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Jan 1, 1295
Marco Polo
Marco Polo came back from an expedition to the east with wonderful tales of adventure and new and interesting goods. The tales and goods spread thorughout Europe sparking interest in the east. -
Jan 1, 1488
Bartolomeu Diaz
Diaz, a Portuguese explorer, explored the coast of Africa and rounded the Cape of Good Hope. -
Oct 12, 1492
Discovery of the Americas
Determined to find a trade route to the east by going west, Christopher Columbus landed in the Carribean with a mutinous crew and was credited with the discovery of the Americas although he thought he was jsut off the coast of Africa. -
Jan 1, 1493
Bull of Demarcation
The Treaty of Tordesillas in 1494, finalized the line drawn by the Pope that splitted the world in to the territories that belonged to Portugal and Spain for exploration. The line divided the world into Spain's west and Portugal's east and split South America into to two pieces (present-day Brazil's was Portugal). -
Jan 1, 1498
Vasco DaGama
DaGama, also a Portuguese explorer, was the first to find a water route all the way to India around the Cape of Good Hope of Africa. -
Jan 1, 1522
Circumnavigation of the Globe
Ferdinand Magellan's men, after three years at sea, were the first to circumnavigate the globe. His ships completed the journey although Magellan died en route. -
Jan 1, 1522
Downfall of Aztec Empire
Hernando Cortez, a Spanish Conquisatador, conquered the mighty Aztec empire based Mexico. -
Jan 1, 1535
Downfall of the Incan Empire
Pizarro, also a Spanish Conquistador, took control of the Incan empires in Peru. Conquistadors at this time were explorers that came in the name of spreading Catholicism and finding gold and riches. -
Settlement of Jamestown
A relatively large group of settlers came over from England and landed in Jamestown in present day Viriginia. It would become the first successful settlement in the New World, although in the beginning the colonists died by the dozens and struggled to adjust to the harsh way of life. -
The Sailing of the Mayflower
A group of 102 people set sail across the Atlantic bound for the Americas. On the journey, the male passengers drew up an agreement, what they called the Mayflower Compact, to have some type of government based on majority rule when they landed in the Americas. -
Establishment of Maryland
A royal charter was granted to Lord Baltimore in 1632, and the colony of Maryland was established in the Chesapeake area in 1634. Maryland became a haven for Catholics because of the Act of Toleration that was implemented that provided for religious freedom (to an extent) and diversity in the colony. -
Establishment of New York
New York, originally called New Netherlands, was a Dutch colony and trading post. The king of England granted the land of New Netherlands, which he did not have actual control over yet, to his brother, the Duke of York; in 1664, Englsih soldiers arrived, took control, established it as a Brtish royal colony, and renamed it New York. To this day Dutch residue is obvious in New York. -
Resolution of King Philip's War
King Philip's War was a war between colonists and Native Americans that took place in the New England area. The colonists from several different New England colonies worked together to defeat the Native Americans and this was an early example of colonial unity. -
Separation of Carolina
Established in 1670 and named for Charles the Second, Carolina lasted 42 years as a united colony until they split in 1712 into North and South Carolina. -
The Great Awakening 1700's
The Great Awakening was a religious revival in America. It taught people to question authority and emphasized an emotional religious appeal instead of an intellectual one. It resulted in the creations of new denominations of old religions, a new interest in religion, and the founding of new colleges to train ministers. -
Resolution of the French and Indian War
The French and Indian War, also known as the Seven Years War, was fought between the English and the French. The 13 colonies fought on the British side and Native Americans fought on both sides. It started in 1756 and lasted until 1763. The results of the war were: the end of any French control in North America, Britain becoming the most powerful country in the world, and a huge British debt. This debt would lead to the end of salutary neglect for the colonies. -
Sugar or Revenue Act
This act's purpose was to raise money to pay off the debt of defending the colonies. It included a tariff on molassus and sugar and that trials for smuggling were moved to Nova Scotia. This led to non importation agreements withtin the colonies. -
Stamp Act
The Stamp Act was a tax on any kind of document or paper such as pamphlets, legal papers, playing cards, etc. This act affected everyone in the colonies. Around this time a Whig group called the Loyal Nine grew into the Sons of Liberty who helped to enforce non importation agreements and set up organizations to protest. -
Townshend Acts
The Townshend Acts were a serious of taxes on tea, lead, paint, and paper. In reaction to these and other acts, the colonists implemented non-importation agreements to boycott British goods. These agreements were very effective in New England where they were mainly patriots and wholly not effective in the southern (loyalist) colonies where imports went up. -
Boston Massacre
In the event known as the Boston Massacre, five colonists were killed and 9 were wounded when a group of British troops open-fired into a crowd of Bostonians who had been relentlessly taunting and antagonizing the troops. This inflamed American opinion against the British and was a very significant event leading up to the revolution. In response to this event, Samuel Adams initiated the idea of Committees of Correspondence among the colonies. -
Tea Act
The Tea Act was a tax on tea as an attempt to save the British East India Company from bankruptcy. There were violent reactions to this all throughout the colonies. One of them was the Boston Tea Party. -
Boston Tea Party
The Boston Tea Party was a direct response to the Tea Act of 1773 and involved many Bostonians dressing up as Indians and dumping 10,000 pounds of tea in the harbour. -
