Download The New American Government

US BEGINNINGS 1781 - 1800
I. The Early US Government
A. The Second Continental Congress which met in the Spring of 1775 actually served as the US government until
the constitution was completed (1789).
1. Following the end of the fighting and recognition of the US by Britain, the major problem facing congress
was to form a workable government.
2. Once independent, they were outside the commercial protection of the British, many of whose ports,
especially in the Caribbean, were now closed to American shipping.
a. Britain no longer paid a bounty for Carolinian indigo which disappeared as a crop.
American crops were now frozen out of the British West Indies
b. The export of horses, cattle, hogs, poultry, beans, potatoes, flour, rice, oats was stopped unless sent on
"British built ships owned by His Majesty's subjects;"
c. Cured meats, fish, and dairy products were also excluded from the West Indies;
d. As a result of the closing of these markets, surplus crops of farmers in MA, the CN and Hudson Valleys
and Eastern PA piled up, causing farm prices to fall.
3. The Continental Congress had foreseen this problem and had taken steps to correct it.
a. New trade routes were sought while the Revolutionary war was being fought
(1) New routes to the Far East were found;
(2) Trade with China and Asia proved to be very profitable and of long duration
b. Americans were encouraged during the war to develop their own manufacturing goods, to lessen US
dependence on British goods.
c. The need for some kind of national economic regulation was underscored because different states
charged different tariffs.
d. A common currency was needed, a problem magnified by the economic depression following the
Revolutionary war among farmers who were land rich but cash poor
e. Robert Morris's Bank of America was to issue bank notes as currency.
B. Articles of Confederation
1. Background
a. At the time of the Declaration of Independence, it was decided to write a framework for central
government.
b. John Dickinson 's committee formed a government to do what Britain's government had done for the
colonies, establishing Congressional authority and a permanent union without appearing as oppressive to
the states or the people as Britain's had.
c. Within one year the Articles of Confederation were finished and ratified in 1781.
2. Features
a. The national government was weakened and not given the authority it needed.
b. Because it was believed that power corrupts, the executive was little more than a figurehead, with no real
power, and there was no judicial branch.
c. Although Congress was given broad powers, it was denied the same powers that the people had denied to
Parliament:
(1) Congress could not tax - funds were contributed to the national government only through the
appropriations of state legislatures, based on requests by congress proportionally according to population.
(2) Changes could be made only through unanimous consent - every state had to ratify an amendment or
the document could not be changed;
(3) Every state was equal to the other and each received one vote in Congress.
(4) Frequent elections were to be held annually - no one elected delegate could serve for more than three
years, but could return after three years.
3. What Congress could do
a. Set quotas for men and money which could be asked for from the states;
b. select an executive from members of Congress;
c. make commercial and other Treaties (as with France 1778 and with Britain 1783);
d. conduct war and foreign affairs, including negotiation with Indians;
e. manage public lands in the west, limit state boundaries, and admit new states;
f. borrow money, sell war bonds, regulate coinage and provide a currency base.
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State powers
a. State governments, assumed to be the most powerful, had many powers that the national government had
-- right to issue bills of credit, borrow and mint money, deal with foreign governments and engage in war
(with congress's consent)
b. Only states could tax citizens, and legislate regarding family affairs and indebted-ness and the making of
contracts
c. The states also feared giving too much power to one man.
d. Citizens also strongly desired written constitutions throughout the 1770s - 80s.
(1) During the Revolution, 11 of 13 states wrote constitutions (CN and RI kept their colonial charters of
1662-63)
(2) These constitutions were the work of revolutionary conventions or congresses (except MA which used a
constitutional convention (1779) and a ratification process involving its citizens).
C. Problems with Ratification of the Articles of Conferation
1. The debate over western territory delayed final ratification of the Articles until 1781.
a. Smaller states before agreeing to ratification demanded that the larger states cede their western lands to
the national congress.
b. Virginia claimed territory including KY, OH, IN, IL, MI and WI.
c. Seven states had no western claims - NH, NJ, RI, CN, PA, DELA, MD
2. Twelve states had agree by December 1778, but Maryland refused.
3. Only when Virginia agreed to allow Congress to control western lands, thereby ceding its claims to western
territory to the national congress, did Maryland agree (1781).
II. US Government Under the Articles of Confederation
A. Weaknesses Of the Articles of Confederation
1. Amendments required a unanimous consent, so not one amendment was ever ratified.
a. The proposal of a 5% duty on imports was defeated by Rhode Island in 1781;
b. A second import duty proposed in 1783 was vetoed when NY placed so many conditions on it that the
other states would not agree to them.
c. Attempts to create a Federal court of seven judges (August 1786), give Congress power over foreign and
domestic commerce and strengthen the federal requisition system to ensure payment of state quotas were so
strongly opposed by some states that the matters were never submitted to the states.
2. Agriculture
a. Farmers suffered during the war, having fences and buildings destroyed and crops burned, dikes in the
Carolinas were neglected or destroyed by troops, the frontier line was pushed back because of Indian raids,
and the labor supply was depleted because of runaway slaves, encouraged by the British;
b. After the war, farmers lost the payment of bounties for certain crops like indigo and markets closed
within the British empire, so that surplus crops drove prices down.
c. Western settlers (esp. Kentucky and Tennessee) needed salt, guns, powder, shot, farm implements, cloth,
notions and small luxuries, which must be purchased in Europe or Asia;
d. Because the overland route (Appalachian MTS) by pack mule was too costly, wes-tern settlers sailed
goods down the Mississippi and its tributaries to New Orleans, for shipment to the Caribbean or the East
coast.
e. According to the Treaty of 1763, Spain controlled the mouth of the Mississippi and was reluctant to
allow Americans to use New Orleans.
