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Unit 4 Vocab
Term | Definition |
---|---|
Articles of Confederation | The first official government of the US, written and ratified during the American Revolution |
Articles of Confederation | US government that failed because it lacked a strong central gov't, the states were too powerful |
Articles of Confederation | US government that only had a legislative branch and Congress could not tax |
Northwest Ordinance | Law passed in 1787 that determined how a territory could become a state, also banned slavery in the Northwest Territory |
Land Ordinance | Law that organized land in the Northwest Territory and auctioned off land to pay for the national debt. |
State of Franklin | Lost state located in East Tennnessee that applied for the 14th state but was denied. |
Northwest territory | north of the Ohio River valley where slave was banned; Ohio, Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, and Wisconsin would be here. |
Shays Rebellion | revolts of farmers in Massachusetts over unfair taxes; showed that the Articles of Confederation could not keep law and order. |
James Madison | Father of the Constitution; presented the Virginia Plan at the Constitutional Convention; took notes and explained major principles of Constitution |
George Washington | Elected as chairman of the Constitutional Convention |
George Washington | Unanimously elected 1st president, only served 2 terms, set example for future presidents to follow |
Constitutional Convention | meeting of 55 delegates to revise the Articles of Confederation but drafted the Constitution in Summer of 1787 |
Constitution | US government that strengthened the power of the federal government while also sharing power with the states. |
Great Compromise | agreement made over how larger or smaller states would be represented at the Constitutional Convention |
Great Compromise | Agreement that established the Senate and The House of Representatives in Congress |
Bicameral | word that means "2 houses" legislature |
Three-Fifths Compromise | agreement at the Constitutional Convention over how the southern states would count slaves for representation in Congress |
Preamble | The opening paragraph of the Constitution, states the purpose of the Constitution |
Preamble | begins with the phrase "We the People" |
Bill of Rights | the first 10 amendments to the Constitution |
Bill of Rights | Part of the Constitution that protects individual rights and freedoms |
Seperation of Powers | idea that the power of government are divided among 3 branches- Legislative, executive and judicial |
Veto | the ability of the president to reject a bill passed by Congress |
Override | the ability of Congress to pass a bill that the president has vetoed |
Legislative | branch of gov't that writes the laws |
Executive | branch of government that enforces the laws |
Judicial | branch of gov't that applies or interprets the laws |
Senate | Upper house of Congress where each state has an equal number of representatives |
House of Representatives | lower house of Congress where the number of representatives per state is based on that states population |
Checks and Balances | the ability of each branch of gov't to control the other two; keeps any one branch from becoming too powerful |
Federalism | idea that power is shared between a central government and state governments |
First Amendment | Freedom of religion, speech, press, petition and assembly |
Second Amendment | right to bear arms |
Third Amendment | Right to not house and feed US soldiers in your home |
Fourth Amendment | Protection from unwarranted searches and seizures from the gov't |
Tenth Amendment | Says that powers not given to the federal gov't are reserved for the states |
Ratification | the process of approving a constitution or amendment |
Federalists | group that wanted the Constitution to be ratified |
Antifederalist | Group that opposed the ratification of the Constitution |
Antifederalist | Group that feared the Constitution would turn into a monarchy |
Antifederalist | Their biggest contribution to American history is that they demanded a bill of rights to the Constitution |
Federalist Papers | Series of essays written by Alexander Hamilton, James Madison and John Jay to convince Americans to ratify the Constitution |