chapters 8 + 9 Flashcards
2nd Continental Congress
The delegates drafted petitions to Britain expressing loyalty to the Crown/hoping to avoid war, & raised money to create an army & navy
Olive Branch Petition
Declared American loyalty to Britain, but King George III rejected it, declaring the colonies in rebellion.
“War of inconsistency”
Period before the Declaration of Independence when fighting had begun but formal independence hadn’t been declared.
Ft. Ticonderoga
Ethan Allen & Benedict Arnold led forces to capture the British Ft., securing vital gunpowder & artillery for use in the Siege of Boston.
Battle of Bunker Hill
(Technically Breed’s Hill), colonists seized the hill & held it against 3 waves of British attack until they ran out of powder & British took the hill on the 4th attack
Common Sense
Book by Thomas Paine that said America should separate from Britain; Republican government is beneficial b/c power flowed from the people themselves, not from a despotic monarch
Declaration of Independence
Richard Henry Lee proposed independence on June 7, 1776, on July 4, 1776, the document was adopted (largely written by Jefferson). Listed grievances against King George III & borrowed ideas from John Locke’s natural rights. The document inspired other revolutions (ex. French Revolution)
Continental Army
Poorly trained army formed after American Revolutionary War by the colonies, Commander-in-Chief was General George Washington
Quebec (Invasion of Canada)
Americans aimed to make Quebec the 14th colony. General Richard Montgomery & Benedict Arnold led invasion but failed (Montgomery killed & Arnold wounded)
Battle of Saratoga
General Howe attacked and “liberated” Philadelphia instead of joining Burgoyne because he wanted to force a general engagement with Washington. As a consequence, Burgoyne was defeated at Saratoga. Considered the turning point in the war because it revived the American cause and made possible much needed aid from France. Spain also joined the American side
Treaty of Alliance (w/France) also alliance with Spain and Holland
Franklin negotiated a treaty with France based on commercial ties rather than military or political connections (provided gunpowder, supplies, & the French navy)
Battle of Newtown
Involved 25% of U.S. troops. Aim was to drive the Iroquois out of NY b/c they supported the Brits & were harassing American settlers (goal was met & the Iroquois died in large numbers)
Treaty of Ft. Stanwix
As a result of their allegiance to the British, the Iroquois were forced to cede most of their land to the U.S.
Battle of Yorktown
British General Cornwallis, trapped at Yorktown by American and French forces, surrendered on October 19, 1781, marking the effective end of the war.
Treaty of Paris (1783)
Brits recognized independence of the U.S. w/ generous boundaries. Americans agreed not to persecute Loyalists & recommend Loyalist property be returned (treaty broken on both sides).
Articles of Confederation
First written constitution of the U.S., ratified in 1781, established weak central government that lacked the power to tax & regulate trade
Newburgh Conspiracy
Mutinous soldiers demanded back pay, Washington quelled the rebellion by giving a speech in which he said, “I have grown old & blind in the service of my country.” (Shortly afterward, Congress approved a plan to pay the soldiers.)
Land Ordinance of 1785
The acreage of the Old Northwest would be sold to pay off national debt. Land was divided into townships of 6 sq. mi. & a section of each town was set aside for a school.
Northwest Ordinance of 1787
When a territory had 60,000
people, it could become a
state, enslavement outlawed (enslaved people already present were exempted)
Shays’ Rebellion
Series of protests by poor farmers in the West who lost their farms through mortgage foreclosures due to tax delinquencies (also felt underrepresented in state govt.)
Philadelphia Constitutional Convention
55 delegates from every state except RI, sought to curb “unrestrained democracy” – ensuring security of life & property against uprisings by the “mobocracy”
Virginia Plan
(Madison, “large state” plan): 2 houses, representation based on population in both (gave larger states an advantage)
New Jersey Plan
(Patterson, “small state” plan): 1 house, equal representation regardless of state size (favored small states)
Great Compromise
(Sherman) Equal representation in Senate, representation by population in House