3. Commerce
a. Americans lost markets within the British empire after independence.
b. Although markets opened in the Far East, and trade increased with France, Dutch West Indies and the
Dutch after 1778, the new markets did not offset lost British markets
c. The per capita American exports were lower in 1790 than in 1775.
4. Industry
a. American manufacturers fared well during the war, but after the peace, consumers went on a spending
spree, leaving manufacturers with few customers;
b. Some states used tariffs to protect local industry but importing merchants opposed it
c. States exempted goods exported from other states, making the system ineffective.
5. Creditors and Debtors
a. Because Congress could not tax, it stopped paying interest and principle on its national debt which
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caused the value of government securities to drop sharply;
b. Because British goods were snapped up immediately after 1783, merchants sent the remaining gold and
silver overseas to purchase additional goods.
c. The absence of cash caused prices to fall sharply, creating demand for some type of paper currency
d. Although many states had issued currency, it was not legal tender and did not have to be accepted by
creditors.
Finance
a. Congress raised revenue by assigning revenue quotas to the states who then had the responsibility of
raising funds, but because of their own expenses states were reluctant and funds came in slowly
(1) Such lack of commercial powers by the central government hampered American efforts at obtaining
commercial treaties with foreign nations.
(2) Congress unsuccessfully appealed in 1784 to the individual states for a 15-yr. grant of power to regulate
foreign commerce.
(3) James Monroe (January 1785) tried to amend the 9th article which forbade Congress from entering into
any treaty of commerce which would deprive any state of its individual right to impose duties, but no action
was taken.
b. Congress offered large blocks of Western lands to speculators (such as a group of Boston merchants that
bought 1.5 million acres for $1 million);
b. Congress also borrowed money from overseas, but this source soon dried up as foreign bankers were
reluctant to keep lending without a means of repayment;
c. Congress was unable to pay veterans promised bonuses or back pay and many army officers believed
that they were entitled to half pay for life.
Congress
a. Because Congress feared that the army would attack them, they fled Philadelphia and wandered from
town to town, seeking a secure place to conduct business;
b. This sense of frustration at the lack of real authority led to high absenteeism among Congressmen,
making it difficult to raise a quorum.
c. Congress met in Trenton (November 1784) and voted to meet in New York city temporarily until a
federal city was ready on the banks of the Delaware.
Foreign Affairs
a. France remained friendly and honored its trade privileges;
b. Britain was antagonistic to the new government as were many smaller nations and did not evacuate their
forts in the Ohio Valley as agreed in the Treaty of 1783 (although the US was not compensating Loyalists
for lost property);
c. US citizens were not paying their pre-war debts to British merchants as agreed in the Treaty of 1783, and
the Congress was powerless to force compliance;
d. When Spain refused to let US ships into Latin American ports, the US gave up the right to deposit goods
in New Orleans in exchange for some concessions in Latin America, a 25-year agreement, pleasing eastern
merchants but angering westerners;
e. North African Barbary States (Morocco, Algiers, Tunis, Tripoli) had extracted ransoms and bribes from
European nations who either paid or protected their ships in the Mediterranean, but US shipping, having
depended on the British navy and unable to pay bribery payments, were constantly harassed by Barbary
Coast pirates
B. Currency Crisis
States Issuing Paper Currency - North Carolina and Rhode Island
a. The paper currency shortage and its rapid depreciation resulted in a financial crisis when merchants in
Rhode Island refused to accept it
b. Debtors in Rhode Island pressured the legislation to pass the Force Act which forced merchants to
accept the paper currency at face value;
c. In 1787, the Supreme Court ruled (Trevett vs Weeden) the Force Act was not legal.
Rhode Island began withdrawing its paper currency (1789).
State Attempts to Deal with the Currency Crisis
a. Eastern merchants were pressured by overseas creditors to pay their debts, which forced the merchants to
pressure western farmers to settle their debts.
b. Some states resorted to a banking scheme, whereby banks loaned money to farmers based on the value of
their land, but when farmers tried to use this script as currency, the merchants also were reluctant to accept
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it as legal tender.
c. Other states resorted to Stay Laws that delayed debt payments for one or more years.
d. Where no currency was issued the situation worsened without cash to pay creditors
Daniel Shays's Rebellion In Massachusetts (August - December 1786)
a. Massachusetts, committed to paying off its Revolutionary debts, had the heaviest state taxes with land
bearing about 2/3 of the burden, and also required that every legal transaction be recorded in court (with
payment of court costs and legal fees;
b. Massachusetts farmers, unable to pay their debts, faced foreclosure, having all property, including
furniture, seized in order to pay off debts.
c. Hampshire County's Courthouse (August 1784-86) had about 3,000 debt cases
d.As the crisis worsened, especially in Western Massachusetts, pressure was put on the legislature to pass
some relief measurea as other states had done, but because the upper house was controlled by merchants,
such attempts at relief failed;
e. To prevent more foreclosures, some courts were seized until more favorable legislators could be elected;
f. One such farmer's protest was led by Daniel Shays (1747-1825), a Continental army officer from Pelham
in Hampshire County, who, by mid-1786, with a mob of 1,500, ended court foreclosures by surrounding the
Hampshire County courthouse.
g. After attacking the Springfield arsenal, Governor James Bowdoin called out the state militia
h. When 600 militiamen approached under Gen William Shepherd , three protesters were killed and the
rebels scattered, including Shays who went to Vermont and Canada before settling in New York, dying in
Sparta at age 84.
i. Several rebels were tried and sentenced to death, but Shays and all others were either pardoned or served
only short sentences.
