The New Nation - APUSH – Mr. Hesen

Changes in American SocietyDue mainly b/c of Amer. Rev.80,000 conservative Loyalists left the U.S.– Paved the way for more democratic reforms

within the states

Changes in American Society Issue of Slavery

– Rise in anti-slavery societies in all northern states (including Virginia)– Quakers were the first to found these societies– Slavery was eradicated from most northern states

• PA was the first in 1780 – gradual emancipation• Quok Walker case (1781) – ended slavery b/c slaves could no

longer be protected as property under MA law

Changes in American SocietySlavery was not allowed

above the Ohio Valley and in the western territories– Northwest Ordinance

(1787)• OH, MI, IN, IL, and some

others would be free states, not slave states

Changes in American Society

• Thousands of slaves freed after the Amer. Rev.• Many in the South were not freed due to the

cotton gin– Eli Whitney (1793)

Changes in American Society

Thousands of slaves freed after the Amer. Rev.Many in the South were not freed due to the

cotton gin– Eli Whitney (1793)

Changes in American Culture• Separation of Church and State– Jefferson’s Virginia Statute on Religious Freedom

(1786) – influenced 1st Amendment– Anglican Church replaced by Episcopal Church• Congregational churches slow to establish in New

England

“Be it enacted by General Assembly that no man shall be compelled to frequent or support any

religious worship, place, or ministry whatsoever, nor shall be enforced, restrained, molested, or

burthened in his body or goods, nor shall otherwise suffer on account of his religious

opinions or belief.”

Changes in American CultureState Governments– Three branches: weak executives; strong

legislatures; judicial branch– Sovereignty of states – Republicanism– Most states had a bill of rights

Changes in American Culture Amerindians– No longer had British

protection– Became subjects of

American expansionism– Iroquois were the worst

hit by this

Changes in American Culture Stronger emphasis on

equality– Commoners often criticized

aristocratic organizations (Cincinnati Society)

– Farmers were still at the bottom of food chain

– Women• Primogeniture – eldest son

received father’s estate• Entail – estates could not be

sold in pieces

Changes in American CultureWomen’s Rights– Women were second-

class citizens– Feme Covert – women

could not hold property– “Republican

Motherhood”

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Articles of Confederation

Second Continental Congress– Weakened by Amer. Rev – Focus was on foreign and military issues– Domestic issues were lacking– No constitutional authority

Articles of Confederation• Ratified in 1781 – first

constitutional government• Western lands were major

point of contention– Would larger western

states be given more privileges?

– Larger states could sell off lands to pay off war debts – smaller states had to tax themselves

Articles of Confederation

• Unanimous support was needed to ratify AoC– Maryland held out until 1781 b/c of NY and VA

landholdings

Articles of Confederation

• Provisions:– Thirteen states banded together to solve common

problems– Congress was chief agency– Each state had a single vote– Bills required a 2/3 vote– Amendments required unanimous consent

Articles of Confederation

• Weak Form of Government– Gave individual states more power– Two crippling limitations:• Could not regulate commerce• Could not regulate tax collection

Articles of Confederation

Newburgh Conspiracy (1783)– Cause: Continental Army soldiers not paid during

the war– Soldiers threatened to take over if there wasn’t a

push for stronger national government– George Washington stepped in and appealed to

the soldiers to stop

Articles of Confederation

• Failures of AoC– Problems were continuous– Couldn’t raise money from states– Interest on debt piling up– State quarreled over boundaries– States placed tariffs on other states– No uniformed currency

Articles of Confederation

Articles of ConfederationAnnapolis Convention (1786) – major blunder– Purpose: Improve interstate commerce– Only 5 of 13 states showed up– Alexander Hamilton pushed for convention the

following year• Overhaul the Articles of Confederation!!!

The Economy in the 1780s

America Suffered a Major Depression– Revolution racked up huge debts– Excessive use of credit to secure war goods– Lack of currency– Foreclosures on farms– Inflation– British companies shipped goods at cheap prices

The Economy in the 1780sEconomic democracy preceded political democracy– Land was readily available and very cheap– American manufacturing was bolstered by

nonimportation agreements

– Shays’ Rebellion – 1786-87

Landmark Land Laws– Land Ordinance of 1785

• A law that divided much of the United States into a system of townships

• Goal: to facilitate the sale of land to settlers and raise money

– Northwest Ordinance of 1787• Dealt with the sale of public

lands in the Northwest Territory• Goal: established a plan for the

admission of new states to the Union.

