1. Even though the Albany Plan of Union was not successful, why was it an important precedent?

The Albany Plan of Union was a well devised by Benjamin Franklin, but premature scheme for colonial home rule. It was adopted by the Albany delegates but the individual colonies spurned it. It showed that all people agreed on the need for a union but they disagreed greatly on the details. bolstered colonial defense and unification.

2. For what three reasons did Native Americans side with France during the French and Indian War?

Many Native Americans had better relationships with the French because of a history of trading with them and saw a future in that realm if the French were in control. They also had a long history of disputes with English which made fighting with Englad distasteful. France also did not seem to be as much of a threaten to the Native American land and life. France did not have as large a presence and gave more agency. The French needed the indians more.

3. In what three ways did the Seven Years' War directly affect the colonists' growing discontent toward the British?

Once France was gone the colonists did not feel as much that they needed a strong mother Britain protecting them. They were used to being neglected. Colonists developed a new vision of their destiny. They were in no mood to be restrained. They had shown signs of unity and they saw a future. A future that did not include an overbearing England. They were angered by quartering and English mistreatment of colonists.

4. How did the Sugar Act differ from the preceding Navigation Acts?
The Sugar Act of 1764 was by secured Prime Minister George Grenville. It was the first law ever passed by Parliament with the purpose of raising tax revenue in the colonies for the crown. The Navigation acts were not enforced till after the French and Indian war.

5. How did the colonial protest evolve?
Colonial protest evolved from simple speeches against the British ways into pamphlets declaring necessary revolution that were distributed throughout the colonies. In the beginning, colonists did not intend on a revolution, but instead wrote speeches about what needed to change. Eventually, they began to harass the homes of British government officials, often tarring and feathering them. Also, the colonists used boycotts of British goods, which proves ineffective because the British only placed more laws on them, like the Stamp Act. Thomas Paine also wrote Common Sense, which man¬-aged to persuade the public's mind into revolution. This was one of the later steps that was particularly successful, as it managed to circulate throughout the colonies.

6.  What poor choices made by the British eventually heightened the pre-Revolutionary era conflict?
Choices made by the British that heightened the conflict were completely unnecessary tax laws that they used to generate income from the colonies. Things like the Stamp Tax, which placed a tax on all commercial and legal documents, along with the Sugar act of 1764, enraged the colonists. After the passage of the Townshend Tea Tax, the colonists rebelled in the Boston Tea Party. This conflict could have been avoided had the British not placed so many taxes on the colonists. insdtead of compromising with the colonists, the British only levied more taxes on the already angry colonists.

7. In what ways did the colonies attempt to unite and/or share information? –
Colonies during the Revolutionary Era were all different and had unique laws and practices. Thus, when they revolted from Britain, they were not very united. These colonies then began to correspond through letters in an effort to share information, but unfortunately, travel was often slow and unreliable. Colonists then attempted to unite with the Continental Congress, in which delegates from each state attended with the intentions of their state in mind. This congress was eventually where the Declaration of Independence was produced.

8.  Why could many colonists rightly claim that the conflict was primarily a Boston issue? Boston was the central port in the colonies of all that happened between the British and the colonists. Also, Boston was a major port in which business transactions occurred. This town made most of the big decisions about the colonies, and many notable, high powered people were from Boston. Thus, when most of the conflict occurred in Boston, most of the colonists simply felt that it was the duty of the Bostonians to resolve the conflict. Also, because of the fact that Boston was so powerful, most colonists felt they had the means necessary to resolve the conflict.

9.  What were the three main results of the First Continental Congress?
The First Continental Congress created a Declaration of Rights and solemn appeals to other British American colonies, to the king, and to the British people. The most significant action of the Congress was the creation of the Association. It called for a complete boycott of British goods: nonimportation, nonexportation, and nonconsumption.

10. What was the significance of the "shot heard 'round the world"?

The "shot heard 'round the world" refers to the first shot fired in the Battle of Lexington and Concord. Hundreds of people died, but we do not know who fired first. It signaled the beginning of the Revolutionary War, which would eventually lead to the creation of the United States. It was also the beginnings of the first little colonies of an empire to successfully revolt from a higher country.

11. John Adams once claimed that 1/3 of the colonists were for revolution, 1/3 were against, and 1/3 didn't really care. What types of people fell into each category? KN
Loyalists, or Tories, were those who were loyal to the king during the Revolutionary era. They were people of education and wealth, and they were against revolution. Patriots, or Whigs, were America rebels who were for revolution. Most of the rebels were Scots Irish, people who hated Britain, people in Massachusetts with a a Puritan background and more represented in democracy, and/or the young. The 1/3 that didn't care was neutral, like the Bryds of Virginia, and sat on the fence. The revolution wouldn't have affected them that much.

12. What documents were most influential during the Revolutionary Era? What was the purpose of each?

Thomas Paine's Common Sense was published on January 1, 1776, to encourage the colonies to seek independence. It spoke out against the unfair treatment of the colonies by the British government and was instrumental in turning public opinion in favor of the Revolution. John Locke's Second Treatise on Civil Government stated that all human beings have a right to life, liberty, and property and that government exists to protect those rights.

13. What factors contributed to America being able to win the Revolutionary War?

Support from allies such as France contributed to America being able to win the Revolutionary War. The French blockade of Yorktown in the final engagement solidified victory. It turned the revolution into a global war. Monetary benefit was also great for the colonies. Britain could no longer afford war while America was gaining the likelihood of winning the war thanks to their knowledge of the land and great leadership. They also were on the defense and didn't have to win the war. They just had to bring it to a draw.

14. What were the faults and the strengths of the Articles of Confederation?

The Articles of Confederation were written in 1777 in order to create a constitution by which the nation could live under. The major weakness of the articles was that the federal government could not regulate trade or levy taxes. The government was unable to pay off their debts and the states largely ignored whatever Congress decided. Also, the states could impose their own tariffs which hampered interstate trade. Under the articles, no judicial system was established. The strengths of the articles were that it allowed the states to stay together, however loosely, until the Constitution was written and it created a rough governmental system that is used as a model for The Constitution. It allowed the Federal government to declare war and make peace as well as coin and borrow money.

15. What were the main events of the Critical Era?

The Critical Era refers to the time that spanned between the end of the Revolutionary War in 1783 and the inauguration of George Washington in 1789. The nation was in tons of debt and had no real way to pay it off. Paper money was worthless and they were forced to borrow money from countries like France. The South had lost slaves and exports due to the war. British troops remained in Detroit, Otsego, and New York because the government refused to return land confiscated from Tories during the war. The Articles of Confederation ratified in 1781 become the first constitution of the US and outline a crude government that is later refined by The Constitution. The American people were questioning their future.


16. What compromises needed to be made for the Constitution to be successful?

In order for the necessary states to ratify The Constitution, several compromises were made. The Great Compromise involved how many representatives states would have in Congress. It was the original plan to have one chamber, but small states found this unfair. Roger Sherman proposed two houses, one with equal representation and one based on the population of the states. Another compromise made was the Three-Fifths Compromise. This involved the issue of counting slaves in the population of the states. The North and South agreed that a slave would count as three-fifths of a person when deciding how many representatives a state would have.

17. What were the positions of the Federalists and Anti-Federalists?
The Federalists and the Anti-Federalists were different on several levels. First, the Federalists believed that if the Constitution did not specifically say the government could not do something, then it could. However, the Anti-Federalists opposed the government having more power and favored the weaker central government of the Articles of Confederation. The Federalists wanted the central government to have this power, so they favored the ratification of the Constitution. The Anti-Federalists campaigned for a Bill of Rights and only ratified the Constitution after they were put in.