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While Congress took steps to bolster the Continental Navy, American forces continued to engage the British on Lake Champlain and Manhattan Island. General Benedict Arnold led a small fleet of American ships during the Battle of Valcour Island and successfully delayed the British advance. Meanwhile, British forces continued to push General George Washington’s Army northward, culminating in the Battle of White Plains.

The New York Campaign was the second major military campaign of the American Revolutionary War. It was a series of battles, skirmishes, and military maneuvers that took place in and around the Province of New York, following the end of the Siege of Boston. During the campaign, the British slowly pushed the Americans out of New York City, off of Manhattan Island, and into New Jersey. This gave the British control of New York City, which they maintained for the remainder of the war; however, it also set the stage for dramatic American victories at Trenton and Princeton.

Francisco Vázquez de Coronado was a Spanish explorer, Conquistador, and Governor of Nueva Galicia who led a major expedition across the American Southwest and Great Plains from 1540 to 1542 in search of the legendary Seven Cities of Cíbola and the wealthy kingdom of Quivira. Although the expedition failed to find the riches it sought, it expanded Spanish knowledge of the region and led to conflict with Native American Indian groups.

Hernán Cortés was a Spanish explorer and Conquistador who led the Conquest of the Aztecs (1519–1521). With Spanish soldiers and Native allies, he captured Tenochtitlán, established Spanish control over much of Mexico, and helped create a model for later European expeditions in North and South America.

Georgia Colony was the last of Britain’s 13 Original Colonies in America. It was established in 1732 as a refuge for the “Worthy Poor” and a military buffer against threats from Spanish Florida and New France. Under James Oglethorpe, the first settlers established Savannah and successfully defended Georgia during the War of Jenkins’ Ear. The Trustees restricted landownership and prohibited slavery, but opposition from the “Malcontents” helped overturn these policies. Georgia became a Royal Colony in 1752, adopted the Headright System, and developed a slave-based plantation economy. The colony’s reliance on financial and military support from Parliament made it hesitant to join the Patriot Cause during the American Revolution.

Juan Ponce de León was a Spanish explorer and Conquistador who conquered and governed Puerto Rico before exploring Florida. He is best known for his unsuccessful search for the legendary Fountain of Youth and his efforts to claim and colonize Florida for Spain.

The Presidential Election of 1832 was the twelfth election for the Office of President held in the United States. The Democratic Party ticket of Andrew Jackson (President) and Martin Van Buren (Vice President) won the election. Jackson’s win continued the Age of Jackson and Jacksonian Democracy.

Vasco Núñez de Balboa was a Spanish Conquistador who traveled to the New World in 1500 and later founded the settlement of Darién. He is best known for crossing the Isthmus of Panama in 1513 and becoming the first European to see the Pacific Ocean. Governor Pedrarias Dávila later accused Balboa of treason and ordered his execution in 1517.

Diego Velázquez de Cuéllar was a Spanish Conquistador, soldier, and government official who conquered Cuba and served as its governor. He played an important role in Spanish exploration of the Caribbean and sponsored expeditions led by Francisco Hernández de Córdoba, Juan de Grijalva, and Hernán Cortés.

The Presidential Election of 1828 was the eleventh election for the Office of President held in the United States. Democratic Party nominees Andrew Jackson (President) and John C. Calhoun (Vice President) won the election. Jackson’s win ushered in the Age of Jackson and Jacksonian Democracy.

Jacques Cartier was a 16th-century French explorer who made three voyages to the St. Lawrence region of North America for King Francis I. Although he failed to find the Northwest Passage or significant mineral wealth, Cartier explored and mapped the Gulf and St. Lawrence River region, helping set the stage for French colonial expansion in North America.

Walter Raleigh was an English soldier, explorer, and adventurer who financed English expeditions to North America, including the Lost Colony of Roanoke. Although his settlements at Roanoke and Guiana failed, they helped pave the way for later English settlement at Jamestown. He is recognized as one of the most important people in English colonial history.

The Philadelphia Associators were a volunteer military organization founded in Philadelphia in 1747 by a group of men, including Benjamin Franklin. The Associators reinforced General George Washington’s Army in 1776 and eventually became part of Pennsylvania’s military forces.

The Presidential Election of 1824 was the tenth election for the Office of President held in the United States. Democratic-Republicans John Quincy Adams (President) and John C. Calhoun (Vice President) won the election in controversial fashion, known as the “Corrupt Bargain.” Adams’s win ended the Age of Jefferson, the Era of Good Feelings, and the Virginia Dynasty.

The Presidential Election of 1820 was the ninth election for the Office of President held in the United States. Democratic-Republicans James Monroe (President) and Daniel D. Tompkins (Vice President) essentially ran unopposed and won reelection. Monroe’s win continued the Age of Jefferson, Jeffersonian Democracy, and the Virginia Dynasty.

Juan Ginés de Sepúlveda was a leading Spanish historian and scholar who argued that the native peoples of the Americas were inferior to Europeans. He is primarily remembered for the Valladolid Debate (1550–1551) with Bartolomé de Las Casas over Spanish colonial policies, including native rights and treatment.

Bartolomé de Las Casas was a soldier, priest, and humanitarian who advocated for native rights during the Spanish Conquest of the Americas. He opposed the Encomienda System, promoted peaceful conversion, influenced Spanish colonial reforms, and documented the violence and population decline experienced by native people.

Redeemers were Southern Democrats who overthrew Reconstruction governments in the 1870s and controlled every former Confederate state during the last quarter of the 19th Century. They promoted Home Rule, weakened civil-rights protections, pursued industrialization, and influenced national debates over money, banking, taxation, tariffs, railroads, and federal spending. They were divided between the industrial “Right Fork” and agrarian “Left Fork.”

Dollar Diplomacy was the foreign policy followed by President William Howard Taft and Secretary of State Philander C. Knox, using private American investment and government intervention to promote and protect U.S. commercial interests overseas. Although it achieved some successes, it failed to stop economic instability and revolution in several countries.

The Roosevelt Corollary to the Monroe Doctrine was President Theodore Roosevelt’s policy toward Latin America and the Caribbean. Announced in December 1904, it claimed that the United States could intervene as a last resort when Western Hemisphere nations failed to meet international obligations or faced foreign aggression. The policy later justified United States intervention in Cuba, Nicaragua, Haiti, and the Dominican Republic.