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Christopher Columbus A skilled Italian seafarer who persuaded the king and the queen to give him three ships in which he could set out on a voyage westward to find the "Indies". His crew and he found themselves in the Bahamas and accidentally discovered the Americas. Historical Significance: His failure changed the world for better and for worse after his discovery in 1492. Hernán Cortés A man who set sail from Cuba in 1519 with several hundred men and eleven ships headed for Mexico. On the way he found two slaves who he used as translators as he approached the native peoples. Hernán and his men wanted the gold too much and the Aztecs attacked on June 30, 1520, the noche triste, but the conquest and disease caused the Spanish to win. HS: The Spanish ruled the Aztecs for three centuries following the noche triste. Mestizos A distinctive culture of people with mixed Indian and European heritage that came to be when Hernán Cortés took over the Aztecs and intermarried with the surviving Indians. HS: Mexican civilization became a mixture of both the Old World and the New World. Pocahontas She was the Indian chief, Powhatan's, daughterwho supposedly saved John Smith from being executed by Powhatan. She wanted to preserve the shaky peace between the Indians and the English settlers. The first Anglo-Powhatan war ended in 1614 with a peace settlement that was seales with her marriage to John Rolfe. HS: Her efforts to keep the peace may have prevented a rockier relationship than they already had. Powhatan He was the Indian chieftain who planned on executing John Smith until his daughter stepped in and changed his mind. In 1607, when the English arrived, he had dominancy over multiple tribes in the James River area. He tried to have a good relationship with the English at first, but then they raided the Indians' food supplies and de la Warr declared waron them. HS: He led the Indians through hard times with the English. John Rolfe An English colonist who married Pocahontas. He took over the tobacco industry and the European demand for it skyrocketed. He also was an economic savior for the colony of Virginia by planting Tobacco everywhere. HS: Virginia's prosperity was built on tobacco which meant that as the demand for the crop went up, so did the demand for laborers eventually starting the slave system. Lord Baltimore He founded the colony Maryland in 1634 for financial profits and a refuge for Catholics. He allowed a freedom of worship hoping to get a toleration for Catholics. This changed when Protestants continued to threaten Catholics and the Act of Toleration was passed. HS: Maryland would shelter the most Roman Catholics than any other English-speaking colony. James Ogelthorpe A soldier-statesman who was a founder of the colony of Georgia. He was interested in prison reform and keeping slavery out of the colony. Also, he repelled Spanish attacks and had an energetic leadership. HS: He saved the "charity colony" as an imperialist and philanthropist. John Smith A young adventurer who saved Virginia from collapsing when he took over in 1608. He was kidnapped in December of 1607 by the Indians. Powhatan ordered for him to be executed but his daughter Pocahontas supposedly saved him by stepping in. HS: He kept Virginia on its feet. William Penn A young Englishman who was attracted to the Quaker faith in 1660. He got a grant of fertile land from the king in 1681. The colony became the most advertised and was known as Pennsylvannia. HS: The Quakers were provided with a safe place to practice their faith. Francisco Coronado ... Aztecs ... Virginia Company ... Quakers A religion, also known as the religious society of friends, that was trouble to authorities in the Mass Bay Colony, resulting in their persecutions. They were excepted in Maryland and Pennsylvannia. HS: They challenged Puritan authorities. Roger Williams A young Salem minister who was an extreme separatist and encouraged the clergy to completely break from the Church of England. He also denied the authority of civil governments to regulate religious behavior and challenged the Bay Colony's charters's legality. He was exiled to England but fled to Rhode Island area where he founded the colony. HS: Rhode Island became a "sewer" for outcasts and exiles. Henry Hudson An English explorer employed by the Dutch Republic with orders to sail north east, but he disregarded the orders and explored Deleware Bay and New York Bay in 1609. He traveled up the Hudson River hoping to have found a shortcut through the continent but he didn't. HS: He filed a Dutch claim to a very wooded and watered area. John Winthrop The Massachusetts Bay Colony's first govenrnor who governed the colony for 19 years. He helped the colony to prosper and start important industries such as trading, fishing, and shipbuilding. HS: He got the colony off to a successful start. King Phillip Massasoit's son, also known as Metacom, who created an alliance with other Indian tribes and launched several assaults on English villages throughout New England in hopes of resisting English enroashment. This started King Philip's War which ended in 1676 during which Metacom was captured and beheaded. HS: The war he began slowed the westward march of English settlement for several decades and inflicted a lasting defeat of New England's Indians. William and Mary The Protestant rulers of the Netherlands