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Jan 1, 1215
Magna Carta
King John was forced to sign a charter. This charter was called the Magna Charter. This was the first document to put restricitons on an English Ruler's power. One rule was that the king could not levy the taxes without talking with the nobles. It also protected the right to own private property and guarenteed the right to trial by jury. -
Founding of Jamestown
A group of wealthy people pooled their resources and made a new attempt to establish an English colony in North America. These people formed the Virginia Company of London. England's King James 1 backed the project. The King then granted the merchants a charter to establish a colony called Virginia. A charter is a document issued by a government that grants specific rights to a person or company. The first colonists arrived in 1607 and contained 100 men. They then sailed to Chesapeake Bay. -
Conflicts with Natives
Virginia's white population was growing which threatened the Native Americans lives. The major affects included disease and violence. In 1607, there had been about 8,000 Native Americans in Virginia. By 1675,only about 2,000 Native Americans were left. Another factor that hurt the Native American lives was farming. This made the Natives super angry and they had two violent confrontations. They happened in 1622 and 1644. After 1644,the Native Americans living near the coast had to accept rule. -
John Smith takes charge
The conditions in Jamestown were awful. This was because their were poorly led by previous governors. So, John Smith was sent out from London to lead the colony. Smith immediately started taking control of the situation. He made tough, new rules. Smith started to make the colonists build buildings and plant crops. Another thing they started to do was cut timber. Many new colonists started to come which brought the first women. -
The Starving Time
This all started when John Smith returned to England after being injured during and explosion. When he was gone the conditions swiftly changed in Jamestown. The relations with the Native Americans also worsened. The chief of the Native Americans decideed to push the English away. He decided not give them anymore food. By the time of 1610 only 60 colonists remained out of 214. -
Jamestown Prospers
At first, the Jamestown colony wasn't doing so good. So, the virginia company sent new colonists and offered free land so the old ones wouldn't leave. It also sent new leaders form England to put things in motion better at the colony. This probably wouldn't of happened if the colonists didn't find a dependable source of income to sustain the colony. Their most dependable source was the tobacco plant. -
Plymouth colony
Many people disliked King Henry 8th. So, several groups of settlers moved to the Netherlands in order to practice their own religions. Although they were allowed to practice their own religions, they still were not pleased. One group of settlers made the decision to leave the Netherlands and settle in Virginia. These people are what we call pilgrims. -
Mayflower Compact
100 Pilgrims sailed for Virginia aboard teh ship called Mayflower. After sailing for a few months, they finally reached North America. However, storms had blown them off course. This resulted in them landing too far North of where they wanted to settle. So, they landed in what today is Massachusettes. Because they didn't land in Virginia they thought they didn't need to obey their rules. So, they made a government that would make and follow the laws put in place. -
The First Thanksgiving
Conditions improved after the winter of 1620-1621 after half the colonists died from hunger and disease. The Native Americans sustained teh pilgrims. The local chief gave teh pilgrims food. Another Native American, named Squanto, brought seeds of native plants, such as corns, beans, and pumpkins. He also showed the Pilgrims how to plant the seeds and how to catch eels from nearby rivers. In the fall of 1621, the pilgrims set aside a day to give thanks for their good fortune. -
Massachusetts Bay colony
Puritans estaba=olished several settlements in their colony. The main town was called Boston, which was located on a harbor. By 1643, over 20,000 people lived in the Massachusetts Bay colony. Early on, the colony had an elected assembly, called the General Court. Each town had its own representatives on the assembly. But, voting was limited to to adult male members of the Puritan Chruch. They founded the colony so they could worship as they chose but did not give non-Puritans this right. -
Colonial Legislatures formation
The colonial legislatures were formed from the House of Burgesses which was formed by the Virginia Company. But the Pennsylvania colonies wanted to make their own laws. So, in 1701, forced Pennsylvania to agree with that they General Assembly could make laws. Eventually, every British colony in North America had a legislature of their own. However, the legislatures still clashed at times with colonial governors appointed by the king. -
Puritans leave England
