Question | Answer |
the authority, or power, that rules on behalf of a group of people | Government |
a form of government in which all power is in the hands of one person or a group of persons | Dictator (Dictatorship) |
a form of government in which a king, queen, prince (a monarch) rules and sometimes is in charge of the government | Monarchy |
a key document of American freedom, adopted on July 4, 1776, declaring the 13 American colonies to be free and independent of Great Britain | Declaration of Independence |
representatives who were chosen to attend the Constitutional Convention | Delegates |
members of the House of Representatives or a person who represents a group of people in the government. | Representative |
the plan of government approved in 1789 to be the “supreme law of the land”. | Constitution of the United States of America |
the national government of our nation. | Federal Government |
the branch of our federal, state or local government that makes the laws | Legislative Branch |
the branch of our federal, state or local government that carries out the laws. | Executive Branch |
the branch of the federal, state or local government that decides if laws have been broken and that punishes lawbreakers | Judicial Branch |
a proposed law being considered by a lawmaking body | Bill |
the way in which the powers of government are balanced, or divided, among three branches, so that each branch may check, or limit, the other branches. | Checks and Balances |
The heads of the executive departments in the federal government, who also act as advisors to the President. | Cabinet |
the first 10 amendments to the Constitution, which set forth the basic rights, or freedoms, guaranteed to all Americans | Bill of Rights |
the traditional ways of doing things in our federal government that are seldom written down or made into laws | Unwritten Constitution |
Based on a theology or religious faith. It is a form of government in which God or a deity is recognized as the supreme civil ruler and the God’s or deity’s laws are being interpreted by govt officials | Theocracy |
Complete disorder that can result from having no government or laws | Anarchy |
the doctrine that monarchs derive their right to rule directly from God and are accountable only to God | Divine Right |
Under a socialist system the government has ownership over the countries basic goods and services (communication, transportation, health care, power, etc.); however, some services, are owned by private businesses | Socialism |
a set of pamphlets authored by Thomas Paine that encouraged separation from the Crown. Pamphlets called the King a brute and stated that America had a separate destiny from England | Common Sense |
the theory and system of politics of developing colonies to maintain a balance of trade | Mercantilism |
a letter written to King George III from the members of the 2nd Continental Congress that appealed to the king to address colonial grievances to avoid war | Olive Branch Petition |
political system in which ownership of all product and land are in the hands of the people, and all goods are equally shared | Communism |
Occurred in the 18th century. Philosophers wrote new ideas on politics such as the role of the “divine right” of kings and the separation of church and state | Age of Enlightenment |
Predecessor to the U.S. Bill of Rights. Outlined new rights for the English people such as “no taxation without representation." | English Bill of Rights |
Government: Government by the people | Democracy |
Government where the people elect leaders to carry out the rules and ideals that they want. | Representative Democracy |
a system of government in which ALL citizens participate in politics and decision making | Direct Democracy |
Influential English philosopher who inspired Thomas Jefferson when writing the Declaration of Independence | John Locke |
authored the Declaration of Independence | Thomas Jefferson |
Father of the Constitution | James Madison |
violation of allegiance to one’s country | Treason |
A person who betrays his country | Traitors |
which means that the king shares power with a group of advisors or a democratic body | Constitutional Monarchy |
Colonists loyal to the United States | Patriots |
Colonists loyal to the British | Tory |
author of Common Sense | Thomas Paine |
King of England during the American Revolution | King George III |
Acts of law passed by England to punish the colonies for the Boston Tea Party. | Intolerable Acts |
group of nations or states united for a common cause | Confederation |
War fought to gain American independence from England. | American Revolution |
A body of 55 representatives appointed by colonial legislatures who met to plan a response to England’s Intolerable Acts. | 1st Continental Congress |
An act of protest of the stamp act by the American colonists against England | Boston Tea Party |
a body of representatives who met and approved the Declaration of Independence | 2nd Continental Congress |
Armed civilians fighting during the Revolutionary War. | Minutemen |
a company or group having exclusive control over commercial activity. | Monopoly |
A driving force calling for independence from England | John Adams |
A compromise reached by the Northern states and Southern states over how to count the slave population. Slaves were counted 3/5 of all other persons | Three-Fifths Compromise |
People who supported the Constitution | Federalist |
People who were against the Constitution | Anti-Federalist |
Large states plan for a bicameral congress with representation to be based on population. | Virginia Plan |
Small states plan for a unicameral congress with equal representation | New Jersey Plan |