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37 Cards in this Set
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Adams, Samuel (1722–1803):
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Boston revolutionary who organized Massachusetts’ committees of correspondence to help sustain opposition to British policies. A delegate to the First and Second Continental Congresses, Adams continued to play a key role throughout the revolutionary and early national periods, later serving as governor of his home state.
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Attucks, Crispus (1723–1770):
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Runaway slave and leader of the Boston protests that resulted in the “Boston Massacre,” in which Attucks was first to die.
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Dunmore, Lord (c.1730–1809):
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Royal governor of Virginia who, in 1775, promised freedom to runaway slaves who joined the British army.
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George III (1738–1820):
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British monarch during the run-up to the American Revolution, George III contributed to the imperial crisis with his dogged insistence on asserting Britain’s power over her colonial possessions.
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Grenville, George (1712–1770):
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British prime minister who fueled tensions between Britain and her North American colonies through his strict enforcement of navigation laws and his support for the Sugar and Stamp Acts.
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Hancock, John (1737–1793):
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Boston smuggler and prominent leader of the colonial re sis tance, who served as president of the Second Continental Congress. In 1780 Hancock became the first governor of Massachusetts, a post he held with only a brief intermission until his death.
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Hutchinson, Thomas (1711–1780):
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Royal governor of Massachusetts during the run-up to the Revolution, Hutchinson misjudged colonial zeal during the Tea Act controversy and insisted that East India Company ships unload in Boston Harbor, thereby prompting the Boston Tea Party.
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Lafayette, Marquis de (1757–1834):
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French nobleman who served as major general in the colonial army during the American Revolution and aided the newly-in de pen dent colonies in securing French support.
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North, Lord(1732–1792):
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Tory prime minister and pliant aide to George III from 1770 to 1782. North’s ineffective leadership and dogged insistence on colonial subordination contributed to the American Revolution.
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Steuben, Baron von (1730–1794):
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German-born inspector general of the Continental army, who helped train the novice colonial militia in the art of warfare.
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Townshend, Charles (“Champagne Charley”) (1725–1767):
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British prime minister whose ill-conceived duties on the colonies, the Townshend Acts, sparked fierce protests in the colonies and escalated the imperial conflict.
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Admiral de Grasse (1722–1788):
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French admiral, whose fleet blocked British reinforcements, allowing Washington and Rochambeau to trap Cornwallis at Yorktown.
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Allen, Ethan (1738–1789):
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Revolutionary war officer who, along with Benedict Arnold, fought British and Indian forces in frontier New York and Vermont.
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Arnold, Benedict (1741–1801):
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Revolutionary war general turned traitor, who valiantly held off a British invasion of upstate New York at Lake Champlain, but later switched sides, plotting to sell out the Continental stronghold at West Point to the redcoats. His scheme was discovered and the disgraced general fled to British lines.
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Brant, Joseph (1743–1807):
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Mohawk chief and Anglican convert, who sided with the British during the Revolutionary war, believing that only a British victory could halt American westward expansion.
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Burgoyne, John (“Gentleman Johnny”) (1722–1792):
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British general who led an ill-fated invasion of upstate New York, suffering a crushing defeat by George Washington at Saratoga.
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Clark, George Rogers (1752–1818):
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American frontiersman who captured a series of British forts along the Ohio River during the Revolutionary war.
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Cornwallis, Lord Charles (1738–1805):
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British general during the Revolutionary War who, having failed to crush Greene’s forces in South Carolina, retreated to Virginia, where his defeat at Yorktown marked the beginning of the end for Britain’s efforts to suppress the colonial rebellion.
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Franklin, Benjamin (1706–1790):
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American printer, inventor, statesman and revolutionary. Franklin first established himself in Philadelphia as a leading newspaper printer, inventor and author of Poor Richard’s Almanac. Franklin later became a leading revolutionary and signatory of the Declaration of Independence. During the Revolutionary War, Franklin served as commissioner to France, securing the nation’s support for the American cause.
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Greene, Nathanael (1742–1786):
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General in command of the Continental army in the Carolina campaign of 1781, the “Fighting Quaker” successfully cleared most of Georgia and South Carolina of British troops despite loosing a string of minor battles.
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Howe, William (1729–1814):
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British general who, despite victories on the battle field, failed to deal a crushing blow to Washington’s Continental army. By attacking Philadelphia instead of reinforcing General Burgoyne at Saratoga, Howe also inadvertently contributed to that crucial American victory.