Many Puritans eventually decided to leave England and make the hazardous voyage to North America. Nearly 900 Puritans set off in 11 ships. They formed the Massachusetts Bay Company, which received a charter to estabolish settlements in what are now Massachusetts and New Jersey. The Puritans were led by John Winthrop, a respected landowner and lawyer. After founding the colony, Puritans believed their way of life would provide an example to others. -
Roger Williams
He was the minister of the town called Salem. He believed that the Puritans should split entirely from the Church of England. He also critizied colonists for taking Native Americans lands. He wanted to colonists to pay for Native American lands. Although he was forced to leave The Massachusetts Bay in 1635. He moved South, to what today is Rhode Island, where he bought land from Native Americans. Then, in 1636, he founded the town on Providence. -
Settling Connecticut
A minister named Thomas Hooker left Massachusetts because he didn't agree with the Puritan leaders. So, he left with 100 followers in 1636 and settled in what today is Connecticut. There, he founded the town of Hartford. A lot of Puritans followed, leading to many new settlements. In 1639, the colonists estabolished a new government with an elected legislature and governor. -
Anne Hitchinson
She was a Boston women who questioned many of the Puritan teachings. She was put on trial in 1638 and was expelled from Massachusetts. She later established a settlement on an island that is now a part of Rhode Island. In 1642, she traveled farther south into what is now New York State. -
John Wheelright
This man was also forced to leave Massachusetts. He got into trouble because he agreed with some of Anne Hutchinson's views. In 1638, Wheelright and some followers moved to New Hampshire. This is where they founded the town of Exeter. Finally, in 1680, a charter from the king made New Hampshire a seperate colony. -
Anne Bradstreet
This was a colonial poet. Her book the Tenth Muse, lately sprung up in America was first published in 1650, in England. The book wasn't published in Boston untill after her death. Most of her poems expressed the Joys and Hardships of life in Puritan New England. Some her most famous poems include "Upon the Burning of Or House" and "To My Dear and Loving Husband". -
Parliament forms
This was was formed by the King's Nobles who formed a Great Council to advise the king. Parliament was a two house legislature. legislature is a group of people who have the power to make laws. Members of the House of Commons were elected. Only few had the right to vote for the House of Commons. Parliaments greatest power was to approve new taxes. -
Georgia colony
This was the last of Engalnd's 13 colonies. It was mainly founded for two reasons. First, the English feared that Spain was about to expand its Florida colony northward. So, England made a colonie south of Carolina to keep the Spanish in Florida. Second, a group of wealthy Englishmen led by James Olgethorpe wanted a colony to protect debtors. -
New York Colony
King Charles 2 allowed his brother James a charter of all the Dutch land, only if he conquered the territory. So, James sent a few warships, the Dutch surrendered immediately. The colony was renamed New York, after James, the Duke of York. Its capital became New York City. The colony grew slowly and at the end of the 1600s it was still a small village at the end of Manhattan/. -
New Jersey colony
This colony was established in 1665 as a proprietary colony. It was split off from the southern part of New York to form a new colony. This means it was a colony created by a grant of land from a monarch to an individual or family. Then in 1702, New Jersey received a new charter as a royal colony. This means it was a colony controlled directly by the English King. -
Puritan Influence declines
There was a new generation of people born in North America. The new generation had lost some of their parents' religious passion. This was a result of people running farms and business. Many merchants became the new community leaders. But the stern religious rules of the original founders now had less influence over the people who lived there. -
King Philip's war
Opponents of the English were leed by Metacom, he was the chief of the Wampanoag. He was also known by his English name, King Philip. Other Native American Tribes from Rhode island and Maine joined the war. Some tribes sided with the colonists. The whole war lasted over a year. It also cost thousands of lives. The war eventually ended after Metacom was captured and killed. -
Bacon's Rebellion
Nathaniel Bacon became the leader of the frontier settlers. So, he organized a force of 1,000 westerners and began attacking and killing Native Americans. Eventually, the governor of Jamestown called Bacon's force a rebellion and Nathaniel Bacona rebel. So, he went and burned Jamestown to the ground forcing the governor to run away. Finally, Bacon died and 23 of his men were hanged. -
William Penn
This man was a wealthy man who personally knew King Charles 2. Penn wanted to find a place for quakers to live where they would be safe. He used his connections to get a charter from the King for a new colony in North America. In 1681, he received an area almosrt as large as England itself, mainly in what is now Pennsylvania. -
English Bill of Rights
