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Jun 15, 1215
Magna Carta
Magna Carta is an Angevin charter originally issued in latin in the year 1215. It was the first document forced onto the king of england by a group of his subjects in an attempt to limit his powers by law and protect their privilages. -
Jamestown settled
Jamestown was the first settlement of the virginia colony founded in 1607 and served as capital of virginia until 1699, when the seat of government was moved to williamsburg. -
Mayflower Compact
The first governing document of plymoth colony. Written by the Separatists fleeing from religious persecution by King james of great britian -
Petition of Right
A major english constitution document that sets out specific liberties of the subject that the king is prohibited from infringing. The petition was passed on june 7 and contains restictions on non-parliamentary taxation, forced billeting of soldiers, imprisionment without cause, and resticts the use of martial law. -
English Bill of Rights
An act of the parliament of england. It was a restatement in statutory form of the declaration of right presented by the convention parliament to william and mary in march 1689, inviting them to become joint sovereigns of england -
Albany Plan of Union
Was a plan to place the British North American colonies under a more centralized government. Although it was never carried out, it was the first important plan to conceive of the colonies as a collective whole united under one governemnt. -
Stamp Act
Imposed a direct tax by the british parliament specifically on the colonies of british america, and it required that many printed materials in the colonies be produced on stamped paper produced in london. These printed materials included legal documents, magazines, newspapers. -
Boston Massacre
An incident in which british army soldiers killed five civilian men and injured six others. British troops had been stationed in boston since 1768 and with tense relations between the troops and soldiers, shots were fired after some soldiers were subjected to verbal harassment and thrown objects. -
Boston Tea Party
Was a political protest by the sons of liberty in boston against tax policy of the british government and the east india company that controlled all the tea imported into the colonies. After officials in boston refused to return three shiploads of taxed tea to britian, a group of colonists boarded the ships and destroyed the tea by throwing it into boston harbor. -
First Continental Congress
A convention of delegates from twelve colonies that met at Carpenters' hall in philadelphia, pennsylvania. Was called in response to the passage of the coercive acts by the british parliament. -
Intolerable Acts
Was the Patriot name for a series of punitive laws passed by the british parliament relating to Massachusetts after the boston tea party. The acts stripped Massachusetts of self government and historic rights, triggering outrage and resistence in the thirteen colonies -
American Revolution Begins
Conflict arose from growing tensions between residents of Great britians 13 north american colonies and colonial government, which represented the british crown. Skirmishes between british troops and colonial militiamen in Lexington and Concord in April 1775 kicked off the armed conflict and by the following summer the rebels were waging a full scale war for independence -
Second Continental Congress
A convention of delegates from the thirteen colonies that started meeting in the summer of 1775 soon after warfare in the Amercian Revolution begun. Managed the colonial war effort, and moved incrementally towards independence. -
Articles of Confederation
Was an agreement among the 13 founding states that established the United States of America as a confederation of sovereign and served as its first constitution. Drafting by the continental congress began in mid-1776 and an approved version was sent to the states for ratification in late 1777. -
Shay's Rebellion
An armed uprising that took place in central and western massachusetts in 1786 and 1787. The rebellion was named after Daniel Shays, a veteran of the american revolutionary war and one of the rebel leaders -
Philadelphia Convention
Took place from May 25 to September 17, 1787 to address problems in governing the United States of America, which had been operating under the articles of confederation. The intent was to revise the articles of confederation but the result was the constitution of the united states. -
Constitution Convention
Convention that drew up the constitution of the united states. Stimulated by severe economic troubles, which produced radical political movements such as Shay's rebellion, and urged on by a demand for a stronger central government. -
Connecticuit Compromise
An agreement that large and small states reached during the constitutional convention that in part defined the legaslative structure and representation that each state would have under the constitution of the united states. It retained the bicameral legislature as proposed by Roger Sherman along with proportional representaion in the lower house, but required the upper house to be weighted equally between the states. Each state would have two representatives in the upper house.