Many viewed such rebellions as threats to property rights -- to halt the seizure of property to which
creditors had claims was viewed as an attempted violation of those rights
C. Settlement of Western Lands
Land Distribution
a. Congress could limit state boundaries and admit new states from the western territory which had been
ceded by the larger states, prior to the ratification of the Articles of Confederation.
b. In New England, land had been surveyed and sold in blocks while in the South a buyer got the rights to
so many acres, pretty much where he wanted, following natural boundaries (rivers, etc).
Land Ordinance of 1784 - Lands North of the Ohio River was divided into sixteen districts, which
established a precedent for the future division of lands in the Ohio Valley
Land Ordinance of 1785
a. The area North of the Ohio River and between the Appalachian Mountains and the Mississippi River was
designated the North West Territory
b. An orderly pattern for surveying the lands was established whereby the land was divided into townships
of six square miles (36 sections of one square mile each):
(1) One section in each township was set aside for education;
(2) Land was reserved for veterans and some sold at $1 per acre to raise money
(3) One-half was sold as complete units of a minimum of 640 acres or one section;
c. Because not many could afford to buy one section, arrangements were made for land companies to
purchase sections and sell them in smaller parcels.
Northwest Ordinance (passed during the Constitutional Convention 1787)
a. The Ordinance of 1785 was revised and the process of statehood was established.
b. The Northwest territory was divided into three to five states which could enter the union on an equal
footing with older states.
(1) A territory was opened when Congress appointed an interim government, consisting of a governor, a
secretary and three judges;
(2) After 5,000 free white males were in a territory, they elected a bi-cameral legislative assembly and sent
a non-voting representative to the US congress while the territorial governor had veto power over the
assembly;
(3) After the population of a territory reached 60,000, a territory could draft a constitution and apply for
statehood;
(4) Although allowed at first, slavery was prohibited in the Northwest territory.
(5) State constitutions had to guarantee religious freedom and the right to a trial by jury and states had to
have elected representative governments;
c. Arthur St. Clair was elected governor and Winthrop Sargent was named secretary
d. As a result, Congress maintained almost complete control over frontier growth.
III. Constitutional Convention (aka the Philadelphia Convention).
A. Early attempts to Begin the Process for Change
1. Crisis Magnified
a. Rebellions like Shays's were translated in the popular mind into a national crisis, created the fear that the
nation was on the brink of collapse and underscored the need for a stronger central government with
powers to deal with these problems.
b. Shays's Rebellion nationally symbolized potential anarchy and moved many off the fence to push for
action to male the Articles of Confederation more workable.
2. Mount Vernon Conference March 1785
a. Geo. Washington hosted a meeting at Mt Vernon to discuss improving navigation on the Potomac.
b. Delegates from MD and VA quickly agreed over navigation rights on the Potomac River and
Chesapeake Bay and on apportionment of expenses for marking the channel through Chesapeake Bay.
c. A broader meeting was suggested to include PA and DE to discuss import duties and currency problems.
3. Annapolis Meeting September 1786
a. The Virginia legislature issued a call to all states to discuss trade and commerce.
b. Although this was not legal (only Congress could call such meetings), 9 states agreed (including NH,
MASS, RI, NC), but only delegates from 5 states (NY, DE, VA, PA, NJ) arrived in time.
c. John Dickinson, chairman, because of the slim attendance, decided that it would be useless to proceed to
a study of interstate commercial problems.
d. Alexander Hamilton drafted a statement which was adopted urging all states to attend a meeting in
Philadelphia, scheduled for May 1787, to review commercial and all other matters necessary to render the
constitution of the Federal Government adequate to the exigencies of the Union ..
e. Congress under pressure called for a meeting in Philadelphia (February 1787) whose sole purpose would
be to consider amendments to the Articles of Confederation.
B. Philadelphia Convention
1. Make-up of the Convention -- Twelve states -- Rhode Island not participating
a. Delegates
(1) 55 delegates with an average age of 43, ranging from 81-years (Benjamin Franklin of PA) to 26-years
(Jonathan Dayton of NJ);
(2) 29 were college trained; one-half were lawyers, and the others were planters, merchants, physicians and
college professors.
(3) George Washington was unanimously elected president and William Jackson (1759-1828), secretary.
(4) Each delegate at the Convention felt that their duty was sacred -- the US faced anarchy, if something
was not done quickly).
b. Early decisions made, beginning 16 September 1787
(1) The proceedings were to be held in secret, with nothing told or published about the meeting until
changes were finalized (James Madison's detailed notes were published after 1840);
(2) The cobblestone streets were covered with dirt to minimize noise;
(3) The Articles of Confederation were to be ignored, replaced by a new written document which would
give the government certain powers which the Articles of Confederation did not grant
(4) Each state would vote as a single unit.
c. Delegate desires
(1) A strong government with the power to tax;
(2) The power to regulate commerce;
(3) The power to raise an army with the power to require military service;
(4) A stronger executive to head the government;
(5) An easier amendment process.
