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Jun 10, 1215
Magna Carta
“Great Charter” – It addressed the relationships between the Crown and the classes of the population. It also confirmed traditional rights such as the rule of law, basic human rights, and government by agreement. -
Jamestown settled
Jamestown was the first permanent and successful English settlement in North America. It gave Britain its first real foothold in the New World. -
Mayflower Compact written
It was the first governing document made by the Plymouth colony and set up the basic state of Massachusetts. It was also an example of one of America's first social contracts. -
Petition of Right
Major English Constitutional document that lists the liberties that the king is not allowed to infringe upon. Habeas corpus and other important rights were included. -
English Bill of Rights
It is a cornerstone of the British Constitution. It contained many provisions to the government such as limiting the power of the Crown, increasing the right of free speech, restating the rule of law, and saying that only representative government is legitimate. -
Albany Plan of Union
Benjamin Franklin called for a union of the colonies for stability during the French and Indian War. It was rejected by the Colonial Assemblies and the British Board of Trade. -
Stamp Act
Parliament declared that all official documents, newspapers, wills, playing cards, etc. were required to have a stamp tax on them. Colonists were enraged by this because they were not represented in Parliament. -
Boston Massacre
Five civilians in the colonies were killed by British troops. The presence of the British military in Boston caused high tension in crowds and a riot resulted. -
Boston Tea Party
A group of colonists dressed as Native Americans destroyed tea on British ships by dumping it into the Boston Harbor. It was in response to the high tea tax the Crown had imposed. -
First Continental Congress
Delegates from 12 colonies meet in Philadelphia in response to the Intolerable Acts. They decided to boycott British goods and threatened to stop exports to Britain as well. -
Intolerable Acts
Five laws were passed by British Parliament that rose tensions in the colonies. They included blocking off the Boston Port, altering the government of Massachusetts, bringing British officials back to England to go on trial, forcing colonists to give suitable quarters to British soldiers, and changing the boundaries of Canada. -
American Revolution begins
Britain sent troops to Massachusetts to deal with rumors of Minutemen with arms and ammunition. The “shot heard around the world” was fired and the Revolutionary War began. -
Second Continental Congress
This was a meeting of delegates from the thirteen colonies in Philadelphia. It managed the colonial efforts in the Revolutionary War and adopted the Declaration of Independence, as well as later adopting the Articles of Confederation. -
Declaration of Independence
It announced and justified a revolution to free the colonies from England. It mostly focused on King George's wrongs against them. -
Articles of Confederation
They established America's national legislature, although most power remained with the states. There was no president, no federal court, and only one house. -
Connecticut Compromise
Also known as the Great Compromise, it was reached during the Constitutional Convention as a way to settle the issue of representation. It declared that the House of Representatives would have people elected through proportional representation and that the Senate would have equal representation between the states -
Shay's Rebellion
A small band of Massachusetts farmers rebels against losing land to unpaid creditors. Congress and state government couldn't stop them and they had to be put down by the private elite. -
Constitution Convention
12 states met in Philadelphia to revise the Articles of Confederation . They ended up writing the United States Constitution. -
Philadelphia Convention
It was called to address the issues with the Articles of Confederation. It is the same thing as the Constitution Convention.
