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1521
Hernan Cortez defeats the Aztecs
Hernan Cortés invaded Mexico in 1519 and conquered the Aztec Empire. Hernán Cortés was a Spanish conquistador, or conqueror, best remembered for conquering the Aztec empire in 1521 and claiming Mexico for Spain. He also helped colonize Cuba and became a governor of New Spain -
Jamestown is founded
In 1607, 104 English men and boys arrived in North America to start a settlement. On May 13 they picked Jamestown, Virginia for their settlement, which was named after their King, James I. The settlement became the first permanent English settlement in North America. -
The “Starving Time” in Jamestown
“The starving time” was the winter of 1609-1610, when food shortages, fractured leadership, and a siege by Powhatan Indian warriors killed two of every three colonists at James Fort. From its beginning, the colony struggled to maintaining a food supply. -
Plymouth is founded
Plymouth Colony, America's first permanent Puritan settlement, was established by English Separatist Puritans in December 1620. The Pilgrims left England to seek religious freedom, or simply to find a better life. -
Mayflower Compact is signed
The Mayflower Compact was important because it was the first document to establish self-government in the New World. It remained active until 1691 when Plymouth Colony became part of Massachusetts Bay Colony. -
The Mayflower Compact is signed
Mayflower Compact, document signed on the English ship Mayflower on November 21 [November 11, Old Style], 1620, prior to its landing at Plymouth, Massachusetts. It was the first framework of government written and enacted in the territory that is now the United States of America. -
1st Thanksgiving
Thanksgiving is a national holiday in the United States, celebrated on the fourth Thursday of November. It originated as a harvest festival. ... The event that Americans commonly call the "First Thanksgiving" was celebrated by the Pilgrims after their first harvest in the New World in October 1621. -
Navigation Acts
The Navigation Acts were a series of laws passed by the British Parliament that imposed restrictions on colonial trade. ... The Navigation Acts inflamed the hostilities of American colonists and proved a significant contributing event leading up to the revolution. -
New Amsterdam becomes New York
In 1664, New Amsterdam passed to English control, and English and Dutch settlers lived together peacefully. ... In 1674, New York was returned to the English, and in 1686 it became the first city in the colonies to receive a royal charter. After the American Revolution, it became the first capital of the United States. -
King Philip's War
King Philip's War (1675-1676) marked the last major effort by the Native Americans of southern New England to drive out the English settlers. With tensions spilling over following the collapse of trade partnerships and aggressive expansion of colonist territories, Pokunoket chief Metacom — a.k.a -
Bacon’s Rebellion
The significance of Bacon's Rebellion of 1676 was that it pushed the elite of Virginia towards a harsher, more rigid system of slavery. ... After mounting a rebellion that included poor whites and blacks, Bacon suddenly died. His rebellion was over, but the white elite in Virginia feared a similar revolt. -
Salem witchcraft trails
The significance of the Salem witch trials can be seen chiefly in the fact that they serve as an object lesson in governance. -
John Adams becomes 2nd President
Adams was elected to two terms as vice president under President George Washington and was elected as the United States' second president in 1796. ... Adams signed the controversial Alien and Sedition Acts and built up the Army and Navy in the undeclared "Quasi-War" with France. -
Stono Rebellion
A: Stono is important because it changed the face of slavery in Carolina, and had ramifications for other colonies as well. It solidified slavery in a way that it hadn't been before, and probably would have happened anyway. But Stono was the catalyst. -
james madison becomes 4th president
James Madison created the basic framework for the U.S. Constitution and helped write the Bill of Rights. He is therefore known as the Father of the Constitution. He served as the fourth U.S. president, and he signed a declaration of war against Great Britain, starting the War of 1812 -
Ben Franklin proposed the Albany Plan of Union
The Albany Plan of Union was a proposal introduced by Benjamin Franklin during the Albany Congress in 1754. Franklin's plan called for the formation of a permanent federation of colonies, as a means to reform colonial-imperial relations, and to more effectively address shared colonial interests. -
French and Indian War
The war provided Great Britain enormous territorial gains in North America, but disputes over subsequent frontier policy and paying the war's expenses led to colonial discontent, and ultimately to the American Revolution. -
Proclamation of 1763
Proclamation of 1763, proclamation declared by the British crown at the end of the French and Indian War in North America, mainly intended to conciliate the Native Americans by checking the encroachment of settlers on their lands -
Treaty of 1763
In terms of the treaty, France gave up all its territories in mainland North America, effectively ending any foreign military threat to the British colonies there. -
The Stamp act
The purpose of the Stamp Act was to generate revenue to pay down Great Britain's war debt from the French and Indian War and to raise money for British troops who were stationed in North America in order to protect the new land won in the war and prevent the uprising from the French colonists living there -
England passes the Quartering Act
The Quartering Act of 1765 required the colonies to house British soldiers in barracks provided by the colonies. If the barracks were too small to house all the soldiers, then localities were to accommodate the soldiers in local inns, livery stables, alehouses, victualling houses, and the houses of sellers of wine. -
Columbus “discovers” the new world for Spain.
