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Jun 15, 1215
Magna Carta
King John of England was facing a possible rebellion by the country's powerful barons. Due to that, he agreed to a charter of liberties, known as the Magna Carta (or Great Charter) that placed him, and all of England's future kings and queens, within rule of law. -
Petition of Right
This is a major English constitutional document that sets out specific liberties of the subject that the king is prohibited from infringing. This petition contains restrictions on non-Parliamentary taxation, forced billeting of soldiers, imprisonment without cause, and restricts the use of martial law. -
English Bill of Rights
It's an Act of the Parliament of England that restated in statutory form of the Declaration fo Right presented by the Convention Parliament to William and Mary. It sets the limits on the powers of the crown and sets out the rights of Parliament and rules for freedom of speech in Parliament, the requirement to regular elections to Parliament, and the right to petition the monarch without fear of retribution. -
Albany Plan of Union
The proposal to create a more unified government for the Thirteen Colonies. This was suggested by Benjamin Franklin. -
Boston Massacre
An incident in which British Army soldiers killed five civilian men and injured six others. It's often call the Incident of King Street by the British. -
Boston Tea Party
The Boston Tea Party took place when Massachusetts Patriots (protesting the recent granting of American tea importation by Parliament to the East India Company) seized 342 chests of tea on a midnight raid from three tea ships and thrusted them into the harbor. -
First Continental Congress
The First Continental Congress consisted of delegates from the colonies, met in reaction to the Coercive Acts in 1774, a series of measures were imposed by the British government on the colonies in response to their oppposing of the new taxes. -
Second Continental Congress
A convention of delegates from the thirteen colonies that started meeting soon after the warfare of the American Revolutionary War had started. It succeeded the First Continental Congress and managed the colonial war effort and moved towards independence. -
Declaration of Independence
A document created by the Continental Congress on July 4, 1776. It stated that the thirteen American colonies, then at war with Great Britain, regarded themselves as independent states, and therefore no longer a part of the British Empire. -
Articles of Confederation
An agreement among the 13 founding states that set the United States of America as a confederation of sovereign states. This also served as the U.S.'s first constitution. -
Shay's Rebellion
An armed uprising that took place in central and western Massachusetts in 1786 and 1787. The rebellion was named after Daniel Shay's, who was a veteran of the American Revolutionary War and one of the rebel leaders. -
Philadelphia Convention
the Constitutional Convention was a meeting held by delegates from the 13 states in 1787. First, the purpose of their convention was to address the problems that the federal government was having ruling the states and staying sound under the provisions of the Articles of Confederation. What actually occurred was the formation of a new plan of government. -
Virginia Plan
A proposal by Virginia delegates wanting a bicameral legislative branch. This plan was drafted by James Madison and is notable for its role in setting the overall agenda for debate in the convention and, in particular, for setting forth the idea of population-weighted representation in the proposed national legislature. -
New Jersey Plan
A proposal for the structure of the United States Government presented by William Paterson at the Constitutional Convention. The plan was created in response to the Virginia Plan.
