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Jan 29, 1215
Magna Carta
Great Charter forced upon King Jhon of England by his barons; establish that the power of the monarchy was not absolute and guaranteed trial by jury and due process of law to the nobility -
Petition of RIght
document prepared by Parliament and signed by King Charles I of England; Challenged the idea of the divine right of kigs and declared that even the monarch was subject to the laws of the land. -
Albany Plan of Union
plan proposed by benjamin Franklin that aimed to unite 13 colonies for trade,military,and other purposes;the plan was turned down by the colonies and the Crown. -
Stamp Act
First direct British tax on American colonists. A law passed by the British Parliament in 1765 to raise revenue, requiring that stamps be used for all legal and commercial documents, newspapers, etc. in the American colonies: it was repealed in March, 1766, because of strong colonial opposition -
Declaration of Independence
The proclamation made by the second American Continental Congress, which asserted the freedom and independence of the 13 Colonies from Great Britain. Five men wrote the Declaration , mostly Thomas Jefferson -
Articles of Confederation
Plan of government adopted by the Continental Congress after the American Revolution; established "a firm league of friendship" among the States, but allowed few important powewrs to central government -
Philadelphia Convention
This Convention address problems in governing the United States of America, which had been operating under the Articles of Confederation following independence from Great Britain. Although the Convention was purportedly intended only to revise the Articles of Confederation, the intention of many of its proponents, chief among them James Madison and Alexander Hamilton, was from the outset to create a new government rather than "fix" the existing one.