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Lee, Richard Henry (1733–1794):
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Virginia planter and revolutionary, who served as a member of the Continental Congress. He first introduced the motion asserting America’s independence from Britain, later supplanted by Thomas Jefferson’s more formal and rhetorically moving declaration. Lee went on to become the first U.S. senator from Virginia under the new constitution.
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Montgomery, Richard (1738–1775):
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Irish-born British army veteran, who served as a general in the Continental army during the Revolution. He joined Benedict Arnold in a failed attempt to seize Quebec in 1775.
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Paine, Thomas (1737–1809):
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British-born pamphleteer and author of Common Sense, a fiery tract that laid out the case for American independence. Later an ardent supporter of the French Revolution, Paine became increasingly radical in his views, publishing the anticlerical The Age of Reason in 1794, which cost him the support of his American allies.
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Rochambeau, Comte de (1725–1807):
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General in command of French forces during the American Revolution, he fought alongside George Washington at Yorktown.
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Henry, Patrick (1736–1799):
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American revolutionary and champion of states’ rights, Henry became a prominent anti-federalist during the ratification debate, opposing what he saw as despotic tendencies in the new national constitution.
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Shays, Daniel (1747–1825):
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Revolutionary war veteran who led a group of debtors and impoverished backcountry farmers in a rebellion against the Massachusetts government in 1786, calling for paper money, lighter taxes and an end to property seizures for debt. Though quickly put down, the rebellion raised the specter of mob rule, precipitating calls for a stronger national government.
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Sheffield, Lord (1725–1831):
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Parliamentarian who persuaded Britain to take a hard line in negotiations with the newly in de pendent United States, closing off American trade with the West Indies and continuing to enforce navigation laws. His approach prompted many Americans to call for a stronger central government, culminating in the 1787 Philadelphia convention.
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Adams, John (1735–1826):
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American revolutionary, statesman and second president of the United States. One of the more radical patriots on the eve of the Revolution, Massachusetts-born Adams helped guide the Continental Congress toward a declaration of independence from Britain. From 1778 to 1788, Adams involved himself with international diplomacy, serving as minister to France, Britain and the Netherlands. After serving as Washington’s vice president, he was elected president in his own right in 1796. Adams’ administration suffered from Federalist infighting, international turmoil, and domestic uproar over the Alien and Sedition Acts, all of which contributed to his defeat in the election of 1800.
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Genêt, Edmond (1763–1834):
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Representative of the French Republic who in 1793 tried to recruit Americans to invade Spanish and British territories in blatant disregard of Washington’s Neutrality Proclamation.
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Hamilton, Alexander (1757–1804):
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Revolutionary War soldier and first treasury secretary of the United States. A fierce proponent of a strong national government, Hamilton attended the Philadelphia convention and convincingly argued for the Constitution’s ratification in The Federalist. As treasury secretary, he advocated the assumption of state debts to bolster the nation’s credit and the establishment of a national bank to print sound currency and boost commerce. Hamilton died from a gunshot wound suffered during a duel with then-Vice President Aaron Burr.
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Jay, John (1745–1829):
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Leading American revolutionary and diplomat, who negotiated the Treaty of Paris and later, the much- criticized Jay Treaty of 1794, which averted war with Britain but failed to address key American grievances. Jay also served as the first chief justice of the Supreme Court from 1789–1795, a post he left to become governor of New York.
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Little Turtle (1752–1812):
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Miami Indian chief whose warriors routed American forces in 1790 and 1791 along the Ohio frontier. In 1794, Little Turtle and his braves were defeated by General Anthony Wayne at the Battle of Fallen Timbers, and were forced to cede vast tracts of the Old Northwest under the Treaty of Greenville.
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Louis XVI (1754–1793):
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King of France from 1774 to 1792, he, along with Queen Marie Antoinette, was beheaded during the French Revolution.
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Talleyrand, Charles Maurice de (1754–1838):
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French foreign minister whose attempts to solicit bribes from American envoys in the infamous XYZ Affair prompted widespread calls for war with France.
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Washington, George (1732–1799):
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Revolutionary war general and first president of the United States. A Virginia-born planter, Washington established himself as a military hero during the French and Indian War. He served as commander in chief of the Continental Army during the War of Independence, securing key victories at Saratoga and Yorktown. Unanimously elected president under the new national Constitution in 1788, Washington served two terms, focusing primarily on strengthening the national government, establishing a sound financial system and maintaining American neutrality amidst the escalating European conflict.
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Wayne, “Mad Anthony” (1745–1796):
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Revolutionary war soldier and commander in chief of the U.S. Army from 1792–1796, he secured the Treaty of Greenville after soundly defeating the Miami
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