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Sep 9, 1215
Magna Carta
Magna Carta, meaning ‘The Great Charter’, is one of the most famous documents in the world. It was a practical solution to the political crisis he faced in 1215, Magna Carta established for the first time the principle that everybody, including the king, was subject to the law. -
Jamestown Settled
Sparked a series of cultural encounters that helped shape the nation and the world. The colony was sponsored by the Virginia Company of London, a group of investors who hoped to profit from the venture -
Mayflower Compact written
The first governing document of Plymouth Colony. It was written by the male passengers of the Mayflower. -
Petition of Right
'The Petition of Right, 1628' was an English document that helped promote the civil rights of the subjects of King Charles. Refusal by Parliament to finance the king's unpopular foreign policy had caused his government to exact forced loans and to quarter troops in subjects' houses as an economy measure. -
English Bill of Rights
Gave Englishmen certain civil and political rights. Law passed by parliament in 1689. -
Albany Plan of Union
The Albany Plan of Union was a plan to create a unified government. This idea was suggested by Ben Franklin. -
Stamp Act
An act of the British Parliament that exacted revenue from the American colonies by imposing a stamp duty on newspapers and legal and commercial documents. to help pay for British troops stationed in the colonies during the Seven Years' War. -
Boston Massacre
The Boston Massacre, known as the Incident on King Street by the British, was an incident on March 5, 1770, in which British Army soldiers killed five male civilians and injured six others. -
Boston Tea Party
A political protest by the Sons of Liberty. As a result, the British shut down Boston Harbor until all of the 340 chests of British East India Company tea were paid for. -
Intolerable Acts
The American Patriots' term for a series of punitive laws passed by the British Parliament in 1774 after the Boston Tea party. They were meant to punish the Massachusetts colonists for throwing the team overboard. -
First Continental Congress
A meeting of delegates from twelve of the Thirteen Colonies. The first session of the Continental Congress convenes at Carpenter’s Hall in Philadelphia. -
Second Continental Congress
Succeeded the First Continental Congress. The second Congress managed the colonial war effort, and moved incrementally towards independence. -
American Revolution Begins
Tensions between the American colonies and the British government approached the breaking point, especially in Massachusetts, where Patriot leaders formed a shadow revolutionary government and trained militias to prepare for armed conflict with the British troops occupying Boston. -
Declaration of Independence
Written by Thomas Jefferson. Declared freedom for our thirteen colonies. -
Articles of Confederation
The first constitution of the United States. However, ratification of the Articles of Confederation by all thirteen states did not occur until March 1, 1781. -
Shay's Rebellion
A series of protests against tax collection and judgments of debt by American Farmers. -
Constitution Convention
Took place at the Annapolis convention. Delegates from five states called for a convention to improve the articles of confederation. -
Philadelphia Convention
Met to address the problems of the weak central government that existed under the Articles of Confederation. The result of the Constitutional Convention was the United States Constitution. They wanted the supreme law of the United States to be perfect. -
Connecticut Compromise
Also known as the Great Compromise. An agreement that large and small states reached during the Constitutional Convention of 1787 that in part defined the legislative structure.
