1st Great Awakening

(1730s-1740s) a series of religious revivals among Protestants in the American colonies. Led to the division of old congregations and the forming of new ones. Leaders included Jonathan Edwards and George Whitefield.

Anne Hutchinson

A Puritan woman who was well learned that disagreed with the Puritan Church in Massachusetts Bay Colony. Her actions resulted in her banishment from the colony, and later took part in the formation of Rhode Island. She displayed the importance of questioning authority.

Bacon's Rebellion (1676)

Armed rebellion led by Nathaniel Bacon due to colonial government's lack of response to Native American attacks on western settlers in Virginia. Governor William Berkeley, who had the support of the British government, requested forces from England came to Virginia to suppress the resistance and reform the colonial government to one that was more directly under royal control. Led to a move from indentured servants to African slaves for labor purposes.

Barbados Slave Code

Established in 1661, it gave masters virtually complete control over their slaves including the right to inflict vicious punishments for even slight infractions.

Chesapeake

Virginia-Maryland bay area, site of the earliest colonial settlements

Congregational Church

Self-governing Puritan congregations without the hierarchical establishment of the Anglican Church.

Cotton Mather

minister, part of Puritan New England important families, a sholar, one of first americans to pemote vaccination of smallpox when it was believed to be dangerous, strongly believed on witches, encouraged witch trials in salem

Dominion of New England (1686-1689)

Administrative union created by royal authority, incorporating all of New England, New York, and East and West Jersey. Placed under the rule of Sir Edmund Andros who curbed popular assemblies, taxed residents without their consent, and strictly enforced Navigation Laws. Its collapse after the Glorious Revolution in England demonstrated colonial opposition to strict royal control.

Fundamental Constitution for Carolina

Drawn up by Anthony Ashley Cooper and John Locke in 1669, it divided the colony into counties and parcels and created a rigidly hierarchical social order. It introduced limited government and the idea of a social contract. It is the most important of any of the early constitutions.

George Whitefield (1714-1770)

A true catalyst of the Great Awakening, he sought to reignite religious fervor in the American congregations. During his tour of the American Colonies in 1739, he gave spellbinding sermons and preached the notion of "new birth"—a sudden, emotional moment of conversion and salvation.

Glorious Revolution

A reference to the political events of 1688-1689, when James II abdicated his throne and was replaced by his daughter Mary and her husband, Prince William of Orange.

Headright System

Parcels of land consisting of about 50 acres which were given to colonists who brought indentured servants into America. They were used by the Virginia Company to attract more colonists.

House of Burgesses

the first elected legislative assembly in the New World established in the Colony of Virginia in 1619, representative colony set up by England to make laws and levy taxes but England could veto its legislative acts.

Huguenots

French Protestants influenced by John Calvin

Ideals of the Enlightenment

All human beings are born free and equal with a right to life and liberty. It is the duty of government to protect these natural rights of its citizens.

Indentured Servitude

A worker bound by a voluntary agreement to work for a specified period of years often in return for free passage to an overseas destination. Before 1800 most were Europeans; after 1800 most indentured laborers were Asians.

Jacob Leisler

German immigrant who became governor of New York from 1688 to 1691 before being hanged for treason. He was later exonerated of all charges.

James Oglethorpe

Founder and governor of the Georgia colony. He ran a tightly-disciplined, military-like colony. Slaves, alcohol, and Catholicism were forbidden in his colony. Many colonists felt that Oglethorpe was a dictator, and that (along with the colonist's dissatisfaction over not being allowed to own slaves) caused the colony to break down and Oglethorpe to lose his position as governor.

Jamestown (1607)

first permanent English colony in North America, founded in Virginia in 1607 - 13 years before the Pilgrims landed at Plymouth in Massachusetts - Initially, the settlers spent too much time trying to find gold and neglected to prepare for the winter. The "Starving Time" of 1609-10 saw 80% of the settlers die. Only after several more shipments of immigrants and the widespread adoption of TOBACCO cultivation did the colony begin to thrive.

