unit two vocab

navigation acts

laws that governed trade between england and its colonies. colonists were required to ship certain products exclusively to england. these acts made colonists very angry because they were forbidden from trading with other countries.

salutary neglect

british colonial policy during the reigns of george I and george II. relaxed supervision of internal colonial affairs by royal bureacrats contributed significantly to the rise of american self government

french and indian war

war fought in the colonies between the english and the french for possession of the ohio valley area.

treaty of paris (1763)

ended french and indian war, france lost canada, land east of the mississippi to british. they also lost new orleans and west of mississippi to spain

pontiac's rebellion

an indian uprising after the french and indian war, led by an ottowa chief named pontiac. they opposed british expansion into the western ohio valley and began destroying british forts in the area. included various tribes such as algonquian, iroquoian, and muskogean

royal proclamation of 1763

a proclamation to where the colonists couldn't move and expand to the west of the appalachian mountains. that was preserved for the native americans.

stamp act

an act passed by the british parliment in 1756 that taxed american colonies on all newspapers , dice, playing cards, and legal or commercial documents

sons of liberty

a group of colonists who formed a secret society to oppose british policies after the passage of the stamp act. they incited riots and burned the customs houses where the stamped british paper was kept.

boston massacre

the first bloodshed of the american revolution. british guards at the boston customs house opened fire on a crowd killing five americans colonists

committees of correspondence

organization founded by samuel adams consisting of a system of communication between patriot leaders in new england and throughout the colonies. they provided the organization necessary to unite the colonies in opposition to parliament.

boston tea party

protest by citizens of boston who (disguised as mowhawks) raided three british ships and dumped hundreds of chests of tea into the boston harbor

coercive acts

series very harsh laws that intended to make massachusetts pay for its resistance. it closed down the boston harbor until the colonists paid for the ruined tea and forced colonists to shelter soldiers in their own homes.

lexington and concord

first battles of the revolutionary war, fought outside of boston. the colonial militia successfully defended their stores of munitions, forcing the british to retreat to boston.

common sense

a pamphlet written by thomas paine that criticized monarchies and convinced many american colonists of the need to break away from britain

declaration of independence

the document recording the proclamation of the second continental congress asserting the independence of the colonies from great britain

loyalists

american colonists who remained loyal to britain and opposed the war for independence

battle of saratoga

american victory over british troops in 1777 that was a turning point in the american revolution. it convinced the french to give the u.s military support.

treaty of alliance

a defensive alliance between france and the american colonies, formed in the midst of the american revolutionary war, which promised military support in case of attack by british forces indefinitely into the future.

battle of yorktown

last major battle of the revolutionary war. cornwallis and his troops were trapped in the chesapeake bay by the french fleet. he surrendered October 19, 1781.

treaty of paris (1783)

ended the revolutionary war, recognized the independence of the american colonies, and granted the colonies the land

articles of confederation

a weak constitution that governed america during the revolutionary war. had no executive, no judicial, no power to tax, no power to regulate trade

shays' rebellion

a 1787 rebellion in which ex-revolutionary war soldiers attempted to prevent foreclosures of farms as a result of high interest rates and taxes

james madison

the 4th president of the us. he is credited with the name "father of the constitution" for being the primary author of the us constitution and the bill of rights. wrote the federalist papers in 1788.

virginia plan

virginia delegate james madison's plan of government, in which states got a number of representatives in congress based on their population

new jersey plan

the proposal at the constitutional convention that called for equal representation of each state in congress regardless of the state's population (one vote per state)

the federalist papers

a collection of 85 articles written by alexander hamilton, john jay, and james madison under the name "publius" to defend the constitution in detail.

bill of rights

the first ten amendments to the constitution

alexander hamilton

first secretary of the treasury. he advocated creation of a national bank, assumption of state debts by the federal government, and a tariff system to pay off the national debt.

bank of the united states

proposed by hamilton as the basis of his economic plan. he proposed a powerful private institution, in which the government was the major stockholder. this would be a way to collect and amass the various taxes collected and provide a strong and stable national currency.

