Unit 2 - Chapters 5 - 8 - Misc. MCQs Flashcards
Sugar Act and Stamp Act:
- Sugar Act (1764): Also known as the American Revenue Act, this law revised duties on sugar, molasses, and other items, aiming to raise more revenue from the colonies and cut down on smuggling. The act increased enforcement, leading to higher indirect taxes.
- Stamp Act (1765): This was the first direct tax on the American colonies, requiring them to pay a tax on various paper documents and products. The revenue collected was intended to help pay for troops stationed in North America.
- Reactions: Both acts sparked significant resistance in the colonies, leading to protests, boycotts, and a rise in anti-British sentiments, which ultimately fueled the drive towards American independence.
Townshend Acts:
These acts, passed in 1767, imposed duties on glass, lead, paints, paper, and tea imported into the colonies. The revenues collected from these duties were used to pay the salaries of some colonial governors, making them independent of the colonial assemblies.
Reactions: The acts led to widespread opposition and protest in the American colonies, including non-importation agreements and a rise in political activism, contributing to the escalation of the American Revolution.
Boston Massacre:
This event occurred on March 5, 1770, when British soldiers killed five colonial civilians during a confrontation in Boston. The soldiers had been stationed in Boston to protect customs commissioners from growing colonial unrest and resistance to the Townshend Acts.
Effect on Colonies: The incident, widely publicized by patriots such as Paul Revere, further inflamed anti-British sentiment throughout the colonies. It served to galvanize colonial society against the British Crown, setting the stage for the American Revolution.
Tea Act:
Passed in 1773, this act allowed the British East India Company to sell tea directly to the colonies, thereby bypassing colonial merchants and undercutting their prices. While it lowered the price of tea, it was seen as a way for Britain to establish its right to tax the colonies.
Colonial Response: The act led to the Boston Tea Party in December 1773, where members of the Sons of Liberty, dressed as Mohawk Indians, dumped 342 chests of tea into Boston Harbor as a protest.
Coercive Acts (Intolerable Acts):
These acts were passed by the British Parliament in 1774 as a punitive measure following the Boston Tea Party. They included the Boston Port Act (closing Boston Harbor until the dumped tea was paid for), the Massachusetts Government Act (reducing the power of the Massachusetts legislature while increasing that of the royal governor), the Administration of Justice Act (allowing royal officials accused of crimes to be tried in Britain), and the Quartering Act (requiring colonists to house British soldiers in their homes).
American Response: These acts further united the colonies against British rule, leading to the formation of the First Continental Congress and the beginning of coordinated colonial resistance to British rule, which culminated in the outbreak of the Revolutionary War in 1775.
Battle of Saratoga:
The Battle of Saratoga, fought in 1777, was a decisive victory for the American forces during the Revolutionary War. British General John Burgoyne’s plan to cut off New England from the rest of the colonies failed, and his army was surrounded by American forces and forced to surrender.
Importance: The American victory was a significant turning point in the Revolutionary War. It convinced France to enter the war on the side of the Americans, providing much-needed military support and helping to ensure American victory.
British Loyalists in America during the American Revolution:
Loyalists, also known as Tories, were American colonists who remained loyal to the British Crown during the American Revolutionary War. They were often the more conservative elements of the population.
Reaction to the Revolution and American victory: Loyalists were generally unhappy and fearful of the revolution and the subsequent American victory. Many Loyalists faced confiscation of property, violence, and social ostracism during and after the war. A significant number of Loyalists, estimated to be around 20-30% of the population, decided to leave the United States after the war, with many settling in Canada, Britain, or the British West Indies.
Treaty of Paris, 1783:
The Treaty of Paris, signed in 1783, ended the American Revolutionary War. Its provisions included the recognition of American independence by the British, the setting of boundaries for the new nation, a provision that creditors on either side could recover debts owed to them, and the British promise to withdraw their troops from American territory.
Significance: The treaty was significant as it officially recognized the United States of America as a free, sovereign, and independent state. It also set generous boundaries for the United States, which would allow for future westward expansion.
Land Ordinances of 1784, 1785 and the Northwest Ordinance of 1787:
- Land Ordinance of 1784: Proposed by Thomas Jefferson, this ordinance divided the Western territories into ten self-governing districts, which could each request statehood when its population reached the number of free inhabitants of the smallest existing state.
