Study Guide Pre-Revolution, Revolutionary War, Constitution Pre-Revolution o Benign Neglect Idea that the colonies ran themselves from 1607-1763 o Mercantilism (define, how did it hurt the colonies economic growth?) Colonies exist only to make England rich Colonies can only trade with England and not make extra $ by trading with the world o Boston Massacre English troops open fire on Am. Protestors in Boston Eng. Army looks like the enemy (not protectors) Crispus Attucks Leader of protestors, shot dead by Eng. Troops (called 1 st casualty of Rev. War) o Acts Sugar Act (define, what was it cutting down on?) o All ships on way to America first had to land in England and pay a tax, meant to cut down of smuggling sugar (to make rum) from West Indies/Caribbean Admiralty Courts (define, why would Americans dislike this law so much? Tie to Colonial charters) o 3 Royal appointed judges decide smuggling cases o Americans lose trial by jury Stamp Act (define, Why did Americans oppose it so much? 2 reasons) o Tax on all printed goods o $ went to England to pay for Fr/Ind War o No taxation w/out Representation How did Americans resist the Stamp Act Boycott (colonies were England s largest customer- mercantilism) stop buying English goods o Committees of Inspection Gangs that went into shops to make sure English goods were not being sold (often intimidated shop owners and destroys products) o Committee of Correspondence Colonies communicated with each other to ensure boycott was being enforced One of the first displays of colonial unity o Sons of Liberty
Boston gang devoted to standing up against England (lead by Samuel Adams and responsible for Boston Tea Party) Declaratory Act (define, think- were the colonists successful in their protests against Stamp Act) Stated England could make any law what so ever (replaced Stamp Act) Not really because colonists still can t vote and the King has a right to tax colonists any time he wants Tea Act (define, why did Americans oppose it? Think-trick) o Tax on tea that lowered price of tea (bc British East India Company was given a monopoly to sell tea in colonies) o Seen as a trick to defy no taxation w/out representation (anyone who drank taxed tea at a lower price would be a hypocrite) Boston Tea Party- define, How did England and the King react o Sons of Liberty dress up as Indians and board tea boats in Boston Harbor and dump thousands of pounds of tea into harbor o England sees BTP as an act of defiance against king and Eng. feels colonies want independence Intolerable Act/ Coercive Act- Why did England pass the bill? What colony was directly affected? o Meant to punish Boston for the BTP Boston Port Bill o Boston Harbor closed until Eng. is paid back for tea destroyed Quartering Act o English soldiers could be forcibly housed in anyone s home Mass. Governor s Act o Mass. Lost its charter (rights as Englishmen) o Why did the other colonies care about the Intolerable Act if it did not apply to them? If Intolerable Acts can happen in Boston, Mass, it could happen to any other colony o 1 st Continental Congress (Why was it called and in reaction to what? Why was it significant? Think- Unity) Called to see what the colonies response should be to the Intolerable Acts 1 st time every colony met together and realized they have something in common (they are American) 2 goals of the 1 st CC o Boycott of English goods (again)
o Arm the colonists Olive Branch Petition o 1 st CC letter to King George saying the colonies do not want independence but a return to Benign Neglect What was the ultimate goal of the 1 st CC? (Hint- Not the same as the 2 nd CC) o saying the colonies do not want independence but a return to Benign Neglect o 2 nd CC wrote the Declaration of Independence o Loyalists vs. Patriots/Tories (define, ID what type of person would be attracted to each group) Loyalist- loyal to the King, did not want war (businessmen who made money trading with England) Patriot- wanted independence and war (farmer who did not need much from the Government) Revolutionary War o Lexington and Concord 1 st shots fired in Revolutionary war o Common Sense Thomas Paine, stated Americans should seek independence, most popular essay in colonies and responsible for pushing Americans to want to seek independence, not benign neglect o 2 nd Continental Congress (Why was it called?) 2 nd time colonies meet, in response to Lexington and Concord (war or peace) Declaration of Independence Author o Thomas Jefferson o Strategy British US 2 rights guaranteed to all Americans/people o Inalienable Rights- life, liberty, pursuit of happiness (based on John Locke s Natural Rightslife, liberty, property), purpose of government is to protect those rights and people can overthrow the government if those rights are not protected o Equality- all men created equal (of opportunity and under the law) Reason it was written for the world o So the world knew why the colonies were rebelling by listing the abuses by the king o Conventional war, take cities Advantages o Best army, large navy, $
style of warfare o Guerilla warfare, drag war out until England quits Advantages o Defensive war, knew terrain, fighting for a cause Disadvantages o Need to build an army, will Americans fight? o Fighting began in NE, moved to Middle Colonies, Ended in South o Battle of Saratoga (importance?) 1 st major battle won by Continental Army French alliance o Fr. Ally with US against England, Saratoga shows that colonies could win the war especially with some help Rochambeau o Commander of French troops o Valley Forge (define, importance) Americans die of exposure during winter, shows American troops willing to fight and die for cause of independence o Battle of Yorktown (define) Final battle of war, England surrenders o Treaty of Paris (negotiators for US, US original Borders, Why was it such a victory for US?) John Adams, Ben Franklin, John Jay Mississippi River, no Florida, border w Canada US was only 13 colonies along the coast but England gave them extra land in west so US would not side w France Constitution Creates a strong central government that defines how the Government is run and limitations of Government s power o Articles of Confederation (define) 1 st national Government of US Confederation (define, how did the colonies view themselves?) o Loose grouping of nations o Sovereign- each state felt it was independent Weaknesses (What was the A of C most glaring problem? ) 9/13 majority to pass laws, no president, unable to collect taxes Strength (think- unity) o AofC established the idea that 13 states were united Northwest Ordinance (define) o Plan to incorporate territories in west into states (at 60,000 people) o No slavery in Ohio Valley
