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Salutary Neglect
Salutary Neglect was Britain’s unofficial policy to relax the strict enforcement of parliamentary laws in the 17th and 18th century to keep colonies in America in check. Colonists learned to govern themselves as a result. -
Minutemen
Minutemen were civilians who were part of independent militia in the American Revolution. They were called minutemen as they were known to be ready to fight at a moments notice, or in a minute. -
Intolerable Acts
The Intolerable Acts were four laws passed in the colonies after the Boston Tea Party to punish them. It led to the colonists going against the British government even more. -
Lexington and Concord
The battles of Lexington and Concord were fought back to back and were the tipping point for the start of the American Revolution. -
Common Sense
A pamphlet written by Thomas Paine to encourage colonists from the 13 colonies to support independence from England. -
Whigs
The Whig party was a political party which supported the American Revolution and a strong central government which consisted of a national bank and federal subsidies for projects, for example. -
Declaration of Independence
The Declaration of Independence was a document outlining the colonists demands for independence and gave a physical form to the revolution. -
Unicameral legislature
A Unicameral Legislature is a one house legislature. This was established in the Articles of Confederation and did not include a executive or legislative system. This was changed after the AOC was abolished. -
Checks and Balances
Checks and Balances is a system in which each sector of the government keeps the other two at the same level, keeping any one sector from getting too powerful. This holds everyone accountable and keeps democracy in the government. -
Battle of Yorktown
The Battle of Yorktown or the Siege of Yorktown was a major battle in the American Revolutionary War and the battle in which the British surrendered and the war was won by the Americans. -
Article of Confederation
The Articles of Confederation were a very early version of the constitution that was put in place by the Second Continental Congress. It was a very weak version of a constitution and it was eventually replaced by the US Constitution. -
NJ Plan
The New Jersey plan or the small state plan gave all states, no matter the population, the same representation in the government. It was a counter to the Virginia Plan. -
Federalist Papers
The Federalist Papers was a series of essays, 85 in total, written by Alexander Hamilton, John Jay, and James Madison. They wrote these papers to promote the ratification of the Constitution to the colonists. -
Federalist Era
The Federalist Era was a period from 1788 to 1800 in which the Federalist Party was the main party in American governments. They promoted a strong centralized US government. -
Federalists
The Federalists were a political party at the dawn of the American Government which believed in a strong central government. They’re policies included the creation of a national bank, the assumption of states debts, and the passage of tariffs to protect American shipping. -
Anti-Federalists
Anti-Federalists were a group that opposed a large central government and were the main proponents for the Bill of Rights as they were afraid there would be another overreach of government power just like the British government did. -
Bill of Rights
The Bill of Rights is the first ten amendments to the constitution. They protect individual rights and were added to ensure to the public that the government would protect their rights. -
National Bank
The National Bank was established by Alexander Hamilton. It was a part of the government and controlled commercial transactions, taxation, and issuing money. -
Proclamation of Neutrality
The Proclamation of Neutrality was a proclamation by George Washington’s administration which declared the US neutral in the war between the British and French. -
Washington’s Farewell Address
Washington’s Farewell Address established that the presidents role was not one of a kings. It sent a four year precedent for each presidents term before it was written into the government.