First Continental Congress
In response to the British Intolerable Acts, the committees of correspondence called the first Continental Congress in 1774. -
Shots at Lexington and Concord
There were shots fired during battles at Lexington and Concord which started the Revolutionary War although it was not made official. -
Second Continental Congress
In the second Continental Congress, the delegates authorized an attack of Canada (another British colony), offered the Native Americans a treaty, and gave control of the colonial military to George Washington. -
Declaration of Independence
The Declaration of Independence, primarily written by Thomas Jefferson, was adopted by the Continental Congress on July 4, 1776 and stated that the 13 colonies had dissolved all its ties with the British empire and were now independent states comproming one nation: America. -
Battle of Saratoga
The Battle of Saratoga was a crucial victory for the colonists over the British and is often referred to as the turning point in the Revolutionary War for America. After this the French were convinced that we had a chance to win and entered an alliance with us, without which we could have won the war. -
Articles of Confederation
The Articles of Confederation, drafted by the second continental congree, was sent to the states in 1777 and ratified in 1779. Although they were mostly a failure, there contributed some positiively. -
Treaty of Paris
The peace treaty that ended the Revolutionary War was the Treaty of Paris and was negotiated by America's government under the Articles of Confederation in 1783. -
Northwest Ordiance of 1787
The Northwest Ordinance was one of the most significant acomplishments of the Articles of Confederation. It established a way to admit states to the union. In these new territories, slavery was prohibited and public education was required. -
Constitutional Convention
The delegates for the five states that sent delegates to the Annapolis Convention planned to meet in Philadelphia in 1787 to revise America's current plan of governent. At this convention, there were 55 delegates and it lasted from May to September. The delegates compromised with one another until they camp up with the Constitution which we have today, (without the Bill of Rights). -
Ratification of the Constitution
Also decided by the delegates at the Constitutional Convention, the Constitution would only take effect when 9 out of 13 of the states ratified it. When this happened in 1787, the Constitution was approved and put into effect. -
Jay's Treaty
When war with England seemed imminent, the president of the US at this time, George Washington, sent John Jay over to England as an envoy for negotiation in Britain. The terms included that Britain would leave the forts in the American North West only if the Americans paid the debts they owed to British merchants from before the Revolution. The compromise was the subject of much Republican censure. -
Election of John Adams
The election for the second president of the United States took place in 1796. John Adams was elected by small margin of electoral votes receiving 71 votes whereas Thomas Jefferson received 68 votes. Adams and Jefferson, two men of conflicting political parties and opposite political views, became president and vice president respectively. This presented an issue that would not be solved until the twelfth amendment of the constitution was passed. -
XYZ Affair
After the outbreak of the French Revolutionary War when America was not able or willing provide aid to the French despite their alliance, President Washington sent three US diplomats to France for negotiations. The head of the French foreign affairs at this time, Talleyrand, refused to meet with the Amercans although offered a bribe. The American commision refused to pay it. "Millions for defense, but not one cent for tribute" became a popular quote in America. -
Alien and Sedition Acts
These were a series of acts passed by Federalists in power in government when John Adams was president that made it more difficult to become a citizen and made it illegal to criticize the government. -
Marbury v. Madison
The Supreme Court case that established the judical branch's power of judicial review. -
Duel between Burr and Hamilton
In 1803, there was talk of a northern confederacy which would sucede from the nation. The plan included getting New York to sucede with the North. When Alexander Hamilton foiled that plan including Aaron Burr becoming governor of New York, Burr challenged Hamilton to a duel. Hamilton was killed. -
United States Embargo
The embargo of 1807 waas a refusal by the US to trade with all European nations into order to stop impressment. It was a failure and hurt the US more than it hurt Britain or France. -
Non-Intercourse Act
The Non-Intercourse Act lifted the Embargo of 1807 in the United States, opening trade with all foreign nations except Britain and France. -
Macon's Bill #2
Macon's Bill #2 replaced the Non-Intercourse Agreement. The law lifted all embargoes with Britain or France. If either one of the two countries stopped attacks upon American shipping, the United States would cease trade with the other, unless that country agreed to recognize the rights of the neutral American ships as well. -
The War of 1812
Also known as Mr. Madison's war, the war of 1812 was fought to stop impressment, protect the rights of neutrality, because of British support of American Indians, to protect American honor, and for a number of other reasons. The war was officially ended with the Treaty of Ghent. -
Battle of Horseshoe Bend
At the Battle of Horseshoe Bend, Andrew Jackson led the US troops to a victory against the Creek Indians in the South West, specifically Alabama. -
Adams Onis Treaty
Also known as the Transcontinental and the Florida Purchase treaty, the Adams Onis Treaty gave Florida to America for $5 million dollars, set the boundary between Texas and Louisiana, and set the Northern border of the Spanish territory at the 42nd parallel. -
Monroe Doctrine
The Monroe Doctrine asserted that the Western Hemisphere was not to be further colonized by European countries and that the United States would not interfere with existing European colonies or meddle in the internal concerns of European countries.