northwest ordinance

enacted in 1787, it is considered one of the most significant achievements of the articles of confederation. it established a system for setting up governments in the western territories so they could eventually join the union on an equal footing with the original 13 states

jay's treaty

said that americans had to pay british merchants debts owed from before the revolution. britain sought to improve trade relations and agreed to withdraw from forts in the northwest territory but did nothing to stop impressment

pinckey treaty

signed by the spanish; granted the united states the right to navigate the mississippi and to deposit goods at the post of new orleans.

treaty of greenville

gave america all of ohio after general anthony wayne battled and defeated the indians at the battle of fallen timbers. allowed americans to explore the area with and granted very fertile land to america.

whiskey rebellion

farmers in pennsylvania rebelled against hamilton's tax on whiskey, and several federal officers were killed in the riots. later on, an army led by washington, put down the rebellion and showed that under the constitution, the government could react swiftly and effectively to disorder.

federalist party

lead by alexander hamilton, wanted to strengthen the federal government, supported the national bank and a strong central government, and promote industry and trade.

democratic-republican party

led by thomas jefferson, believed people should have political power, favored strong state governments, emphasized agriculture, strict interpretation of the constitution, opposed bank of united states

alien and sedition acts

acts passed by federalists giving the government power to imprison or deport foreign citizens and prosecute critics of the government

kentucky and virginia resolutions

political declarations in favor of states' rights, written anonymously by thomas jefferson and james madison, in opposition the the alien and sedition acts. maintained that states could nullify federal legislation they regarded as unconstitutional

xyz affair

american delgates were supposed to be meeting french foreign minister, talleyrand, but instead they were sent 3 officials adams called "x,y, and z" that demanded $250,000 as a bribe to see talleyrand.

election of 1800

jefferson elected; defeats adams, first peaceful, orderly transfer of power. were tied in electoral vote so house of representatives had to decide the outcome

marbury v. madison

greatly expanded the power of the supreme court by establishing its right to overturn acts of congress, a power not explicitly granted by the constitution

john marshall

american jurist and politician who served as the chief justice of the u.s. supreme court and helped establish the practice of judicial review. was appointed by john adams

barbary pirates

pirates off the mediterranean coast of africa; president thomas jefferson's refusal to pay them tribute to protect american ships sparked an undeclared naval war with north african nations

louisiana purchase

territory west of the mississippi river basin purchased from france in 1803 for $15 million

lewis and clark expedition

commissioned by jefferson to map and explore the louisiana purchase region. it produced extensive maps of the area and recorded many scientific discoveries, greatly facilitating later settlement of the region and travel to the pacific coast.

impressment

the british practice of taking american sailors from american ships and forcing them into the british navy; a factor in the war of 1812.

the chesapeake incident

named after the the american ship that refused to allow the british on the leopard to board to look for deserters. in response, the leopard fired on the it.

embargo act (1807)

this act issued by jefferson forbade american trading ships from leaving the u.s. it was meant to force britain and france to change their policies towards neutral vessels by depriving them of american trade. was opposed by merchants and everyone else whose livelihood depended upon international trade.

tecumseh's indian confederacy

a group of native americans under leadership of shawnee leader tecumseh and his prophet brother tenskwatawa. its mission of fighting off american expansion was thwarted in the battle of tippecanoe (1811), when the confederacy fell apart.

war hawks

southerners and westerners who were eager for war with britain. they had a strong sense of nationalism, and they wanted to takeover british land in north america and expand.

treaty of ghent

ended the war of 1812 and restored the status quo. for the most part, territory captured in the war was returned to the original owner. it also set up a commission to determine the disputed aanada/u.s. border.

battle of new orleans

a battle during the war of 1812 where the british army attempted to take new orleans. due to the foolish frontal attack, jackson defeated them, which gave him an enormous popularity boost.

hartford convention

meeting of federalists near the end of the war of 1812 in which the party listed it's complaints against the ruling republican party. these actions were viewed as traitorous to the country and lost the federalist influence