Period 3

1754- 1800

Chapters 7-10

Key Terms/People/Events:

Key Concepts:

  • British attempts to assert tighter control over its North American colonies and the colonial resolve to pursue self-government led to a colonial independence movement and the Revolutionary War.
  • The competition among the British, French, and American Indians for economic and political advantage in North America culminated in the Seven years’ War (the French and Indian War), in which Britain defeated France and allied American Indians.
  • The desire of many colonists to assert ideals of self-government in the face of renewed British imperial efforts led to a colonial independence movement and war with Britain.
  • The American Revolution’s democratic and republican ideals inspired new experiments with different forms of government.
  • The ideals that inspired the revolutionary cause reflected new beliefs about politics, religion, and society that had been developing over the course of the 18th century.
  • After declaring independence, American political leaders created new constitutions and declarations of rights that articulated the role of the state and federal governments while protecting individual liberties and limiting both centralized power and excessive popular influence.
  • New forms of national culture and political institutions developed in the United States alongside continued regional variations and differences over economic, political, social, and foreign policy issues.
  • Migration within North America and competition over resources, boundaries, and trade intensified conflicts among peoples and nations.
  • In the decades after American independence, interactions among different groups resulted in competition for resources, shifting alliances, and cultural blending.
  • The continued presence of European powers in North America challenged the United States to find ways to safeguard its borders, maintain neutral trading rights, and promote its economic interests.

Learning Objectives:

Explain how ideas about democracy, freedom, and individualism found expression in the development of cultural values, political institutions, and American identity.

Explain how interpretations of the Constitution and debates over rights, liberties, and definitions of citizenship have affected American values, politics, and society.

Analyze how ideas about national identity changed in response to U.S. involvement in international conflicts and the growth of the United States.

Explain how and why political ideas, beliefs, institutions, party systems, and alignments have developed and changed.

Explain how popular movements, reform efforts, and activist groups have sought to change American society and institutions.

Explain how different beliefs about the federal government’s role in U.S. social and economic life have affected political debates and policies.

Explain how different labor systems developed in North America and the United States, and explain their effects on workers’ lives and U.S. society.

Explain how patterns of exchange, markets, and private enterprise have developed, and analyze ways that governments have responded to economic issues.

Explain how religious groups and ideas have affected American society and political life.

Explain how artistic, philosophical, and scientific ideas have developed and shaped society and institutions.

Explain how ideas about women’s rights and gender roles have affected society and politics.

Explain how different group identities, including racial, ethnic, class, and regional identities, have emerged and changed over time.

Explain the causes of migration to colonial North America and, later, the United States, and analyze immigration’s effects on U.S. society.

Analyze causes of internal migration and patterns of settlement in what would become the United States, and explain how migration has affected American life.

Explain how geographic and environmental factors shaped the development of various communities, and analyze how competition for and debates over natural resources have affected both interactions among different groups and the development of government policies.

Explain how cultural interaction, cooperation, competition, and conflict between empires, nations, and peoples have influenced political, economic, and social developments in North America.

Analyze the reasons for and results of U.S. diplomatic, economic, and military initiatives in North America and overseas.