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Jun 19, 1215
Magna Carta
Magna CartaThe Magna Carta was signed by King John and the Barons of midieval England in England. It was a royal charter that gave the English barons political rights. It was the first document that repuked the law. The baron's wanted to limit the royal power and protect their privileges. The Magna Carta forced the king to govern England's people according to the customs of feudal law. -
Mayflower Compact
The Mayflower Compact was signed by 42 English male colonists while aboard the Mayflower. The compact was the first governing document in Plymouth and the foundation of government in the colonies. The purpose of the compact was to prevent conflict between Puritans and non-Puritans. -
Peition of Rights
This petition was sent by the English parliament to King Charles I. The people demanded that they should not be forced to pay taxes or loans without the consent of parliament, no freeman should be imprsioned contrary to the law of the land, soldiers and sailors should be forced into homes, and the commission to punish sailor and soldiers should be abolished. -
English Bill of RIghts
The English Bill of Rights was signed by King George III. It limited the power of English sovereign and was written as an act of parliament. It gave people the freedom of speach, press, religion, and petition. It also gave the people the right to bear arms and to a speedy trial, witness, etc. -
Albany Plan of Union
Albany Plan of UnionBenjamin Franklin suggested the Albany Plan of Union, which attempted to bring the colonies together under one centralized government. It was adopted by seven of the British North American colonies, but was never actually carried out. It is associated with a cartoon of a snake broken into several pieces with the caption "Join or Die". -
French and Indain War
The French and Indian war was a part of a greater war between Great Britain and France their natives. Some of the major battles were the Battle of Quebec, the Battle of River Mononganela, and the Battle of Lake George. In the end, Great Britain ultimately won gaining more territory in North America. This war lead to the American Revoluation since the British afterwards heavily tax their colonies to pay for the war. -
King George III takes pwoer
Winning the French and Indian war was very bad for Britain, because the common thread that kept Britain and America together was no longer there. The French and Indian harmed the relationship between Biritain and the colobies and acted as a catalyst for the Americans indenpendence from Britain. -
Stamp Act
All paper documents in the colonies were taxed due to this act, which upset the colonists and caused them to rebel against the British. -
Boston Massacre
During the Boston Massacre five colonist died and six were injured. The crowds had gathered in disagreement over the Stamp Act, which taxed all legal or printed documents. The British soldiers turned and fired at the angry colonist. -
Boston Tea Party
The sons of liberty were angry about the taxation on American tea importation and decided to raid three British ships and dump the tea into the Boston Harbor. The Britished responded by making the Introable Acts, which closed the Boston ports and destoryed the Massachusetts governement. -
Intolerable Acts
The British passed this act becuase King George III wanted to punish the colonies for the Boston Tea Party. The colonists' repsonded by creating the continental congress and continental assoication. The colonies decided to cut off all trade with Great Britain. -
First Continental Congress
George Washington, Patrick Henry, Benjamin Harrison, and Peyton Randolf were the major personalities involved with the first Continental Congress. There was only twelve of the thirteen colonies at the meeting. The meeting was held in Carpenter's hall in Philadelphia. The leaders decided to boycott all British goods and planned on having a second meeting. As a result of the first meeting, parliament decided to repeal the Stamp Act. -
Lexington and Concord
Thiese battles were the first military engcounters of the American Revolution. The major generals involved were Lt. Col. Francis Smith, John Pitcairn, and John Parker. Paul Revere rode through the town of Lexington to inform the people of the British arm's advance. Due to these conflicts, war between the colonies and Britain was initiated. This war is known as the American Revolutioin. -
Second Contintental Congress
This meeting took place in Philadelphia and the leaders invovled were Benjamin Franklin, John Hancock, and Lyman Hall. The main ideas that came from this meeting were to prepare for war. but to come to a peacful agreement by giving the King a petition. -
Declaration of Independence
History of Declaration of IndependenceThe Declaration of Independence is a formal statement of the colonies intentions. The main writers of the declaration are Thomas Jefferson, John Adams, and Benjamin Franklin. The colonist thought they were being treated unfairly and wanted to gain independence from Great Britain. -
Articles of Confederation
The first president under the Articles of Confederation was George Washington. The Articles of Confederation created a loose central governement and gave most of the power to the state governements. It formed a loose confederation of soverign states. -
Start of Constitutional Convention
The convention started out as a peaceful overthrow of the new American government defined by the Articles of Confederation. The states that attended the convetion were Massachusetts, New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Georgia. They assembled in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
