carolina, who was known for his strategy of fleeing from British general Cornwallis’ forces in order to tire them out. He eventually was able to clear most of Georgia and North Carolina of British troops via this strategy. 

4. Richard Montgomery 

- An Irishman and former general of the British Army who defected to the Revolutionary Army. During the northward campaign in Canada, he was able to take Montreal but died in the assault on Quebec. 

5. Benedict Arnold

- A general who fought with Ethan Allen at Ticonderoga and Crown Point. He would later go on to assist Richard Montgomery during the assault on Quebec, but was made to retreat after resistance from the French-Canadians. Later he would attempt to betray the Americans by plotting to sell out West Point to the British, but his plot was quickly found out and he retreated to the British.

6. John Burgoyne

- A British general/actor-playwright tasked with invading the Hudson River Valley from Lake Champlain. Left to fight on his own by General Howe, he would surrender his entire army at Saratoga to American general Horatio Gates. 

7. Charles Cornwallis

- A British general known for his defeat against Nathanael Greene, and surrender at Yorktown at the hands of General Washington, and French leaders Admiral de Grasse and Comte de Rochambeau. 

8. Thomas Paine 

- A radical propagandist for American independence. He emigrated to America in 1774 with the help of Benjamin Franklin, and wrote the book Common Sense, where he argued that separation from England was the only logical solution to the colonists’ problems. 

9. George Rogers Clark

- A bold American frontiersman known for conquering Illinois forts Kaskaskia, Cahokia, and Vincennes from the British with just 175 men by floating down the Ohio River. His admirers hold that his conquering of these forts were what forced the British to surrender the entire north Ohio River region to the U.S. during post-war peace talks in Paris.

10. Richard Henry Lee

- A statesman of Virginia known for his stance that “these United Colonies are,

and of right ought to be, free and independent states.” His motion was passed on July 2, and its ideas would be adopted into the Declaration of Independence written by Thomas Jefferson. 

11. John Paul Jones

- The most famous Navy officer of the Revolutionary War. He played a key role in destroying British merchant ships.

12. Admiral de Grasse

- A French navy officer who assisted George Washington in the assault on Yorktown. His forces blockaded the British fleet from retreat at Yorktown while George Washington and Comte de Rochambeau led the land assault. 

13. Comte de Rochambeau

- The leader of the 6000 French troops who would assist the Revolutionary Army. He would march on Yorktown with George Washington’s troops, playing a key role via his contribution of about half of the regular troops in the Yorktown assault army of nearly 16000 men. 

14. Benjamin Franklin

- A Founding Father of the United States. A key contributor to the budding United States, he would negotiate the war treaty with France from 1776 until 1785. 

II. Define and state the historical significance of the following:

15. Mercenaries

- Soldiers-for-hire. The British Army would employ the aid of mercenaries from Germany, but this would be a controversial move as most mercenaries were more interested in money than their duty to King George III, and deserted to remain in America as citizens. 

16. natural rights

- The rights that are given to every citizen (e.g. life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness). Thomas Jefferson would write about these natural rights in the Declaration of Independence, arguing that King George III had grossly violated the natural rights of the colonists. 

17. Privateers 

- Privately owned ships, or legal pirates. These privateers were authorized by Congress during the Revolutionary War to prey on the supply ships of the British, and sailed out, responding to the call of booty and patriotism.

III. Describe and state the historical significance of the following (as described in this chapter):

18. Second Continental Congress

- A meeting of representatives from all 13 American colonies. During this meeting, George Washington would be appointed the leader of the Revolutionary Army.

19. Common Sense

- A book written by colonist Thomas Paine. Its simple language reached many Americans and convinced them to rally against the British throne, and can be said to have been a draft not just for American independence, but for American foreign policy as well. 

20. Olive Branch Petition

- A petition created by the Continental Congress both as a showing of American loyalty to Britain and as a request to King George III to stop hostilities. It was quickly shot down by King George III and he would go on to fund German mercenaries to crush the colonies into total submission.

21. Hessians

- German mercenaries. Mostly known for deserting their posts to stay in America as a result of low loyalty to their employer, King George III. 

22. Declaration of Independence

- A formal declaration of American independence created by Thomas Jefferson.  The Declarationallowed Americans to appeal for foreign aid and served as an inspiration for later revolutionary movements worldwide, such as the French Revolution.

23. Loyalists/Tories

- American colonists who opposed the Revolution and maintained their loyalty to King George III.

24. Patriots/Whigs

- Supporters of the American Revolution.