Jeremiads

In the 1600's, Puritan preachers noticed a decline in the religious devotion of second-generation settlers. To combat this decreasing piety, they preached a type of sermon called the jeremiad. The jeremiads focused on the teachings of Jeremiah, a Biblical prophet who warned of doom.

John Calvin/Calvinism

published Institutes of the Christian religion. Esxpressed ideas about God, salvation, and human nature. He believed that God has known since the beginning of time who will be saved this doctrine is called "Pre-destination"...his teachings became called "Calvinism"

John Locke

English philosopher who advocated the idea of a "social contract" in which government powers are derived from the consent of the governed and in which the government serves the people; also said people have natural rights to life, liberty and property.

Second Treatise of Government

Written by Locke, Government created to protect life, liberty, and property.

Zenger Trial

New York libel case against John Peter Zenger. Established the principle that truthful statements about public officials could not be prosecuted as libel.

John Peter Zenger

Journalist who questioned the policies of the governor of New York in the 1700's. He was jailed; he sued, and this court case was the basis for our freedom of speech and press. He was found not guilty.

John Smith

Helped found and govern Jamestown. His leadership and strict discipline helped the Virginia colony get through the difficult first winter.

John Winthrop

Puritan governor of Massachusetts Bay Colony. Speaker of "City upon a hill"

Jonathan Edwards

Preacher during the First Great Awakening; "Sinners in the hands of angry god"

King Philip's War

1675 - A series of battles in New Hampshire between the colonists and the Wompanowogs, led by a chief known as King Philip. The war was started when the Massachusetts government tried to assert court jurisdiction over the local Indians. The colonists won with the help of the Mohawks, and this victory opened up additional Indian lands for expansion.

King William's War (1689-1697)

War fought largely between French trappers, British settlers, and their respective Indian allies from 1689-1697. The colonial theater of the larger War of the League of Augsburg in Europe.

Queen Anne's War

(1702-1713), second of the four North American wars waged by the British and French between 1689 and 1763. The wars were the result of the worldwide maritime and colonial rivalry between Great Britain and France and their struggle for predominance on the European and North American continents; each of the wars fought in North America corresponded more or less to a war fought between the same powers in Europe.

King George's War

North American theater of Europe's War of Austrian Succession that once again pitted British colonists against their French counterparts in the North. The peace settlement did not involve any territorial realignment, leading to conflict between New England settlers and the British government.

Massachusetts Bay Colony

1629 - King Charles gave the Puritans a right to settle and govern a colony in the Massachusetts Bay area. The colony established political freedom and a representative government.

Massachusetts Bay Company

A group of wealthy Puritans who were granted a royal charter in 1629 to settle in Massachusetts Bay

Mayflower Compact (1620)

The first agreement for self-government in America. It was signed by the 41 men on the Mayflower and set up a government for the Plymouth colony.

Mercantilism

An economic policy under which nations sought to increase their wealth and power by obtaining large amounts of gold and silver and by selling more goods than they bought

Metacomet (King Philip)

Chief of the Wampanoags who resented the English efforts to convert Indians to Christianity

Middle Passage

A voyage that brought enslaved Africans across the Atlantic Ocean to North America and the West Indies

Molasses Act

Tax on imported molasses passed by Parliament in an effort to squelch the North American trade with the French West Indies. It proved largely ineffective due to widespread smuggling.

Navigation Acts

Laws that governed trade between England and its colonies. Colonists were required to ship certain products exclusively to England. These acts made colonists very angry because they were forbidden from trading with other countries.

Pequot War

1637 The Bay colonists wanted to claim Connecticut for themselves but it belonged to the Pequot. The colonists burned down their village and 400 were killed.

Plymouth Colony

A colony established by the English Pilgrims, or Seperatists, in 1620. The Seperatists were Puritans who abandoned hope that the Anglican Church could be reformed. Plymouth became part of Massachusetts in 1691.

