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1215
Magna Carta
The "Great Charter" which limited the power of the Monarch by assuring no one would be above the law. This was the origin of the rule of law. -
Mayflower Compact
A compact in which 41 Pilgrims agreed on the rules of their government before settling in the new world. -
English Bill of Rights
A Government Document which expanded the rights of Parliament and the people while limiting those of the monarch. -
Cato's Letters
A collection of newspaper articles written by Cato the Elder and Cato the Younger which argued the King's rule. -
French and Indian War
A costly war which Britain fought against France. -
Mercantilism
An Ideology adopted by Great Britain which involves acquiring and basing power of off wealth. This caused Britain to heavily tax their colonies. -
Stamp Act
An act which required Colonists to pay taxes on newspapers and legal documents. -
Declaratory Act
An act which stated that Parliament had the right to tax and make all decisions for its colonies. -
Townshend Act
An act that imposed new taxes on goods such as glass, tea, paper, and lead which could not be produced in the Americas. This act caused a boycott. -
Boston Massacre
A riot which began as a simple street brawl during a protest and ended with British Soldiers killing five colonists -
Tea Act
An act which gave the British East India Company the right to ship tea to the colonies without paying taxes. This gave a considerable advantage to the British company and hurt colonial merchants. -
Intolerable Act/Coercive Act
An act created in response to the Boston tea party, which restricted colonist's rights to fair trials by jury and allowed British soldiers to search and move into colonists' homes. -
Boston Tea Party
A group of colonists dressed as Native Americans dumped 342 boxes of British tea into the Boston harbor. -
First Continental Congress
A meeting in Philidelphia in which delegates sent a document to King George demanding that colonist's rights be restored. -
Second Continental Congress
Congress in Philadelphia in which delegates argued for six months about whether or not they should fight for independence. -
Lexington & Concord
First battles engaged in the Revolutionary war. -
Common Sense
A pamphlet written by Thomas Paine that explained Revolutionary ideas in simple terms that could be easily understood by common colonists -
Declaration of Independence
Written by Thomas Jefferson, it was a document which argued that king George was mistreating the colonists and declared independence from Great Britain.
