Backcountry
in the eighteenth century, it was the edge of settlement extending from western Pennsylvania to Georgia. This region formed the second frontier as settlers moved west from the Atlantic coast into the interior.
Middle ground
a geographical area where two distinct cultures meet and merge with neither holding a clear upper hand.
Enlightenment
it was a philosophical and intellectual movement that began in Europe during the eighteenth century. It stressed the application of reason to solve social and scientific problems.
Consumer revolution
was a period between 1740 and 1770 when English exports to the American colonies increased by 360 percent to satisfy Americans' demand for consumer goods.
Great Awakening
was the widespread evangelical religious revival movement of the mid-1700s. The movement divided congregations and weakened the authority of established churches in the colonies.
Itinerant preachers
were traveling revivalist ministers of the Great Awakening movement. These charismatic preachers spread revivalism throughout America.
Albany Plan
was a plan of intercolonial cooperation proposed by prominent colonists including Benjamin Franklin at a conference in Albany, New York, in 1754. The plan envisioned the formation of a Grand Council of elected delegates from the colonies that would have powers to tax and provide for the common defense. It was rejected by the colonial and British governments, but was a prototype for colonial union.
Seven Years' War
was the worldwide conflict (1756 to 1763) that pitted Britain against France for control of North America. With help from American colonists, the British won the war and eliminated France as a power on the North American continent. It was also known in America as the French and Indian War.
Peace of Paris of 1763
treaty ending the French and Indian War by which France ceded Canada to Britain.