that were enthroned in England after the unpopular, Catholic James II was dethroned. HS: The Dominion of New England ended and Massachusetts got a new charter making it a royal colony. Visible Saints The people who showed that they were one of the "elect" by living the most "sanctified" lives that they possibly could. HS: Only they could be freemen in the Bay Colony, therefore also being the only ones who could vote. The "elect" The souls that were predestined to have eternal bliss when they are first created. HS: Men tried to live the most sanctified lives as they could to prove they were one of them. Puritans English religious reformers who wanted to undertake a total purification of English Christianity. Some of them believed that only visible saints should be allowed church membership. The Mass Bay colony and Plymouth contained this religion. HS: This religion became the religion of many of the colonists throughout Northeastern America. William Berkeley The governor of Virginia who was miserable during his time as ruler. Most of the people he governed were poor, indebted, discontented, and armed. Then about a thousand Virginians went out of control killing the Indians, chasing him out of Jamestown, and setting the capital on fire. When the leader of this rebellion fell dead, he took hold of the situation and hung over 20 rebels. HS: He crushed the rebellion, but the colonists were still angry that he would not retaliate for a series of Indian attacks. Nathaniel Bacon The leader of the rebellion of about a thousand Virginians after Governor William Berkley did not agree to retaliate for a series of attacks on Indian settlements. He died of a disease suddenly during the rebellion and Berkley used this incident to his advantage. HS: The tensions of the rebellion he created still remained after it ended and lordly planters were in need of laborers. Jonathan Edwards A pastor who first ignited the Great Awakening in Northampton, Massachusetts. He declared the foolishness of believing in salvation through good works and confirmed the need for complete dependence of God's grace. His style of preaching was learned and closely reasoned and caused a compassionate reaction among his parishioners in 1734. HS: He was the man who first started the Great Awakening which would continue for years. Benjamin Franklin A man who is known as the "first American." He contributed greatly to the founding of the University of Pennsylvania, which would become the first American college free from denominational control. He is well known for writing Poor Richard's Almanac from 1732 to 1758. The famous publication was well known throughout Europe and was the most commonly read of any publication except the Bible in America. HS: He was the first man to really embrace an American culture opposed to one with ties to another country. Peter Zenger A newspaper printer who was involved in a celebrated legal case in 1734-1735. The case arose in New York when his newspaper attacked the corrupt royal governor. He was charged with seditious libel and brought into court. He was defended by Andrew Hamilton who argued that he had only told the truth and he was determined not guilty. HS: His trial led to the introduction of freedom of the press later on in American history. New Lights These ministers were the ones who defended the Awakening for its role in revitalizing American religion. HS: The Congregationalists and the Presbyterians split over this issue and it contributed to the effects of the Great Awakening. Old Lights The Orthodox clergymen that were deeply skeptical of the emotionalism and the theatrical antics of the revivalists. HS: The Congregationalists and the Presbyterians split over this issue and it contributed to the effects of the Great Awakening. House of Burgesses ... William Pitt WHO: Britain's statesman who became a head leaded of the London government in 1757. WHAT: He restrained assaults on the French West Indies and to look more towards Canada. In 1758, he set out a siege on Louisbourg which caused it to fall and then sent James Wolfe to successfully take Quebec. HS: He expanded Britain's territory. George Washington WHO: A Virginian surveyor that was brought in by Virginia's governor in 1754. WHAT: He was sent to the Ohio country in an attempt to secure Virginia's claims. He and his militiamen encountered a small French troop and shot the French leader. He was surrounded at Fort Necessity and forced to surrender his entire militia. HS: His defeat resulted in British authorities needing to take action. Samuel Adams WHO: An opinionated protester and organizer of revolts in the colonies. WHAT: One of the representatives at the Continental Congress of 1774. He was a well-respected member of congress until 1781. He was also ordered to be captured along with John Hancock by the British because they were "rebels". WHEN: 1775 HS: His signature would later end up on the Declaration of Independence. Marquis de Lafayette WHO: A wealthy and young French nobleman who came to America to find glory and liberty. WHAT: He became a general in the colonial army and also helped them financially. He returned to France after the American Revolution had ended where he helped in the French Revolution. HS: His services in supporting the colonists against the French were priceless and very useless. John Adams WHO: The husband of Abigail Adams, he was a leader in the American Revolution. WHAT: He was one of the fifty-five men sent to be a representative in the First Continental Congress. He played a large part in the congress by convincing the other men to take a revolutionary path. He also became the second president of the United States. WHEN: 1774 HS: He persuaded the other representatives to take a revolutionary path which led right to the American Revolution. King George III WHO: The British monarch at the time of the build-up to the revolution and during it. WHAT: He attested to be an awful ruler for England. He hired foreign soldiers for the British army to go up against the colonists. He and Lord North worked together in making decisions and running the government. HS: His bad ruling of Britain was another reason for the colonists to rebel against Britain. Sons of Liberty WHAT: A group of passionate men that rebelled against the British laws. They used methods such as tar and feathering and ransacked houses of British officials that were disliked. They were behind the famous Boston Tea Party. WHY: They wanted to get the unfair laws repealed. HS: This group made a big difference in getting the acts repealed and starting the revolution John Locke A French man who came up with the concept of all of mankind being born with the rights to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. Thomas Jefferson based the Declaration of Independence around his ideas. HS: The natural rights were part of the Declaration of Independence, the most important document in the United States. Benedict Arnold WHO: A successful leader of a small American army. WHAT: He and Ethan Allen led a small army that took the British in the upper New York lake region. WHEN: May 1775 HS: The sensation of the war was developing at the time and greatly increased after his army captured the British. John Burgoyne WHO: A soldier, actor, and playwright who was in control of a major British force. WHAT: The British troops under his leadership ventured to upper New York to invade the American troops under Washington but did not succeed since Washington was in Philadelphia. They got trapped by other troops in Albany and he was forced to surrender his troops. HS: He and his army gave Britain a loss and gave the colonists an advantage. Charles Cornwallis WHO: An important general in the British army WHAT: He was defeated by Greene's strategy of tiring him out even though he won battles. He also was defeated by a combined force of Washington's army and de Grasse's army. WHEN: 1780-1781 HS: He suffered defeats for Britain multiple times showing the strength in America. Thomas Paine WHO: A radical that came to America in 1775. WHAT: He wrote the famous Common Sense that is one of the most powerful pamphlets ever written. WHEN: 1776 HS: His pamphlet was highly influential to the Americans and swayed peoples decisions and thoughts. John Paul Jones WHO: A young Scottish officer in the American navy. WHAT: He was one of the most daring men in the American navy which was very tiny in comparison to that of the British. HS: The navy didn't do much for the Americans in the revolution because of how weak they were next to the British. Patrick Henry WHO: A young member of the American military. WHAT: He made the famous statement "Give me liberty or give me death!" WHEN: The beginning of the revolution HS: His statement shows how dedicated the colonists were to get their freedom from Britain and the motivation that they had to win. mercenaries WHAT: Foreigners hired to participate in an army. WHO: This is what the Hessians were that fought alongside the British in the American Revolution. WHY: They are hired to get better trained soldiers in your force and to get numbers. HS: King George III hired these in the revolution which helped strengthen the force and angered the colonies. federalists WHO: The supporters of the federal government. WHAT: They clashed with the antifederalists and supported the Constitution. HS: They gave support to the government Anti-Federalists WHO: People who opposed the federal government. WHAT: They objected to the constitution, convinced that it was a trap, and fought against the federalists HS: They posed competition to the government. Daniel Shays The leader of Shay's Rebellion in Massachusetts in 1786 that was put down by a small state army. HS: The rebellion frightened the state and citizens. James Madison WHO: A political leader in America WHAT: He was a student of government who was chosen as a delegate for the constitution convention. He became known as "the Father of the Constitution." HS: He contributed a lot to the constitution even at the youg age of 32. Alexander Hamilton WHO: The secretary of treasury in Washington's cabinet. WHAT: He wrote the report that called for the constitutional convention. He wanted the national government to fund the national debt from the revolution and take the debts off of the states to strengthen national credit. This was known as assumption and Jeffersonians didn't agree with him. He also passed new excises such as on whiskey and pushed for a national bank. HS: He did a lot to help the United States economically and his followers eventually became the Republican Party. Thomas Jefferson WHO: The secretary of state in Washington's cabinet. WHAT: He is the author of the Declaration of Independence and was in favor of the new Articles of Confederation. He and Hamilton disagreed on just about every issue that