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Period: 1451 to 1506
Christopher Columbus
Columbus was an Italian explorer, navigator and colonist. He made four voyages across the Atlantic Ocean. He was originally believed to have founded America, but he really reached the Caribbean, Central America and South America. -
Period: 1492 to 1504
Columbus' Four Voyages
Contrary to prior belief, Columbus was not the first to found the United States. He discovered the Caribbean, Central America and South America, and he sparked a period of exploration of America and increased Europe's contact with this new land. -
Period: 1519 to 1521
Cortez Conquers the Aztecs
The expedition to Mexico was part of the Spanish colonization of the New World. The Spanish sided with the Aztecs' enemies, and conquered and obliterated the Aztecs. -
Period: 1565 to
Henry Hudson
Hudson was an English sea explorer and navigator who explored present day Canada and North Eastern America. -
Period: to
Roanoke Island Colony Fails
Queen Elizabeth I of England wanted to gain more land over Spain, so she gave sir Walter Raleigh a charter to explore the New World. He founded Roanoke Island and attempted to start a colony there. Many trials arose to sustain the colony, and as it began to reach stability, it was abandoned. The disappearance of the Roanoke Island is one of history's greatest mysteries to this day. -
Period: to
John Winthrop
Winthrop was an English Puritan lawyer and was a founder of the Massachusetts Bay Colony. He lead the first group of immigrants from England in 1630 and was governor of the colony for 12 years. -
Period: to
William Bradford
Bradford was an English Puritan who left Europe do to religious persecution. He came to America on the Mayflower, and became governor of the Plymouth Colony for 30 years. -
Period: to
Anne Hutchinson
Hutchinson was a Puritan spiritual supervisor. She held views contradictory to those of the Puritan clergy in the Boston area. She was tried, convicted and banished, along with her followers, and the controversy caused by her beliefs almost tore the Puritans' religious community apart. -
Period: to
Roger Williams
Williams was a Puritan minister and theologian, who founded the colony Rhode Island and the Providence Plantations. He was a very strong proponent of religious freedom, separation of church and state, dealing fairly with Native Americans and was one of the first to fight against slavery. -
Period: to
Jamestown, Virginia Founded
104 Englishmen arrived in a new colony named Jamestown after King James I. This settlement was the first permanent English settlement in North America. It was a peninsula, which made it easy to defend against Spanish attacks, it had deep enough water to tie up the ships right at the shoreline, and it was uninhabited by the Native Americans. How much better does it get? -
Period: to
First Africans Arrive in Virginia
20 Africans were sold from the English ship White Lion, in exchange for food and some were transported to Jamestown. In Jamestown, they were sold again, into slavery this time. -
Period: to
Virginia House of Burgesses Formed
The Virginia House of Burgesses was the first popularly elected legislature in the New world. The Virginia colony had been voted to remove martial law and create a legislative assembly, which was conveyed by Governor Yeardley. Only white men who owned a specific amount of property were allowed to vote for Burgesses. -
Period: to
Pilgrims Founded Plymouth
100 Puritan Separatist Pilgrims settled in Plymouth in 1620, and they landed in what is now the Cape Cod Bay, Massachusetts. The Pilgrims believed that the Church of England could not be reformed, so they desired total separation from it. -
Period: to
Puritan Migration to Massachusetts
This period is often referred to as the Great Migration. The Puritans migrated to Massachusetts in families, rather than individually. They came because of a search for religious freedom, with which they would practice their puritan views. -
Period: to
Calvert Found Maryland
George Calvert applied to King Charles I for a royal charter, with which he sought to found the province of Maryland. When George Calvert died in April of 1632, the charter for the Maryland colony was granted to his son, Cecilius Calvert, who would found Maryland. -
Period: to
Pequot Indian War, Maryland
This was an armed conflict that took place between the Pequot Indian tribe and an alliance of colonists from Massachusetts Bay, Plymouth and Saybrook. The war concluded with the Pequots' defeat, and over 700 Indians were killed or enslaved. -
Period: to
Anne Hutchinson Convicted of Heresy
Anne began to hold meetings at her home, in which she responded to recent sermons. Eventually, she began accusing local ministers of preaching a "covenant of works" rather than a "covenant of grace." Ministers complained about her accusations, which lead to her trial, conviction and banishment. -
Period: to
Fundamental Orders of Connecticut
These orders describe the government set up by the Connecticut towns. This stated the structure of the government and specifically said that they wanted the government to have open access to the seas for trading. -
Period: to
English Civil War
The English Civil war was a series of wars between the Parliamentarians and the Royalists, or the style of England's governments. The first two wars were supporters of King Charles I against the followers of the Long Parliament, while the third was the supporters of King Charles II against the Rump Parliament. The war ended with the Parliamentarian victory at the Battle of Worchester. -
Period: to
William Penn
Penn was an English writer, nobleman and Quaker. He founded the province of Pennsylvania. He was an advocate for democracy and religious freedom, and was well known for his treaties made to the Native Americans. -
Period: to
Nathaniel Bacon
