Annapolis Convention

Annapolis Convention, a meeting of states held at Annapolis, Maryland, September 11-14, 1786, to discuss regulation of interstate commerce.

Articles of Confederation

Articles of Confederation, the written agreement that served as the constitution of the United States from 1781 to 1789.

Declaration of Independence

Declaration of Independence, the historic document adopted by the Continental Congress on July 4, 1776, proclaiming the reasons for the political separation of the 13 United Colonies from Great Britain.

Intolerable Acts

Intolerable Acts, a name given by American colonists to five acts passed by the British Parliament in 1774.

Liberty Bell

Liberty Bell, the historic bell rung in Independence Hall, Philadelphia, on July 8, 1776.

Navigation Acts

Navigation Acts, the name given to laws regulating trade and commerce between Great Britain, its colonies, and other parts of the world.

New Jersey Plan

New Jersey Plan, a group of proposals presented by William Paterson of New Jersey to the Constitutional Convention on June 15, 1787.

Nonimportation Act

Nonimportation Act, a law passed by the U.S. Congress in April, 1806, to forbid the importing of certain goods from Great Britain, in retaliation for British interference with American shipping.

Nonintercourse Act

Nonintercourse Act, an act passed by the United States Congress in 1809. The act arose out of British and French seizure of American ships and sailors during the Napoleonic Wars, when each country was trying to cut off the other from foreign trade.

Stamp Act

Stamp Act, an act passed by the British Parliament in 1765 to tax certain transactions and printed items in the American colonies.

The Federalist Papers

Federalist, The, a series of 85 essays written in 1787 and 1788 explaining the U.S.

Townshend Acts

Townshend Acts, a series of laws enacted in 1767 by the British Parliament. Three of the four acts dealt with the American colonies; they expanded British control, causing an immediate and bitter reaction in America and thus hastening the American Revolution.

Writs of Assistance

Writs of Assistance, in United States colonial history, general search warrants used by British customs officers to prevent smuggling.