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Early America -- Mid Year 2008
flashcards for the mid year exam
104
History
9th Grade
02/10/2008

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Term
administration
Definition
A president's term in office, or the group of officials that makes up the executive branch, including the president
Term
Alexander Hamilton
Definition
Officer in the War for Independence: delegate to the Constitutional Convention; Federalist and first secretary of treasury
Term
American Revolution
Definition
The war for independence and the social and political changes that accompanied the creation of the United States.
Term
Anti-Federalist
Definition
one who opposed the new Constitution between 1787 and 1789.
Term
Articles of Confederation
Definition
first governing document of the USA; left most power to the state legislatures,no executive branch, very limited court functions, unicameral legislature, every state one vote. (1781).
Term
Askia Muhammad
Definition
the ruler of the Songhai Empire who profited most from the trade.
Term
Astrolabe
Definition
an astronomical instrument used to measure the altitude of the sun and the stars to find location
Term
balance of trade
Definition
viewed as the only way to obtain more bullion; to export more goods than import
Term
Battle of Bunker Hill
Definition
June, 1775; Patriots had surrounded Boston and the British Army. Gen. Thomas Gage ordered a frontal assault by about 2200 troops on the Patriot camp on the top of Breed's hill to drive them out. The Patriots would have been victorious had their defenses not been cut short by lack of amunition; over 1000 British casualties.
Term
Battle of Lexington and Concord
Definition
April, 1775; one of the earliest battles of the War for Independence; British destroyed Patriot war supplies. Scattered Patriot forces utilized guerilla warfare on the British troops on their way back to Boston; 273 British casualties, 95 Patriot casualties.
Term
Battle of Trenton
Definition
December 25, 1776; MA fishermen took Washington and 2400 of his men across the Delaware to Trenton, NJ; they attacked the Hessian forces at dawn with great success and not a single casualty. This was extremely important in boosting the Patriots' morales.
Term
Battle of Yorktown
Definition
September/October, 1781; Washington's forces lay siege to Cornwallis's in Yorktown, in the Chesapeake Bay area. French forces turned back a British fleet and Cornwallis was trapped by a force double the size of his own. On October 19, 1781 he surrendered his army to Washington and the French.
Term
Benin
Definition
one of the three energetic forest kingdoms located in Guinea.
Term
Bill of Rights
Definition
The first ten amendments to the Constitution; they guarantee basic rights.
Term
Boston Tea Party
Definition
Demonstration in 1773 in which American colonists threw tea from ships in the Boston harbor to protest British Taxes
Term
Boycott
Definition
A means of protest based on refusing to buy products or use services.
Term
cabinet
Definition
Heads of the major departments of the U.S. government who advise the president.
Term
Caravel
Definition
a ship which could sail both with the wind and against it (gave Portugal a head start in world exploration).
Term
Clan
Definition
type of kinship network; consists of a group of families descended from a common ancestor.
Term
Colony
Definition
land areas settled by immigrants who continue to be the subject of their mother country
Term
Confederation
Definition
alliance of states formed to coordinate common defense and relations with foreign governments.
Term
Congregacion
Definition
villages established by the Spanish to force Native Americans to adapt Spanish customs and religion.
Term
Conquistador
Definition
conquerors -- term for the first Spanish invaders of the New World (came for "God, Glory, and Gold")
Term
Crusades
Definition
a war that was fought over 150 years in the year 1096; between the Turks, Christians, and Muslims over their "holy land," Jerusalem.
Term
Declaration of Independence
Definition
Document declaring the independence of the United States from British Rule under George III
Term
Depression
Definition
an economic slump characterized by decreased spending by consumers.
Term
District of Columbia
Definition
a grand name for the federally governed area of the capital
Term
Division of Labor
Definition
The way that tasks are assigned within a culture; in many traditional cases, different jobs for men and women.
Term
Electoral College
Definition
a meeting of the electors, people elected by the populace to be the ones to actually vote for president - each state has as many electors as it has members of Congress
Term
enclosure movement
Definition
Practice began in the late 1500's in Great Britain of forcing tenants off the land in order to enclose it to raise sheep.
Term
Encomienda system
Definition
system where Native Americans were required to farm, ranch, or mine for the profit of a Spaniard. In return, they received protection.
Term
Executive branch
Definition
Branch of government which carries out laws.
