The very first group of government representatives (legislative assembly) in the United States; The name is from burgess which is an English name that very quickly came to represent elected officials.

Primary motives for European exploration of the Americas - to spread Christianity, to increase wealth, and to expand their empires; Columbus came to the New World to expand the power of the Spanish empire.

A Puritan woman whose strong religious convictions led to her banishment from Boston with many of her supporters; with encouragement from Roger Williams, Hutchinson and many of her supporters established the settlement of Portsmouth in what became the Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations.

A 1689 document that guaranteed certain rights to English citizens; This document further limited the powers of the English monarchy.

Written by Thomas Hooker, It is considered the first written constitution (plan of government) in British North America. The Fundamental Orders of Connecticut is another example of colonial self-government.

A revival of religious feeling in the American colonies during the 1730s and 1740s

The movement of thousands of Puritans from England to the Americas that took place between 1630 and 1640

Laborers who agreed to work without pay for a certain period of time in exchange for passage to America

Founder of the colony of Georgia; He hoped to resettle Britain's poor, especially those in debtors' prisons, in the New World.

Established in 1607, it became the first permanent English settlement

When Cecil Calvert, second Lord Baltimore, created the colony of Maryland, he formed it based on the ideas of freedom of religion and separation of church and state. Maryland, in fact, became known as a haven for Roman Catholics in the New World.

Signed in 1215, this document limited the powers of the English king; it contains two basic ideas: monarchs themselves have to obey the laws, and citizens have basic rights.

Written in 1620, that provide law and order to the Plymouth colony; It established a form of self-government based on a social contract.

The voyage that brought enslaved Africans across the Atlantic Ocean to North America and the West Indies.

Separatists who journeyed to the colonies during the 1600s for a religious purpose. The Pilgrims' story of seeking religious freedom has become a central theme in our country's history.

Farming done in large farms that raise cash crops

Established in 1620 by the Pilgrims, the passengers of Mayflower

Protestants who, during the 1600s, wanted to reform the Anglican Church; The Puritans founded the Massachusetts Bay Colony to escape religious persecution.

Protestants who believed that all people should live in peace and harmony and accepted different religious and ethnic groups; One of the first groups to call an end to slavery.

An English Protestant who was banished from the Massachusetts Bay Colony and formed the colony of Providence Plantation that did not have a state church and became a refuge for religious minorities; A proponent of religious freedom and separation of church and state

Farming in which only enough food to feed one's family is produced

Maryland law that made restricting the religious rights of Christians a crime; One of the first laws protecting religious tolerance (acceptance of different beliefs) passed in the English colonies.

The transatlantic system of trade in which goods, including slaves, were exchanged between England, West Africa, the West Indies, and the colonies in North America. The profitability of cash-crop agriculture, such as sugar and tobacco encouraged the development of this trade route.

He founded the colony of Pennsylvania as a haven for his fellow Quakers.

A trial against the author of a newspaper article that criticized the corrupt NY British governor, who was charged with sedition and libel but was acquitted; It contributed to the first amendment policy of freedom of the press.