2. Opposition to the Convention -- Not everyone favored changing the Articles, because they opposed a
federal government which would exist at the expense of the states.
a. Patrick Henry refused to attend the meeting and worked against the ratification of the constitution in
Virginia until it was completed (but once ratified, he no longer worked against it).
b. Other states' rights included Robert Yates (NY), George Mason (Philadelphia) and Luther Martin
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3 Virginia or Randolph Plan (May 1787)
a. While waiting for delegates to arrive Edmund Randolph (1753-1813) drafted and then proposed fifteen
resolutions (known as the "Virginia Plan of Union") that favored a new government.
b. Its main features:
(1) a bicameral national legislature which represented the states proportionally (thus ending the states
having power as states) with the lower house elected by the people, and the upper house elected by state
legislatures;
(2) an executive chosen by the legislature for a single seven-year term;
(3)a judiciary including a supreme court and inferior courts;
a council of revision consisting of members from the executive and the judiciary which could veto acts of
congress;
The legislature could veto state bills;
Amendments would be approved by state conventions which were elected by the people, not by the state
legislatures.
New Jersey or Paterson Plan (June 1787)
a. William Paterson proposed nine resolutions which would retain the confederation
b. Its main features included:
(1) Equal representation of each state, regardless of size or population;
(2) Congressional power to tax and regulate foreign and interstate commerce;
(3) Congressional appointment of a plural executive with no veto power and a supreme court;
(4) US treaties and acts of Congress would be the supreme law of the states.
Great Compromise - national representation, proposed by Roger Sherman (CN)
a. An upper house (Senate) would be based on equal representation and vote as individuals
b. A lower House of Representatives would be proportionally represented.
c. A census every ten years would determine the number of representatives per state.
Other Compromises
a. Three-Fifths Compromise - Counting of Slaves
(1) The South wanted slaves to be counted as people for population and representation purposes but not for
taxation purposes.
(2) The convention agreed to count five slaves as three, making both taxes and re-presentation proportional
to the number of population counting only 3/5 slaves
b. The South wanted a 2/3 vote before imposing duties; the North wanted slavery abolished
(3) Duties would be determined by a simple majority vote in Congress, but export duties, thought to hurt
the South, were forbidden;
(4) Congress would make no laws regarding the slave trade for twenty years.
c. The selection of a President
(1) The president would be elected for a four-year term and could be re-elected
(2) The candidate receiving the majority of votes of the electors would be President and the second place
candidate would be vice-president.
(3) If two candidates had a majority, House of Representatives would elect him
(4) If no one had a majority, the top five candidates who received votes would be voted upon by the House
of Representatives.
d. Congress would be regulated by a simple majority except for treaties which would require a 2/3 vote of
the Senate.
e. Elastic Clause of Article I listed specific powers reserved for the national government, giving Congress
whatever power was necessary to carry them out.
f. It provided for three branches of government, each with distinct powers:
(1) Executive Branch , overseen by a chief executive or president (elected by an electoral college chosen by
the states), with veto power, power to make treaties, served as commander-in-chief of the military, and
made federal and judicial appointments
(2) Legislative Branch , composed of two houses (Senate -- two from each state elected for six-year terms
by the state legislatures; House of Representatives based on population elected by the people every two
years) which could override a presidential veto by a two-thirds vote, can declare war, Senate confirms
presidential appointments and ratifies treaties with a two-thirds vote and the House of Representatives can
impeach the executive;
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(3) Judicial Branch , the most weakly defined of the three, composed of judges appointed by the executive
but confirmed by congress with lifetime tenure with no salary reductions.
The final form - 1787
a. A 5-man Committee of Style and Arrangement (8 September) polished it (Hamilton , Wm Johnson ,
chairman, Madison , Rufus King , and Gouverneur Morris [PA] who wrote the preamble ).
b. The delegates by state voted approval and then adjourned (17 September 1787);
c. Congress voted to sent it to the states for ratification (29 September), seeking the approval of nine states
before it was considered ratified and legal.
C. Ratification Process
Delegates
a. Of the 55 delegates, only 39 signed the new constitution.
b. Of those who did not sign, only Edmund Randolph, who initially opposed it because it was not entirely
like his plan, eventually did support and sign it.
Opponents -- Anti-Federalists
a. They included Robert Yates (NY), George Mason (VA), Luther Martin and John Mercer (MD) and
Eldridge Gerry (MA).
b. States' rightists believed that the government is best which governs least . tended to be small farmers,
artisans, illiterates and from the poorer classes.
c. Also concerned that there was no bill of rights to protect individual freedoms.
d. The first serious opposition came in Massachusetts from Samuel Adams and John Hancock, although it
was favored by Paul Revere.
Supporters of the Constitution -- Federalists
a. These realists believed that if the natural rights philosophy was taken straight, it would topple the
government.
b. They tended to be from the cultured propertied groups along the Atlantic Seaboard.
c. Federalist Papers -- Alexander Hamilton , the major author.
(1) Supporters of the Constitution were better organized to present their arguments for ratification, stressing
the inadequacy of the Articles of Confederation and that the Constitution conformed to the best principles
of republican government.