Term
Faction
Definition
a separate subgroup within a political system or a "special interest group"
Term
Fall Line
Definition
where the inland hills meet the coastal plain; in New Jersey, one fall line is Paterson Falls
Term
Federalists
Definition
a supporter of the new United States Constitution in the 1780's; later a political party organized by Hamilton.
Term
Feudalism
Definition
a system of duties and exchanges among members of European medieval society, based on land, war, and tradition.
Term
forks of the Ohio River
Definition
the place where the Allegheny and Monongahela rivers meet to form the Ohio.
Term
French and Indian War
Definition
War fought by the British and their colonists against the French and their Native American allies from 1754 to 1763
Term
George Washington
Definition
First President of the United States, led colonists for the Americans in the American Revolution. He also fought in the Fench and Indian War.
Term
Great Awakening
Definition
a revival of religious feelings (during 1730's and 1740's)
Term
Great Compromise
Definition
a plan combining other plans (mostly the New Jersey and Virginia plans) where there would be a bicameral legislature with one house having representation by population, and the other receiving equal representation for each state regardless of population
Term
Guinea
Definition
the area in Africa with the heaviest interaction of Europeans and Africans.
Term
Hidalgo
Definition
young Spanish gentlemen; some came to the New World for "God, Glory, and Gold."
Term
Hierarchy
Definition
social system of many levels in which each level has power over the levels beneath it
Term
indentured servant
Definition
Person who contracts to work for another for a period of time (usually seven years), in return for travel costs, food, and shelter; received land at the end of the indentured period.
Term
Inflation
Definition
steady increases of prices over time that reduce people's ability to buy goods
Term
Intolerable Acts
Definition
Colonists name for Coercive Acts of 1774 passed by British gov't meant to punish Massachusetts
Term
James Madison
Definition
the most influential person at the constitutional convention, he was very knowledgeable on law and politics, and brought many ideas to the convention.
Term
Jamestown
Definition
The first successful colony in the new world from Great Britain. In a mosquito-infested swamp 60 miles from the mouth of the James River in the Chesapeake Bay region.
Term
John Smith
Definition
The leader of the gentlemen who wished to come to Virginia.
Term
joint-stock company
Definition
Company of investors who contribute to the cost of a venture and receive a share of the profits (sharing the risks).
Term
Judicial branch
Definition
Branch of government that decides if laws are consistent and interprets them.
Term
King George III
Definition
King of England during the American Revolution
Term
Kinship Network
Definition
a type of social organization consisting of relatives and those who marry into the family
Term
Koran
Definition
the holy book of the Islamic faith.
Term
Legislative branch
Definition
Branch of government which makes the laws.
Term
Lineage
Definition
a kinship network where the people in it trace their line of origin from a common ancestor.
Term
Low Country
Definition
Seaboard of South Carolina and Georgia which has land perfect for rice (also indigo)
Term
Loyalists/Tories
Definition
Colonists that opposed fighting for independence from Britain during the Revolution and preferred to remain loyal to King George III
Term
mercantilism
Definition
an economic theory that was meant to increase a nation's wealth and, with it, its power; as much bullion as possible
Term
Metacom
Definition
Leader of Pokanokets in Massachusetts; also known by his English name, King Phillip; led Native Americans in King Phillip's War, 1675-1676
Term
Middle Passage
Definition
section of triangular trade between Africa and America
Term
minutemen
Definition
Colonists who fought British forces in the American Revolution; pledged to volunteer military services at a minute's notice
Term
Mutinies
Definition
Physical resistance by sailors or passengers on ships; some cases of mutinies by enslaved Africans on slave ships.
Term
Nationalist
Definition
Member of 1780s political party which supported strong national government control over states.
Term
natural rights
Definition
Rights that belong to people simply because they are human, not granted by a monarch or government
Term
New Jersey Plan
Definition
a plan in which states receive equal representation in a unicameral legislature regardless of population (favored smaller states like NJ).
Term
Oral Tradition
Definition
method of relaying history and beliefs from generation to generation by word of mouth
Term
Patriots
Definition
Colonists that supported fighting for independence from Britain during the Revolution
Term
Pontiac's Rebellion
Definition
Native American revolt against British policies in the Great Lakes region in the 1760's.
