US History And Government Regents Exam Flashcards

French and Indian War (1754 - 1763) War erupted between France and England when the English challenged the French for control of the land that is now Ohio and western Pennsylvania. Indentured servants Servants who contracted to work as many as seven years to repay the cost of their passage Triangular trade Slave trade in the 1700s was triangular trade. New England merchants traded rum for slaves in West Africa. The slaves were sold in the West Indies for molasses or sugar, which was shipped to New England to make more rum. The Enlightenment An intellectual movement that held that reliance on reason and experience would lead to social progress. Natural Rights John Locke believed that people are born free with these rights: Right to life, liberty, and property. Magna Carta (1215) A document that placed limits on King John of Englands power to rule. House of Burgesses As early as 1619, Virginia colonists took the first step toward republican government when they instituted the colonies' first representative lawmaking body. Causes of the American Revolution Britain and France were involved in a rivalry for power, and only in Europe, but wherever the nation had colonies. Salutary neglect A healthy ignoring of the colonies. While preoccupied with France during the American Revolution, Britain governed the colonies under this policy. The Treaty of Paris of 1763 Marked Britain's victory over France in the Seven Years' (or French and Indian) War. It also shifted the way power was distributed in North America. Proclamation of 1763 Prohibited movement into the lands gained from France, which was resented by the English colonists yet ignored due to France's defeat. Mercanitilism Held that colonies existed to provide raw materials and markets for the economic benefit of the home country. Was in result to the British government believing that the colonies should pay for their own defense. Stamp Act (1765) An act passed by Parliament which required a tax stamp on printed materials. Townshend Acts Taxed imported goods Tories/Loyalists Those who supported the king and obedience to English laws Economic Causes of the American Revolution After the French and Indian War, Britain was left with a large debt. The British gov't believed that the colonies should pay for their own defense. Parliament began to enforce the policy of mercantilism. Parliament passed several new tax laws (Sugar Act, Stamp Act, Townshend Acts) Political Causes of the American Revolution Colonists reacted to the new taxes with petitions, boycotts, and other more violent protests. Samuel Adams helped create the Sons of Liberty and the Massachusetts Committee of Correspondence. Colonists charged that Britain had violated their natural rights as British citizens in creating the taxes. Because they had no representation in Parliament, colonists reasoned that taxation could only come from the colonial legislatures. Britain insisted that Parliament represented all of its subjects. Social/Ideological Causes of the American Revolution Natural rights, abundance of available land held enough land to qualify white males the right to vote, population grew as well as the number of immigrants, the Great Awakening (a religious movement.) Boston Tea Party When Parliament passed the Tea Act, colonists protested by destroying three shiploads of British tea. Intolerable Acts (1774) The British government reacted to the Boston Tea Party with these acts. They punished MA by closing the port of Boston, forbidding town meetings, and reducing the powers of the legislature. First Continental Congress (1774) Twelve of the colonies sent representatives to Philadelphia to plan a response to the British actions (Boston Tea Party/Intolerable Acts) Second Continental Congress After the start of the American Revolution (1775), they met and took charge of the war effort. Declaration of Independence In June 1776, Richard Henry Lee of VA presented a resolution to the Second Continental Congress calling for independence from Great Britain. The Congress appointed a committee (including Thomas Jefferson, Benjamin Franklin, and John Adams) to draft a formal declaration. Key Facts of the Declaration of Independence To announce that the colonies were now a new, independent nation; to explain and justify why the colonies had become the USA; stated: a theory of gov't, a list of grievances against the king, a formal resolution declaring independence Treaty of Paris of 1783 A peace treaty ending the American Revolution negotiated by John Adams, John Jay, and Benjamin Franklin and signed in 1783. Effects of the American Revolution Opposition of slavery, Iroquois League is destroyed and Native Americans are pushed farther west, some reexamine traditional ideas about women's roles in society, US' independence Articles of Confederation Reflected the colonists' fear of a strong central government and the desire of the individual states to protect their powers. The Articles created a weak national government. Land Ordinance of 1785 Set the pattern by which new states could join the nation Northwest Ordinance of 1787 Prohibited slavery in the Northwest Territory Constitutional Convention The problems plaguing the national government led to a call for this. It was for the "sole and express purpose of amending the Articles of Confederation." Connecticut Plan/Great Compromise Major compromise of the Constitutional Convention. Issue of representation in Congress.The Virginia Plan called for a bicameral legislature. A state's representation in each house would be based on its population. Larger states supported this plan. The smaller states supported the New Jersey Plan. It called for a unicameral legislature in which each state had equal representation. The matter of representation was settled by the Great Compromise which gave something to both small and large states. It created the Congress, a bicameral legislature. The states had equal representation in the upper house (Senate.) In the lower house (House of Representatives) representation was based on population. Three-Fifths Compromise Southerners wanted slaves to be counted for purposes of deciding representation in the House, but not for purposes of determining taxes. The compromise reached that three-fifths of the enslaved African Americans in a state were counted for both representation and taxation purposes. Federalists Favored ratification of the Constitution Anti-Federalists Opposed ratification of the Constitution Popular sovereignty The source of all power or authority to govern is the people. This type of government is considered a democracy. Separation of powers Power to govern is divided among the legislative, executive, and judiciary brances to ensure that no single branch can dominate the government. Checks and balances A system which gives each branch of the