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Jun 15, 1215
Magna Carta
It was a series of promises from the King of to his subjects on how he would govern England and deal with his people according to feudal customs. King John and the feudal barons of England signed it at Runnymede, near the Windsor Castle. Some rights of this included, access to law courts regardless of money, trial by jury and punishment fitting and not excessive to the crime. -
Mayflower Compact
Mayflower Compact It was the first written framework of government that was established in the United States. The purpose was to prevent disent between the Puritans and the non-Separatist Pilgrims. -
Petition of Rights
Sir Edward Coke presented this to King Charles I when the King broke up Parliament and ruled England on his own. This petition granted rights like no taxes may be levied without consent of Parliament, no subject may be imprisoned without cause shown, no soldier may be quarted upon the citzenry, and martial law may no be used in time of peace. Charles I signed it. -
English Bill of Rights
It was meant to control the powers of the King and Queen, and to make them responsible for the laws passed by the government. It was signed by William III and Mary II. Some of the rights given to the subjects include that Protestants were allowed to carry weapons for their defense, and that they did not have excessive bail, fines, or cruel and unusual punishment. -
French and Indian War
It took place because the British and the French were fighting for colonial domination in North America. The major players in the war were British and French along with the help the Native Americans on both sides. Some major battles of the war include the Battle of Fort Necessity and the Battle of Fort Ticonderoga. At the end of the war, the British had defeated the French, and realtions between England and the colonies were worsening because the war strengthed England's grip on the colonies -
Albany Plan of Union
Its goal was to place the colonies under a more centralized government. Benjamin Franklin was the one to suggest the idea, but the plan was never carried out. The political cartoon is the Join or Die cartoon; it appeared in Franklin's Pennslyvania Gazette in 1754. -
King George III Takes Power
King George III ascended the throne after his grandfather, King George II, dies. He became the heir after his father, Fredrick Prince of Wales, died earlier. Under his rule, the relationship between England and the colonies, during the French and Indian War, worsend because Britain acquired much land from the French along with a lot war debts. -
Stamp Act
ushistory.orgThe Stamp Act was a tax passed by British Parliament and required colonists to pay taxes on printed paper like ship's papers, legal documents, liscenses, newspapers, publications, and even playing cards. Colonial leaders reacted by sending formal protests to Parliament. They also created the Declaration of Rights and Grievances which stated only colonial asseblies have the right to tax. -
Boston Massacre
It was an event where British soldiers fired upon an unarmed Patriot mob that was protesting against them. During this incident, five colonists were killed. The Townshend Acts ld to this because people could not pay the taxes on glass, paint, oil, lead, paper and tea. -
Boston Tea Party
It was when a group of colonists protesting the taxes on tea by seizing chests of tea and dumping them into the Boston Harbor. The political group, the Massachusetts Patriots, organized this. As a result of this event, the British responed by passing the INtolerable Acts, which closed down the harbor and made the city pat for all the tea that had been dumped. -
Intolerable Acts
The Intolerable Acts were a series of unreasonable acts imposed on the colonists by Britain. The British passed these acts as punishment for the Boston Tea Party. These acts closed the Boston Port, forced colonists to house and feed British troops, extended Canadian borders and cut off Connecticut, Massachusets, and Virginia, and ended town meetings. -
First Continental Congress
Delegates from most colonies gathered together to dicuss the Intolerable Acts, along with their relationship wtih Britain and how to gain their rights from Britain. Major people at the meeting included Sam and John Adams, George Washington and Patrick Henry. As a result of the meeting, a declaration of rigths was sent to London,and a plan to have all laws passed by Parliament approved by an American assembly to take effect. The meeting took place at Carpenter's Hall in Philadelphia, PA. -
Lexington and Concord
The Battles of Lexington and Concord were the first military engagements of the Revolutionary War. The American colonists overpwered the British troops. The major generals were William Howe, Henry Clinton, and Johnny Burgoyne. Paul Revere warned the colonists that the British were coming. -
Second Continental Congress
The Second Continental Congress met after the Battles of Lexington and Concord. This took place in the State House in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, now known as Independece Hall. They decided to create the Olive Branch Petition, to form the American Continental Army with George Washington as commander in Chief, and to print paper money. The colonial leaders involved were Benjamin Franklin, John Hancock, Samuel Adams, John Adams, and George Washington. -
Declaration of Independence
Declaration of Independence VideoThomas Jefferson mainly wrote it and it was a statement of how determined the colonists were to free themselves from Great Britain. -
Articles of Confederation
This was the first constitution of the United States and left most of the power with the state governments and had a weak central goverment. John Hanson was the first president under these articles. -
Start of Constitutional Convention
Delegates from all of the colonies came together in Philadelphia to come up with a new Constitution. The approved Constitution was signed on September 17th.
