American Heritage Exam 1

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Christopher Columbus-

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Genoese mariner who discovered America while searching for a new trade route to India

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• Corporate communities-

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colonial settlements established for economic or financial purposes by various companies. Although usually chartered by the Crown, their remote circumstances helped foster the idea and practice of self-governance

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• John Rolfe-

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VA colonist who pioneered the cultivation of tobacco as a profitable agricultural enterprise. Rolfe also married Pocahontas in 1614

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• Indentured servitude

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land owners would pay the passage of those willing to come to the colonies in exchange for an agreed upon term of service, after which the indentured servant was released from his obligation and was then free to seek his own fortune

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• House of Burgesses-

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an assembly of representatives elected by the common people of the VA colony. Similar to the house of commons

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• Covenant communities-

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settlements based on religious or moral values, mostly interested in being an example to Europe or living according to their own moral liberty

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• Pilgrims-

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small congregation of separatists seeking to distance themselves, physically and spiritually from the church of England by emigrating to New England

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• Robert Brown-

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writer and proponent of the separatist movement that demanded separation from the Church of England. His writings inspired groups such as the Pilgrims to emigrate to America for religious freedom

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• Puritans

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-British religious emigrants who wanted to reform the Church of England rather than sever all ties with it; their beliefs in the Christian Calling, Moral Self-Governance, and in being God’s elect would help shape the founding and American national character

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• John Calvin-

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French theologian during the Protestant Reformation who greatly influenced Puritan beliefs. He taught that the Bible was the final authority for matters of faith and that salvation came through grace only (not works). He taught the doctrine of predestination

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• God’s Elect

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-the doctrine that God has already chose those who will be saved. These elect people are to build a holy community as an example

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• The Christian calling-

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(from Calvin) people should pursue a calling in some sort of worldly work where they are to rise early in the morning, work hard, save their money and invest it wisely. Prosperity indicates God’s approval

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• Moral self-governance-

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puritan ideal that all must live a righteous life largely on their own, with each man being responsible for his own actions and those of his family—with an eye on his neighbor as well

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• John Winthrop-

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elected governor of the Massachusetts Bay Colony before their departure from England, and re-elected many times. He is known for his sermon “A Model of Christian Charity” in which he stated that the Puritan colony would be “a city upon a hill”

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• Tabula rasa-

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latin for clean slate or blank slate. Puritans felt that the new world was a tabula rasa on which mankind could begin the human story anew

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• City on a hill-

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biblical idea, invoked by John Winthrop, of a society governed by civil liberty (where people did only that which was just and good) that would be an example to the world

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• Natural Liberty-

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where men are free to do what they please, without regard for the moral value of their actions

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• Civil liberty-

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according to Winthrop, “where men were free to do only that which is good, just and honest.”

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• King James I of England-

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King of England, Scotland and Ireland; first to style himself King of Great Britain

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• John Locke

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-English philosopher whose Treatises of Government espousing natural rights, consent of the governed and social compacts greatly influenced the Founding Fathers

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• Whig Party-

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-England’s first political party; opposed the King

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• Second Treatise of Government-

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John Locke’s work arguing that true political authority comes not from God or precedent but from the people

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• William of Orange-

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acceded the English throne with his wife Mary, became William III of England

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• Glorious Revolution-

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1688 bloodless English revolution against the King, making the King subject to Parliament; considered a true founding of government

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• Rule of Law-

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set of meta-legal principles developed by the English legal system as a way of distinguishing whether a particular law supported freedom or not

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• Natural law-

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law that classical Greeks believed resided in the human heart and reflects our innate sense of right and wrong

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• Natural rights-

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fundamental rights granted by nature that government can’t abrogate and which government is bound to protect

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• Cicero-

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an orator, statesman, political theorist, lawyer and philosopher of ancient Rome

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• Common law-

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law that is considered to be from natural law principles but that is framed in a form that can be interpreted more concretely

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• Generality-

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rule of law principle that states when laws are made they must apply to broad categories of people and can’t target individuals or groups for special treatment

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• Prospectivity-

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rule of law principle that states laws must apply to future action and not past action

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• Publicity-

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rule of law principle that states laws must be known and certain, such that everyone knows of their existence and their enforcement is reasonably reliable