came up from the formation of a national bank to how to handle the Whiskey Rebellion. He and Madison formed a party against Hamiltonians and later was vice president to John Adams. HS: He and his followers formed the Democratic - Republican Party. John Jay WHO: The American secretary of foreign affairs and the first chief justice of the United States. WHAT: He worked with Hamilton and Madison to write the Federalist Papers in New York and was sent by Washington to London in 1794 to avoid war with Britain. His pact was hated by many Americans. HS: The treaty led to a deal with Spain and the formation of the Democratic- Republic Party. Talleyrand WHO: The French foreign minister WHAT: Adams's representatives hoped to see him to attempt to make an agreement. It would have cost the representatives a quarter of a million dollars just to speak with him, so the negotiations were quickly over. WHEN: 1797 HS: His not talking to the representatives caused the war between France and the United States of America. Little Turtle WHO: The war chief of the Miamis, an Indian tribe. WHAT: He defeated armies led by American generals which are some of the worst defeats of the frontier. HS: The defeats are not good for the Americans because they lost soldiers and it made them look bad. Aaron Burr WHO: The runner-up in the presidential election of 1800, and therefore Jefferson's vice president. WHAT: He took part in many conspiracies including trying to get New England to secede which was a plan that was stopped by Hamilton. He later challenged Hamilton to a duel and killed him. Then, he teamed up with Wilkinson to try to separate the western part of the United States which failed when Wilkinson backed out. He was tried for treason but was found innocent and went to France to try to get France and Britain to invade the United States together. HS: His conspiracies were all roadblocks for Jefferson but none of them actually worked out. James Monroe WHO: The president of the United States WHAT: He was sent by Jefferson to Paris to join Robert R. Livingston to purchase New Orleans. They succeeded since Napoleon sold the two men all of Louisiana. He was such a popular president that even after the Missouri Compromise and the panic of 1819 people still supported him. HS: He kept the Americans in an "Era of Good Feelings." War Hawks WHAT: People who were more eager to go into war than an ordinary person would be. The Federalists were against them, and they were on President Madison's side in the situation. They wanted war with Britain and also with Indian threats. HS: They were part of the reason that the United States did go to war with Britain. Tecumseh WHO: A Shawnee Indian WHAT: He worked with his brother, Tenskwatawa, to form an Indian confederacy made up of all the tribes east of the Mississippi River. William Henry Harrison's army defeated his brother and a small Shawnee army, causing him to fall into an alliance with the British. HS: He made an attempt at unity among the Indians but it didn't last. John Marshall WHO: The Supreme Court Chief Justice WHAT: He was appointed as Chief Justice by Adams and prior to that he served at Valley Forge in the American Revolution. He was a Federalist and remained that way throughout many terms of Democratic-Republican presidents. He also presented the idea of "judicial review" during the Marbury v. Madison case. HS: He always was in favor of federal power Oliver Hazard Perry WHO: An officer in the American Navy. WHAT: He built a fleet of ships on the shore of Lake Eerie. He then used the fleet to capture a British fleet on the lake which led to Harrison's army defeating the retreating men. HS: His defeat of the British fleet on Lake Eerie led to the American cause boosting. William Henry Harrison WHO: The leader of an American army. WHAT: He and his army defeated the retreating British troops at the Battle of the Thames. WHEN: October 1813 HS: He helped in defending America from the British. John Calhoun ... John Quincy Adams WHO: Monroe's secretary of state WHAT: He negotiated the Treaty of 1818 and the Florida Purchase Treaty. He also got Monroe thinking like him and wrote the Monroe Doctrine based on their beliefs. HS: He convinced Monroe into thinking the ideas in the Monroe Doctrine. Andrew Jackson WHO: An American general WHAT: He led the American troops at the Mississippi Valley and gave the British their worst defeat of the war. He became a war hero and later became president of the United States. HS: He led American troops to a great victory and won them pride. Daniel Webster WHO: A New Englander WHAT: Along with other New Englanders, he gave up his defense of free trade and supported higher tariffs. HS: This resulted in Congress greatly increasing tariffs. Hamilton's Federalists WHAT: A political faction that followed Hamilton. They passed the Alien and Sedition Acts to go against their rival Jeffersonians. They wanted a strong central government, to protect the wealthy, to subordinate the states, and to promote foreign trade. HS: Led to the formation of the present-day Republican Party. Jefferson's Democratic-Republicans WHAT: A political faction that supported Jefferson. They were in favor of honoring their alliance with France when they were battling Britain, were enraged by the Neutrality Proclamation, wanted a weak central regime, and wanted power to go to the states. HS: They became the present-day Democratic Party.