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1215
Magna Carta
This was the original groundbreaking constitution. In the midst of the dark ages, the Magna Carta put forth the thought that humans had individual rights. The Magna Carta was signed into practice by King John. -
Jamestown settled
This is the first successful settlement by the British. It wasa founded in what would be called the Virginia Colony. -
Mayflower Compact written
A new form of government decided among Puritan Pilgrims on the ship the Mayflower. This would decide how the Puritan government would be ran and was technically the first U.S. document of how government would be run. -
Petition of Right
This was a British document that protects the royal citizen's rights from being infringed by the king's tyrannical rule. -
English Bill of Rights
This was another document that put more emphasis on English democracy, limiting the king and queen's power while helping contribute to freedom of speech along with other civil rights. -
Albany Plan of Union
The goal of the Albany Plan of Union was to unite the 13 colonies under a more centralized government. Seven of the colonies bought into the idea under Ben Franklin's promotion in 1754. -
Stamp Act
This was a tax that Britain put on the colonies. Any newspaper, legal, or commercial document had to be stamped to show that a tax had been paid to the Crown for it. This helped fuel Colonist anger toward Britain. -
Boston Massacre
This was a British response to a Boston protest crowd that had become unruly. The British soldiers began shooting and killing some of the protesters. -
Boston Tea Party
A protest of the high tea tax the British have imposed on the colonies. The Sons of Liberty executed the mercantile protest by throwing the imported British tea into the Boston Harbour. -
Intolerable Acts
This was passed by the British Parliament as punishment for Massachusetts in their decision to throw tea into the Boston Harbour. -
First Continental Congress
This is when 12 of the 13 colonies met in Philidelphia to decide how they would proceed in resisting the British Parliament's rule. Georgia needed the help of the British at the time to stop an Indian uprising and so didn't show up. -
American Revolution begins
This was the beginning of the fight for independence for the United States. The fighting began between the local militia and British soldiers at Lexington and Concord. -
Second Continental Congress
This was the decision to create a war effort and the Second Continental Congress was in charge of how they would pursue their freedom. -
Declaration of Independence
This is the letter written by the Second Continental Congress telling the king the colonies are now free. -
Articles of Confederation
This was the original roadmap for governing the USA. It was created in 1777 before being officially ratified in 1781. Eventually, the Articles of Confederation were replaced by our current constitution in 1789. -
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Shay’s Rebellion
This was fighting that broke out over Massachusets taxes that would tax the individual and any trade that was occurring within the state. Many people were already in debt and were angered at the high taxes. -
Philadelphia Convention
This was to revise the Articles of Confederation and exactly what kind of government the US was going to use. This leads to the new US constitution established two years later. -
Shay’s Rebellion
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Connecticut Compromise
This was a meeting between that colonies that decided the representation that each state would have under the constitution regarding the population size of the state.