Columbus died in Valladolid on May 20, 1506, without realizing the great scope of his achievement: He had discovered for Europe the New World, whose riches over the next century would help make Spain the wealthiest and most powerful nation on earth. -
The Townshend Acts
The Townshend Acts were a series of laws passed by the British government on the American colonies in 1767. They placed new taxes and took away some freedoms from the colonists including the following: New taxes on imports of paper, paint, lead, glass, and tea. -
Boston Massacre
The event in Boston helped to unite the colonies against Britain. What started as a minor fight became a turning point in the beginnings of the American Revolution. The Boston Massacre helped spark the colonists' desire for American independence, while the dead rioters became martyrs for liberty. -
Boston Tea Party
The Boston Tea Party was a raid that took place in the Boston Harbor in 1773 during which American colonists dumped shiploads of tea into the water to protest a British tax on tea. This event was important because it fueled the tension that had already begun between Britain and America. -
The 1st Continental Congress convenes
On September 5, 1774, delegates from each of the 13 colonies except for Georgia (which was fighting a Native American uprising and was dependent on the British for military supplies) met in Philadelphia as the First Continental Congress to organize colonial resistance to Parliament's Coercive Acts. -
The Battle of Bunker Hill
Battle of Bunker Hill: Legacy
Despite losing their strategic positions, the battle was a significant morale-builder for the inexperienced Americans, convincing them that patriotic dedication could overcome superior British military might. -
The “shot heard ‘round the world”
Lexington and Concord were the sites of the first fighting in the Revolutionary War. ... No one knows who fired the first shot, but, in "Concord Hymn," Ralph Waldo Emerson described it as "the shot heard round the world" because of the importance the Revolutionary War and the United States would have in world history. -
Declaration of Independence is signed
The Declaration of Independence has great significance to the American people because it is what led to our independence from King George III. The Declaration of Independence justified our right to revolt against a government that no longer guaranteed us our natural rights. -
Thomas Paine publishes Common Sense
Common Sense was a pamphlet written by Thomas Paine in 1775–1776 advocating independence from Great Britain to people in the Thirteen Colonies. Writing in clear and persuasive prose, Paine marshaled moral and political arguments to encourage common people in the Colonies to fight for egalitarian government. -
Maryland is founded
The Maryland Colony was founded in 1632 after its charter was approved by King Charles I. It was a proprietary colony of Cecil Calvert, the second Lord Baltimore. Like other settlements in the New World, the Maryland Colony was established as a religious refuge.Jun -
Rhode Island is founded
Roger Williams founded the colony in 1636. He guaranteed religious and political freedom. Religious refugees from the Massachusetts Bay Colony settled in Rhode Island. ... Rhode Island was the home of the first Baptist church, the first Jewish synagogue, and one of the first Quaker meetinghouses. -
Battle of Saratoga
The Battle of Saratoga, comprising two significant battles during September and October of 1777, was a crucial victory for the Patriots during the American Revolution and is considered the turning point of the Revolutionary War. -
Battle of Yorktown
Significance of the Battle of Yorktown: The significance of the conflict was that Cornwallis surrendered to George Washington as French and American forces trapped the British at Yorktown. The British surrender at the Battle of Yorktown ended the American Revolutionary War. -
The Articles of Confederation are implemented
Introduction. The Continental Congress adopted the Articles of Confederation, the first constitution of the United States, on November 15, 1777. ... The Articles created a loose confederation of sovereign states and a weak central government, leaving most of the power with the state government -
Treaty of 1783
The significance of the Peace Treaty of Paris 1783 was that: The American Revolutionary War was formally ended. The British acknowledged the independence of the United States. The colonial empire of Great Britain was destroyed in North America. -
Shay’s Rebellion
Significance of Shays' Rebellion
The specter of Shays' Rebellion informed the debate over the framing of a new U.S. Constitution, providing fuel to Alexander Hamilton and other Federalists who advocated for a strong federal government and diminished states' rights. -
the northwest ordinance was established
the Northwest Ordinance established a government for the Northwest Territory, outlined the process for admitting a new state to the Union, and guaranteed that newly created states would be equal to the original thirteen states. -
Constitution/Philadelphia Convention gatherers
In September 1786, delegates from five states met at the Annapolis Convention and invited all states to a larger convention to be held in Philadelphia in 1787. The Confederation Congress later endorsed this convention "for the sole and express purpose of revising the Articles of Confederation". -
Pennsylvania is founded
William Penn as a haven for his fellow Quakers. Pennsylvania's capital, Philadelphia, was the site of the first and second Continental Congresses in 1774 and 1775, the latter of which produced the Declaration of Independence, sparking the American Revolution. -
Connecticut is founded
In 1636, the English arrived when a large group of Puritans from Massachusetts led by Thomas Hooker founded the Colony of Connecticut at the city of Hartford. They came looking for freedom of religion. In 1639 they adopted a constitution called the "Fundamental Orders." -
