Row 1
In August 1786, farmers in three western counties revolted. Bands of outraged citizens shut down courts in Western Massachusetts. Their logic was straightforward: with the courts closed, no one's property could be seized. In September, a poor farmer and Revolutionary War veteran led hundreds of men in a forced shutdown of the Supreme Court in Springfield, Massachusetts. What was the name of the man who spearheaded the revolt?
Daniel Shays
Who asserted that the only way to gain liberty was through the separation of powers?
Baron de Montesquieu
Congress decided to divide the Northwest Territory into smaller regions, each with a governor appointed by Congress. When a territory's population reaches a certain threshold, its citizens may draft their own constitution and apply to join the Union. What was the threshold?
60,000
The right to vote is known as what?
Suffrage
What is the name given to a time of low economic activity and rising unemployment?
Depression
The Massachusetts state government threatened the farmers with capture and death if they persisted in their revolt. These threats just fuelled followers' determination. What was the name of the farmers' uprising against high taxes and debt?
Shays’s Rebellion
This invited each state to send delegates to a convention in Philadelphia. The goal of the meeting was to improve the Articles of Confederation.
Confederation Congress
This Person of Connecticut proposed a compromise plan. The legislative branch would have two houses. Each state, regardless of its size, would have two representatives in the Senate, or upper house. This would give each state an equal voice, pleasing the smaller states.
Roger Sherman
This includes the president and the departments that help run the government. This makes sure that laws are carried out.
Executive Branch
who were people who opposed the Constitution?
Antifederalists
These essays supporting the Constitution were written anonymously under what name?
Publius
What is the name of an area presently encompassing Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Ohio, Minnesota, and Wisconsin?
Northwest Territory
In 1785, the tariff and trade situation prompted a British publication to name the new nation what?
Dis-United States
Which document said that no one could be forced to join a specific church or to pay for one with tax dollars?
Virginia Statute for Religious Freedom
Because of the low turnout in Maryland in 1786, the participants, notably James Madison and Alexander Hamilton, persuaded all 13 states to send representatives to the Constitutional Convention held in which location in May 1787?
Philadelphia
What legislation did Congress approve in order to establish a regional political system? The Northwest Territory was formed by this ordinance.
Northwest Ordinance of 1787
What legislation passed in 1689 that established Parliament's supremacy? It also prevented the king or queen from amending legislation without Parliament's approval.
The English Bill of rights
This person proposed a new federal constitution that would give sovereignty, or supreme power, to the central government. The legislature would be bicameral and chosen on the basis of state populations.
Edmund Randolph
The agreement to create a two-house legislature became known as what?
The Great Compromise
This is made up of all of the national courts. This branch is responsible for interpreting laws, punishing criminals, and settling disputes between states.
Judicial Branch
Others thought the Constitution gave too much power to the central government. Convention delegate _________ became an Antifederalist for this reason. In a speech to a Virginia ratifying convention he stated, “This power is calculated to annihilate totally the state governments.”
George Mason
On December 7, 1787, Delaware became the first state to ratify the Constitution. After New Hampshire became the ninth state to ratify it, when did it go into effect.
1788
Congress would become the country's sole arm of government, with limited powers to preserve the people's liberties. Which document does this fall under?
Articles of Confederation
Taxes on imports or exports is known as what?
Tariffs
What happens when prices for products and services rise and the value of money falls?
Inflation
Prior to the Revolutionary War, colonial ships traded heavily with the British West Indies, stopping there on their way to other destinations. What year did this travel and trading end?
1783
Who could resolve state issues, issue coinage, borrow money, and negotiate treaties with foreign countries and Native Americans?
Congress
“The Revolution has robbed us of our trade with the West Indies . . . without opening any other channels to compensate it. In every point of view, indeed, the trade of this country is in a deplorable condition.”
Who stated this
James Madison
This proposed a new federal constitution that would give sovereignty, or supreme power, to the central government.
Virginia Plan
Some delegates thought of a compromise. They wanted to count three-fifths of the slaves in each state as part of that state’s population to decide how many representatives a state would have. After much debate, the delegates voted to accept the proposal, called the what?
Three-Fifths Compromise
This keeps any single branch of government from becoming too powerful. For example, Congress has the power to pass bills into law. The president has the power to veto, or reject, laws that Congress passes. However, Congress can override the president’s veto with a two-thirds majority vote. The Supreme Court has the power to review laws passed by Congress and strike down any law that violates the Constitution.
Checks and Balances
Who are supporters of the Constitution?
Federalists
Which state became the first to ratify the Constitution?
Delaware
Which state legislature issued a large quantity of paper money worth relatively little? This made debtors (those who owe money) quite happy. They may settle their commitments using paper money worth less than the borrowed coins. However, creditors (those who lend money) were upset. Hundreds of creditors fled the state to avoid being repaid in worthless funds.
Rhode Island
What is the name given to a set of fundamental principles and laws that define the government's powers and duties?
Constitution
Following the Revolutionary War, most states struggled to meet military obligations and collect unpaid taxes. To help lessen the burden, some states began printing massive quantities of paper money. The outcome was inflation. This money had little to no real value because the states lacked the necessary reserves to back it up. What did they lack in reserves?
Gold or Silver
In 1215, King John signed a document that subjected him to the rule of law. What was the name of this document?
Magna Carta
What did Spanish officials close in 1784 to restrict US shipping, enraging Western farmers and merchants?
Mississippi River
Official approval is known as what?
Ratification
This person presented the small-state or New Jersey Plan, which called for a unicameral, or one-house, legislature. The plan gave each state an equal number of votes, and thus an equal voice, in the federal government.
William Paterson
The right of individual citizens to maintain the unalienable rights of “life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness” was supported by the idea of What? This is the idea that political authority is in the hands of the people.
Popular Sovereignty
This is the sharing of power between a central government and the states that make up a nation. Under the previous confederate system, states were only loosely joined together.
Federalism
Who was an ardent Patriot during the war, wrote a pamphlet entitled Observations on the New Constitution, in which she criticized the lack of individual rights it provided?
Mercy Otis Warren
Which state became the last to ratify the Constitution?
Rhode Island
Which philosopher felt that there was a social compact between political rulers and the people they governed?
John Locke
Early in 1786, the Virginia legislature convened a national convention. It sought to investigate economic concerns and make ideas to amend the Articles of Confederation. Which location hosted the gathering in September 1786?
Annapolis
What did Congress enact to establish a system for surveying and dividing western lands? The land was divided into 36 townships, each covering 36 square miles and consisting of 640 acres. One lot was designated for a public school, while four properties were allocated to veterans. The remainder of the lots were sold to the public.
Land Ordinance of 1785
Trade between two or more states is known as what?
Interstate Commerce
What is the name of a philosophical movement that emphasized the application of reason to old concepts and traditions?
Enlightenment
Which state refused to manufacture worthless paper money and attempted to repay its war debts by collecting land taxes?
Massachusetts
This called for a unicameral, or one-house, legislature. The plan gave each state an equal number of votes, and thus an equal voice, in the federal government. This gave the federal government the power to tax citizens in all states, and it allowed the government to regulate commerce.
New Jersey Plan
This is responsible for proposing and passing laws, which are also called legislation. It is made up of two houses, as created in the Great Compromise.
Legislative Branch
What are changes to the Constitution?
Amendments
One of the most important defenses of the Constitution appeared in a series of essays that became known as what?
Federalist Papers
What were 10 of the proposed amendments intended to protect citizens’ rights known as?
Bill of Rights