abolitionism
the doctrine that calls for the abolition of slavery |
advantage
benefit resulting from some event or action |
checks and balances
counterbalancing influences by which an organization or system is regulated, typically those ensuring that political power is not concentrated in the hands of individuals or groups |
chronological
arranged in order of time of occurrence |
Civil War
a war between factions in the same country |
consent of the governed
a phrase from the United States Declaration of Independence |
continental congresses
convention of delegates called together from the Thirteen Colonies that became the governing body of the United States during the American Revolution |
cotton gin
a machine that separates the seeds from raw cotton fibers |
depression
recession; economic slump; concavity in a surface produced by pressing ; sadness; low spirits |
disadvantage
drawback; defect; hinder; unfavorable condition or circumstance |
due process
the administration of justice according to established rules and principles; based on the principle that a person cannot be deprived of life or liberty or property without appropriate legal procedures and safeguards |
economic plan
an economic position favoring interventions in the market in the public interest on behalf of government |
federal government
a union of states under a central government distinct from the individual governments of the separate states |
federalism
the idea of a federal organization of more or less self-governing units |
finance
management of money and credit and banking and investments; subsidizing; fund |
founding fathers
people who founds or establishes something; member of the convention that drafted the U.S. Constitution in 1787 |
frontier
part of a country which fronts or faces another country or an unsettled region; border, confine, or extreme part of a country |
Gettysburg Address
a three-minute address by Abraham Lincoln during the American Civil War at the dedication of a national cemetery on the site of the Battle of Gettysburg (November 19, 1863) |
Indian removal
a 19th-century policy of ethnic cleansing by the government of the United States to relocate Native American tribes living east of the Mississippi River to lands west of the river |
inflation
general increase in the prices of goods and services in a country |
Jacksonian Democracy
the political movement toward greater democracy for the common man symbolized by American politician Andrew Jackson and his supporters |
Monroe Doctrine
an American foreign policy opposing interference in the western hemisphere from outside powers |
Northern states
The U.S. states that remained in the existing Union during the American Civil War |
nullification
the states'-rights doctrine that a state can refuse to recognize or to enforce a federal law passed by the United States Congress |
plantation system
an economy which is based on agricultural mass production, usually of a few staple products grown on large farms called plantations |
political parties
organization to gain political power |
popular sovereignty
the principle that the authority of the government is created and sustained by the consent of its people, or elected representatives, who are the source of all political power |
Presidential election
the election of any head of state whose official title is President |
propaganda
organization or plan for spreading a particular doctrine or a system of principles |
protective tariff
a tariff imposed to protect domestic firms from import competition |
Reconstruction
the period after the American Civil War when the southern states were reorganized and reintegrated into the Union; 1865-1877 |
reform movements
social movement that aims to make gradual change, or change in certain aspects of society, rather than rapid or fundamental changes |
Second Great Awakening
Protestant revival movement during the early 19th century in the United States. |
separation of powers
an act of vesting the legislative, executive, and judicial powers of government in separate bodies |
social classes
people having the same social, economic, or educational status |
Southern states
the states of the southeastern US, especially the states that fought against the North in the US Civil War |
Supreme Court
the highest court in most states of the United States; the highest federal court in the United States; has final appellate jurisdiction and has jurisdiction over all other courts in the nation |
territorial acquisition
the addition of land to countries |
three branches of government
the separation of powers, often imprecisely used interchangeably with the trias political principle, is a model for the governance of a state |
trial by jury
a legal proceeding in which a jury either makes a decision or makes findings of fact, which are then applied by a judge. |
union
an organization of employees formed to bargain with the employer; a political unit formed from previously independent people or organizations |
utopian community
society possessing highly desirable or perfect qualities |