George Washington inaugurated as first president
The Congress of the Confederation had set March 4, 1789, as the date for the beginning of operations of the federal government under the new U.S. Constitution. ... Washington was inaugurated as the first President of the United States on April 30, 1789, at Federal Hall in New York, then the nation's capital. -
The Constitution is ratified
The ratifying conventions served the necessary function of informing the public of the provisions of the proposed new government. They also served as forums for proponents and opponents to articulate their ideas before the citizenry. Significantly, state conventions, not Congress, were the agents of ratification. -
Whiskey Rebellion
Whiskey Rebellion, (1794), in American history, an uprising that afforded the new U.S. government its first opportunity to establish federal authority by military means within state boundaries, as officials moved into western Pennsylvania to quell an uprising of settlers rebelling against the liquor tax. -
Jay’s Treaty is signed
On November 19, 1794 representatives of the United States and Great Britain signed Jay's Treaty, which sought to settle outstanding issues between the two countries that had been left unresolved since American independence. ... The French Revolution led to a war between Britain and France in 1793. -
Pinckney’s Treaty
The treaty was an important diplomatic success for the United States. It resolved territorial disputes between the two countries and granted American ships the right to free navigation of the Mississippi River as well as duty-free transport through the port of New Orleans, then under Spanish control. -
Treaty of Greenville
The Treaty of Greenville, formally titled Treaty with the Wyandots, etc., was a 1795 treaty between the United States and Indians of the Northwest Territory including the Wyandot and Delaware, which redefined the boundary between Indian lands and Whiteman's lands in the Northwest Territory. -
XYZ Affair
he XYZ Affair was a diplomatic incident that occurred between the United States and France in 1797. In an attempt to avert war with Great Britain, the U.S. signed the Jay Treaty in 1795. One of the provisions of the treaty limited the ability of nations that were hostile to Great Britain to trade in U.S. ports -
The Alien and Sedition Acts are passed
The Alien and Sedition Acts were a series of four laws passed by the U.S. Congress in 1798 amid widespread fear that war with France was imminent. The four laws–which remain controversial to this day–restricted the activities of foreign residents in the country and limited freedom of speech and of the press. -
Quasi-War
The Quasi War pushed the United States into a serious debate about the nature and extent of neutrality, the limits of presidential power, and the role of the military in America. In 1800, Napoleon gained control of France and ushered in a more hospitable diplomatic atmosphere between the two countries. -
Virginia and Kentucky Resolutions were passed
The Virginia and Kentucky Resolutions were political statements drafted in 1798 and 1799, in which the Kentucky and Virginia legislatures took the position that the federal Alien and Sedition Acts were unconstitutional. -
Thomas Jefferson becomes the 3rd President
As the third president of the United States, Jefferson stabilized the U.S. economy and defeated pirates from North Africa during the Barbary War. He was responsible for doubling the size of the United States by successfully brokering the Louisiana Purchase. He also founded the University of Virginia. -
The Supreme Court rules on Marbury v. Madison
Marbury v. Madison, 5 U.S. (1 Cranch) 137 (1803), was a U.S. Supreme Court case that established the principle of judicial review in the United States, meaning that American courts have the power to strike down laws, statutes, and some government actions that violate the Constitution of the United States. -
The Louisiana Purchase
The purchase doubled the size of the United States, greatly strengthened the country materially and strategically, provided a powerful impetus to westward expansion, and confirmed the doctrine of implied powers of the federal Constitution. -
Embargo Act of 1807
The Embargo Act of 1807 was an attempt by President Thomas Jefferson and the U.S. Congress to prohibit American ships from trading in foreign ports. It was intended to punish Britain and France for interfering with American trade while the two major European powers were at war with each other -
Chesapeake Affair
was a naval engagement that occurred off the coast of Norfolk, Virginia, on June 22, 1807, between the British warship HMS Leopard and the American frigate USS Chesapeake. The crew of Leopard pursued, attacked, and boarded the American frigate, looking for deserters from the Royal Navy. -
Congress declares war on England
The United States declared war on Britain in 1812. It did so because Britain refused to stop seizing American ships that traded with France—Britain's enemy in Europe. Sometimes there were also seizures of American sailors. These seizures were known as impressment -
Treaty of Ghent
Most historians regard the War of 1812 as ending in a stalemate. By the time the Treaty of Ghent was signed, both countries were war-weary and ready for peace. This treaty is important because it ended what some Americans called 'The Second War for Independence,' the Revolutionary War, of course, being the first. -
Battle of New Orleans
The Battle of New Orleans thwarted a British effort to gain control of a critical American port and elevated Major General Andrew Jackson to national fame. Since Napoleon's defeat in the spring of 1814, the British were free to concentrate on their war in America.