(2) John Jay (5), James Madison (28) and Alexander Hamilton (51) penned masterful essays on the
Constitution;
(3) 77 essays published under the name Publius in New York Papers from October 1787 - April 1788, were
combined with 8 others and published in two volumes, entitled The Federalist .
(4) Most significant was Federalist #10 by James Madison which argued that a republican form of
government could extend over a vast amount of territory.
Early Ratification
a. Delaware (unaimously), the first state to ratify the constitution (7 December 1787).
b. Pennsylvania , 1st large state, had difficulty getting a quorum on the 1st vote, but after forcibly bringing
in two anti-Federalists for a quorum, on the 2d vote (12 December) they ratified it 46 - 23
c. New Jersey (18 December) and Georgia (2 January) both unanimously ratified it
d. The fifth to ratify was Connecticut (9 January), 128 to 40.
e. Massachusetts , after noting the absence of a bill of rights, and having been assured that the first
Congress would add them, voted unconditionally to ratify 187-168 (although John Hancock attached 9
suggested amendments for consideration, most significantly of which was to reserve for the states all
powers which were not expressly delegated to the central government).
f. Maryland , also desiring a bill of rights, was seventh (28 April) by 63-11.
g. The eighth, South Carolina , voted (23 May), 149-73.
h. The ninth state, which according to Article VII made the constitution operational for those states, was
New Hampshire (21 June 1788) by a vote of 57-47, after one adjournment because of an anti-federalist
majority and with twelve amendments attached to be considered.
i.Cyrus Griffin (VA), president of Congress, announced the constitution had been ratified (2 July).
Later States
a. Four states (VA, NY, NC, RI), representing 40 percent of the population, had not yet ratified the new
government created by the constitution.
b. Virginia 's Ratification
(1) The fiery Patrick Henry, who had refused to attend the convention, worked hard to keep Virginia, the
most populous state, from ratifying the document;
(2) Geo Washington, John Marshall and James Madison, all Federalists, worked for ratification;
(3) After much debate, the knowledge that NH was about to ratify it to make it official, and realizing that
Virginia could not make it as an independent nation, led Virginia's assembly to ratify it on June 26 by a
vote of 89-79.
c. One month later, New York , after the pro-Federalist Party waged successful arguments in the NY papers
and realizing that NY probably could not exist as an independent nation, ratified it 30 - 27.
d. North Carolina did not ratify it until 21 November 1789, by a vote of 195-77, submitting first twelve
amendments to be considered in Congress.
e. Rhode Island did not convene an assembly to consider the document until January 1790, when only after
threats from the other states of denying trade to them as a foreign nation did they agree to the document on
29 May 1790 by a vote of 34-32.
D. After Thoughts
1. Only about 1/4 of the adult white male population, mostly propertied men, voted on delegates to the
constitutional conventions
a. The exception was New York which allowed universal manhood suffrage.
b. The Census of 1790 revealed a population of almost 4 million, of which 90% were rural and 95% lived
east of the Appalachian Mts.
2. The principle of popular, democratic government had been preserved.
3. By checks and balances, the Constitution allowed a federal government to be created which could correct
some of the weaknesses of the previous government without losing all the principles for which the
Revolution was fought.
4. Vermont became the first state, not an original colony, to ratify the Constitution and be accepted as a state
(actually before Rhode Island accepted it).
5. The prestige of George Washington, president of the constitutional convention, gave the infant republic,
unsure, untested and financially troubled, an international standing.
IV.New Government under the Constitution
A. Organization of the New Government
1. The first presidential elections January 1789
a. Electors chosen either by state legislatures or directly by the people
b. Electors cast their ballots in February for president.
2. The first Congress 4 March
a. Meeting in NY City without a quorum, 54 members of this Congress had been members of the Federal
Convention or state ratifying conventions; all but 7 had supported ratification
b. House of Representatives, organized on 1 April, chose as Speaker of the House, Frederick A.
Muhlenburg (PA).
c. The Senate on 6 April counted the ballots for President.
(1) George Washington was unanimously elected President with 69 votes, and on 30 April, Washington
was inaugurated as the first US president.
(2) John Adams was chosen Vice-President with 34 votes.
B. Early Tasks of the New Government
1. The Bill of Rights
a. A set of amendments that guaranteed certain individual rights had been promised as a condition of
ratification in some states.
b. Amendments to the new Constitution could be proposed by a 2/3 vote in both Houses of Congress or by
constitutional conventions called by 2/3 of the states.
c. James Madison introduced 12 amendments to the constitution in September, that were quickly passed
and submitted to the states for ratification.
d. Ratification by 2/3 of the states was required to approve an amendment.
e. Ratification, (15 December 1791), was aided by the addition of NC, RI and VT as states, all of which
ratified these ten amendments, because MA, GA and Connecticut did not ratify them.
f. New Jersey was the first to ratify the ten amendments which became known as the Bill of Rights, and
Maryland quickly followed.
g. First Amendment guaranteed religious freedom from the national government and was modeled after
the Virginia Statute for Religious Freedom , written by Jefferson, and passed (January 1786) by the
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House of Burgesses.
h. Ninth Amendment stressed that the lack of a right being specified should not imply that the right did
not exist.
i. Tenth Amendment satisfied the states' rightists by specifying that all other rights not delegated or
prohibited belonged to the states and to the people.
