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1492
Christopher Columbus "found New World"
European explorer makes a voyage across the Atlantic Ocean from Spain, resulting in him "finding America". -
1492
Columbian Exchange Begins
The widespread transfer of plants, animals, culture, human populations, technology, diseases, and ideas between the Americas, West Africa, and the Old World. -
Period: 1492 to
European Exploration Era
Europe sought to expand trading routes and find new sources of economic growth, to build their wealth all over the globe. -
1500
Spanish Encomienda System begins
A Spanish labor system that rewarded conquerors with the labor of particular groups of conquered non-Christian people. -
1500
Spanish Caste System
The Caste System linked one's race with his, her, or their behavior, personality, and social status. -
Period: 1500 to
Triangular Trade
The Triangle Trade is a historical term indicating trade among three ports or regions. -
Period: 1500 to
Middle Passage
The Middle Passage was the stage of the triangular trade in which millions of Africans were forcibly transported to the New World as part of the Atlantic slave trade. -
1520
Small Pox begins to spread to Indigenous Americans
Smallpox, an infectious disease, is believed to have arrived in the Americas in 1520 on a Spanish ship sailing from Cuba. -
1534
England separates from the Catholic Church
Parliament's passage of the Act of Supremacy in 1534 solidified the break from the Catholic Church and made the king the Supreme Head of the Church of England. -
London Company gains charter for Set Up English Colony
The Virginia Company of London was a joint-stock company chartered by King James I in 1606 to establish a colony in North America. Such a venture allowed the Crown to reap a lot of benefits. -
Jamestown, Virginia Colony founded
The Virginia Company founded the first permanent English settlement in North America on the banks of the James River. -
Period: to
Colonial Era
A massive influx of Europeans including the British, French, Spanish, Germans and Swedes. New colonies were established and the British and French held the dominant positions in the fight for dominance. -
Tobacco Introduced to The Virginia Company
In 1611 Rolfe, known as "an ardent smoker," decided to experiment with cultivating tobacco in Jamestown. -
Virginia House of Burgesses
The House of Burgesses was the first democratically-elected legislative body in the British American colonies. -
First African Slave arrive in Jamestown, Virginia
On August 20, 1619, Angolans, kidnapped by the Portuguese, arrive in the British colony of Virginia and are then bought by English colonists. -
Mayflower Compact
A set of rules for self-governance established by the English settlers who traveled to the New World on the Mayflower. -
Plymouth, Massachusetts Colony founded
An English colonial venture in America at a location that had previously been surveyed and named by Captain John Smith. The settlement served as the capital of the colony and developed as the town of Plymouth, Massachusetts. -
New Hampshire was founded
John Mason and Ferdinando Gorges were given a land grant by the Council for New England. Only three years after the Pilgrim's landed at Plymouth, the first settlers arrived near present-day Portsmouth in 1623. -
"City Upon a Hill" John Winthrop
City upon a hill is the phrase often used to refer to John Winthrop's famous speech, “A Model of Christian Charity.” -
Thomas Hooker founds Connecticut
Thomas Hooker was a prominent Puritan colonial leader, who founded the Colony of Connecticut after dissenting with Puritan leaders in Massachusetts. -
Roger William founds Rhode Island
Roger Williams was a Puritan minister, theologian, and author who founded Providence Plantations, which became the Colony of Rhode Island. -
Harvard College founded
Harvard University college was founded in 1636, just six years after Boston was settled and the first college in English America. -
Delaware founded
Delaware was first settled by the New Sweden Company in 1638. Their first settlement was named "Fort Christian", after the queen of Sweden. -
Fundamental Orders of Connecticut
The fundamental orders describe the government set up by the Connecticut River towns, setting its structure and powers. They wanted the government to have access to the open ocean for trading. -
Navigation Acts & Mercantilism
The Navigation Acts were a series of laws passed by the British Parliament that imposed restrictions on colonial trade. -
Iroquois Confederacy formed
The Five Nations Iroquois confederacy consisted of the Mohawks, the Oneidas, the Onondagas, the Cayugas, and the Senecas. -
New York founded
The Dutch first settled along the Hudson River in 1624; two years later they established the colony of New Amsterdam on Manhattan Island. In 1664, the English took control of the area and renamed it New York. -
William Penn founds Pennsylvania
Persecuted in England for his Quaker faith, Penn came to America in 1682 and established Pennsylvania as a place where people could enjoy freedom of religion. -
Period: to
Enlightenment Era
An intellectual and philosophical movement that dominated the world of ideas in Europe during the 17th and 18th centuries. -
Two Treaties of Government published
In his major work Two Treatises of Government Locke rejects the idea of the divine right of kings, supports the idea of natural rights, and argues for a limited constitutional government which would protect individual rights. -
English Bill of Rights
A constitutional monarchy in England, meaning the king or queen acts as head of state but his or her powers are limited by law. -
Salem Witch Trials
The Salem witch trials were a series of hearings and prosecutions of people accused of witchcraft in colonial Massachusetts. -
The Great Awakening
Areligious revival that impacted the English colonies in America. The movement came at a time when the idea of secular rationalism was being emphasized, and passion for religion had grown stale. -
Seven Years War (1754-1763)
The French and Indian War began in 1754 and ended with the Treaty of Paris in 1763. The war provided Great Britain enormous territorial gains in North America. -
Declaration of Independence
The Declaration explains why the colonies should break away from Britain. It says that people have rights that cannot be taken away, lists the complaints against the king, and argues that the colonies have to be free to protect the colonists' rights.