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Consent-

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rule of law principle that states laws must be generally acceptable to those who must live by them

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• French and Indian War-

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Britain and her colonies fought against the French with their respective native allies; French defeated, solidifying British control of North America

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• Due process-

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rule of law principle that states when laws are applied they must be administered impartially

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• Montesquieu-

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French political thinker who favored the British system of rule and lauded the idea of separation of powers

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• Commonwealth ideology-

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idea that “Country party” had the best strategy and opportunity to preserve liberty against the “Court party”

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• Court party/Tories-

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English royal court and center of British political power; corruption and subversion

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• Country party-

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English opposition to the “court party” that was made of commonwealth men (everyday men). Considered morally independent with pure motives

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• John Adams-

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believed in rule of law; led him to defend the British soldiers involved in the Boston Massacre; demonstrated the colonists were civilized and could govern themselves

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• Separation of powers-

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dividing powers of government between separate branches

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• Adam Smith-

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Scottish philosopher and economist who wrote The Wealth of Nations; considered father of modern economics

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• Mercantilism-

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an economic theory emphasized the importance of stockpiling gold and silver to the economic power of a nation. Mercantilists regulated the economy by encouraging exports and restricting imports

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• Navigation acts-

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economic regulations passed by British parliament to enforce trade regulations in the colonies; all trade had to go through British or colonial merchants and be shipped in British or colonial ships with the end goal to generate large exports from England, with few imports so that gold and silver would flow into the motherland

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• Command system-

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an economic system in which the allocation of resources is heavily controlled by government instead of free market forces

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• Capitalism-

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the philosophy of a free market economy in which the government serves only to create an acceptable environment in which to make exchanges

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• The Wealth of Nations-

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book written by Adam Smith that criticized mercantilism and proposed a free market economy in which the “invisible hand” determined prices

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• Markets-

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divisions of the economy that specialize in certain goods or services

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• Market economy-

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economic model advanced by Adam Smith in which the forces of individual self-interest regulate the economy. This self-regulation eliminates the need for most government interventions

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• Exchange-

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trade between two parties

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• Role of money-

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money facilitates exchange by eliminating the necessity for a “coincidence of wants” functioning as a generally acceptable medium for exchange

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• Coincidence of wants

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-when two parties each possess something desired by the other promoting an exchange

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• Specialization-

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economic practice of focusing resources on production of one or a few goods

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• Perfect competition-

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when buyers and sellers have no influence on price and terms of exchange

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• Collusion-

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when sellers are conspiring to maintain a high price and avoid competing with one another

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• Monopoly-

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when one person or group captures enough market power to control or manipulate prices; the lack of competition in a market

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• Law of supply-

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as the price of a particular good or service rises, suppliers will produce more of that good or service

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• Law of demand

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-as the price of a particular good or service rises, individuals will buy less of that good or service

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• Role of prices-

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in a market economy, prices determine the quantity of goods supplied

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• Role of profits-

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in a market economy as profits increase, the number of suppliers and resources for making that good will increase

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• Equilibrium price

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-price at which the amount demanded is equal to the amount supplied

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• Shortage-

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when the amount demanded is greater than the amount supplied

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• Surplus-

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when the amount supplied is greater than the amount demanded

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• Invisible hand-

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Adam Smith’s term for the natural self-regulation of a market economy driven by self-interest and efficiency

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• Laissez-faire

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-policy in which there is little or no interference with exchange, trade, or market prices by the government

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• Taxation without representation-

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rallying cry of the colonists during the Revolutionary period because of the taxes placed on them by a parliament in which they had no representation

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• Tea act-

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legislation passed by the British government in 1773 designed to give the British East India Company a monopoly on tea in the colonies, the Act led to the infamous Boston Tea Party

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• Boston tea party-

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American colonists protested the British tax on tea by dumping 342 crates of British tea into Boston harbor

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• Committees of correspondence-

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groups organized by local colonial governments for the purpose of coordinating written communication with the other colonies. They disseminated the colonial interpretation of British actions among the colonies and to foreign governments. The network of committees would later provide the basis for formal political union among the colonies

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• Patrick Henry-

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best known for his famous “give me liberty or give me death” speech in the VA house of Burgesses. Henry was an anti-federalist who pushed for a bill of rights to be added to the constitution after its ratification

