U.S. History Midterm Study Guide – Flashcards
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Circumnavigation
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to sail completely around
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Ferdinand Magellan
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the first person to circumnavigate the world
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Christopher Columbus
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discovered the "New World"
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Isabella and Ferdinand
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the king and queen of Spain who funded Columbus
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Aztecs
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Indian tribe located in Mexico; were conquered by Hernando Cortés
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Incas
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Indian tribe located in South America, around Peru; were conquered by Franscisco Pizarro
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Franscisco Pizarro
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Spanish conquistador who conquered much of the Incan empire
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Hernando Cortés
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Spanish conquistador who conquered the Aztecs
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Plantation
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a large estate formed by many workers that mainly grew one thing
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Father Marquette
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traveled with Joilet to reach the Missisippi in 1673
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Northwest Passage
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a waterway through or around North America
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Virginia Company
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a company in London that received a charter from King James I that gave them the right to settle lands in the New World and gave the colonists that settled there the rights of English citizens
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Established Church
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the chosen religion
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John Smith
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saved the Jamestown colony by setting up stern rules that forced colonists to work if they wanted to eat
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Walter Raleigh
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raised money to outfit a colony in North America
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House of Burgesses
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an assembly of burgesses with the governor and his council that made laws the for Jamestown colony; marked the beginning of representative government in the English colonies
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William Bradford
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a Pilgrim who went to the Plymouth colony
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Mayflower Compact
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an agreement for ruling the Plymouth colony that was signed by the Pilgrims
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Squanto
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an Indian who helped the Pilgrims by giving them the seeds of native plants and by teaching the Pilgrims how to plant them
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John Winthrop
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the first governor of the Massachusetts Bay colony
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Roger Williams
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a Puritan minister in the town of Salem that believed in religious tolerance and the seperation of church and state
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Puritans
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a religious group that migrated to Massachusetts Bay during the 1630s and reformed the church by introducing simpler forms of worship
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Indigo
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a plant used to make a valuable blue dye
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Thomas Hooker
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led about 100 settlers out of Massachusetts Bay and built Hartford with them
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Quakers
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Protstant reformers who believe in equality of all people and no war or violence
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Royal Colony
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a colony under the direct control of the English crown
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Proprietary Colony
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when the king gives land to one or more people in return for a yearly payment
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Lord Baltimore
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founded the colony of Maryland and gave generous land grants to anyone who brought over servants, women, and children
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Peter Minuit
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led a group of Dutch settlers to the mouth of the Hudson River and bought Manhattan Island from the Indians
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Peter Stuyvesant
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the governor of New Netherland, who was very unpopular with the colonists, but restored law and order
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New Netherland
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founded by the Dutch, was taken over by the English and renamed New York
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New Jersey
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used to be part of New York, the Duke of York gave it two his two friends who made it into a colony
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Navigation Acts
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a series of laws passed by the English Parliment in the 1650s that regulated trade between England and it's colonies
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William Penn
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a Quaker who founded the colony of Pennsylvania because they were being prosecuted in England
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James Oglethrope
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founded Georgia and wanted it to be a place where debtors could make a fresh start
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Apprentice
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a person who worked for a master to learn a trade or craft
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French and Indian War
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a war that pitted the English against France and their Indian allies
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Gen. James Wolfe
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captured the French city of Quebec, which ended the French and Indian War
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Marquis de Montcalm
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fought against the British on the Plains of Abraham to defend Quebec, but lost
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Plains of Abraham
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was where the British fought against the French to capture Quebec
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Proclamation of 1763
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a law forbiddding English colonists to settle west of the Appalachian Mountains
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Treaty of Paris
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was signed by Britain and France and ended French power in North America; was also a peace treaty between the United States and Britain that reconized the United States as an independent country
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Gen. Edward Braddock
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led British and colonial troops in an attack against Fort Duquesne but failed because he was stubborn and had little experience at fighting in the forests of North America
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Intolerable Acts
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four strict laws passed to punish the colonists for the Boston Tea Party
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George Washington
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fought in the French and Indian War, became a brilliant commander to the Continental Army in the Revolution, and was elected president of the Constitutional Convention; was later elected President of the United States
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Olive Branch Petition
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an American petition in which they declared loyalty to the king and asked him to repeal the Intolerable Acts; was rejected by King George III
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Boston Tea Party
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a protest in which colonists dressed as Indians dumped British tea into Boston Harbor
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Stamp Act
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placed new duties on legal documents and taxed newspapers, almanacs, playing cards, and dice
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First Continental Congress
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a meeting between 12 delagates in Philadelphia
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Minutemen
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colonists who were prepared to fight at a moment's notice
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Lexington and Concord
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conflicts between Massachusetts colonists and British soldiers that started the Revolutionary War