Bacon was a colonist of the Virginia Colony. He led a rebellion against governor William Berkeley, which crumbled as soon as Bacon died of dysentery. -
Period: to
First Navigation Act
These were a series of English laws that developed that promoted and regulated English ships for trading with other countries and its own colonies. They also prohibited the participation of foreigners in the trading. -
Period: to
English Conquer New Netherlands
The English government declared war on the Netherlands, because they attacked Africa. They expected a fight, but Netherlands surrendered and thus the New Netherlands was made. -
Period: to
King Philip's War, Massachusetts
This was a conflict between the Indian inhabitants of New England and the New England colonists, along with their Indian allies. The war was named Metacomet, who was a Wampanoag chief who adopted the name Philip due to friendly relations to the colonists. The war continued until the Treaty of Casco Bay was signed -
Period: to
Bacon's Rebellion
Bacon's Rebellion was an armed rebellion between Virginia settlers lead by Nathanial Bacon and Governor William Berkeley. Challenges occurred including the leaving Bacon out of the inner circle, and not letting him be a part of a fur trade with a group of Indians. Berkeley had failed to address the demands of the colonists regarding safety. -
Period: to
Pennsylvania Settled
William Penn received a royal charter from King Charles II of England to settle in the area which is now Pennsylvania. Several Indian tribes were settled in the area, but England peaceable took over. It was settled by a group of quakers, and the colony was established on religious tolerance. -
Period: to
William III and Mary II
William III and Mary II ruled England together for 14 years. The crown of England was offered to Mary, but her husband William thought it humiliating to rule under his wife's name, so they received the crown jointly. They swore to rule according to the law. -
Period: to
English Glorious Revolution and Bill of Rights
This revolution was the overthrow of King James of England by a union of English Parliamentarians. William III, the Dutch stadtholder, invaded England with a dutch fleet. This victory lead to his ascension to the throne, and his rule with his wife Mary II. -
Period: to
Massachusetts Becomes a Royal Colony
In the aftermath of the Glorious Revolution, several colonies were made royal colonies according to religious charters. These colonies include Plymouth, the Massachusetts Bay Colony, Connecticut and Rhode Island. -
Period: to
Salem Witch Hunts
The Salem Witch Hunts were a series of hearings and prosecutions of people accused of witchcraft in Massachusetts. More than 200 people were accused and 19 people were guilty and consequently hanged. 4 others died in prison, and one man was crushed to death by rocks because he refused to plead. -
Period: to
Queen Anne's War
In Queen Anne's war, England and France fought for control of land in the new world, though the battle was fought in Europe mostly. In addition to the two main countries, various Indian tribes were involved, allied to both sides, and Spain was allied to France. -
Period: to
England, Wales and Scotland unite into the UK
The Kingdom of Ireland, Kingdom of England and the Kingdom of Scotland all united at different times. First England and Scotland united back in the 16th century. But Northern Ireland was added in 1706, thus the Treaty of Union was signed and the Acts of Union were done to ratify the treaty. -
Period: to
George I's Reign
He was the king of Great Britain and Ireland, and ruler of parts of the Holy Roman Empire. During his reign, the monarchy diminished, and began a tradition into the modern cabinet system, lead by a prime minister. He was not considered the first Prime Minister, Robert Walope was, as he held actual political power towards the end of George I's reign. -
Period: to
George II's Reign
He was also the King of Great Britain and Ireland, and ruler of part of the Holy Roman Empire. He was largely controlled by the Parliament of Great Britain during his reign. He was the last British Monarch to lead an army in battle, leading his army in the Battle of Dettingen. An attempt was made to overthrow him, but it failed, and after his son died, his grandson George III succeeded him. -
Period: to
Georgia Founded
Several colonist founded Georgia, including James Oglethorpe. The colony was named after King George II, which was specified in the charter granting the colony. -
Period: to
First Great Awakening
This was a series of Christian revivals that swept through both England and its colonies. The revival renewed individual piety and religious devotion. It marked the emergence of Anglo-American Evangelicalism in the protestant churches. -
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John Peter Zenger Trial
John was a German American writer and journalist. He was accused of libel by William Cosby, the royal governor of New York, but he was acquitted by the jury. He has become the symbol of freedom of the press. -
Period: to
Stono Rebellion, NC
The Stono Rebellion was a slave rebellion. It was the largest slave uprising in the British mainland colonies, with over 60 people killed. The uprising was led by native Africans, who were likely from he central African Kingdom of Kongo. -
Period: to
King George's War
This is the name given to military operations, as a part of the French and Indian wars. This was the third of four wars. It primarily took place between British provinces. Governor William Shirley that besieged and ultimately captured the French fortress of Louisbourg. -
Period: to
Albany Congress
This was a meeting of representatives sent by 7 of the 13 colonial legislatures. It was made to discuss better relations to the Indian tribes and common defense measures against the French threat from Canada.