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CSS History of USA Colonial Foundations and Independence Syllabus
The Colonial Foundations and Independence syllabus for CSS History of USA in full: 4 chapters and 11 topics, every one listed below, plus 51 Colonial Foundations and Independence flashcards with answers.
Colonial Foundations and Independence syllabus: all 4 chapters
Expand any chapter to see its topics and sub-topics.
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Introduction: From Ancient Times to 1492
2 topics- Pre-Columbian America
- European Discovery (1492)
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Advent of Europeans to British Supremacy (1492-1606)
2 topics- Early European Settlements
- Rise of British Influence
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USA as a British Colony (1606-1783)
4 topics- The Thirteen Colonies
- Mercantilism and Colonial Governance
- Road to Revolution
- American War of Independence
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USA as an Independent Country (1783-1819)
3 topics- Articles of Confederation
- Early Republic and Foundations
- Jeffersonian Era
CSS History of USA Colonial Foundations and Independence flashcards — 51 questions with answers
Who were the first inhabitants of the Americas, and how are they believed to have arrived?
Paleo-Indians (ancestors of Native Americans) who migrated from Asia across the Bering land bridge (Beringia) during the last Ice Age, roughly 15,000-20,000 years ago.
Name three major advanced civilizations of Pre-Columbian Mesoamerica and South America.
The Aztec (central Mexico), the Maya (Yucatan/Central America), and the Inca (Andes/Peru).
What were the Three Sisters in Native American agriculture?
Maize (corn), beans, and squash - companion crops grown together that formed the dietary staple of many North American indigenous peoples.
Which major North American mound-building culture flourished around Cahokia?
The Mississippian culture, whose largest center, Cahokia (near modern St. Louis), was a major urban settlement around 1050-1350 CE.
In what year did Christopher Columbus reach the Americas, and under whose patronage?
1492, sailing under the patronage of the Spanish monarchs Ferdinand of Aragon and Isabella of Castile.
What were the names of Columbus's three ships on his 1492 voyage?
The Nina, the Pinta, and the Santa Maria.
What was the Treaty of Tordesillas (1494)?
A treaty, sanctioned by the Pope, that divided newly discovered lands outside Europe between Spain and Portugal along a meridian, giving Spain most of the Americas and Portugal Brazil and Africa/Asia routes.
What was the Columbian Exchange?
The widespread transfer of plants, animals, people, diseases, and culture between the Americas (New World) and Europe/Africa/Asia (Old World) following 1492.
Which Old World disease caused the greatest demographic collapse among Native Americans?
Smallpox (along with measles and influenza), to which indigenous populations had no immunity, killing up to 90% in some regions.
After whom is America named, and why?
Amerigo Vespucci, the Italian navigator who recognized that the lands were a New World (separate continent) rather than Asia; mapmaker Waldseemuller labeled it America in 1507.
What was the first permanent English settlement in North America, and when was it founded?
Jamestown, Virginia, founded in 1607 by the Virginia Company of London.
Who were the Pilgrims and where did they settle in 1620?
English Separatists (Puritans who broke from the Church of England) who sailed on the Mayflower and founded Plymouth Colony in present-day Massachusetts.
What was the Mayflower Compact (1620)?
An agreement signed by the Pilgrims aboard the Mayflower establishing self-government by majority rule - an early foundation of American constitutional/democratic governance.
Which crop saved the Jamestown colony economically, and who pioneered its cultivation?
Tobacco, pioneered as a cash crop by John Rolfe around 1612.
What was the House of Burgesses (1619)?
The first elected representative legislative assembly in the English colonies, established in Virginia.
When and where did the first enslaved Africans arrive in English North America?
In 1619, at Point Comfort, Virginia (Jamestown colony), brought aboard an English privateer ship.
What was the Spanish encomienda system?
A labor system granting Spanish colonists the right to demand tribute and forced labor from Native Americans in exchange for nominal protection and Christianization - effectively a form of coerced labor.
Which European powers established the colonies of New France and New Netherland?
France established New France (Quebec, founded 1608 by Champlain); the Dutch established New Netherland (New Amsterdam, later New York).
How did England gain control of New Netherland?
In 1664 the English seized New Amsterdam from the Dutch and renamed it New York (after the Duke of York).
What was the chief reason for the founding of the Massachusetts Bay Colony (1630)?
Puritans, led by John Winthrop, sought to build a model religious community - a 'City upon a Hill' - free to practice their faith.
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List the three regional groupings of the Thirteen Colonies.
New England Colonies, Middle Colonies, and Southern Colonies.
Name the four New England Colonies.
Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Connecticut.
Name the four Middle Colonies.
New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and Delaware.
Name the five Southern Colonies.
Maryland, Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Georgia.
Which was the last of the Thirteen Colonies to be founded, and by whom?
Georgia, founded in 1732 by James Oglethorpe as a buffer colony and a refuge for debtors.
Distinguish the three types of colonial charters: royal, proprietary, and charter colonies.
Royal colonies were governed directly by the Crown; proprietary colonies were granted to individual owners (e.g., Pennsylvania to William Penn); charter (corporate) colonies were self-governing under a royal charter (e.g., Connecticut, Rhode Island).
What was mercantilism?