The event leading up to the removal of King James 2 from the throne was the Glorious revolution. So, this invited his daughter Mary and William to rule England. Then, in 1689, King William and Queen Mary signed the English Bill of Rights. A bill of rights is a written list of freedoms that a government promises to protect. -
John Locke
This man published Two Treaties on Government which was an inspirational work. It said that everyone was entitled to their natural rights. Someone's natural rights are rights that belong to every human being from birth. Some of the rights include life, liberty, and property. According to Locke, these rights cannot be taken away. He also believed that monarchs didn't have Divine right. -
John Locke (continued)
This means that monarchs had been given their powers directly from God. According to this, people got their rights from the monarch. From this, Locke said that people's natural rights came from God. He also stated that people formed governments to protect their rights. Because governments exist to protect the righst of the people, if a monarch violates those rights, the people have the right to overthrow the monarch. -
Triangular trade
Slave traders eventaullydeveloped a regular routine for slave trade. The Triangular was a three-way trade between the colonies, the islands of the Carribean, and Africa. Many merchants became weathly from teh Triangular Trade. In doing so, they disobeyed the Navigation Acts that required to trade with the English colonies. They eventually started smuggling their cargoes into New England. -
Delaware colony
This colony was, at first, made entirely of Swedish folks. Eventually, the Dutch took control of the territory in the late 1650s, but lost it to the English when they lost New York. This colony was mainly formed because it didn't want to send delegates to a distant assembly in Philadelphia. William Penn's charter included Delaware so, he gave Delaware it's own elected assembly. -
Thomas Gage
He was general as well as the govenor of Massachusetts. He learned that the minutemen were storing arms in Concord. He wanted to prevent them from storing arms at Concord ever again so, he sent his soldiers to get the arms and kill the minutemen. Upon arrival they found 77 minutemen waiting there for them. It is important to know that no one knew who fired the first shot but the battle abruptly rang throughout the enemies. The British then opened fire and killed 8 Americans. -
The Backcountry
The western section of Pennsylvania wa part af a region called the backcountry. The backcountry was a frontier region extending through several colonies, from Pennsylvania to Georgia. Most of the people who settled in the backcountry were Scotch-Irish. But many started to arrive from Germany but they prefered to be called Deutsch. These people were always pushing South and West on the Great Wagon Road. -
James Wolfe
He was a top general who was first picked by William Pitt. In Pitt's eyes he had genuine military talent. The only thing he needed to do was make put the war into a new phase. So, he allowed the British to score its first major victory in the summer of 1758. Doing this made the Iroquois to side with them. He also led the big attack at Quebec. -
Jonathan Edwards
Jonathan Edwards was known as a forceful preacher or minister. He wanted people to examine their lives and commit themselves to God. He was one of the leaders of the Great Awakening, this was a religious event back in the 1730s and 1740s. One of his famous sermons warned people about the what would happen if they didn't change their ways and sought for forgiveness. This means he had told them if they died before they repented, they would burn in hell. -
George Washington (continued)
So, he built his own little fort 50 miles south of the French's fort. Eventually, he defeated a small force of the French's army. The French sent a larger task force and forced Washington to surrender the fort and he nd his men were captured. The French allowed them to head back to Virginia if they never came back and that the French would never give up to Ohio River Valley. -
George Washington
The governor of Virginia decided to send soldiers to the Ohio River Valley to tell to French to leave. He chose a 21-year-old man, George Washington, who was previously in the Virginia militia, to lead the militia. A militia is a force made up of civilians who were trained s soldiers but not part of the regular army. He was first rejected by the French, but was eventually sent back to find they were already building their own fort. -
Ben Franklin
He was one of the most popular and most loved writer at the age of 17. Later, he started the paper called the Boston Gazette. This paper eventually became the most read newspaper in the colonies. Franklin was also a business man, community leader, scientist, inventor, and diplomat. He founded a library and a fire department, made discoveries about electricity, and invented such useful items as bifocal eyeglasses. He was also a founder of the United States. -
John Peter Zenger's trial