Poor Richard's Almanack (1732-1758)

Widely read annual pamphlet edited by Benjamin Franklin. Best known for its proverbs and aphorisms emphasizing thrift, industry, morality, and common sense.

Powahatan Confederacy

A cultural and political union of over 30 Algonquian speaking Native American tribes residing in Chesapeake Bay, Virginia, Southern Maryland. iT was a confederation of Native American Indians who provided military support and paid tributes to its powerful chief, Powhatan.

Praying Towns (Praying Indians)

Towns set up by puritan missionaries for Indian converts to spread Puritan Christianity, the first of which, Natick, was founded in 1651. As the Indian population in the east waned, assimilation as "Praying Indians" became the only option besides retreating farther west.

Primogeniture

A system of inheritance in which the eldest son in a family received all of his father's land. The nobility remained powerful and owned land, while the 2nd and 3rd sons were forced to seek fortune elsewhere. Many of them turned to the New World for their financial purposes and individual wealth.

Puritans

A religious group who wanted to purify the Church of England. They came to America for religious freedom and settled Massachusetts Bay.

Quakers

A form of Protestantism in which the believers were pacifists and would shake at the power of the word of the Lord

Roger Williams

A dissenter who clashed with the Massachusetts Puritans over separation of church and state and was banished in 1636, after which he founded the colony of Rhode Island to the south

Scots-Irish

A group of restless people who fled their home in Scotland in the 1600s to escape poverty and religious oppression. They first relocated to Ireland and then to America in the 1700s. They left their mark on the backcountry of Virginia, the Carolinas, and Georgia. These areas are home to many Presbyterian churches established by the Scots-Irish. Many people in these areas are still very independent like their ancestors.

Sir William Berkeley

the royal governor of Virginia. Adopted policies that favored large planters and neglected the needs of recent settlers in the 'backcountry.' His shortcomings led to Bacon's Rebellion

Slave Codes

Laws that controlled the lives of enslaved African Americans and denied them basic rights.

Stono Rebellion (1739)

South Carolina slave revolt that prompted the colonies to pass stricter laws regulating the movement of slaves and the capture of runaways.

sugarcane

one of the primary crops of the Americas, which required a tremendous amount of labor to cultivate

Calverts

Aristocratic family that established Maryland to be a safe-haven for Catholics. Over the years most immigrants were Protestant.

tobacco, rice, indigo

Cash crops in Southern colonies

Toleration Act of 1649

A Maryland law that made restricting the religious rights of Christians a crime; the first law guaranteeing religious freedom to be passed in America

Triangular Trade

A three way system of trade during 1600-1800s Africa sent slaves to America, America sent Raw Materials to Europe, and Europe sent Guns and Rum to Africa

John Wesley

English clergyman and founder of Methodism (1703-1791)

William Bradford

A Pilgrim, the second governor of the Plymouth colony, 1621-1657. He developed private land ownership and helped colonists get out of debt. He helped the colony survive droughts, crop failures, and Indian attacks.

William Penn

A Quaker that founded Pennsylvania to establish a place where his people and others could live in peace and be free from persecution.

Salem Witch Trials

Several accusations of witchcraft led to sensational trials in Salem, Massachusetts at which Cotton Mather presided as the chief judge. 18 people were hanged as witches. Afterwards, most of the people involved admitted that the trials and executions had been a terrible mistake.

Fundamental Orders of Connecticut (1639)

First constitution in written history (1639). Established a representative government made up of a legislature elected by the people and a governor chosen by the legislature.

sachem

tribal chief

Wahunsenacawh

Real name of Powhatan, leader of the Confederacy.

Pocahontas

A native Indian of America, daughter of Chief Powhattan, who was one of the first to marry an Englishman, John Rolfe, and return to England with him; about 1595-1617.

Starving Time

The winter of 1609 to 1610 was known as the "starving time" to the colonists of Virginia. Only sixty members of the original four-hundred colonists survived. The rest died of starvation because they did not possess the skills that were necessary to obtain food in the new world.

