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Jun 15, 1215
Magna Carta
Magna Carta was written by a group of 13th-century barons to protect their rights and property against a tyrannical king. During the American Revolution, Magna Carta served to inspire and justify action in liberty’s defense. The colonists believed they were entitled to the same rights as Englishmen, rights guaranteed in Magna Carta. -
Jamestown settled
13 years before the Pilgrims landed in Massachusetts, a group of 104 English men settled on the banks of Virginia's James River. They were sponsored by the Virginia Company of London, whose stockholders hoped to make a profit from the resources of the New World. The community suffered terrible hardships, but managed to endure, earning the distinction of being America's first permanent English colony. -
Mayflower Compact written
the first governing document of Plymouth Colony. The Pilgrims intended on settling in Northern Virginia but decided to settle in New England. Since there was no government, some people felt they didnt have to remain in the colony and supply their labor, so the Mayflower Compact established a government. -
Petition of Right
a major English constitutional document that sets out specific liberties of the subject that the king is prohibited from infringing. the Petition contains restrictions on non-Parliamentary taxation, forced billeting of soldiers, imprisonment without cause, and restricts the use of martial law. -
English Bill of Rights
Ensure certain freedoms and ensure a Protestant political supremacy. -
Albany Plan of Union
a plan written by Benjamin Franklin in 1754 for all 13 colonies to unite and fight as one power to win the French and Indian War. -
Stamp Act
It was a direct tax imposed by the British Parliament on the British American colonies. The act required that many printed materials in the colonies be produced on stamped paper produced in London, carrying an embossed revenue stamp. These materials included legal documents, magazines, newspapers and many other types of paper used throughout the colonies. -
Boston Masacre
It was a street fight between a patriot mob and a squad of british soldiers. Several colonists were killed and this led to a campaign by speech-writers to rouse the ire of the citizenry. -
Boston Tea Party
after officials in Boston refused to return three shiploads of taxed tea to Britain, a group of colonists boarded the ships and destroyed the tea by throwing it into Boston Harbor. They were against the taxation of tea that was controlled by the british government and east india company. -
First Continental Congress
The first Continental Congress met in Carpenter's Hall in Philadelphia. 12 delegates showed up, all of the colonies except Georgia sent delegates. -
Second Continental Congress
In May 1775, the Redcoats once again storming Boston causing the Second Continental Congress in Philadelphia. -
American Revolution begins
American Independence from Great Britian -
Declaration of Independence
announced that the thirteen American colonies, then at war with Great Britain, regarded themselves as independent states, and no longer a part of the British Empire. -
Articles of Confederation
an agreement among the 13 founding states that established the United States of America as a confederation of sovereign states and served as its first constitution. -
Shay's Rebellion
an armed uprising that took place in central and western Massachusetts. Several things caused this uprise such as financial difficulties brought about by a post-war economic depression, a credit squeeze caused by a lack of hard currency, and fiscally harsh government policies instituted in 1785 to solve the state's debt problems. -
Philadelphia Convention
This convention was intended to revise the Article of Confederation and was to create a new government rather than fix the existing one. The results of this Convention was the U.S. Constitution. -
Connecticut Compromise
a compromise adopted at the Constitutional Convention, providing the states with equal representation in the Senate and proportional representation in the House of Representatives.