- Land Ordinance of 1785: This ordinance established a system for surveying and selling the western lands. The land was to be systematically surveyed into square townships, each divided into 36 square sections. One section of each township was set aside to support public schools.
- Northwest Ordinance of 1787: This ordinance established a system for setting up governments in the western territories so they could eventually join the Union on an equal footing with the original 13 states. It prohibited slavery in these territories and promised that Native American lands would not be taken without consent.
Constitutional provisions:
- Regarding slaves and the slave trade: The Constitution allowed the importation of slaves to continue for twenty years, until 1808. Slaves were counted as three-fifths of a person for purposes of taxation and representation in Congress (the Three-Fifths Compromise).
- Elections to the House and Senate: Members of the House of Representatives are elected by the people of each state every two years. Senators are elected by each state’s legislature every six years (though the 17th Amendment, ratified in 1913, later changed this to popular election).
- Election of the president: The president is elected indirectly through the Electoral College. Each state has as many electors as it has members of Congress, and these electors vote for the president.
- Powers of Congress and the president: Congress has the power to make laws, declare war, regulate commerce, and control taxation and spending policies. The president is the commander-in-chief of the military, can veto laws passed by Congress, and executes the laws passed by Congress.
Controversies over assumption and funding in the “Report on Public Credit” and the creation of the National Bank:
- Assumption: Some states had already paid off their war debts and did not want to help pay the debts of other states. Also, this policy largely benefited Northern states where more of the debt was held.
- Funding: Hamilton’s plan to pay off the debts at face value was controversial because speculators who had bought up debt would profit, while the original holders of the debt, often soldiers who had been paid in depreciated currency, had sold off their debt at a fraction of its value.
- National Bank: The creation of a national bank was controversial because it consolidated power in the federal government and was seen as benefiting merchants and the wealthy at the expense of farmers and common people. There were also constitutional objections as the Constitution did not explicitly give the federal government the power to create a bank.
Alexander Hamilton’s “Report on Manufactures”:
- Promotion of Industry: Hamilton proposed using protective laws to help new industries and encourage domestic manufacturing.
- Government Support: He advocated for direct government involvement in the economy, including subsidies to manufacturers.
- Tariffs: Hamilton proposed high tariffs on foreign goods to protect American industry from foreign competition.
Jay’s Treaty (1794) and
Treaty of San Lorenzo / Pinckney’s Treaty (1795):
Jay’s treaty was an effort to resolve outstanding issues between the United States and Great Britain, particularly over British military posts on U.S. soil in the Great Lakes region and their practice of impressing American seamen into the Royal Navy. However, the treaty didn’t resolve these issues to the satisfaction of many Americans. Provisions included the British agreeing to evacuate the western forts, and in return, America agreed to repay pre-Revolutionary war debts to British creditors. The treaty also included rules for handling maritime disputes and issues related to trade.
Treaty of San Lorenzo / Pinckney’s Treaty was an agreement between the United States and Spain that recognized the 31st parallel as the boundary between the United States and Spanish Florida. The treaty also granted the United States the right to navigate the Mississippi River and deposit goods at the port of New Orleans without paying cargo fees (right of deposit).
Alien and Sedition Laws (1798):
These were four laws passed during the political crisis of the late 1790s. The laws increased the residency requirements for American citizenship from five to fourteen years (Naturalization Act), allowed the president to imprison or deport aliens considered “dangerous to the peace and safety of the United States” (Alien Friends Act), targeted enemy aliens in times of war (Alien Enemies Act), and criminalized making false statements that were critical of the federal government (Sedition Act). The laws were highly controversial and many felt they were an infringement on First Amendment rights. They led to the Virginia and Kentucky Resolutions, in which those states affirmed their right to judge the constitutionality of federal laws.
George Washington’s “Farewell Address”:
In this 1796 address, Washington warned against the dangers of factionalism and sectionalism. He cautioned against foreign entanglements and alliances, setting the precedent of American isolationism. He also emphasized the importance of religion and morality in promoting private and public happiness and in promoting the political prosperity of the nation.