John Peter Zenger was arresting for printing a series of articles that criticized the governor. Zenger was charged with libel. LIbel means the publishing of statements that damage a person's reputation. Although the statements were true,Zenger was prosecuted for criticizing the governor because it was illegal back then. -
John Peter Zenger
John Peter Zenger was a journalist who wanted to reveal the governor of New York's worst secrets. He was tried because the people thought he had committed libel. This means he wrote stuff that was untrue. So, his lawyer said that he didn't commit libel and the facts that he published were true, and shouldn't be considered libel. The jury agreed that he wasn't guilty of libel so his sentence was minimal. -
John Adams
He was a well known Massachusetts lawyer. He was also a leading defender of colonial rights against British policies. His most famous case was when he defended nine of the soldiers in the Boston Massacre. The only reason he took the case ws because he believed that in a free country everyone accused of a crime should have the right to a lawyer and a fair trial. -
Phillis Wheatley
This young lady was an enslaved African American. Her first poem was published in the 1760's, when she was about 14. Her works were in a scholarly style. This type of poem was popular back then. She was very lucky because her slave holders educated her and gave her time to write. She was recognized as the first African to be an American poet. -
Albany Congress
The British were expecting that war was going to happen soon so, the British wanted the colonies to agree to cooperate in defending themselves against the French. They also invited the Iroquois tribes to the meeting in order to form an alliance with them. An alliance is an agreement between nations or groups to help each other against other nations or groups. Unfortunately, the Iroquois denied the allliance. -
William P:itt
During 1757, the British had many advances when the new Prime Minister went into office. The Prime Ministers name was William Pitt. He sought top military generals. The only thing they had to be good at was have genuine military talent. His first pick was named James Wolfe. -
Disaster at Fort Duquesne
A General understood the military tactics in Europe, this is where armies fought in formation on open fields. But, he knew little tactics in fighting in North America, where conditions. So, the colonies fought with much agression towards Braddocks forces. This could of easily been avoided if Braddock listened to warnings. His men were killed and wounded and he was among the dead. -
Sugar Act
This act was put in place because teh British wanted to impose the taxes in 1764. They then told Parliament to pass the Sugar Act. This act put a duty on several products. This means they put an import tax. One of the most important products that they taxed was molasses. This mostly affected traders who smuggled in molasses -
Quartering Act
This happened one year after parliament passed the Sugar Act. This Act was mostly passed to save money. This act forced the colonists to house the British troops. It also forced them to provide them with food. This made the colonists really angry and made them violent. Once again, the colonists said that parliament was violating their rights. -
Boston Massacre
An angry crowd of workers and sailors surrounded a small group of soldiers. They shouted at them and threw snowballs and rocks. After this the soldiers fired into the crowd and shot 11 people. They killed 5 and wounded 6. One important fact was that the first to fall was an African American. -
Boston Tea Party
This happened because the British put an act on tea which was one of the most export ever sold. This isn't what you think it is, it wasn't a party at all but a group of people who wanted to stop taxation. The group consisted of the group called the sons of liberty. They dressed up like Indians and threw the tea that was coming in from England. They threw a total of 342 cases of tea into the harbor. -
Tea Act
This act was passed by Parliament to help British East India Company. This was one of Britains more important companies. This company made a profit from selling tea in India and selling it in the Colonies and in Britain. Although, the company was hurt from the colonial boycott. This act actually brought the prices of tea down instead of up. This made it so the East India Company to ship tea directly to the colonies. -
Battle of Bunker Hill
This battle was came at great costs, both sides lost many men. This battle took place at Breed's Hill. It is important to know that it didn't happen at a place called Bunker Hill. The man who led the attack was named William Howe. He was a general. Little did the British know, the Americans were waiting for them at the top. The Americnas didn't just open fire, they waited for them until they were 150 feat away. -
Free African Slaves
There were very few free African slaves among the colonial population. In 1790,there was 60,000 free people of African ancestry livin gin the colonies. Since they were not enslaved, free African Americans were allowed to own property. This allowed them to own slaves. So, they bought their relatives and set them free. Although they wer free, their lives were resticted. Such as, they weren't allowed to vote or be on a jury. -
Sources used
I only used my U.S. History Bookl