Constitution Making in the States

Continental Congress in 1776 called for colonies to draft new constitutions– Sovereignty of the states would rest on the

authority of the people according to the theory of republicanism

Constitution Making in the StatesFeatures of State Constitutions– Most included a bill of rights – protected liberties– Annual election of officers– All created a weak executive and judicial branches– All legislatures were given strong powers– Western districts had best representation

Creation of the ConstitutionConstitutional Convention (May 25, 1787)

– Each state sent members (except RI)

– Leaders all appointed by state legislatures

– 55 delegates in all – Most men were of high prestige

and conservative– George Washington elected

chairmen – presided over proceedings

– Sessions were held in complete secrecy

Creation of the ConstitutionJames Madison – “Father of the Constitution”– Three major Madisonian

concepts:• National principle –

national govt. should be stronger than states

• Separation of powers• “Extended republic” –

limit negative impact of self-serving politicians

Creation of the ConstitutionIssue of Representation– Biggest issue of the Convention

• “The Large State Plan” - Virginia Plan (James Madison)– Called for a bicameral legislature

• “The Small State Plan” - New Jersey Plan– Called for a unicameral legislature

• The “Great Compromise” (Connecticut Compromise) – Roger Sherman– House and Senate – elect members of each

Creation of the ConstitutionOffice of the President– Independent executive

headed by a “president” NOT a KING

– Presidential powers:• Military commander in chief• Wide powers to appoint

domestic offices• Veto legislation

Creation of the ConstitutionElectoral College

– Used to elect the president– Not a direct form of voting– Electors would be chosen by

the states; electors would cast their votes for president

– Vast majority of people did not take place in voting

– Many were excluded

Creation of the Constitution

• North/South Issues at Convention– “Three-Fifths Compromise”

• Northern states argued that slaves shouldn’t be counted as part of population

• Southern states argued that larger populations would dominate• Compromise – slaves would count as 3/5 of a person for

representation

Creation of the Constitution

Equality was sacrificed for preservation of the union– Most northerners and southerners thought that

slavery would die out– Most northerners thought that blacks were menial

laborers

Creation of the ConstitutionAfrican slave trade was set to end in 1808

– Most states wanted end to slavery– By 1779 most states except deep south outlawed importation– SC and GA protested – claimed need for slaves due to rice

production– Fugitive Slave Laws – allowed for white slave owners to reclaim

“property” if they reached northern states

Creation of the Constitution

Commerce Compromise– Resolved conflict between agricultural and industrial states– Congress could tax imports not exports– South gave power to North because it thought it would

have larger population– North gave up slavery because it thought it would die out

Creation of the ConstitutionChecks and Balances – Separation of Powers

– Baron de Montesquieu – Spirit of Laws

– His view: Separate govt. based on class NOT function

– Our view: Three branches of govt.• Executive – enforces the laws• Legislative – makes the laws• Judicial – interprets the laws

Creation of the ConstitutionThe “Elastic Clause”– Art. I, Sec. 8, Paragraph 18– Congress shall have the power to…make laws

which shall be necessary and proper…– Clause has given power to Congress to keep up

with major changes over 200 years

Creation of the Constitution

“Supremacy Clause”– “Supreme law of the Land”– Federal power supersedes states’ powers

Ratification would take 9 states– Constitution would be the law of the land in ratified states– Some states ratified it right away (DE, NJ, GA, CT)

Creation of the Constitution

Last four states ratified it because they had to– Virginia held out –

strongly anti-federalist• George Mason – “Father

of the Bill of Rights”• Many wouldn’t sign

without individual freedoms listed

Creation of the ConstitutionNew York

– Only state to have manhood suffrage vote for members of ratifying convention

– The Federalist Papers• Alexander Hamilton, John Jay, and Madison wrote

influential essays • Published in New York newspapers• Most important commentary on Constitution –

Federalist X

Historiography“…the juxtaposition of historical sources used to create meaning from those sources and to interpret historical

arguments over time…”

Mr. Hesen says: “Reading several historical sources about a topic and witnessing the interpretive changes over time.”