Federal Judiciary Act of 1789 September
a. The Supreme Court was organized to consist of a Chief Justice and five associates
b. It created 13 district courts and 3 circuit courts and established the office of Attorney General, which
became a cabinet level post.
c. John Jay - first Supreme Court chief justice and Edmund Randolph - first Attorney General.
C. Financing the New Government - Hamilton's Fiscal Program
Alexander Hamilton's fiscal program to the House of Representatives created a controversy out of which
developed two distinct parties - Federalists and Republicans .
The purpose of his program was two-fold
a. To establish and maintain the public credit and thereby revive confidence in the government at home and
abroad
b. To strengthen and stabilize the central government by fostering a consciousness of national solidarity of
interest among business and commercial groups who held most of the domestic debt.
It favored the wealthy who would lend money and moral support to the new nation.
Hamilton reported on the debt inherited from the Confederation (January 1790)
a. US foreign debt, held mostly by the French and the Dutch -- $11,710,378;
b. Domestic debt, including arrears of interest + unliquidated claims and currency -- $44,414,085;
c. State debts -- estimated at $25 million.
Hamilton's Recommendations
a. Funding at Par - Fund the foreign and domestic debt at par, letting creditors to exchange depreciated
securities for new interest-bearing bonds at face value.
b. Assumption of State Debts - the Federal Government should assume debts of $21,500,000 incurred by
the states during the Revolution.
Domestic Debt Controversy
a. The proposal on the foreign debt was virtually unopposed, but debtor and agrarian groups bitterly
opposed the funding of the domestic debt because they had been forced to sell off their securities at a steep
discount
(1) The government bonds or certificates had been traded to merchants at less than face value, and
merchants had restocked, using them at even less value;
(2) The certificates had in some cases depreciated to 10 or 15 cents on the dollar
(3) Speculators had purchased many depreciated certificates, hoping to cash in.
(4) Hamilton had tipped off several speculators who were his friends in the hopes that by putting capital in
their hands, they would invest it in industrial development and become endeared to the new federal
governments.
b. Assumption of state debts were opposed by the southern states, who had already made arrangements to
discharge their indebtedness.
c. Critics believed that Federal power would increase at the expense of state power.
James Madison (VA) led opposition to the assumption plan -- defeated 31-29.
Sectional Compromise on the Assumption Bill Arranged by Jefferson
a. If northerners voted to locate the National Capital along the Potomac instead of in Philadelphia,
southerners would approve assumption
b. The House on 10 July by a vote of 32-29 fixed the site of the projected national capital in a district 10
miles square along the Potomac, the precise area to be selected by the President, using Philadelphia as
temporary capital until 1800.
c. On 26 July by a vote of 34-28, the House adopted the assumption plan.
d. Critics mainly in the South remained apprehensive and found a voice in Patrick Henry whose Virginia
resolutions (December 1790) warned that the assumption scheme created a moneyed interest, subordinated
agricultural to commercial interests, was inimical to republican insitutions and the federal form of
government and was not authorized by any clause in the US Constitution.
Bank of the United States February 1791
a. Hamilton recommended a national bank to stimulate business and print paper money for a strong national
currency.
b. The bank would be chartered for 20 years as a private institution with the federal government as the
major stockholder and be located in Philadelphia.
c. This issue - Did the Federal Government Have the Power to Charter a Bank - magnified the difference
of opinion over how the constitution should be interpreted.
(1) Jefferson's doctrine of strict construction cited the tenth amendment because incorporating a bank was
not specified as a power of Congress
(2) Hamilton's doctrine of implied powers or loose construction argued that because Congress could
collect taxes and regulate trade, it had the power to employ whatever means was necessary to execute its
powers.
(3) Washington, who had asked for the opinion of his Cabinet, favored Hamilton's view, mainly because
the proposal fell within the jurisdiction of his department.
9. Whiskey Tax March 1791
a. Hamilton levied an excise tax on manufactured distilled liquors to raise revenue
b. This tax of seven cents per gallon imposed a heavy burden on backwoods farmers for whom distilling
was the chief means of disposing of surplus grain (because of poor roads and high shipment costs).
c. Resistance to the Whiskey Tax (August - September 1792)
(1) This tax was resisted in the South, especially in central North Carolina, and in four western counties in
Pennsylvania.
(2) The resolutions of Albert Gallatin denounced the tax and declared that legal measures would be taken
to obstruct the collection of the taxes.
10. Hamilton's Balance Sheet
a. Hamilton hoped that a vigorous trade would develop on which tariffs could be charged thus raising
revenue.
b. Although he favored more protection for the established manufacturing groups, only two slight increases
were passed during Washington's administration over the eight percent tariff Congress had already passed
on certain imports
c. Hamilton did not achieve support for bounties for industrial development.
d. His overall plan strengthened the Federal Government but led to the development of political parties.
V. Growth of Political Parties
A. Background
1. Members of the Constitutional Convention believed that factions would exist in the US, but never
envisioned the growth of political parties.
2. Whigs and Tories had existed in the pre-Revolutionary War days.
3. Tensions between Federalists and Anti-Federalists increased and were often sectional in nature (although
both factions claimed to represent US interests, not a particular region) following the same lines of thought
that had forced compromises on the Constitution.
4. Being dissatisfied over the administration's fiscal policies, Jefferson and Madison toured New York and
parts of New England to sound out Anti-Federalist sentiment and gauge the possibility of forming a
coalition along national lines.
