1. American Self Government
1.1. The Mayflower Compact
1.1.1. First self government in colonies
1.1.2. Town Meetings
1.2. Fundamental Orders of Connecticut
1.2.1. Rights of the individual
1.2.2. All eligible men can vote
1.3. House Of Burgesses
1.3.1. Elected Representatives
1.3.2. First legislature in the colonies
1.4. Albany Plan of Union
1.4.1. Federal government
1.4.2. First push for American Independence
2. Rule of Law
2.1. Magna Carta
2.1.1. No man is above the rule of law, monarchs included
2.2. English Bill of Rights
2.2.1. Freedom of Speech
2.2.2. Monarchs cannot impose taxes with the consent of Parliament
2.2.3. Monarchs are not superior to Parliament.
2.3. Salutary Neglect
2.3.1. Britain did not enforce laws in the colonies
2.3.2. Colonial self-government
3. American Respnoses
3.1. Stamp Act Congress
3.1.1. First Congress to gather
3.1.2. Only 9 colonies present
3.2. Sons of Liberty
3.2.1. Boycott British goods
3.2.2. Non-Importation Agreements in the Colonies
3.3. Boston Tea Party
3.3.1. colonists dresses as natives
3.3.2. threw British tea in the Boston Harbor
3.3.3. Protesting Tea Tax
3.4. Declaration of Rights and Grievances
3.4.1. Written by Stamp Act Congress
3.4.2. Listed complaints about the Crown
3.5. Non-importation Agreements
3.5.1. Boycott British goods
3.5.2. No more importing from Britain
3.6. Revenue Act
3.6.1. Passed by Parliament to pay for French and Indian War
3.6.2. Placed tax on goods such as sugar and molasses
3.7. Continental Association
3.7.1. Created by First Continental Congress
3.7.2. Goal was to implement a trade boycott against Great Britain
3.8. Committees of Correspondance
3.8.1. Communication between colonies
3.8.2. Used to make plans for resisting the British
3.9. Gaspee Affair
3.9.1. Ship called Gaspee used to intercept smugglers
3.9.2. Searched ships and seized goods without warrant
3.9.3. Some colonists rebelled and seized and burned the ship when it ran aground after a storm
3.10. Olive Branch Petition
3.10.1. Stated that colonist were still loyal
3.10.2. Asked the King to call off hostilities and resolve things peacefully
3.11. Suffolk Resolves
3.11.1. Encouraged colonists not to obey the Coercive Acts
3.11.2. Called for boycotts on British goods
4. British Policies
4.1. Mercantilism
4.1.1. Country should sell more than it buys
4.1.2. Prevented colonies from trading with countries other than Britain
4.2. French and Indian War
4.2.1. Land conflict between Britain and France
4.2.2. Britain won and gained land
4.2.3. Britain was deeply in dept after the war
4.2.3.1. Led to increased taxes on the colonies
4.3. Proclamation of 1763
4.3.1. Stated the Appalachian Mountain would be the western border for colonists. All land beyond belonged to natives.
4.3.2. Colonial Outrage. They felt that Britain was holding them back from expanding
4.4. Declaratory Act
4.4.1. Declared that Parliament had the power to make laws that affected the colonies
4.4.2. Was passes after colonies stated that Parliament could not control them without proper representaion
4.5. Townshend Acts
4.5.1. Revenue Act
4.5.1.1. New taxes
4.5.1.2. Writs of Assistance
4.6. Writs of Assistance
4.6.1. Type of search warrant
4.6.2. Allowed soldiers to search any location at any given time
4.7. Quartering Act
4.7.1. Required local officials to house British troops
4.8. Tea Act
4.8.1. Refunded 3/4 of the taxes on East India Company
4.8.2. Allowed East India Company to bypass colonial merchants that distributed tea
4.9. Coercive/intolerable Acts
4.9.1. Quartering Act
4.9.2. Boston Port Act
4.9.2.1. Shut down Boston's port until destroyed tea was paid for
4.9.3. Massachusetts Government Act
4.9.3.1. All government official would be appointed rather than elected
4.9.4. Administration of Justice Act
4.9.4.1. All trials for British soldiers and official would be transferred to Britain, to protect them from American juries
