Key Events and Terms
American History
CH3- British Colonies
Mrs. Cady
Bacon’s Rebellion
Bacon's Rebellion was an uprising in 1676 in the Virginia colony, led by a 29year-old Nathanial Bacon.
About a thousand Virginians rose (including former indentured servants, poor
whites and poor blacks) because they resented the Virginia Governor’s friendly
policies towards the Native Americans. When the governor refused to retaliate
after a series of Indian attacks on frontier settlements, others took matters into
their own hands, attacking Indians, chasing the governor from Jamestown,
Virginia and torching the capital.
Bacon had control of much of the colony for a while, but he died of fever and the
rebellion ended.
Toleration Act of 1649
The Toleration Act of 1649 was a law passed by the Maryland colony requiring
religious tolerance. Lord Baltimore and his family established Maryland for Catholics,
so this law was intended to protect Catholics who did not want to conform to the
Anglican Church (Church of England). The act allowed freedom of worship for all
Christians.
Mayflower Compact
The Mayflower Compact was the first governing document of Plymouth colony
and was created by Pilgrims who crossed the Atlantic on the Mayflower. It was
signed in 1620 by 40% of the Mayflower’s passengers and stated that each
member of the new colony was going to follow laws and ordinances that the
members will create for the greater good of the colony.
Great Migration
Great Migration usually refers to the migration in this period of English settlers,
primarily Puritans to Massachusetts and the warm islands of the West Indies,
1630-40. They came in family groups, rather than as isolated individuals and were
motivated chiefly by a quest for freedom to practice their Puritan religion.
From 1630 through 1640 approximately 20,000 colonists came to New England.
The so-called Great Migration is not so named because of sheer numbers, but
because the movement of colonists to New England was not predominantly male,
but of families with some education, leading relatively prosperous lives.
English Bill of Rights 1689
The English Bill of Rights established in 1689, was a set of laws passed by the British
Parliament after they replaced the unpopular King James II. King James II made many
laws that limited the rights of his people, so Parliament created the English Bill of
Rights, which limited the power of the monarch. If parliament disagreed with a law
passed by a king or queen, they could, with these new laws, petition the King.
These new laws gave colonists some more freedoms to elect representatives to run
the colonies and decide upon local issues.
Great Awakening
A period of religious revival occurring between the early 1700s and the late
1800s. The first of these “waves” of religious revival was in 1720 when
Protestant ministers traveled through the British colonies spreading the word
of God. It increased interest in Christianity and membership in the churches.
Leaders: Jonathan Edwards and George Whitefield
Enlightenment
Age of Enlightenment was an intellectual cultural movement that started in Europe
around 1650, but spread to the British colonies in the 1700s. Leaders of this
movement spread the idea that reason and logic could improve society.
Leader: John Locke
Stamp Act 1765
The Stamp Act of 1765 was a tax created by British Parliament that required
colonists to pay a tax for stamped printed materials. These materials included
magazines, legal documents, newspapers, etc. that colonists used in the colonies.
The purpose of the tax was to pay for a large military budget, but the colonists
were unhappy with the act.
Townshend Acts 1767
Townshend Acts of 1767 placed duties (tax) on glass, lead, paints, paper, and
tea. It was named after the man who proposed it.
The purpose of the Townshend Acts was to:
1. raise revenue in the colonies to pay the salaries of governors and judges so
that they would be independent of colonial rule
2. to create a more effective means of enforcing compliance with trade
regulations
3. to punish New York for failing to comply with the Quartering Act
4. to establish the precedent that the British Parliament had the right to tax
the colonies
Boston Massacre
Boston Massacre referred to shootings in Boston. People in Boston saw the
presence of British soldiers in Boston as a threat. One guard had an argument
with a colonist and, after being taunted, fired into the crowd. 3 died. Samuel
Adams and other “Sons of Liberty” spread this story and used it as a way to get
colonists against the British government.
