Colonial & Revolution (1607–1776
This war (1754–1763) ended "Salutary Neglect" and led Britain to tax the colonies to pay off war debt.
Answer: What is the French and Indian War?
This first constitution of the U.S. failed because the federal government had no power to tax or regulate trade.
Answer: What are the Articles of Confederation?
In his Farewell Address, George Washington warned the nation against "permanent alliances" and these political groups.
Answer: What are Political Parties?
This movement, led by people like Frederick Douglass and William Lloyd Garrison, sought the immediate end of slavery.
Answer: What is Abolitionist Movement
The belief that the United States was divinely ordained to expand from the Atlantic to the Pacific Ocean.
Answer: What is Manifest Destiny?
Thomas Paine wrote this pamphlet in 1776, arguing that it was "absurd" for a continent to be governed by a small island.
Answer: What is Common Sense?
In Federalist No. 51, Madison argues that this system is necessary to prevent any one branch of government from becoming too powerful.
Answer: What are Checks and Balances (or Separation of Powers)?
This 1803 Supreme Court case established the principle of Judicial Review, giving the Court the power to declare laws unconstitutional.
Answer: What is Marbury v. Madison?
Andrew Jackson was criticized for this practice of rewarding political supporters with government jobs.
What is the Spoils System?
This 1820 agreement admitted Maine as a free state, Missouri as a slave state, and drew a line at 36°30'.
Answer: What is the Missouri Compromise?
Britain issued this order forbidding settlement west of the Appalachian Mountains to prevent conflict with Native Americans.
Answer: What is the Proclamation of 1763?
This Constitutional provision counted a portion of the enslaved population for both taxation and representation purposes.
Answer: What is the Three-Fifths Compromise?
Thomas Jefferson authorized this 1803 land deal with France, which doubled the size of the United States.
Answer: What is the Louisiana Purchase?
After the Election of 1824, Andrew Jackson used this term to describe the alleged deal that made John Quincy Adams president and Henry Clay Secretary of State.
Answer: What is the Corrupt Bargain?
This war (1846–1848) resulted in the U.S. acquiring California and the Southwest
Answer: What is the Mexican-American War?
In 1676, this uprising of frontier farmers in Virginia led to the burning of Jamestown and a major shift from using indentured servants to enslaved African labor.
Answer: What is Bacon's Rebellion?
This agreement settled the dispute between large and small states by creating a bicameral legislature (House & Senate).
Answer: What is the Great Compromise
In contrast to Shays' Rebellion, the federal government's quick military response to this 1794 uprising demonstrated the strength of the new Constitution
Answer: What is the Whiskey Rebellion?
Andrew Jackson famously vetoed the recharter of this institution, originally created by Alexander Hamilton, claiming it favored the wealthy elite.
Answer: What is the National Bank (or Bank of the United States)?
This legislative package admitted California as a free state but included a harsh new Fugitive Slave Act to appease the South
Answer: What is the Compromise of 1850?
Established in Virginia in 1619, this was the first representative legislative assembly in the colonies, setting a precedent for self-government.
Answer: What is the House of Burgesses?
Practices like the President’s Cabinet and political parties are not explicitly written in the Constitution but are accepted as part of the government under this term.
Answer: What is the Unwritten Constitution?
This foreign policy statement in 1823 warned European powers not to colonize or interfere in the Western Hemisphere (Latin America). Also the basis for Trump's seizure of Venezuela's President.
Answer: What is the Monroe Doctrine?
This Supreme Court case ruled that the Cherokee Nation was a sovereign community, but Jackson ignored it, leading to the Trail of Tears
What is Worcester v. Georgia?
Between 1836 and 1844, pro-slavery members of the House of Representatives passed this resolution, which automatically tabled all anti-slavery petitions without discussion.
Answer: What is the Gag Rule?