Legislative
duties, or taxes, on imported goods such as sugar, molasses, and coffee
Sugar Act
required colonial businessmen and lawyers to purchase special stamps and place them on items such as legal documents, newspapers, calendars, and playing cards
Stamp Act
on the night of April 18, 1775 British troops left Boston heading towards Concord; Revere is the most famous of the three riders who warned towns along the way for the minutemen to be ready
Paul Revere
labor system in which slaves working in large groups for a set amount of time each day
Gang System
in America used for the time period before the Civil War
Antebellum
courts of this branch interpret the laws as they apply to specific cases
Judicial Branch
1) raise money through taxes, 2) repay war debts, 3) pay the states’ debts, 4) establish a national bank
Hamilton's Financial Plan
21 year old school teacher volunteered for service spying on the British bringing back information to Washington; unfortunately was capture and hung for treason due to his inexperience; he is remembered for his bravery, believed to have said “ I only regret that I have but one life to lose for my country.”
Nathan Hale
principle attempting to ensure that no branch of the government has too much power
Separation of Powers
the act of a state leaving the Union
Secession
petition for peace sent by the Second Continental Congress to King George III
Olive Branch Petition
used to fund internal improvements such as roads and canals because those improvements tended to benefit primarily in the North; the Southerners objected
Federal Taxes
troops controlled by the Second Continental Congress and commanded by George Washington
Continental Army
a president’s group of adviser
Cabinet
a count of the population taken every ten years to determine the number of representatives for each state in the lower house
Census
general search warrants giving customs officials the right to search for smuggled goods anywhere
Writs of Assistance
Name for the first ten amendments to the Constitution
Bill of Rights
a Virginia delegate, kept well organized diary of all the proceedings of the Second Continental Congress,
James Madison
the right of the Supreme Court to declare a law passed by Congress as unconstitutional
Judicial Review
system that keeps each branch of government from exercising too much power by limiting, or checking, the powers of the other branches
Checks and Blanances
the lower house of Congress in which representation is based on population
House of Representatives
President Washington’s declaration that the United States would pursue a policy of friendliness toward both France and Britain and would not involved itself in their conflict
Proclimation of Neutrality
representative from Connecticut; author of the Great Compromise
Roger Sherman
body established by the Constitution to elect the president
Electoral College
most colonists were afraid of this type of government because they had just got rid of this government after winning the Revolutionary War
Central Government