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1215 BCE
magna carta
a charter of liberty and political rights obtained from King John of England by his rebellious barons at Runnymede in 1215, which came to be seen as the seminal document of English constitutional practice. -
jamestown settled
the first successful English settlement on the mainland of North America, founded on May 14, 1607. -
mayflower compact
The Mayflower Compact, signed by 41 English colonists on the ship Mayflower on November 11, 1620, -
pentiton of right
The Petition of Right is a major English constitutional document that sets out specific liberties of the subject that the king is prohibited from infringing. Passed on 7 June 1628, the Petition contains restrictions on non-Parliamentary taxation, forced billeting of soldiers, imprisonment without cause, and the use of martial law. -
English bill of rights
The Parliament of England passed the Bill of Rights on December 16, 1689 -
albany plan of union
The Albany Plan of Union was a plan to create a unified government for the Thirteen Colonies, suggested by Benjamin Franklin, then a senior leader and a delegate from Pennsylvania, at the Albany Congress on July 10, 1754 in Albany, New York. -
stamp act
The Stamp Act was an act of the Parliament of Great Britain that imposed a direct tax on the colonies of British America and required that many printed materials in the colonies be produced on stamped paper produced in London, carrying an embossed revenue stamp. -
Boston Massacre
The Boston Massacre was a street fight that occurred on March 5, 1770, between a mob, throwing snowballs, stones, and sticks, and a squad of British soldiers. It resulted in 5 dead patriots, and 6 injuries. Reactions were swift an angry, so it became one of the greatest contributing factors to the War for American Independence. -
Boston Tea Party
The Boston Tea Party was a political protest by the Sons of Liberty in Boston, on December 16, 1773.the Sons of Liberty, some disguised as Native Americans, in defiance of the Tea Act of May 10, 1773, destroyed an entire shipment of tea , which had 342 chests of tea on board. -
Intolerable Acts
The Intolerable Acts was the American Patriots' name for a series of punitive laws passed by the British Parliament in 1774 after the Boston Tea party. -
first continental congress
The First Continental Congress was a meeting of delegates from twelve of the thirteen colonies that met on September 5 to October 26, 1774 at Carpenters' Hall in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, early in the American Revolution. -
second continental congress
The Second Continental Congress was a convention of delegates from the Thirteen Colonies that started meeting in the summer of 1775, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, soon after warfare in the American Revolutionary War had begun. -
american revolution
The American Revolution was a colonial revolt that took place between 1765 and 1783. The American Patriots in the Thirteen Colonies won independence from Great Britain, -
declaration of independence
The Declaration of Independence is the statement adopted by the Second Continental Congress meeting at the Pennsylvania State House in Philadelphia on July 4, 1776, which announced that the thirteen American colonies -
shays rebellion
Shays' Rebellion was a rebellion in central and western Massachusetts from 1786 to 1787 -
philadelphia convention
the Philadelphia Convention took place from May 25 to September 17, 1787, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania -
connecticut compromise
The Connecticut Compromise was an agreement that large and small states reached during the Constitutional Convention of 1787 that in part defined the legislative structure and representation that each state would have under the United States Constitution
