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Republican Motherhood
Republican Motherhood was the notion that women could best influence political realities by raising politically educated sons. -
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French and Indian War
The French and Indian War was part of the Seven Years War. It was caused by a settlement conflict between the British and French. The French allied themselves with the Indians in order to fight the British. The British won. -
Pontiac's Rebellion
When colonists wanted more land they pushed past the Appalachian Mountains, which intensified conflict with the Native Americans. The Ottowa leader, Pontiac, led raids against the colonists in Detroit and other forts in Virginia and Pennsylvania. -
Proclamation Act
The Proclamation Act was prompted by hostile relations between the colonists and Native Americans. This proclamation forbade colonists from migrating west of the Appalachian Mountains in order to ensure favorable trade with Native Americans. This Act was not very successful and many people settled beyond the Appalachian Mountains anyways. -
Stamp Act
This was one of many acts passed by Parliament to pay for England's financial debt accumulated from the war. This specific act put a tax on all paper items produced in the colonies including newspapers, playing cards, and legal documents. It was repealed in 1766. -
Boston Massacre
A group of people were harassing British soldiers in Boston. During this, someone fired a gun and the British began firing into the crowd. Eleven colonists were shot and four were killed, one of which being Crispus Attucks. John Addams was the lawyer that defended the soldiers and six of the eight were acquitted. The Massacre was seen as a sign of British tyranny. -
Boston Tea Party
This was done in response to the Tea Act of 1773, which gave the British East India Company exclusive rights to buy and ship tea in the colonies. This enraged the colonists, which resulted in 50 members of the Sons of Liberty dressing as Mohawk Indians and dumping 45 tons of British tea into the harbor. -
Coercive Acts
These acts were passed by Parliament in response to the Boston Tea Party. This closed down Boston Harbor until all of the tea was paid for. The Coercive Act was passed along with the Quartering Act to be known by the colonists as the Intolerable Acts. -
Lexington and Concord
British troops had been ordered to seize stores of colonial gunpowder. The colonial "minute men" were fired upon at Lexington and eight were killed. The British pushed on to Concord, where they were forced to retreat by the American militia. -
Olive Branch Petition
This was a petition issued by the Continental Congress that stated colonial desires for an end to hostility. King George rejected the petition and proclaimed that the colonies were in open rebellion to the crown. -
Common Sense
Common Sense was written by Thomas Paine. It uses everyday language to argue for independence from Britain and used biblical examples to show the folly of monarchy. Paine wanted to appeal to the common people in contrast to other thinkers of the time who appealed to the elite. 500,000 copies were sold by the end of the revolution. -
Declaration of Independence
The Declaration was written by Thomas Jefferson and was a formal resolution for independence. It outlined Enlightenment ideals such as natural rights and "life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness." It was accepted on July 2, 1776 and made public on July 4,1776. -
Battle of Saratoga
The Battle of Saratoga was the turning point of the American Revolution. The American victory in September of 1777 helped Benjamin Franklin convince France to join the Patriot cause. France was originally hesitant to support the patriots as they expected a British victory, but the victory at Saratoga changed their minds. Louis XVI saw it as an opportunity to weaken Britain, so he brought in his troops, lead by General Marquis de Lafayette. -
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Articles of Confederation
The Articles were the first constitution of the United States. It was influenced by existing state constitutions and largely focused political power into the legislative branch. The creators did not want to give the executive branch too much power. There was no executive branch, president, or national supreme court. Each state had veto powers to changes made to the Articles. It needed a super-majority, if there were no vetos, 9 of the 13 states needed to agree. -
Treaty of Paris
The Treaty of Paris officially marked the end of the Revolutionary War with the American victory. Britain officially recognized America as an independent nation whose western boundary would be established at the Mississippi River. -
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Shay's Rebellion
Many farmers fell into debt after they had fought in the Revolutionary War. They could not pay back debts when returning to their farms due to the inflation and new taxes. Many farmers had petitioned the state and federal governments to no avail. Daniel Shays of Massachusetts was one of those farmers and he gathered a militia of a thousand men, but they were stopped by the Massachusetts militia. This rebellion showed the weakness of the Articles of Confederation. -