B. Beginning Stages
1. Two easily-definable groups materialized (1792-93):
a. Anti-Federalists, led by Jefferson and Madison, were frequently called Republicans (but also known as
Democrat-Republicans), and tended to be pro-French.
b. Federalists led by Hamilton and Washington, tended to be pro-British.
2. Two Party newspapers developed:
a. National Gazette (1791) under Philip Freneau was anti-administration.
b. Gazette of the Unites States (1789) under John Fenno was Federalist.
3. Federalist Beliefs
a. Rule should be done by the "best" people or the elite;
b. Deplored the democratic tendencies of the masses, distrusting their ability to govern
c. Desired a potent central government which fostered business, commercial, shipping and financial
interests, not regulate them;
d. Sympathetic toward creditor interests;
e. Attracted merchants, manufacturers, shippers in the urban, seaboard areas.
4. Republican Beliefs
a. Rule by the people (only the ignorant were unfit to govern);
b. State power favored over federal power to keep the government closer to the people
c. Desired a weak central government, distrusting centralized government;
d. No special privileges for any class, although Jefferson favored a democratic agrarian order based on the
individual freeholder;
e. Relative freedom from industrialism, urbanism and organized finance, sympathetic to debtor interests;
f. Attracted middle class, poor farmers, agrarians in the South and Southwest.
C. Controversies in Foreign Policy Which Fostered Party Growth
1. Problems with France -- Even though France was out of North America after 1763, it remained the enemy
of the American colonies, as party of the British Empire, until the Treaty of Amity and Commerce 1778.
a. French Revolution 1789
(1) After the overthrow of the French monarchy, many Americans were pleased, seeing many similarities
with the American Revolution, but when the revolution turned into a Bloody Reign of Terror in 1791
(executing both Louis XVI and Marie Antionette by 1793), many Americans cooled somewhat toward
France.
(2) The perpetual treaty with France as an ally raised a question - With which French government were we
allies, because a government-in-exile composed of members of the former government existed outside of
France.
b. In 1793, at the beginning of Washington's second term, Britain declared war on France, and Americans
began to take sides.
(1) Federalists supported Britain, believing US destiny was more in line with them.
(2) Republicans supported the French.
2. Problems with Britain
a. The US took over trade routes across the Atlantic after the Revolutionary War.
b. Once war was declared, France and Britain hindered US trade with the other nation.
c. Britain's Orders in Council in 1793 (whereby Britain interfered with American nuetral shipping)
intensified the friction between the US and Britain.
(1) The British practiced impressment whereby US ships were stopped, searched and suspected British
citizens were "pressed" into military service.
(2) Although the exact number of citizens impressed is unknown, the usual figure given is 6,000 (although
it is sometimes listed as high as 10,000).
VI. Washington's Administration (Federalist)
A. The President Organizes the Government
1. Although not specified in the Constitution, Cabinet members were selected to help run the government, all
were selected in 1791.
a. Foreign Affairs (July), renamed Secretary of State - Thomas Jefferson
b. Secretary of War (August) - Henry Knox .
c. Secretary of Treasury (September) - Alexander Hamilton .
d. Postmaster General was reestablished (September) - Samuel Osgood .
e. Later added Attorney General - Edmund Randolph
2. Although Washington had consulted with his department heads since 1789, and continued to meet with
them on matters of policy, in November and December 1791 he met with the department heads on foreign
and military matters.
3. At least three such meeting occured in 1792, so that by the time Adams was president the practice of
regular Cabinet meetings was well established.
B. Election of 1792
1. Because of the Jefferson-Hamilton feud, Washington was pressed into a second term.
2. Washington received 132 electoral votes (three abstentions) and Adams was reelected Vice-President with
77 votes, although Anti-Federalists gave 50 votes to George Clinton (NY).
C. Actions during the Second Administration
1. Neutrality Proclamation 22 April 1793
a. Washington declared US policy regarding the war in Europe would be neutrality toward both sides,
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
although Hamilton pressed for a repeal of the treaty with France.
b. Washington warned US citizens to abstain from hostile acts against either side.
Genet Affair
a. When the Minister to the US government from France, Edmund Charles Genet , arrived in the US, he
did not report to Washington but went to Charleston SC instead, and sought private support for the French
cause.
b. Before presenting his credentials (April 1793), he commissioned four privateers to prey on British
vessels and took steps to organize expeditions against British and Spanish territories, but these unneutral
activities on US soil violated the US-French treaty of 1778.
c. Although warned of the violation of US sovereignty, he sent a recommissioned French vessel out to sea
for which the US government officially requested his recall, although he remained in New York as a
private French citizen.
d. Fortunately, France did not ask for US help, which they might have done under the terms of the
perpetual treaty 1778.
e. Although Jefferson agreed that Genet's actions harmed the Antifederalist cause, Washington leaned more
on Hamilton for advice and Jefferson resigned as Secretary of State, replaced by Edmund Randolph.
Eleventh Amendment 5 March 1794
a. After the Supreme Court case Chisholm vs Georgia (1793, where two citizens from SC sued the state of
GA), it provided in effect that one state was not suable by a citizen of another state.
b. It was ratified in January 1798.
Neutrality Act June 1794 - US citizens were forbidden from enlisting in the military of a foreign power
and could not fit out vessels in US ports.
