"Bail", "property or money given as a guarantee that a person released from custody will return to court." "Cruel and unusual punishments", "punishment prohibited by the Eighth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution and also the English Bill of Rights; this calls for fair treatment of prisoners." "Due process", "fair treatment through the normal judicial system." "English Bill of Rights", "an English constitutional law declaring the rights and liberties of citizens and recognizing the joint rule of William III and Mary II." "Extradition", "the action of turning over a person accused or convicted of a crime." "Equality before the law", "the principle under which all people are subject to the same laws of justice." "Glorious Revolution", "the 1689 overthrow of James II of England, being replaced by his daughter Mary II and her husband, William III." "House of Commons", "the lower house of the British Parliament, consisting of elected representatives." "House of Lords", "upper house of the British Parliament, consisting of members of the nobility and high-ranking clergy." "Hundred Years' War", "a lengthy war between France and England lasting from the middle of the 14th century to the middle of the 15th century." "Inalienable rights", "rights that cannot be given away or taken away." "Jurisdiction", "the power of a legal or political agency to exercise authority over people or territory." "Magna Carta", "Latin for "the Great Charter," a 1215 agreement limiting the power of English monarchs." "Majority rule", "idea that a majority (fifty percent plus one person of an organized group) has the power to make decisions binding upon the whole group." "Mayflower compact", "a 1620 agreement reached by the Pilgrims on the ship Mayflower, binding them to live in a civil society according to their own laws." "Pilgrims", "a group of English Puritans who moved to America, first arriving on the Mayflower in 1620." "Puritans", "English Protestants of the late 16th and 17th centuries who regarded the Reformation of the Church of England as incomplete, seeking to simplify and regulate forms of worship." "Social contract", "the idea that there is an understood agreement among members of a society to cooperate for social benefits." "Standing army", "a permanent army composed of full-time soldiers that is not disbanded during times of peace." "War of the Roses", "a series of wars in the 15th century for control of the throne of England." "Writ of habeas corpus", "Latin for "produce the body," a court order demanding that an imprisoned individual be brought to court; this prevents unlawful detention without a trial." "Checks and balances", "a system in which the different parts of a government have powers that affect and control the other parts so that no part can become too powerful." "Common Sense", "an influential American political pamphlet published by Tom Paine in 1776." "Consent of the governed", "the idea that the authority of a government should depend on the consent of the people as expressed by votes in elections." "Democracy", "a system of government by the whole population or all the eligible citizens of a state, usually through elected representatives." "Enlightenment", "a European intellectual movement of the late 17th and 18th centuries emphasizing reason and individualism rather than religion and tradition." "Great Awekening", "a religious revitalization movement that swept parts of Europe and British America, especially the American colonies, in the 1730s and 1740s." "Hereditary Monarchy", "a type of government where a monarch (usually a king or queen) becomes the monarch because he or she is related to the last monarch." "Monarchy", "a form of government with a monarch as the head of state." "Natural rights", "the political theory holding that an individual enters into society with certain basic rights and that no government can deny these rights." "New Lights", "supporters of the Great Awakening revival in New England" "Old Lights", "opponents of the Great Awakening revival in New England." "Republic", "a state in which political power is held by the people and their elected representatives, and which has an elected or nominated president rather than a monarch." "Separation of church and state", "a political philosophy limiting the power of government with regard to religion while simultaneously limiting the role of religion in government." "Rule of Law", "a principle that all people and institutions are subject to and accountable to law that is fairly applied and enforced." "Separation of powers", "the distribution of political authority within a government to prevent one part of the government from becoming too powerful." "Social contract", "a political philosophy that there is an implicit agreement among the members of a society to cooperate for social benefits." "Tabula rasa", "Latin for "blank slate," this is the idea that humans are not born with any innate (inborn) knowledge." "Confederation Congress", "the governing body of the United States of America that existed from March 1, 1781, to March 4, 1789." "Continental currency", "the paper money issued by the Continental Congress during the American Revolution." "Counterfit", "made in exact imitation of something valuable with the intention to deceive or defraud." "Declaration of Independence", "the formal statement written by Thomas Jefferson declaring the freedom of the thirteen American colonies from Great Britain." "Articles of Confederation", "the original constitution of the US, ratified in 1781, which was replaced by the US Constitution in 1789." "American Revolution", "a revolution between 1765 and 1783 where colonists in the 13 American colonies overthrew the authority of Great Britain and founded the United States of America." "Boston Tea Party", "a 1773 incident in which some American colonists raided three ships in Boston Harbor, destroying their cargo of tea to protest a British East India Company monopoly on tea." "British East India Company", "a private company granted a trade monopoly in the East Indies by the British government." "Coercive Acts", "a series of British measures passed in 1774 and intended to punish the Massachusetts colonists for the Boston Tea Party." "Declaration of Independence", "the formal statement written by Thomas Jefferson declaring the freedom of the thirteen American colonies from Great Britain." "First Continental Congress", "a meeting of delegates from 12 of the 13 colonies that met on in 1774 in Philadelphia." "Intolerable Acts", "a name American colonists gave to the Coercive Acts." "Loyalist", "a colonist of the American revolutionary period who supported the British cause." "Parliament", "the legislative political body of Great Britain" "Patriot", "a colonist of the American revolutionary period who supported the American rebel cause." "Preamble", "a preliminary or introductory statement." "Propaganda", "information, often biased or misleading, used to promote a particular political cause or point of view." "Revolutionary War", "the war between Great Britain and its American colonies, lasting from 1775 to 1783." "Second Continental Congress", "a convention of delegates from the 13 colonies that began meeting in May, 1775 in Philadelphia." "Seven Years' War", "a war fought in the middle of the 18th century between Prussia (supported by Britain) and an alliance that included Austria, France, and Russia." "Social Contract", "an implicit agreement among the members of a society to cooperate for social benefits." "Supply lines", "the roads, railways, and rivers in the rear of an army by which it is supplied." "Disarmament", "the reduction or withdrawal of military forces and weapons." "Depreciation", "a decrease in the value of a currency as compared with other currencies." "Federalism", "a system of government in which power is divided between a central government and various regional governments." "Inflation", "a general increase in prices and fall in the purchasing value of money." "Loan certificates", "debt certificates issued by the original thirteen states during and after the Revolutionary War; these circulated like paper money." "Militia", "a military force raised from the civil population to supplement a regular army in an emergency." "Pacifist", "a person who believes war and violence are immoral and/or unjustifiable." "Pension", "money paid under certain conditions to a person following retirement or to surviving dependents." "Republicanism", "a political belief in a state as a republic (rather than as a monarchy or dictatorship) under which the people hold popular sovereignty; republicanists tend to favor local or state control over a powerful central government." "Sectionalism", "loyalty to the interests of one's own region or section of the country, rather than to the country as a whole." "Wage and price controls", "economic policy measure in which the government places an upper limit on wages and prices to try to lower the inflation rate."
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