25. Treaty of Paris of 1783

- The treaty that would give the Americans full independence from Britain along with secure many territories for the new United States, stretching majestically to the Mississippi on the

west, to the Great Lakes on the north, and to Spanish Florida on the south.

I. Identify and state the historical significance of the following:

1. Patrick Henry

- A young Virgnia statesman famous for his outcry toward the Virginia Assembly: “Give me liberty or give me death!”. He was known for championing states’ rights, but did not attend the Constitutional Convention. 

2. Daniel Shays

- A veteran of the Revolution who led an uprising of other veterans turned farmers demanding that the state issue paper money, reduce tax, and suspend property takeovers. This uprising of his, “Shays’ Rebellion”, would lead to the Articles of Confederation being scrapped and the Constitution being written at the Constitutional Convention.

3. Alexander Hamilton

- A New Yorker famous for arranging the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia. He preached a strong central government to the point of having a (futile) 5 hour speech about it. 

4. James Madison

- One of the writers of The Federalist Papers alongside John Jay and Alexander Hamilton. He also stood for anti-slavery, refusing to punish one of his slaves for trying to escape, citing that the slave was simply coveting the freedom that white colonists preached about so much. 

II. Define and state the historical significance of the following:

5. Primogeniture

- A law that states that only the eldest son of a family was eligible to inherit the land. Led to many non-eldest sons of rich merchant families having to find other sources of income.

6. checks and balances

- A part of democratic government that states that each branch of government has ways to control and limit the power of the other branches of government. For example, the President can veto a bill passed by the legislative branch. 

7. Sovereignty

- The power of an organization (e.g. a state/colony) to govern itself and whatever is within it. Anti-Federalists argued for state sovereignty in papers like Brutus 1. 

8. civic virtue

- The notion that democracy depended on the unselfish commitment of each citizen to the public good. Federalists would cite this as an argument against state sovereignty, saying that it was insufficient in the order of managing self-interest and greed. 

9. republican motherhood

- An ideal of family organization and female behavior after the American Revolution that stressed the role of women in guiding family members toward republican virtue.

10. states’ rights

- The powers entrusted to each state in a republican government. Some major rights of the states include the power to enforce gun control, abortion, or same-sex marriage. 

11. popular sovereignty

- The democratic idea that the leaders of a government are to serve the people and not themselves, as the people are the ones who elect the leaders and give them the power to govern. 

12. civil law

- Body of written law enacted through legislative statutes or constitutional provisions. In countries where civil law prevails, judges must apply the statutes precisely as written. 

13. common law

- : Laws that originate from court rulings and customs, as opposed to legislative statutes. The United States Constitution grew out of the Anglo-American common law tradition and thus provided only a general organizational framework for the new federal government

III. Describe and state the historical significance of the following (as described in this

chapter):

14. Articles of Confederation

- The first constitution of the US. It created a weak central government giving all the power to the states, and the government was not able to do such things like tax or coin money. 

15. Northwest Ordinance

- Related to the governing of the Old Northwest. Dealt with the problem of how a nation should deal with its colonies. 

16. Shays’ Rebellion

-Rebellion in western Massachusetts of farmed and rev war vets. Led to the Articles of Confederation being changed to the Constitution which has a strong central government. 

17. Virginia Plan

- A plan for the legislative branch that stated that representation should be based on population in both houses of a bicameral Congress.

18. New Jersey Plan

- A plan for the legislative branch that argued for equal representation in a unicameral Congress

19. “Great Compromise”

- A merge of the Virginia and New Jersey Plans. 2 houses in Congress, one represented by population and one with equal representation.. 

20. “Three-Fifths Compromise”

- A compromise during the period of the Constitution’s creation which counted slaves as ⅗ of a person when talking about representation in Congress

21. Electoral College

- The system in place to elect the president. The people do not vote for the president directly, but rather each state has a certain number of votes based on adding the amount of representatives and senators a state has. 

22. Land Ordinance of 1785

- A law that stated that the land in the NW should be sold and the money made should be used to pay off debts. They split the land into plots for houses and school and other important buildings creating an orderly settlement. 

23. Federalists

- Those who were in support of the Constitution. More powerful, educated and wealthier than the Anti-Federalists. 

24. Anti-Federalists

- Those who were against the Constitution. Less organized and had less power than the federalists. Their papers were usually less refined in writing craft as a result of lower education.

25. The Federalist

- A collection of papers by Alexander Hamilton, James Madison, and John Jay to defend the constitution and the idea of a strong central government. Sold in book form as the Federalist