o Virginia Plan (How was representation based?) Representation per state based on population (large state plan) 3 branches of Government James Madison Author of Constitution o New Jersey Plan (How was representation apportioned?) Equal representation per state (small state plan) o Great Compromise (Identify, explain the two houses created? Settled issue of representation so both large and small states agreed to join new Constitutional stronger central government Senate- 2 representatives per stae (favors small states) House of Representatives- representatives based on population (favors large states) What was the greatest issue every state wanted resolved? How did the GC resolve that problem?) Representation- each state saw themselves as independent and were giving up sovereignty, GC allowed each state to feel the had influence in the new Government o 3/5 s Compromise (define) Slaves were counted as 3/5s of a person for the census/population Representation on the House was based on population, allowed southern states to earn several more representatives by partially counting their slave population o Electoral College (define, what branch of Government is elected directly by the people?) Elects the president by counting the number of votes given to each states (#of House Reps+2 Senators=# of votes per state) Legislative Branch is elected by the people (House of Reps and Senate) o 3 Branches of Government (list and define responsibilities) Executive- President (enforce laws, head of military, veto power over laws made by legislative branch) Legislative (Congress- House of Reps and Senate) make laws, controls $, declares war Judicial- Supreme Court, make sure laws made by other two branches are fair o Rhode Island and Western Lands- Rhode Island never showed up at the convention, lands in west were a major controversy) o Federalists (define, what groups of people) Supported the Constitution Businessmen, wealthy, urban areas
o Wanted a strong central government that could protect their property Federalist Papers (What were they? How would the Gov. prevent tyranny? Checks and Balances o Federalist Papers Essays written by James Madison and Alexander Hamilton explaining why the Constitution will work o Checks and Balances- prevents one group from taking total control of country by dividing government power #10 (Explain why no one group dominates in US?) o With diversity, no one group can dominate the country o Anti-Federalists (define, what groups of people) Against Constitution bc fear of tyranny/too powerful central government like England s King Farmers (don t need much from government) afraid they will be taxed Bill of Rights 1 st 10 amendments to Constitution Protects individual rights from government o Barbary Coast- pirates off Libya stealing US trade goods (showed need to have a strong central government and navy) Early Republic o Bill of Rights (known 1 st Amendment)- list of rights to protect people from bad government, 1 st - Freedom of speech, religion, assembly, press, petition o Cabinet- advisors to the president, controversial b/c there is no mention in the Constitution yet these members have incredible power Sec, of State- Thomas Jefferson Sec. of Treasury- Alexander Hamilton o Hamilton s Policies-Hamilton wanted America to pay back it s war debts and prove to Europe that it is a real country Whiskey Tax (define)- tax on whiskey to pay back war debts Whiskey Rebellion (identify)- farmers in W. Penn. Rise up in protest of the tax (whiskey to farmers was a form of currency, plus, farmers do not need much from Government but the Government is taking property/$ from them to give to rich
Explain why it was significant to the founding of the nation.-pres. Washington sends in Army and crushes rebellion, shows that the new Government can enforce its laws Bank of the US (define) central bank to issue currency and pay back debts, ran by elite Americans Assumption (define)- Federal Government assumes war debt for all states, some states upset b/c they have little debt but have to contribute $ to pay back other state s debts Explain how Hamilton expected both policies to ensure US success If the US can show that it can pay backs debts, country can borrow more money (from Europe and wealthy Americans- if wealthy Americans invest in the country, they will be forced to help it succeed or lose their money) o 1 st American Political System (Why did political parties develop?) representatives of farmers did not like Hamilton s policies and started voting as a bloc/group against Hamilton Dem/Rep (founder) Jeffereson, farmers, rural areas Federalists (founder) Hamilton, businessmen, urban/city areas Key ideas of both parties in regards to o French Revolution support vs. Supported English monarchy Dem supported- extension of US revolution, Feds against- anarchy, Fr. Needs a strong central gov. o Strict and Loose Construction (define) Dems Strict (limit Fed. Gov. power to only what Const. says, give states rest of the power), Feds/Loose- allow Gov. to do anything not forbidden in Const, allows Gov. to grow and adapt to change o Strong/Active Gov vs. weak/states right Gov.- Feds- strong central gov- keep order, enforce law, protect property and trade; Dems- states rights- Fed. Gov. can turn tyrannical, farmers do not need help from Gov. so limit it s power o Manufacturing vs. Agriculture nation- Feds/Manufacturing- factories make more money than farming, create new goods, create
jobs; Dems- agriculture/farming- protects liberty by providing everyone with a decent living Who was the 1 st Federalist President? (Hint- 2 nd Pres.) John Adams o Washington s Farwell Address (explain)warning and advice to a young country Foreign policy isolationism/stay out of alliances with Europe (it will only drag US into war, ocean protects US) Political Parties bad, politcal Parties work for themselves, not the country o Alien and Sedition Acts (Define)unconstitutional laws created by Federalists during Adams term Alien Act immigrants could be deported for any reason Sedition Act- crime to criticize the President, Gov, country Explain why they were passed to prevent Dem/Rep. from having power (most farmers were immigrants) o Virginia and Kentucky Resolutions (Define)a state could nullify/ignore any law seen as unconstitutional (like Alien and Sedition Acts) even secede Analyze how they were a reaction to the Ky/Va Acts VA and Ky were Dem/Rep areas with farmers, Feds. Made an unconstitutional law directly targeting and hurting one group (tyranny)