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• Continental Congress-

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a body of representatives from the British North American colonies who met to respond to England’s Intolerable Acts. They declared independence in July 1776 and later drafted Articles of Confederation

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• Declaration of Independence-

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document expressing the desire and intention of the colonies to break ties with Britain due to injustices perpetrated by King George III

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• Thomas Jefferson-

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third president, principal author of the Declaration of Independence, and an influential Founding father of the US. Political philosopher who promoted classical liberalism, republicanism, and the separation of church and state, author of the VA Statute for Religious Freedom-basis of the Establishment Clause of the 1st amendment of the Constitution

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• Thomas Paine-

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English intellectual, scholar, revolutionary deist and idealist, who spent much of his time in America and France. A radical pamphleteer Paine helped foment the American revolution through his powerful writings, most notably Common Sense

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• Common Sense-

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political tract written by Thomas Paine that helped convince colonists about the necessity to fight against Britain and to become independent

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• Paul Revere-

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patriot in the American Revolution, role as a messenger in the battles of Lexington and Concord. He helped organize an intelligence and alarm system to keep watch on the British military

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• George Washington-

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led America’s Continental Army to victory over Britain in the Revolutionary War and was the first President of the US. Central role in the founding, so called the “Father of his Country”

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• Demigod-

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being half human and half god-like, a trait sometimes wrongly attributed to the founders

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• Sovereignty-

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ultimate political power, having final say

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• Human predicament-

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cycle from tyranny to anarchy, to which sovereign power and its ill effects give rise

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• Despot-

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ruler exercising absolute power

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• Revolution-

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means of removing tyranny from power

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• Tyranny-

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absolute power centralized in one person (or small group)

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• Anarchy-

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no one person maintains absolute power. Characterized by mass disorder caused by failure to agree on a common course of action

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• Competing groups-

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groups that, in a state of anarchy, fight for supreme power and control

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• Good society-

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reasonably stable and prosperous society without oppressive tyranny. Usually includes peace, respect, vibrant culture, and personal freedom to live the way one chooses

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• Plato

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-Greek philosopher and author of The Republic, extolled civic virtue and necessity of arête

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• Political legitimacy-

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ruling by a sanction higher than stark necessity; sanction may stem from divine right, wisdom or consent etc

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• King James I-

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King of England, claimed legitimacy through “divine right of kinds”

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• Divine right of kings-

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theory that royal lines are established by God and that kings rule by divine decree

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• Theocracy-

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divinely inspired rule, or rule by religion

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• Aristocracy-

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rule based on distinguished or wise ancestors and heritage

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• Greek freedom-

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privilege of taking part in the political process and observing society’s rules

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• Human nature-

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fundamental disposition of humans that determines their behavior

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• Arête-

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Greek term for human virtue, the backbone of republican morality. Striving for excellence

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• European enlightenment-

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18th century philosophical movement that proposed individual self-interest rather than Greek virtue or Christian humility, as the motivating factor in human behavior

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• Autocracy

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-sees people as children in need of a carefully controlled environment provided by government

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• Classical republicanism-

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sees people (and gov) as mostly good but corruptible and so government should have restricted power and try to encourage a good moral climate

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• Bill of Rights-

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10 amendments to Constitution, basic protections of rights from government, passed in response to anti-Federalist argument against initial constitution

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• Libertarianism-

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most important value as individual freedom and holds the government should only protect that freedom and nothing more

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• Liberalism-

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sees people in most favorable light, but institutions or other influences can corrupt them, so government is necessary to protect them from such corruption

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• Structure-

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rules and restrictions designed to better harness virtue

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• Polis-

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city or city-state, often self-governed by its citizens as the ancient Greek city-states were

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• Social compact-

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social compact of a group of autonomous individuals living in a state of nature, making a common agreement about the sort of political world they want to live in

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• State of nature-

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hypothetical condition assumed to exist in the absence of government where human beings live in “complete” freedom and general equality

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John Lockes 5 points

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1. State of nature
2. Social Compact
3. Purpose of government
4. Consent
5. Revolt

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Founders toolbox

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1. structure
2. participation
3. law
4. custom and tradition
5. moral sense
6. founding myths
7. leadership