Term
Pope (p. 44)
Definition
“brilliant medicine man” rallied disheartened Pueblos and Apaches and revolted against the mistreatment of Native Americans.
Term
popular sovereignty
Definition
Belief that people can and should govern themselves
Term
Powhatan
Definition
The leader of the Pamunkey tribe in the Chesapeake Bay region
Term
Presidio (p. 43)
Definition
forts built by the Spanish in the New World to protect their trade routes
Term
Quadrant
Definition
an astronomical instrument which uses the sun and the stars to find position on a map
Term
Ratify
Definition
to formally approve a suggested action or document.
Term
Reformation
Definition
Religious movement in Western Europe in the 1500's originally aimed at reforming the Roman Catholic Church. This resulted in the formation of Protestant Churches.
Term
Renaissance
Definition
great rebirth of learning and creativity in Europe that began during the 1300s
Term
sachem
Definition
leader of a Native American culture group
Term
salutary neglect
Definition
Great Britain neglected to enforce colonies' trade laws and regulate their economies, yet the effects were beneficial.
Term
separation of powers
Definition
the idea that the federal government would be broken into different branches, each with their own responsibilities and powers - the three branches were: legislative, executive, and judicial
Term
social contract
Definition
Agreement between those who govern and those who are governed, defining the rights and limits of each
Term
Songhai
Definition
pre-colonial African state centered in eastern Mali, one of the largest African empires in history.
Term
Stamp Act
Definition
British act passed that required all printed good to be marked with a stamp showing the tax had been paid.
Term
system of checks and balances
Definition
a system where each of the three branches of government had certain checks over the other branches, limiting everyone's power
Term
The Proclamation of 1763
Definition
an act passed by British government that prohibited American colonists from settling west of the Appalachian Mountains
Term
Thomas Jefferson
Definition
An American aristocrat who wrote Declaration of Independence along with four other people appointed by the Continental Congress
Term
Thomas Paine
Definition
Author of the political pamphlet Common Sense, written in 1776
Term
Three Fifths Compromise
Definition
an agreement that slaves would count as 3/5 of a person in population counts for representation in a legislative house
Term
Treaty of Paris
Definition
Signed in September, 1783 at the close of the revolution; George III no longer the ruler of the colonies; granted popular sovereignty
Term
triangular trade
Definition
the trade between three points in the Atlantic World: the Americas, Europe, and Africa; transported rum, firearms, slaves, sugar, etc.
Term
veto
Definition
the ability of the President to choose not to sign a bill passed by Congress - this is one of the checks, and can be overturned by a 2/3 majority vote in congress
Term
Virginia Plan
Definition
a plan in which states receive representation in a unicameral legislature based on population (favored larger states like VA).
Term
War for Independence
Definition
War fought between American Colonists and Great Britain from 1775-1783, resulting in an independent United States of America
Term
Washington (capital)
Definition
the name of the capital city (not used until 1799)
Term
Roanoke
Definition
enterprise financed and organized by Sir Walter Raleigh to establish the first Virginia colony; colonists arrived in groups between 1585 and 1587; later completely disappeared, leaving enigmatic trace: the word "Croatoan" carved into a post of the fort.
Term
headright system
Definition
Virginia Company incentive plan: new settlers who paid their own passage to Virginia were granted one headright (50 acres of land).
Term
Republican Party
Definition
originally called the Democratic-Republican Party, founded by Jefferson and Madison in 1792 to oppose the economic and foreign policies of the Federalists (Hamilton's party) -- not related to present-day Rep. party.
Term
unwritten constitution
Definition
important parts of gov't not explicitly mentioned in Constitution (such as the Cabinet, Judicial Review, Political Parties, Congressional Committees).
Term
Maryland Toleration Act
Definition
penalties against non-Christians while providing equal protection for the freedom of worship of all Christians in Maryland (1649).
Term
Mayflower Compact
Definition
bound the signers into a body politic for the purpose of forming a government and pledged them to abide by any laws and regulations that would later be established; signed by 41 adult passengers.
Term
Charter
Definition
document from the King formalizing the legal status of a colony.
Term
Olive Branch Petition
Definition
signatories (1775) attempted to assert their rights while maintaining their loyalty to the British crown; refused by George III; used as example of attempted compromise.
Term
Republic
Definition
any form of government not headed by an hereditary monarch.
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