AP US History Terms

Manifest Destiny

19th-century belief that American expansion across the continent was justified and inevitable. Used to justify westward expansion, Mexican-American War, and displacement of Native Americans.

Articles of Confederation (1781)

First governing document of the US. Created a weak central government with no power to tax, no executive branch, and no national judiciary. Replaced by the Constitution in 1789.

The Great Compromise (1787)

Agreement at the Constitutional Convention creating a bicameral legislature: the Senate (equal representation) and the House of Representatives (proportional representation).

Three-Fifths Compromise

Constitutional provision counting enslaved people as three-fifths of a person for purposes of representation and taxation. Gave slaveholding states more political power.

Monroe Doctrine (1823)

US foreign policy opposing European colonialism in the Americas. Declared that any European intervention in the Western Hemisphere would be viewed as a hostile act.

Reconstruction (1865-1877)

Period after the Civil War focused on reintegrating Southern states and defining the rights of formerly enslaved people. Ended with the Compromise of 1877.

13th Amendment (1865)

Abolished slavery and involuntary servitude in the United States, except as punishment for a crime.

14th Amendment (1868)

Granted citizenship to all persons born or naturalized in the US. Provided equal protection under the law and due process. Overturned Dred Scott decision.

15th Amendment (1870)

Prohibited denying the right to vote based on race, color, or previous condition of servitude.

Gilded Age (1870s-1900)

Era of rapid industrialization, urbanization, and wealth inequality. Marked by political corruption, labor unrest, and the rise of big business (Carnegie, Rockefeller).