Continental Congress: Beginning in 1774, these were meetings in Philadelphia where delegates from the Thirteen Colonies met to organize resistance to Great Britain

Reconciliation: the idea that the Thirteen Colonies could solve their problems with Britain without independence

Sovereignty: the power that a independent nations have to govern themselves

Proportional Representation: votes in Congress given to each state by their population size

The Stamp Act: a law passed by the British Parliament in 1765 that put a tax on paper products, from newspapers to pamphlets and even playing cards

Natural rights: certain freedoms guaranteed to every person, like life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness

Tyranny: oppressive rule by a government

Republican Safety: avoiding abuse of power (no tyranny!), protecting liberty (rights and freedoms); providing self-government instead of rule by a monarch (the people rule)

Energy: having a central government strong enough to achieve stability and security and peace

Harmony: helping other states get along

Representation: whose voice is heard and how the voices of those people get turned into action

Autocracy: ruled by one

● Monarchy: type of autocracy where a king or queen rules

● Dictatorship: one person with absolute control over the lives of the people

Democracy: ruled by the people through voting

● Representative Democracy: people vote for other people who represent their values to work in government, citizens have power

● Direct Democracy: people are deeply involved with the day-to-day governing of a country and there are no representatives

Oligarchy: a small group of people run the government

Theocracy: recognizes god or a divine spirit as the ultimate leader of the country

Anarchy: no individual or group are assigned to control

grievance- is a complaint against a political or social system after identifying how things are not working in society.

right- a more or legal entitlement. if you identify a morel right ( something that SHOULD be protected) that isn't protected be the government this is a grievance

revolutionary -constituting or bringing about a major or fundamental change, one engaged in a revolution, an advocate or adherent of revolutionary doctrines

Loyalists were American colonists who stayed loyal to the British Crown during the American Revolutionary War, often referred to as Tories, Royalists, or King's Men at the time. They were opposed by the Patriots, who supported the revolution, and called them "persons inimical to the liberties of America"

• effigy: a life-size model of a person

• Parliament of Great Britain: in the 1700s, this was the legislature (like our Congress), which set laws for all of Great Britain (including colonial America). Located near London (in England), this parliament was mostly made up of English noblemen.

• petition: a formal request or complaint made to a government, usually signed by many supporters of the cause