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Jun 15, 1215
Magna Carta
This promised the protection of church rights, protection for the barons from illegal imprisonment, access to swift justice, and limitations on feudal payments to the Crown. Signed by King John even though it limited his power. -
Founding of Jamestown
104 English men and boys arrived in North America to start a settlement. On May 13 they picked Jamestown, Virginia for their settlement, which was named after their King, James I. The settlement became the first permanent English settlement in North America. -
Mayflower Compact
The Mayflower Compact, written by William Bradford, was the first agreement for self-government to be created and enforced in the New World. -
Petition of Right
A statement of civil liberties sent by the English Parliament to Charles I stating that no taxes may be levied without consent of Parliament, no subject may be imprisoned without cause shown, no soldiers may be quartered upon the citizenry, and martial law may not be used in time of peace. -
English Bill of Rights
created separation of powers, limits the powers of the king and queen, enhances the democratic election and bolsters freedom of speech. This document was used in the creation of the American Bill of Rights. -
Albany Plan of Union
The Albany Plan of Union was a plan to create a unified government for the Thirteen Colonies, suggested by Benjamin Franklin, at the Albany Congress. -
Stamp Act
An Act of the Parliament of Great Britain that imposed a direct tax on the colonies of British America and required that many printed materials in the colonies be produced on stamped paper produced in London, carrying an embossed revenue stamp. -
Boston Massacre
Five colonists were killed by british soldiers due to the buildup of tension between the American colonies heckling and antagonizing the soldiers and the Royal troops who were imposing a heavy tax by the Township Act. Paul Revere popularized the event by renaming it as a massacre a few years later. -
Boston Tea Party
The Boston Tea Party was a political protest by the Sons of Liberty in Boston, on December 16, 1773. The demonstrators, some disguised as Native Americans, in defiance of the Tea Act of May 10, 1773, destroyed an entire shipment of tea sent by the East India Company. They boarded the ships and threw the chests of tea into Boston Harbor. -
Intolerable Acts
The Intolerable Acts were the American Patriots' term for a series of punitive laws passed by the British Parliament in 1774 after the Boston Tea Party. -
First Continental Congress
The First Continental Congress was a meeting of delegates from twelve of the Thirteen Colonies that met on September 5 to October 26, 1774, at Carpenters' Hall in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, to discuss their response to the British ‘Intolerable Acts’ and establish independence from Britain. They agreed to boycott British goods and passed resolutions asserting colonial rights. -
American Revolution
British troops marched into Lexington to find 77 armed minutemen waiting for them. The first shot, "the shot heard around the world" was shot and the American revolution had begun. By the end of the Battle of Lexington, 8 Americans were found dead, and 10 were injured. Only one British troop was hurt. The British left and were commanded to come back to Boston. -
Second Continental Congress
Members of the Second Continental Congress met at the State House in Philadelphia. There were several new delegates including John Hancock, Thomas Jefferson, and Benjamin Franklin. The Second Continental Congress established the militia as the Continental Army to represent the thirteen states. They also elected George Washington as Commander in Chief of the Continental Army. -
Declaration of Independence
Thomas Jefferson, declared their freedom as a legitimate nation. Created a revolutionary movement in world history, took place in Philadelphia. The Declaration of Independence is an important part of American democracy because first it contains the ideals or goals of our nation. Second it contains the complaints of the colonists against the British king. Third, it contains the arguments the colonists used to explain why they wanted to be free of British rule. -
Articles of Confederation
The first constitution between all thirteen colonies. Drafted and signed by the Second Continental Congress. . The articles provided a system for the thirteen colonies to be able to conduct trade with Europe, control the American Revolutionary War, and deal with territorial disputes. Superseded by a new constitution in 1789 (U.S. Constitution) -
Shay's rebellion
This was an uprising of popular support from farmers against a conservative Massachusetts that wanted to increase what were already some of the highest taxes in the colonies and militia that had been raised as a private army. Defeated an attack on federal Springfield Armory by the main Shaysite. Seen as one of the major factors that led to writing of the constitution. Took place in Massachusetts. -
Philadelphia Convention
This was a convention held in order to discuss amendments that were to be made to the Articles of Confederation. -
Connecticut
This was an agreement that large and small states reached during the Constitutional Convention of 1787 that in part defined the legislative structure and representation that each state would have under the United States Constitution.
