European Exploration & Early Colonization
This conquistador defeated the Aztecs in 1521—with help from smallpox and the Tlaxcala.
Who is Hernan Cortez?
This system awarded 50 acres of land to anyone who financed the passage of a laborer.
Passed in 1765, this measure required colonists to purchase official marks on legal documents, newspapers, and playing cards—sparking widespread protest because it was the first direct tax Parliament imposed solely to raise revenue.
What is the Stamp Act?
Despite his courage, discipline, and ability to inspire troops, this future president lacked formal military training and strategic expertise, forcing him to rely heavily on experienced foreign officers and adaptable defensive tactics during the Revolution.
What is military strategy?
Under the Articles, passing national legislation required this supermajority vote, making even basic governing difficult and causing gridlock among the states.
What is 9 out of 13 states?
By linking the Old World and the New World through the movement of plants, animals, microbes, and people, this process reshaped global power balances—ultimately fueling European colonization and Native demographic collapse.
What is the Columbian Exchange?
Seen by historians as a turning point in colonial labor systems, this violent conflict demonstrated elite fears of class rebellion and contributed to the rapid expansion of lifelong hereditary slavery.
What is Bacon's Rebellion?
This Pennsylvania statesman opposed an immediate push for independence, believing the colonies were not yet militarily or economically prepared, and instead drafted the Olive Branch Petition as a last appeal to King George III.
Who is John Dickinson?
This 1781 naval victory by the French fleet prevented British reinforcements from reaching Cornwallis, trapping the British army at Yorktown and making the final American triumph militarily possible.
What is the Battle of the Chesapeake?
At the Constitutional Convention, these two competing proposals—one favoring population-based representation and the other supporting equal representation—forced delegates to negotiate the Great Compromise that created today’s bicameral Congress.
What are the Virginia Plan and the New Jersey Plan?
Portugal pioneered this economic system on African islands—later transplanted to the Americas.
What is the Plantation System?
Though brief, this 1620 agreement marked the first time English colonists consented to government by mutual agreement rather than royal authority, signaling a shift toward colonial autonomy.
What is the Mayflower Compact?
Passed after the Boston Tea Party, these punitive measures—designed to reassert British authority—closed Boston Harbor, altered Massachusetts’ charter, and allowed royal officials to avoid colonial courts.
What are the Intolerable Acts?
This 1777 American victory, resulting from British miscommunication and skilled patriot leadership, proved to France that the Continental Army could defeat Britain—securing the crucial military alliance that changed the course of the war.
What is the Battle of Saratoga?
Widespread fear of social unrest grew after this armed uprising of indebted farmers in Massachusetts, exposing the federal government’s inability to maintain order or respond to internal crises.
What is Shays' Rebellion?
This 1494 agreement divided the New World between Spain and Portugal.
What is the Treaty of Tordesillas?
This 1649 Maryland act was the first colonial law to protect Christian religious freedom, passed largely to safeguard Catholics in a colony increasingly dominated by Protestants.
What is the Act of Toleration?
Long before he commanded the Continental Army, this colonial officer’s failed defense at Fort Necessity demonstrated both his ambition and the escalating imperial rivalry that soon plunged Europe and America into war.
Who is George Washington?
This Prussian officer transformed the Continental Army at Valley Forge by introducing European-style discipline, drilling techniques, and a standardized training manual, turning Washington’s troops into a professional fighting force.
Who is Friedrich von Steuben?
This agreement at the Constitutional Convention settled a dispute between Northern and Southern states by counting only a portion of the enslaved population for purposes of representation and taxation—strengthening Southern political power in the new government.
What is the 3/5ths Compromise?
This early colonial system granted Spanish landowners the right to Native American labor in exchange for supposed “protection.”
What is the Encomienda System?
Created by King James II in the 1680s, this administrative merger placed New England (and later New York and New Jersey) under the control of a single royal governor, eliminating colonial assemblies and tightening enforcement of the Navigation Acts.
What is the Dominion of New England?
Though designed to reduce Native–colonial violence, this policy convinced many colonists that Britain was siding with Native groups over its own settlers—deepening mistrust that contributed to the Revolutionary movement.
What is the Proclamation of 1763?
This young French nobleman became one of Washington’s most trusted commanders, securing French support abroad and leading Continental troops in key battles, including the Yorktown campaign.
Who is the Marquis de Lafayette?
Published during the ratification debates, these essays insisted that an extended republic—not a small one—was the best safeguard against tyranny, challenging traditional political theory and shaping American constitutional interpretation for decades.
What are the Federalist Papers?