| A | B |
|---|
| Treaty of Amity & Commerce | the first of two treaties between the United States and France, signed on February 6, 1778; recognized the de facto independence of the United States and established a strictly commercial treaty between the two nations as an alternative to, and in direct defiance of, the British Acts of Trade and Navigation |
| Treaty of Alliance | promised mutual military support in case fighting should break out between French and British forces, as the result of signing; had a secret clause to allow for Spanish involvement. |
| Battle of Yorktown 1781 | October 19, 1781; Last major battle of the Revolutionary War) American troops under George Washington and Comte de Rochambeau trapped British troops under Charles Cornwallis and his troops in the Chesapeake Bay, with the help of Admiral de Grasse and the French fleet. Cornwallis was forced to surrender. |
| Treaty of Paris of 1783 | signed in Paris between representatives of Great Britain and the United States; Sept.3, 1787; officially ended the American Revolution |
| Republic | a state in which supreme power is held by the people and their elected representatives, and which has an elected or nominated president rather than a monarch. |
| Virginia Statute for Religious freedom | Written by Thomas Jefferson and passed by the Virginia General Assembly on January 16, 1786, it is the forerunner of the first amendment protections for religious freedom |
| Articles of Confederation | the original constitution of the US, ratified in 1781, |
| Treaty of Fort Stanwix 1784 | a treaty finalized on October 22, 1784, between the United States and Native Americans from the six nations of the Iroquois League |
| Land Ordinance of 1785 | set up a standardized system whereby settlers could purchase title to farmland in the undeveloped west;set up a survey system that eventually covered over three-fourths of the area of the continental United States |
| Shay’s Rebellion | An uprising led by a former militia officer, which broke out in western Massachusetts in 1786-1787; protested the foreclosures of farms for debt and briefly succeeded in shutting down the court system. |
| Northwest Ordinance of 1787 | enacted July 13, 1787; organize the new territories and set up the steps each territory needed to take in order to become a state; outlawed slavery. |
| Constitutional Convention of 1787 | meeting of delegates in 1787 to revise the Articles of Confederation, which produced the new U.S. Constitution |
| James Madison | an American statesman and Founding Father;hailed as the "Father of the Constitution" for his pivotal role in drafting and promoting the United States Constitution and the Bill of Rights; 4th President |
| Bill of Rights | The first ten amendments, or additions, to the Constitution which give people their civil liberties |
| Federalists | supporters of the proposed constitution |
| Separation of Powers | powers and responsibilities are divided among the legislative branch, executive branch, and judicial branch. |
| Checks & Balances | each branch of government has some measure of influence over the other branches and may choose to block procedures of the other branches. |
