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Marbury v. Madison
Marbury v. Madison, arguably the most important case in Supreme Court history, was the first U.S. Supreme Court case to apply the principle of "judicial review" -- the power of federal courts to void acts of Congress in conflict with the Constitution. Written in 1803 by Chief Justice John Marshall, the decision played a key role in making the Supreme Court a separate branch of government on par with Congress and the executive. -
Louisiana Purchase
When Spain returned Louisiana to France, it jeopardized Pickney's Treaty, which allowed Americans' free navigation of the Mississippi River. He originally only meant to purchase New Orleans and Florida, but bought all of Louisiana and everything west of it for $15 million. Although many were excited for Western expansion, many also thought this purchase was unconstitutional. This event was significant because it established the idea of Manifest Destiny and territorial expansion. -
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Lewis and Clark Expedition
After the Louisiana Purchase Treaty was made, Jefferson initiated an exploration of the newly purchased land and the territory beyond the "great rock mountains" in the West. He chose Meriwether Lewis to lead an expedition, who in turn solicited the help of William Clark. Together they formed a diverse military Corps of Discovery that would undertake a two-year journey to the great ocean. -
Embargo Act
During the French and British War, Britain would recruit American soldiers against their will to serve in the Royal Army. To combat this, Jefferson passed the Embargo Act of 1807, which stopped American exports altogether. This ultimately caused Jefferson's popularity to fall and the Federalist Party to reemerge. After he finally repealed it, Congress passed the Non-Intercourse Act, which reopened trade with all countries except Britain and France. -
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War of 1812
Republican president James Madison declared war on Britain in 1812; however, this was an ill decision, as Americans had less manpower and skill in comparison to Britain. At one point, the Federalists met at the Hartford Convention opposing war and threatening to secede; this ultimately led to the downfall of the Federalist Party. Finally, America and Britain came to a draw at the hands of the Treaty of Ghent, which compromised that the two stop fighting and return conquered land. -
Treaty of Ghent
This treaty ended the War of 1812. It declared that the U.S. and Britain should stop fighting and return conquered land. However, it ignored the original complaints that started the war in the first place--Britain closing off trade and illegally recruiting Americans. Despite ignoring this, ships could sail freely, trade resumed, and British ships stop patrolling American coasts. -
Battle of New Orleans
Maj. Gen. Andrew Jackson led a small, poorly equipped force to a decisive American victory against 8,000 British troops in the Battle of New Orleans. The invading British Army, under Gen. Edward Pakenham, hoped to seize New Orleans and the territory that the United States had acquired in 1803 with the Louisiana Purchase. The battle’s outcome turned Jackson into a national hero and paved the way for his successful presidential candidate in 1828. -
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Era of Good Feelings
With its borders now secure from foreign interference, the United States embarked on an immense westward expansion that would carry with it the divisive question of slavery and mark a new era in Native American-U.S. relations. Because of westward expansion and economic prosperity, the years immediately following the war would be labeled as the Era of Good Feelings. -
Dartmouth College v. Woodward
New Hampshire had attempted to take over Dartmouth College by revising its colonial charter. The Court ruled that the charter was protected under the contract clause of the U. S. Constitution; upholds the sanctity of contracts -
Missouri Compromise
Southerners wanted the Missouri Territory to become a slave state; Northerners strongly disliked this idea because it would disrupt the balance. Yet, it was still up to the government to decide--but they were at conflicts. Henry Clay then proposed the Missouri Compromise, which decreed Missouri a slave state and separated Maine from Massachusetts and declared that a free state. It prohibited slavery north of the southern Missouri boundary. The compromise avoided slavery, but did not resolve it. -
Monroe Doctrine
There was still British colonization happening in the West; thus, President James Monroe issued the Monroe Doctrine (1823) as a warning. It stated that the U.S. would not tolerate colonization. By kicking Britain out, the U.S. solidified itself as the dominant superpower in the world. The quote describes how the U.S. was growing as a superpower in the world. -
Indian Removal Act
After demanding both political and military action on removing Native American Indians from the southern states of America in 1829, Andrew Jackson signed this into law on May 28, 1830. Although it only gave the right to negotiate for their withdrawal from areas to the east of the Mississippi river and that relocation was supposed to be voluntary, all of the pressure was there to make this all but inevitable. All the tribal leaders agreed after Jackson’s landslide election victory in 1832. -
Nullification Crisis
The tariffs on 1823 and 1832 were deemed constitutional by South Carolina; when people attempted to tax them, they threatened to secede. Henry Clay proposed the Compromise Tariff (1833) promised to slowly decrease tariffs over a period of ten years; this ultimately solved the crisis. -
Nat Turner's Rebellion
Around two in the morning in 1832, a group of seven slaves emerged from the woods in Southampton County, Virginia, armed with axes, hatchets, and knives. They stopped at a farmhouse, hacked its four white occupants to death, took some firearms, and left—then remembered the family’s baby and returned to chop it to pieces as well. -
Republic of Texas Established
The Republic of Texas was the result of the Texan Revolution--the war between America and Mexico over Texas' independence. It was an independent sovereignty from 1836 to 1840. Its annexation was incredibly significant because it most directly led to the Mexican American War. -
Battle of the Alamo
In December 1835, in the early stages of Texas’ war for independence from Mexico, a group of Texan (or Texian) volunteers led by George Collinsworth and Benjamin Milam overwhelmed the Mexican garrison at the Alamo and captured the fort, seizing control of San Antonio. By mid-February 1836, Colonel James Bowie and Lieutenant Colonel William B. Travis had taken command of Texan forces in San Antonio. -
Manifest Destiny
Manifest Destiny was the idea that Americans had the God-given right to expand westward. It inspired Western expansion. It also posed questions about whether newly acquired territory should become slave states or free states, splitting the U.S. -
Mexican War Begins
James K. Polk, who believed in "Manifest Destiny," declared war on Mexico. As a result of the war, Mexico lost more than two-thirds of its land, including modern-day California, Utah, Arizona, Nevada, and New Mexico. It also resulted in the acquisition of new slave territories and thus increased political tensions leading up to the Civil War. -
Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo
The Treaty of Guadelupe Hidalgo ended the Mexican Civil War and granted more than 525,000 square miles to U.S. territory. It also recognized the Rio Grande as the U.S.'s most southernmost border.