Northwest Ordinance
The Ordinance promoted public education and protection of private property. It abolished slavery in the Northwest Territory and provided a means by which western territories could get a population and apply for statehood. Once 60,000 people resided in a territory, they could apply for statehood. -
The Federalist Papers
The Federalist Papers were anonymously published essays that explained the nature of the Constitution and the need for states to ratify it. John Jay got sick after writing five, James Madison wrote twenty nine, and Alexander Hamilton wrote the remaining fifty one essays. -
United States Constitution
Fifty five delegates met in Philadelphia in 1787 for the Constitutional Convention. The new draft of the constitution gave more power to the federal government, a bicameral legislature, House of Representatives, Senate, and would later have a bill of rights that would protect individuals and states from the overreach of federal power. The major themes of the constitution are federalism and the separation of powers. -
Bill of Rights
The Bill of Rights was made after the ratification of the Constitution. The purpose was to enumerate individual rights and make provisions to protect individuals and states from the overreach of federal power. -
First Bank of the United States
While Alexander Hamilton served as the Secretary of the Treasury, he established the National Bank. His plan was to unify the states in order to improve national credit. He wanted to absorb state debt into a national debt and argued that this was allowed under the Necessary and Proper Clause in the Constitution. This stabilized the national economy and the bank was established in Philadelphia, while the capitol was in between Virginia and Maryland. -
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Whiskey Rebellion
This was done in response to Alexander Hamilton taxing whiskey. This angered the poor frontier farmers, who then attacked tax collectors. Washington ended the rebellion by federalizing state militias to attack democratic republicans. -
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Federalist Party
The Federalists were mostly urban types who wanted central power in the government. Many Federalists went to various states in order to persuade them to ratify the constitution. Ultimately they wanted equal representation for all states and they favored smaller states. The main leaders of the Federalist Party were Alexander Hamilton, James Madison, and John Jay. -
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Democratic-Republican Party
Democratic-Republicans, originally known as Jeffersonians, were led by Thomas Jefferson and wanted to aid in the French Revolution. They were also champions of states rights and favored agricultural interests. In contrast to the Federalist party, the Democratic-Republicans wanted state power to be based on population. -
Proclamation of Neutrality
This was issued by George Washington during his presidency in response to the request for aid made by France. Washington decided that the US was at a fragile point and was too weak to be involved in a European War. This Proclamation stated that the US would remain neutral in foreign affairs. -
Jay's Treaty
Due to the continued British impressment of American sailors, John Jay was sent to England in order to resolve this issue. He established Jay's Treaty, which did not fix the problem, but England did agree to give up their posts on the western frontier of America. -
Treaty of Greenville
Under the terms of this treaty, the Miami Confederacy agreed to cede territory in the Old Northwest to the United States in exchange for cash payment, hunting rights, and formal recognition of their sovereign status. -
Washington's Farewell Address
In his farewell address to the Nation, Washington warned against the formation of political parties in the nation as it would divide the people rather than create a unified government. He also cautioned against involvement in foreign affairs due to the fragility of the new nation. -
Alien and Sedition Acts
The Alien Acts made it possible for the government to imprison or deport any non-citizen, which specifically targeted Irish and Scottish immigrants. The Sedition Acts made it illegal to criticize the government publicly. These were seen as an overreach of federal power and a fundamental violation of constitutional rights. -
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Kentucky and Virginia Resolutions
These were created in response to the Alien and Sedition Acts. The Democratic-Republicans wrote that states had a right to nullify any law passed by the federal government if it went beyond the powers granted by the constitution. -
Revolution of 1800
This was the electoral victory of the Democratic-Republicans over the Federalists, who lost their congressional majority and the presidency in the Election of 1800 when Thomas Jefferson won. This peaceful transfer of power between rival parties solidified faith in the political system of America.