Impressment – the british practice of seizing seamen from American merchant ships and forcing them to serve in the british navy. Impressment was one of the causes of the war of 1812. Bill of Rights – the first ten amendments to the u.s. constitution, which protect the rights of individuals from the powers of the government. Congress and the states adopted the ten amendments in 1791. Indentured Servitude – In effort to entice english subjects to the colonies parties …showed first 75 words of 621 total…

…showed last 75 words of 621 total…free in those states that were still in rebellion against the Union at the beginning of 1863. Receiving no official response from the Confederacy, Lincoln announced the Emancipation Proclamation on January 1, 1863. All slaves in the rebellious Confederate states were to be forever free. However, slavery could continue to exist in border states that were not at war against the Union. Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation represented the beginning of the end of slavery in the United States.