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King George III
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the king of England during the time of the Revolutionary War
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Green Mountain Boys
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a group of Vermonters that Ethan Allen lead to attack Fort Ticonderoga
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Patriot
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a colonist who favored war against Britain
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Loyalist
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a colonist who remained loyal to Britain
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Battle of Bunker Hill
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the first major battle of the Revolutionary War
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Mercenaries
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troops for hire
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Thomas Paine
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a Patriot who wrote Common Sense, an essay that urged colonists to declare independence
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Declaration of Independence
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a 1776 document stating that the 13 colonies were a free and independent nation
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Thomas Jefferson
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a Patriot who wrote the Declaration of Independence
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Battle of Long Island
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a 1776 battle in New York in which more than 1400 Americans were killed, wounded, or captured
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Nathan Hale
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a Patriot who volunteered to go behind British lines to gather information, but was executed when he was caught
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Battle of Trenton
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was when the Americans suprised the Hessian troops and took most of them prisoner
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Battle of Saratoga
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was a major turning point in the Revolution, and it ended the British threat to New England
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Marquis de Lafayette
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a young French noble who brought trained soldiers to help the Patriot cause
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Lord Cornwallis
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led the British army but surrendered it after they lost the Battle of Yorktown
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Benedict Arnold
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a traitor to the Americans who captured and burned Virgunia's capital, Richmond, and turned over the American fort, West Point, to the British
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Valley Forge
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a makeshift camp where Washington's army stayed during the winter of 1777-1778
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John Paul Jones
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an American captain who captured the powerful British warship Sarapis
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Comte de Rochambeau
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helped Washington and his troops trap Cornwallis on the Yorktown peninsula
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Battle of Yorktown
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the final battle of the Revoutionary War that forced the British to surrender
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Constitution
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a document that sets out the laws, principles, organization, and processes of government
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Bill of Rights
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a list of freedoms that the government promises to protect; also the first 10 amendments to the U.S. Constitution
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Virginia Plan
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called for a strong national government with 3 branches, the legislative, executvive, and the judicial; the legislative would have two houses and seats would be awarded by population
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New Jersey Plan
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called for three branches of government; but the legislative would only have one house and each state would only have one vote
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3/5 Compromise
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a compromise in which 3/5 of slaves would be counted as part of the population in Southern states
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Great Compromise
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Roger Sherman's plan for the new government that combined the VA and NJ plans, and was approved on July 16,1787
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George Mason
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an Antifederalist who wrote the bill of rights for Virginia's constitution in 1776 and was one of the strongest supporters for a bill of rights
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Federalists
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supporters of the Constitution
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Antifederalists
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people who opposed the Constitution
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Amendments
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additions to the Constitution that improved or changed it
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House of Representatives
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the larger of the two bodies that make up the legislative branch of the U.S. government; representation is based on population
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Senate
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the smaller of the two bodies that make up the legislative branch of the U.S. government; representation is based on equal representation
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Supreme Court
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highest court in the U.S. established by the Constitution
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Veto
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reject, as when the President rejects a law passed by Congress
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Impeach
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to bring charges of serious wrongdoing against a public official
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Cabinet
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group of officials who head government departments and advise the President
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Seperation of Powers
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was designed to keep any person or group from gaining too much power
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Inauguration
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ceremony in which the President officially takes the oath of office
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Articles of Confederation
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the first American Constitution, approved 1777, which created a loose alliance of 13 independent states
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Northwest Ordinance
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passed by Congress in 1787, set up a government for the Northwest Territory, guaranteed basic rights to settlers, and outlawed slavery there
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Legislative Branch
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would pass the laws
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Executive Branch
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would carry out the laws
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Judicial Branch
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a system of courts that would decide if laws were carried out fairly
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1st Amendment
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Freedoms of Religion, Speech, Press, Assembly, and Petition
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2nd Amendment
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Right to Bear Arms
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3rd Amendment
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Lodging Troops in Private Homes
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4th Amendment
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Search and Seizure
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5th Amendment
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Rights of the Accussed
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6th Amendment
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Right to Speddy Trial by Jury
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7th Amendment
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Jury Trial in Civil Cases
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8th Amendment
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Bail and Punishment
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9th Amendment
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Powers Reserved to the People
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10th Amendment
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Powers Reserved to the States
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13th Amendment
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Abolition of Slavery
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14th Amendment
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Rights of Citizens
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15th Amendment
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Voting Rights
