Unit 5: The American Revolution

Unit 5 Vocabulary:

Veto – to overrule a vote

French and Indian War - Aka Seven Years War in which the French and Native Americans fought British soldiers and American militia.

Albany Plan of Union - Plan proposed by Benjamin Franklin in 1754 that aimed to unite the colonies for trade, military (defense), and other purposes.

Navigation Acts – The purpose of these acts was to force the colonist to help the growing English shipping industry. All goods shipped to and from the colonies had to be on English ships.

Quartering Act - Law that required colonists to feed and shelter British troops stationed in the Americas.

Stamp Act - British law stating that colonists had to pay for stamps printed on taxable paper items.

Sugar Act - British law that raised the duties on luxury items such as wine, molasses, and silk that Britain sold to the colonies.

Intolerable Acts – King George placed the colony under military control until damages from the Boston Tea Party was paid by the colonists.

Townshend Acts – group of laws that raised revenues by enforcing the collection of duties and imposing new taxes on items like tea and glass

Treason - Betrayal of one’s country.

Boycott - Refusal to buy certain items.

George Washington - Colonel of Virginia militia who carried a letter that demanded the French to depart from the Ohio River Valley. Fought in the first battles of the French and Indian War.

Benjamin Franklin - Delegate and newspaper owner from Pennsylvania who presented the Albany Plan of Union, the most important plan for colonial defense.

Treaty of Paris - Agreement between Britain and France that ended the Seven Years War where France was forced to give up most of its territory.

Proclamation of 1763 - British measure that drew imaginary line down the Appalachian Mountains. Prevented colonists from settling west of the Appalachians.

Tyranny - Unjust use of power by the British.

Minuteman - An armed and trained volunteer colonist who was ready to fight the British at a minute’s notice.

Loyalist - Colonists who sided with Britain during the American Revolution.

Patriot - Colonists who wanted independence from Britain.

Continental Congress - Group of representatives from the colonies who in 1776 voted to declare independence from Britain.

Mecklenburg Resolves - Document created in 1775 by Mecklenburg County colonists that anticipated an independent local government.

Continental Congress – Group of representatives from the colonies who in 1776 voted to declare independence from Britain

Revolution – A great change. A movement. Can be violent or peaceful.

Declaration of Independence - Document that listed the many wrongs that colonists suffered under King George III. Explained why colonies decided to separate from Britain and what rights the newly independent states now held.

Lord Charles Cornwallis – leader of British troops

Yorktown – Virginia port where Cornwallis surrendered to the Americans

Blockade – To prevent one from entering or leaving especially by sea.

Halifax Resolves - The first official action in the American Colonies calling for independence from Great Britain during the American Revolution.