national government ways to block or control the other branches in order to prevent any one branch from gaining too much power. Elastic clause States that Congress can make all laws "necessary and proper" for carrying out the tasks listed in the Consitution. Delegated powers Certain powers of the nat'l gov't are spelled out in the Constitution. (Power of the nat'l gov't to declare war.) Implied powers Certain powers of the nat'l gov't are not stated in writing. Their existence is implied by the Elastic clause. (Regulation of child labor.) Denied powers Certain powers are denied to the nat'l gov't. (Power to pass an export tax.) Concurrent powers Certain powers belong to both nat'l and state gov'ts. (Power to tax.) Reserved powers Neither delegated to the nat'l gov't nor denied to the states. (Power to make divorce laws.) Legislative Branch Congress' two houses: Senate, House of Representatives Executive Branch President, Cabinet (Electoral College) Judicial Branch Supreme Court Judicial review Power of the supreme court to determine the constitutionality of acts of the legislative and executive branches of the gov't. First amendment Freedom of religion, speech, press; the right to assemble peacefully; the right to petition the gov't. Second amendment The right to bear arms. Third amendment Declares that the gov't may not require people to house soldiers during peacetime. Fourth amendment Protecs from unreasonable searches and seizures. Fifth amendment No one may be deprived of their natural rights without dur process of law. Eighth amendment Prohibits excessive bails, fines, and punishments. Thirteenth amendment Abolition of slavery Fourteenth amendment Citizenship and civil rights Fifteenth amendment Voting rights for African American men Eighteenth amendment Prohibition of alcoholic beverages. Nineteenth amendment Voting rights for women Twentieth amendment Terms of the President, VP, and Congress Twenty-first amendment Repeal of the eighteenth amendment Twenty-second amendment President limited to two terms Twenty-fourth amendment Abolition of poll taxes Monroe Doctrine Foreign policy after War of 1812. It called for an end to European colonization in the W. Hem., no intervention by Europe in existing nations in this hemisphere, a declaration that European interference was "dangerous to our peace and safety", a promise of noninterference by the US in European affairs and colonies Industrial Revolution The use of new technologies in manufacturing - particularly in steam engines and machines to spin thread and weave cloth - gave rise to the revolution. Potato famine Reason for immigration (1845-1850.) Millions of Irish people came to the US because of a period of mass starvation caused by failure of the potato crop. Spoils system A system developed in which gov't jobs were given to loyal supporters of the political party that won the election. Sectionalism Strong sense of loyalty to a state or section instead of to the whole country Federalism A system of gov't in which authority is divided between nat'l and state gov'ts Indian Removal Policy Andrew Jackson forced all Native American's to move west of the Mississippi. Trail of Tears The US army forced the Cherokee to leave in a forced march. Abolition Movement Antislavery movement which grew as cotton production became more profitable and slavery spread. Underground Railroad A series of safe houses where escaping slaves could rest safely as they made their way north and into Canada. Manifest Destiny The conviction that the US had a divine mission to expand in order to spread the ideals of freedom and democracy. Missouri Compromise Banned slavery in the part of the Louisiana Purchase. Fugitive Slave Law Required that escaped slaves be returned to their owners. Emancipation Proclamation Freed all slaves in those areas still in rebellion against the Union Reconstruction The effort to rebuild the southern states and restore the Union. It required the rebuilding of the nation's economy as well as it's gov't. Poll taxes A tax imposed on every voter. Freedmen's Bureau To aid former slaves Sharecroppers Gave part of each year's crop to the landowner and received the rest as payment Andrew Carnegie Sought to control all aspects of steel-making and built his company into the world's largest steelmaker. He sold his company for a quarter billion dollars. He believed the wealthy had a duty to society and gave hundreds of millions to charities. He also underwrote the founding of free public libraries all across the country. John D. Rockefeller Entered the oil-refining business during the Civil War. He believed competition was wasteful and used ruthless methods to eliminate competitors. By 1882, his Standard Oil Company controlled over 90 percent of American oil refining. In 1882, he formed the Standard Oil Trust to control more aspects of oil production. He also gave away hundreds of millions to society. JP Morgan Profited by making loans to growing businesses. He took control of many bankrupt railroads in the late 1800s, reorganized them, and made a profit. Morgan bought Carnegie Steel in 1901, merged it with other companies, and created the US Steel Corporation. Henry Ford Revolutionized auto making by using a moving assembly line. Laissez-faire Noninterference of gov't. Free enterprise system Where private individuals make the economic decisions most efficient Robber barons Those who gained their wealth by ruthless methods in their dealings with competitors at the expense of the poor and working class. Sherman Antitrust Act Prohibited monopolies by declaring illegal any business combinations or trust "in restraint of trade or commerce." Collective bargaining Union members representing workers negotiated labor issues with management. American Federation of Labor Samuel Gompers formed the AFL. It was a collection of many different craft unions, unions of skilled workers in similar trades. Political machines Took control of many city gov'ts, partly by providing help to the growing number of poor immigrant voters and thereby gaining their support. Dawes Act Aimed at Americanizing the Native Americans Grange Originally meant to develop social ties. Populist party Farmers own political party. Progressive presidents Taft, Wilson, Roosevelt Open Door Policy To ensure that the US would have fair access to the Chinese market. Causes of the Spanish-American War Yellow journalism, the De Lome letter, sinking of the Maine. Imperialism The policy of expanding a nation's power by foreign acquisitions. Roosevelt Corollary If a nation in the Western Hemisphere is guilty of consistently behaving wrongly, Roosevelt said, the Monroe Doctrine requires that the US step in and act "as an int'l police power." "Big Stick" Policy The US would use peaceful methods to protect its interests whenever possible, but that it would use military force if necessary.