John Smith

Helped found and govern Jamestown. His leadership and strict discipline helped the Virginia colony get through the difficult first winter.

John Rolfe

He was one of the English settlers at Jamestown (and he married Pocahontas). He discovered how to successfully grow tobacco in Virginia and cure it for export, which made Virginia an economically successful colony.

First Anglo-Powhatan War

Series of clashes between the Powhatan Confederacy and English settlers in Virginia. English colonists torched and pillaged Indian villages, applying tactics used in England's campaigns against the Irish.

1619

First Africans arrive in Virginia

subsistence farming

farming in which only enough food to feed one's family is produced

tidewater gentry

the landed elite in colonial Virginia and the surrounding Tidewater region who dominated the political, economic, and social life of the area through large plantations and enslaved labor

hereditary aristocracy

a social and political system where a ruling class of nobles holds power, status, and titles that are passed down through families, or by lineage, to their descendants. Note* There was no hereditary aristocracy in the colonies. Their class system was based on economics with wealthy landowners at the top. Craft workers and small farmers made up the majority of the population.

artisan

A skilled craftsperson

Presbyterian

Member of a Protestant church governed by elders and founded by John Knox

Congregational

A kind of church in which members control activities, whether erecting a building, hiring a preacher, or managing its finances

Assimilation

the social process of absorbing one cultural group into harmony with another

homogenous

of the same kind

dissenters

individuals or groups who disagree with or oppose a prevailing opinion, belief, or policy, whether in a religious, political, or organizational context.

Describe the society of New England colonies.

Commercial, maritime, and town-focused society. Heavy influenced by the Puritans.

What characterized the economy of the Middle Colonies?

A blend of agricultural (bread basket) and urban economies (artisan) with greater ethnic and religious diversity.

What was the economic basis of the Southern Colonies?

Large plantations, staple crops like tobacco and rice, and reliance on enslaved labor.

Halfway Covenant (1662)

A Puritan compromise that allowed the unconverted children of Puritans who had fallen away from the church to become halfway members of the church. The Covenant allowed these halfway members to baptize their own children even though they themselves were not full members of the church because they had not experienced full conversion. Massachusetts ministers accepted this compromise and it signified a drop in the religious zeal or mission that had characterized Massachusetts in its change in the religious character of New England Society.

propietary colony

colony run by individuals or groups to whom land was granted

Royal Colony

A colony under the direct control of a monarch

African Slave Trade

African people were taken as slaves to be sold in America, in America they would work in mines & plantations. The profit went to europe where they built goods to then be sold to Africans. It was a triangle.

Algonquin

Native Americans found living over a large area from the Atlantic coast to the Great Lakes.

Atlantic World

A pattern of exchange between Western Europe, Western Africa, North and South America, and the Caribbean. Made it easier to get goods from foreign places.

Bartolome De Las Casas

Dominican priest who spoke out against mistreatment of Native Americans

Cahokia

an ancient settlement of southern Indians, located near present day St. Louis, it served as a trading center for 40,000 at its peak in A.D. 1200.

Catholic Missions

A number of settlements and building created by the Spanish in the New World in order to spread religion and stake claims to land.

Charter Company

an association formed by investors or shareholders for the purpose of trade, exploration, and colonization

Christopher Columbus

He mistakenly discovered the Americas in 1492 while searching for a faster route to India.

Columbian Exchange

The exchange of plants, animals, diseases, and technologies between the Americas and the rest of the world following Columbus's voyages.

Conquistadors

Early-sixteenth-century Spanish adventurers who conquered Mexico, Central America, and Peru. (Examples Cortez, Pizarro, Francisco.)

coureurs de bois

(runners of the woods) French fur traders, many of mixed Amerindian heritage, who lived among and often married with Amerindian peoples of North America.

Encomienda System

system in Spanish America that gave settlers the right to tax local Indians or to demand their labor in exchange for protecting them and teaching them skills.

Henry Hudson

Discovered what today is known as the Hudson River. Sailed for the Dutch even though he was originally from England. He was looking for a northwest passage through North America.

