American Revolution Questions and
Answers 100% Pass
Stamp Act
A tax that the British Pariliament placed on newspapers and official documents sold in the
American Colonies.
Intolerable Acts
In response to Boston Tea
...
American Revolution Questions and
Answers 100% Pass
Stamp Act
A tax that the British Pariliament placed on newspapers and official documents sold in the
American Colonies.
Intolerable Acts
In response to Boston Tea Party, 4 acts passed in 1774, Port of Boston closed, reduced power of
assemblies in colonies, permitted royal officers to be tried elsewhere, provided for quartering of
troop's in barns and empty houses.
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
Abigail Adams
John Adam's wife, she appealed to her husband to protect the rights of women. a member of the
Daughters of Liberty
John Adams
A Massachusetts attorney & politician who was a strong believer in colonial independence. He
argued against the Stamp Act and was involved in various patriot groups. As a delegate from
Massachusetts, he urged the Second Continental Congress to declare independence. He helped
draft and pass the Declaration of Independence. Adams later served as the second President of
the United States.
Benjamin Franklin
American patriot, writer, printer, and inventor. During the Revolutionary War he persuaded the
French to help the colonists.
King George III
He was the king of England from 1760 to 1820, exercised a greater hand in the government of
the American colonies than had many of his predecessors. Colonists were torn between loyalty to
the king and resistance to acts carried out in his name.
Thomas Jefferson
He was a delegate from Virginia at the Second Continental Congress and wrote the Declaration
of Independence. He later served as the third President of the United States.
Thomas Paine
Patriot and writer whose pamphlet Common Sense, published in 1776, convinced many
Americans that it was time to declare independence from Britain. He also wrote The American
Crisis to urge colonists to join the fight against the British.
George Washington
Commander of the Continental Army. He had led troops (rather unsuccessfully) during the
French and Indian War, and had surrendered Fort Necessity to the French. He was appointed
commander-in-chief of the Continental Army, and was much more successful in this second
command.
What is the significance of 1776?
It was the year that the Declaration of Independence was signed. Congress voted to accept the
Declaration of Independence's final wording; this was the first Independence Day on July 4,
1776.
Battles of Lexington and Concord
A 1775 conflict between colonial minutemen & British soldiers attempting to take the colonists'
large store of arms; began the Revolutionary War, British governor Thomas Gage sent troops to
Concord to stop the colonists who were loading arms. The next day, on April 19, 1775, the first
shots were fired in Lexington, starting the war. The battles resulted in a British retreat to Boston.
Battle of Yorktown
Last major battle of the Revolutionary War. Cornwallis and his troops were trapped in the
Chesapeake Bay by the French fleet. He was sandwiched between the French navy and the
American army. He surrendered October 19, 1781.
Winter at Valley Forge, PA
Washington and troops were low on supplies, food, and clothing. Because it was a harsh winter,
1/5 of soldiers died. Name given to the 1777-1778 encampment at Valley Forge by the American
military under General Washington. It was America's first real effort to field a professional
military against the British.
Treaty of Paris of 1783
This treaty ended the Revolutionary War, recognized the independence of the American
colonies, and granted the colonies the territory from the southern border of Canada to the
northern border of Florida, and from the Atlantic coast to the Mississippi River.
Loyalist
A person who supported the British during the American Revolution
Unalienable Rights
These rights are fundamental or natural rights guaranteed to people naturally instead of by the
law. They include life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness., rights that cannot be given up, taken
away or transferred.
propaganda
material distributed by those in favor of a specific cause and reflecting their point of view, Ideas
spread to influence public opinion for or against a cause.
Patriot
A person who supported the colonists during the American Revolution, a colonist who wanted to
break free from Britain's rule
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.
First Continental Congress
September 1774, delegates from twelve colonies sent representatives to Philadelphia to discuss a
response to the Intolerable Acts
Second Continental Congress
They organized the Continental Army, called on the colonies to send troops, selected George
Washington to lead the army, and appointed the comittee to draft the Declaration of
Independence.
Olive Branch Petition
On July 8, 1775, the colonies made a final offer of peace to Britain, agreeing to be loyal to the
British government if it addressed their grievances (repealed the Coercive Acts, ended the
taxation without representation policies). It was rejected by Parliament, which in December 1775
passed the American Prohibitory Act forbidding all further trade with the colonies.
Committees of Correspondence
Committees of Correspondence, organized by patriot leader Samuel Adams, was a system of
communication between patriot leaders in New England and throughout the colonies. They
provided the organization necessary to unite the colonies in opposition to Parliament. The
committees sent delegates to the First Continental Congress.
Boston Tea Party
Demonstration (1773) by citizens of Boston who (disguised as Indians) raided three British ships
in Boston harbor and dumped hundreds of chests of tea into the harbor. Protest against increased
tea prices in which colonists dumped british tea into boston harbor.
Continental Army
Army formed in 1775 by the Second Continental Congress and led by General George
Washington
Common Sense
A pamphlet written by Thomas Paine that claimed the colonies had a right to be an independent
nation.
Guerilla Warfare
type of fighting in which soldiers use swift hit-and-run attacks against the enemy
Sons of Liberty
a group of colonists who formed a secret society to oppose British policies at the time of the
American Revolution.
Ally
a country that agrees to help another country achieve a common goal, ie. American Revolution -
French were allies.
Boston Massacre
British soldiers fired into a crowd of colonists who were teasing and taunting them. Five
colonists were killed. The colonists blamed the British and the Sons of Liberty and used this
incident as an excuse to promote the Revolution.
Representation in Parliament
Colonists felt that the laws and taxes passed by the British were unfair because they had
no____________________.
What were the strengths of the British?
They had a strong well-trained army and navy along with a strong central government with food,
ammunition and the support of colonial loyalists and Native Americans.
Declaration of Independence
The document approved by representatives of the American colonies in 1776 that stated their
grievances against the British monarch and declared their independence.
Paul Revere
American silversmith remembered for his midnight ride (celebrated in a poem by Longfellow) to
warn the colonists in Lexington and Concord that British troops were coming (1735-1818)
boycott
to refuse to buy items from a particular country. The colonists upheld a __________against
British goods.
minutemen
Member of a militia during the American Revolution who could be ready to fight in a minute.
natural rights stated in the Declaration of Independence
life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness
Quartering Act
March 24, 1765 - Required the colonials to provide food, lodging, and supplies for the British
troops in the colonies.
Spain and France
supported the colonist's war for independence; were allies of the colonists
American Revolution
helped to ignite or spark the French Revolution
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