Tea Act 1773
The Tea Act of 1773 allowed British East India Tea company to sell directly to the
colonists instead of to merchants, or shop owners, in the colonies. This angered
colonists, especially merchants, who feared that British East India Tea company
would be able to sell cheaper tea and put them out of business.
Boston Tea Party
Colonists were angry about being taxed so much by the British. After Tea Act of
1773, colonists had had enough taxing. On December 16, 1773, colonists led by
“Sons of Liberty” dressed as Indians and snuck onto tea ships docked in the
Boston Harbor. They dumped 340 chests of tea into the Boston Harbor.
Intolerable Acts 1774
Intolerable Acts, actually called “coercive acts,” were created as punishment for
the Boston Tea Party. It stated the following:
1. The Boston Harbor was closed until all tea was paid for
2. The Massachusetts charter was cancelled
3. Royal officials who were accused of crimes could be tried in England (special
treatment)
4. Quartering Act
5. Quebec Act (gave them lots of land)
6. New governor
Headright System
A headright is a legal grant of land to settlers. The Headright system was
started by the London Company. Colonists who paid their own way to Virginia
were given a headright, or 50 acres of land, as a reward for helping to populate
the colony.
A colonist could earn 50 extra acres of land or each additional person brought
from England. Rich colonists could bring servants and gain lots of land.
Indentured Servants
In the colonies, farmers, planters, and shopkeepers found it very difficult to hire free
workers because cash was short and it was so easy for those workers to set up their
own farm. A common solution was to pay the passage of a young worker who would
work for several years to pay off the travel costs debt. During that indenture period
they were not paid wages, but they were provided food, room, clothing, and training.
Indentured servants in the colonies signed a contract to work for a certain amount of
time (usually 4-7 years) for whomever paid for their journey to America.
Slave Codes
Slave codes were laws each colony had that outlined the rules for slaves and the rights of
masters. These codes gave slave-owners absolute power over the African slaves.
Examples: The 1712 South Carolina slave code:
•Slaves were forbidden to leave the owner's property, unless accompanied by a white
person, or obtaining permission. If a slave leaves the owner's property with out
permission, "every white person" is required to chastise such slaves
•Any slave attempting to run away and leave the colony (later, state) receives the
death penalty
•Any slave who evades capture for 20 days or more is to be publicly whipped for the
first offense; branded with the letter R on the right cheek for the second offense; and
lose one ear if absent for thirty days for the third offense; and castrated for the fourth
offense.
•Owners refusing to abide by the slave code are fined and forfeit ownership of their
slaves
•Slave homes are to be searched every two weeks for weapons or stolen goods.
Punishment for violations escalate to include loss of ear, branding, and nose-slitting,
and for the fourth offense, death.
•No slave shall be allowed to work for pay, or to plant corn, peas or rice; or to keep
hogs, cattle, or horses; or to own or operate a boat; to buy or sell; or to wear clothes
finer than 'Negro cloth'
Immigrants
Immigrants are people who have left the country of their birth to live in another
country.
Example: Pilgrims moved from England to the Netherlands in
1608 so that they could practice their religion freely. Since
they were from England, but living in the Netherlands, they
were immigrants in the Netherlands.
Staple Crops
Staple crops are crops that are always needed.
Example: Staple crops in the middle colonies were:
•Wheat
•Barley
•oats
Town Meeting
Town meetings generally took place in northern colonies where the people lived
closer together. (In the south, farms separated people by greater distances).
Male colonists gathered to talk about and decide on local issues of interest such as:
•How to pay for schools
•How to collect taxes
•Building roads and public spaces
•Election of new officials
•Other community affairs
Committees of Correspondence
Samuel Adams and other patriots helped to found the Committees of
Correspondence, which were groups of people, who believed the colonies should
be free of British rule, that got in touch with other towns and colonies.
These committees would share information about new British laws and actions and
discuss ways to challenge Britain.
Boycott
To actively stop buying or using something in protest.
Example: In the colonies, colonists protested the Townshend Acts by boycotting
British goods.