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Jan 1, 1215
Magna Carta
The Magan Carta set down rights which became part of English law and which are now the foundation of the constitution of all countries which speak English. It inspired American Settlers to follow the guidelines it set in governing the new country. -
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Road to the Constitution
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The Creation of the Thirteen Colonies
Family life in the 13 colonies was very hard for woman and men the men had hard labor had to pay taxes and things like that and the woman had to stay home and cook and clean. There was little government other than the Colonists loyalty to the king. -
The Mayflower Compact.
he Mayflower Compact was the first governing document of Plymouth Colony. It was written by the colonists, November 11, 1620. -
Petition of Right
Important English constitutional document that sets out specific liberties of the subject that the king is prohibited from infringing. It served as a model for our Revolutionary Forefathers in writing the Declaration of Independence. -
English Bill of Rights
An Act Declaring the Rights and Liberties of England and Settling the Succession of the Crown. Written after the Glorious Revolution of 1688 which placed William and Mary on the throne. -
First Continental Congress
It was a convention if delgates from twelve North American Colonies. The purpose was to compose a statement of colonial rights, identify British Parliments violation if those rights. This resulted ina statement of complaints t King George III. -
Albany Plan of Union
Delagates from the Northern Colonies and six Iriquois met in Albany New York. It was an early attempt at forming a union of colonies under one government. It was rejected quickly because the colonists thought there was too much democracy in it. -
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The Stamp Act
The Stamp Act of 1765 was imposed on all American colonists and required them to pay tax on every piece of printed paper they used (ship's papers, legal documents, etc). The money was to be used to pay the costs of defending the American frontier. It caused tensions between England and the Colonies to rise because it was yet one more thing the Monarchy was trying to control and ake more money by imposing absurd taxes. -
The Boston Massacre
A riot where British soliders fired on a group of unarmed American colonists. The public had grown outraged over the Stamp and Townshed Acts. -
The Tea Act
It was designed to prop up the East India Company which was floundering financially and burdened with 18,000,000 pounds of tea. -
Boston Tea Party
The Boston Tea Party of 1773 was a civil rebellion against the oppressive taxes by the British government on the colonists. -
The American Revolution
By the mid 1700's economic restrictions and tax burdens imposed by the imperial powers began the revolution. The main goal was independence from the tyranny of King George I. As a result low population density continued at a slightly higher rate, and immobile rate of immigration increased. -
Secimd Continental Congress
Called by John Hancock. Thomas Jefferson, and Ben Franklin in response to The Intolerable acts. The federalists. adopting the name earlier used by supporters of the Constitution, were the conservative properous advocates of a string central government. -
The Declaration of Independce.
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The Delaration of Independece
The Declaration of Independence is a statement adopted by Continental Congress, the philosophies of Thomas Hobbes, John Locke, Plato, Aristotle, Rousseau, and Montesquieu were the foundation of the Declaration of Independence. -
The Articles of Confederation
A written agreement that served at the constitution of United States from 1781 until 1789. They set up a strong central goverment. However it could not tax or regulate commerce amoung states and a weak national goverment. -
The End of the Revolutionary War and the Critical Period of the 1780s
The Articles of Confederation had many problems. For one, each state only had one vote, with no difference based on size of state. The implementation resulted in that this act specified that no single state should be deprived of territory for the benefit of the United States government -
Mount Vernon Confreence
Comissioners from Maryland and Virginia met at George Washington's home to discuss fishing rights and to set up interstate commerce. Teh success caused them to move a step closer ti a strong federal goverment. -
Annapolis of 1786
A convention called by Virginia to discuss a uniform regulation of commerce, discuss the question of commercial regulations and other issues not covered by the Articles of Confederation. -
The Three Fifths Compromise.
A compromise between Southern & Northern states which 3/5ths of the population of slaves would be counted for enumeration purposes -
The Connecticut Compromise
Also known as the Great Compromise of 1787. Was an agreement that large and small states came to during the Constitutional Convention of 1787 that in part defined the legislative structure and representation that each state would have under the United States Constitution. -
The 1787 Constiutional Convention
The Constitutional Convention was called to make changes to the Articles of Confederation, but resulted in teh drafting of a new coonstituion instead. -
The Virginia Plan
The Virginia Plan called for the new Constitution to be ratified by conventions elected by the people of the several states. -
The New Jersey Plan
The New Jersey Plan provided that Congress might levy duties and regulate trade. It was in rebuttal to the Virginia Plan. -
The Commerce and Slave Trade Compromise
This was An agreement during the Constitutional Convention of 1787 protecting the interests of slaveholders by forbidding Congress the power to tax the export of goods from any State, and, for 20 years, the power to act on the slave trade. -
Ratifying the Constitution.
To ratify means to approve and express assent, responsiblity or obligation. There was much contorversy over this because it was a big change to American government. -
The Consitution goes into effect in 1789
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We the people of the United States, in order to form a more perfect union, establish justice, insure domestic tranquility, provide for the common defense, promote the general welfare, and secure the blessings of liberty to ourselves and our posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America."