An economic theory holding that a nation's wealth depends on accumulating gold/silver and maintaining a favorable balance of trade; colonies existed to supply raw materials and buy finished goods from the mother country.
What were the Navigation Acts?
A series of English laws (beginning 1651) requiring colonial trade to be carried on English ships and certain enumerated goods to be shipped only to England, enforcing mercantilist control over colonial commerce.
What was the policy of 'salutary neglect'?
Britain's informal practice of loosely enforcing trade laws in the colonies (especially before 1763), allowing the colonies considerable self-governance and economic freedom.
What was the Great Awakening?
A wave of religious revivals in the 1730s-1740s (preachers like Jonathan Edwards and George Whitefield) that emphasized personal faith and fostered a shared American identity and democratic spirit.
What war's outcome and debt triggered new British taxes on the colonies?
The French and Indian War (Seven Years' War, 1754-1763); Britain's victory and huge war debt led it to tax the colonies to raise revenue.
What was the Proclamation of 1763?
A British decree forbidding colonial settlement west of the Appalachian Mountains to reduce conflict with Native Americans; it angered colonists eager for western land.
What did the Stamp Act (1765) require, and what slogan did it provoke?
It required a tax stamp on printed materials (newspapers, legal documents); it provoked the slogan 'No taxation without representation.'
What was the Boston Massacre (1770)?
An incident in which British soldiers fired on a Boston crowd, killing five colonists; it became propaganda fueling anti-British sentiment.
What was the Boston Tea Party (1773), and what triggered it?
Colonists (Sons of Liberty) disguised as Mohawks dumped British East India Company tea into Boston Harbor to protest the Tea Act and the tea monopoly/tax.
What were the Intolerable (Coercive) Acts of 1774?
Punitive British laws responding to the Boston Tea Party - closing Boston's port, restricting Massachusetts self-government, and expanding the Quartering Act - which united the colonies in opposition.
Where were the first battles of the American Revolution fought (1775)?
Lexington and Concord, Massachusetts - the 'shot heard round the world.'
When was the Declaration of Independence adopted, and who was its principal author?
July 4, 1776; principally authored by Thomas Jefferson.
What Enlightenment idea, drawn from John Locke, underpins the Declaration of Independence?
Natural rights - that all are entitled to 'life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness' - and that government derives its just powers from the consent of the governed.
Who served as Commander-in-Chief of the Continental Army?
George Washington.
Why was the Battle of Saratoga (1777) a turning point?
The American victory convinced France to enter the war as an ally of the United States, providing crucial military and financial support.
What 1781 battle effectively ended the American War of Independence?
The Siege of Yorktown, where General Cornwallis surrendered to Washington and the French forces.
What treaty ended the American Revolution, and in what year?
The Treaty of Paris in 1783, in which Britain recognized American independence and ceded territory east of the Mississippi River.
What were the Articles of Confederation?
The first constitution of the United States (drafted 1777, ratified 1781), establishing a weak central government in which most power rested with the states.
Name two major weaknesses of the Articles of Confederation.
Congress could not levy taxes or regulate interstate/foreign commerce; there was no national executive or judiciary, and amendments required unanimous consent of all states.
What was the Northwest Ordinance of 1787?
A major achievement of the Confederation Congress that set up a process for admitting new states from the Northwest Territory and banned slavery there.
What was Shays' Rebellion (1786-87) and why was it significant?
An armed uprising of indebted Massachusetts farmers; it exposed the weakness of the central government under the Articles and spurred calls for a stronger constitution.
What was the Great (Connecticut) Compromise of 1787?
The agreement at the Constitutional Convention creating a bicameral Congress: a House of Representatives based on population and a Senate with equal representation (two senators per state).
Who were the Federalists and Anti-Federalists in the ratification debate?
Federalists (e.g., Hamilton, Madison, Jay) supported the new Constitution and a strong national government; Anti-Federalists opposed it, fearing centralized power and demanding a Bill of Rights.
What was the Bill of Rights, and when was it ratified?
The first ten amendments to the U.S. Constitution, ratified in 1791, guaranteeing individual liberties such as freedom of speech, religion, and the press.
What landmark policy did President Thomas Jefferson achieve in 1803, and from whom?
The Louisiana Purchase - acquiring the Louisiana Territory from Napoleon's France for about $15 million - which doubled the size of the United States and led to the Lewis and Clark expedition.
CSS History of USA Colonial Foundations and Independence FAQ
What is in the CSS History of USA Colonial Foundations and Independence syllabus?
CSS History of USA Colonial Foundations and Independence is split into 4 chapters: Introduction: From Ancient Times to 1492, Advent of Europeans to British Supremacy (1492-1606), USA as a British Colony (1606-1783) and USA as an Independent Country (1783-1819). Together they contain 11 topics.
How many chapters are in CSS History of USA Colonial Foundations and Independence?
4 chapters, containing 11 topics. The largest chapter is USA as a British Colony (1606-1783), with 4 topics.
Are there flashcards for CSS History of USA Colonial Foundations and Independence?
Yes — a 51-card Colonial Foundations and Independence deck, printed in full in the flashcards section of this page and available in the Examius app with spaced repetition. The free plan covers one exam of your choice, including its flashcards; Examius Pro, a one-time purchase, unlocks every other exam and deck.