4.9.5. Quebec Act
4.9.5.1. A governor and council appointed by the king would run Quebec
4.10. Currency Act
4.10.1. Banned use of paper money in the colonies because it lost value quickly
5. Articles of Confederation
5.1. Created a weak central government
5.1.1. Could not tax states
5.1.2. Could not coin money
5.1.3. Could not regulate commerce
5.2. Too much power to the states
5.2.1. Shay's Rebellion
5.2.1.1. Series of protests against taxes imposed by states
5.2.1.2. revealed that the federal government did not have the power it needed
5.3. Land Ordinance of 1785
5.3.1. Attempt by the central government to raise money, since they could not tax
5.4. Northwest Ordinance
5.4.1. Created the first organized land area of the United States
6. Influential Documents
6.1. Virginia's Declaration of Rights
6.1.1. Guaranteed freedom to citizens, including the right to rise up against tyranny
6.2. Virginia's Statute for Religious Freedom
6.2.1. Granted Virginians the right to practice whichever religion they chose
7. Enlightenment
7.1. Thomas Hobbes
7.1.1. One Absolute ruler is the best form of government.
7.2. Baron de Montesquieu
7.2.1. Separation of Powers
7.3. Jean-Jacques Rousseau
7.3.1. Checks and Balances
7.4. Voltaire
7.4.1. Freedom Of Speech
7.5. John Locke
7.5.1. Social Contract Theory
8. British Taxation
8.1. George Grenville
8.1.1. Stamp Act
8.1.2. Prime Minister of Great Britain
8.2. Vice-Admiralty Court in Halifax
8.2.1. Royal Judge, not local jury
8.2.2. After Stamp Act, was used to try criminals.
8.3. Sugar Act
8.3.1. Taxed major agricultural imports and exports
8.3.2. Regulated the export of lumber and iron
9. Challenging Authority
9.1. The First Great Awakening
9.1.1. Jonathan Edwards
9.1.1.1. Powerful sermons
9.1.1.2. Emotion over reason
9.1.2. George Whitefield
9.1.2.1. Anglican preacher
9.1.2.2. Emotion over reason
9.1.3. Pietism
9.1.3.1. Individual's devoutness
9.1.3.2. Emotional Union with God
9.1.4. Revivals
9.1.4.1. Meetings of prayer and preaching
9.2. The Glorious Revolution
9.2.1. English Bill of Rights
9.2.1.1. Freedom of Speech
9.2.1.2. Monarchs are not above Parliament
9.2.2. Prevented Catholic Dynasty
9.2.2.1. King James fled, allowing Mary to assume the throne.
10. Revolutionary Events
10.1. Boston Massacre
10.1.1. Crowd of Colonists began harassing British troops
10.1.2. Soldiers called for help, and in the midst of the chaos soldiers began firing leading to the deaths of 5 people and leaving 6 others wounded
10.2. Siege of Boston
10.2.1. British took Boston, and fought dearly to keep it
10.2.2. Lost the city in the end, at the Battle of Bunker Hill
10.3. First Continental Congress
10.3.1. Issued the Declaration of Rights and Greivances
10.3.2. Continental Association
10.3.2.1. called for boycotts on British goods
10.4. Battles of Lexington and Concord
10.4.1. First battle of the Revolution
10.4.2. Set the whole war in motion
10.5. Second Continental Congress
10.5.1. Wrote the Declaration of Independence
10.5.2. Established a government for the colonies. "Articles of Confederation
10.6. "Common Sense"
10.6.1. Written by Thomas Paine
10.6.2. Pushed for Colonial independence
10.7. Declaration of Independence
10.7.1. Stated why the colonies should be loyal
11. Constitution of the United States
11.1. Important Concepts of the Constitution
11.1.1. Separation of Powers
11.1.1.1. Judicial, legislative, and executive powers must lie in separate bodies to prevent one branch from becoming too powerful
11.1.2. Federalism
11.1.2.1. Strong central government
11.1.2.2. mostly sovereign states with designated powers
11.1.3. Limited Government
11.1.3.1. The power of government is limited only to what is necessary
11.1.4. Checks and Balances
11.1.4.1. Each branch has the power to check the others in order to balance powers
11.1.5. Popular Sovereignty
11.1.6. Democracy
11.1.6.1. Power lies primarily in the people: voting on laws, issues, etc
11.1.7. Republic
11.1.7.1. Officials are chosen by the people to represent them in government
11.2. Branches of Government
11.2.1. Judicial Branch
11.2.1.1. Interpret laws
11.2.1.2. Supreme Court
11.2.2. Executive Branch
11.2.2.1. Enforces laws
11.2.2.2. President with many rolls
11.2.3. Legislative Branch
11.2.3.1. Makes Laws
11.2.3.2. Bicameral Legislature
11.2.3.2.1. House Of Representatives
11.2.3.2.2. Senate
11.3. Important Compromises
11.3.1. Great Compromise
11.3.1.1. The Virginia Plan
11.3.1.1.1. Representation based on population
11.3.1.2. The New Jersey Plan
11.3.1.2.1. Equal Represetation
11.3.1.2.2. Proposed by William Paterson
11.3.1.3. The Connecticut Plan
11.3.1.3.1. Bicameral Legislature; one body of equal representation; one body with population based representation
11.3.1.3.2. Proposed by Roger Sherman; this was the final plan for the legislature
11.3.2. Three-Fifths Compromise
11.3.2.1. Slave states
11.3.2.1.1. Wanted slaves counted in the census, because it would give them greater representation
11.3.2.2. Free States
11.3.2.2.1. Did not want slaves counted due to their small population of blacks
11.3.2.3. Compromise
11.3.2.3.1. For every 5 slaves, 3 would be counted in the census
11.4. Constitutional Covention
11.4.1. Founding Fathers
11.4.1.1. George Washington
11.4.1.1.1. President of the Convention
11.4.1.2. Benjamin Franklin
11.4.1.3. James Madison
11.4.1.3.1. Primary writer of the Constitution
11.4.1.4. Alexander Hamilton
11.4.1.4.1. Leader of the Federalists
11.4.1.5. John Adams
11.4.1.5.1. Not actually present at Convention
11.4.2. Ratification
11.4.2.1. Federalists
11.4.2.1.1. The Federalist Papers: written to convince states to ratify the Constitution
11.4.2.1.2. Supported the Constitution
11.4.2.1.3. Didn't feel that a Bill of Rights was needed, but eventually agreed to add it, in order to have complete support
11.4.2.1.4. Felt that without the Constitution, the country would become a mobocracy; the masses would rule wholey and totally, without consideration for what is actually necessary
11.4.2.2. Anti-Federalsits
11.4.2.2.1. Opposed the constitution; felt it gave too much power to the govt.
11.4.2.2.2. Wanted to add a Bill of Rights to guarantee freedoms to citizens
11.4.2.3. Bill of Rights
11.4.2.3.1. Added to ratify the Constitution
11.4.2.3.2. Guaranteed many rights to citizens and further limited the the governments power