Hopewell ruins

Present-day Ohio. The ruins are large burial mounds.

Six Nations Confederacy

Six First Nations peoples that joined to together under a constitution called the Great Law of Peace and created a democracy.

Iroquois League/Nation

a league of Iroquois tribes including originally the Mohawk, Oneida, Onondaga, Cayuga and Seneca (the Five Nations). Tuscarora joined in 1722.

Maize

An early form of corn grown by Native Americans

Three sisters agriculture

Native American method of planting corn, beans, and squash together

Mayan, Inca and Aztecs

The three most complex Native American communities living in Central and South America

Mercantilism

An economic policy under which nations sought to increase their wealth and power by obtaining large amounts of gold and silver and by selling more goods than they bought

Meso-America

a region stretching from central Mexico to Nicaragua, usually used in terms of the region's ancient civilizations and aboriginal cultures

Mestizos

A person of mixed Native American and European ancestory

Missions

church outposts

New Amsterdam

Dutch colonial settlement that served as the capital of New Netherland. This later became "New York City"

Pope's Rebellion

An Indian uprising in 1680 where pueblo rebels in an attempt to resist Catholicism and Europeans all together destroyed every catholic church in the province and killed scores of priests and hundreds of Spanish settlers.

Puritans

A religious group who wanted to purify the Church of England. They came to America for religious freedom and settled Massachusetts Bay.

Richard Hakluyt

English promoter of exploration. In 1584 he wrote A Discourse of Western Planting in which he pleaded for colonies to accomplish diverse objects: to extend the reformed religion, to expand trade, to supply England's needs from her own dominions, and various other reasons for exploration.

Roanoke

Established in 1587. Called the Lost Colony. It was financed by Sir Walter Raleigh, and its leader in the New World was John White. All the settlers disappeared, and historians still don't know what became of them.

Samuel De Champlain

French explorer in Nova Scotia who established a settlement on the site of modern Quebec (1567-1635)

Separatists

English Protestants who would not accept allegiance in any form to the Church of England. Included the Pilgrims and Quakers

Sir Walter Raleigh

An English adventurer and writer, who was prominent at the court of Queen Elizabeth I, and became an explorer of the Americas. In 1585, Raleigh sponsored the first English colony in America on Roanoke Island in present-day North Carolina. It failed and is known as " The Lost Colony."

Smallpox

The overall deadliest known disease in the history of the world and the main disease that caused the decline of Native Americans in the New World.

Spanish Armada

"Invincible" group of ships sent by King Philip II of Spain to invade England in 1588; Armada was defeated by smaller, more maneuverable English "sea dogs" in the Channel; marked the beginning of English naval dominance and fall of Spanish dominance.

St. Augustine

1st colony in Florida set up by Spain

Tenochtitlan

Capital of the Aztec Empire, located on an island in Lake Texcoco. Its population was about 150,000 on the eve of Spanish conquest. Mexico City was constructed on its ruins.

Spanish Black Legend

referred to the Spanish treatment of native people, spread throughout Europe by Spain's enemies to make them look bad and to encourage other European countries to immigrate to the Americas

Woodland Indians

the third prehistoric Native American culture in Georgia; credited for the development of the bow and arrow, pottery for storage, and intensification of horticulture, as well as building small mounds

Encomienda

A grant of land made by Spain to a settler in the Americas, including the right to use Native Americans as laborers on it

subsistence farming

farming in which only enough food to feed one's family is produced

Valladolid Debate

Concerned the treatment of natives of the New World. It concerned two main attitudes towards the conquest of the Americas. Bartolomé de las Casas argued Amerindians were creations of God and deserved same treatment as Christian Europeans. Juan Ginés de Sepúlveda thought that the natives should be slaves because of their crimes against nature and against God.

settler colonialism

displacement and pacification of indigenous people and expropriation of their lands and resources

Haudenosaunee

the name the Iroquois called themselves which meant "People of the Longhouse"