Whiskey Rebellion July - November 1794
a. Western counties in Pennsylvania erupted in open resistance to the whiskey tax.
b. Seizing this opportunity to show the authority of the new government, Washington sent to those counties
15,000 troops, under Henry Lee, accompanied by Hamilton.
c. Although two were convicted for treason in May 1795, Washington pardoned them
Jay's Treaty
a. A continued source of irritation was the British failure to evacuate its Northwestern forts under the terms
of the Treaty of 1783 (because legal obstacles had been placed against pre-Revolutionary merchant
creditors wanting their bills paid and against Loyalists seeking recovery of or compensation for conviscated
property).
b. Western settlement was retarded and Indian insurrections were believed instigated by the British, who
kept control of the lucrative Ohio Valley fur trade.
c. A chief source of revenue was derived from British exports to the US, which was a main feature of
Hamilton's fiscal system.
d. Supreme Court chief justice John Jay was sent as special envoy to England (November 1794) to
negotiate a new treaty, because commercial provisions of the Treaty of 1783 were about to expire.
e. Terms of the Treaty
(1) The most important concession was the promised British withdrawal of Northwest military posts by
June 1796.
(2) Britain also agreed to permit US vessels to trade in British East Indian ports, to open the West Indian
trade to US vessels not exceeding 70 tons burden, if the US would renounce carrying trade in molasses,
cotton and sugar, and to grant the US most-favored nation status.
(3) The US agreed to a joint-commission to settle the payment of pre-Revolu-tionary War debts, Northeast
boundary question, and compensation for illegal maritime seizures of US goods and any damages to seized
ships
f. The treaty did not address impressment, the Indian question, the slaves removed by the British or
Loyalist claims.
g. Difficulties with ratification
(1) Republicans immediately attacked the treaty and whipped up support against it, upset by the fact that it
really did not differ from the Treaty of 1783.
(2) Southern planters did not want the debt settled (most of which was owed by Virginians) and did not like
the silence over stolen slaves.
(3) Northern shipping and commercial interests attacked the treaty.
h. It was ratified after Washington exercised his executive prerogative when refusing to grant papers to the
Senate regarding the Treaty, and set an important precedent.
i. Knowing it was this treaty or none, Washington, putting his prestige on the line, enabled it to pass the
Senate in June 1795, which allowed the US to avoid war with Britain at a time when we needed trade to
grow financially and opened the Ohio Valley to western settlers.
7. Treaty of San Lorenzo (or Pinckney's Treaty ) October 1795
a. One positive result of Jay's Treaty was this one between the US and Spain, who feared that the US was
about to come to terms with Britain.
b. Differences regarding the southern and western boundaries and the free navigation by Americans of the
Mississippi were adjusted.
c. US minister to Britain, Thomas Pinckney , achieved Spanish recognition of the US boundary claims
under the Treaty of 1783 (Mississippi to the west, 31st parallel to the south) and free navigation of the
Mississippi, with a right to deposit goods at New Orleans duty free for three years.
8. Cabinet Reorganization (Only Federalists Remained)
a. Timothy Pickering of Massachusetts became Secretary of War in January 1795.
b. Hamilton resigned and was replaced by Oliver Wolcott, Jr, although he continued advising the President
on major policy decisions unofficially.
c. Randolph, under a cloud of corruption, resigned as Secretary of State, replaced by Pickering.
9. Naturalization Act (January 1795) required a five-year residency period.
D. Washington's Farewell Address ( September 1796)
1. This address, written with the aid of Madison and Hamilton, gave Washington's reasons for not running for
a 3d term, establishing a precedent for future presidents.
2. In this written address, Washington warned of the dangers of a party system and partisan bitterness, and of
permanent foreign entanglements.
E. Election of 1796
1. Candidates
a. Two candidates emerged for the Federalists, Hamilton and Adams, but because Hamilton's fiscal policies
were unpopular, Federalists turned to John Adams
b. Republicans, strengthened from the debate over Jay's Treaty, turned to Jefferson.
2. Results
a. Adams received 71 electoral votes to Jefferson's 68, which made the executive branch divided between
the two factions.
b. The Federalist Thomas Pinckney received 59 votes and Aaron Burr, Republican, 30.
VII. Adams (2d President) Administration (Federalist)
A. John Adams the Man
1. The first to occupy the White House
2. Lived to be 90 years old.
3. Married to Abigail for 54 years.
B. Problems with France
1. Angered over the treaty with Britain, France began seizing US ships, (300 by mid-1797).
2. Adams sent a three-man commission, Charles Cotesworth Pinckney (US minister to France), John
Marshall (also a Federalist), and Elbridge Gerry (Republican Governor of Massachusetts), to secure a
treaty of amity and commerce with France.
3. XYZ Affair
a. The US commission in Paris was unofficially received by French foreign minister, Talleyrand , who
sent three agents to suggest that the US could see the French officially if a $10 million loan were
guaranteed and a $240,000 bribe were paid.
b. US agents refused to make concessions, Marshall replying that not a sixpence would be paid.
c. Gerry remained in Paris after the French suggested that if all three agents left, France would declare war
on the US.
d. Although Republicans defended French actions as their only recourse in the light of Jay's treaty, a prowar faction among Federalists fanned by Hamilton pressed Adams to declare war.
e. In a report to Congress the three French agents were identified as "X," "Y" and "Z"
4. Undeclared Naval War with France 1798-1800
a. His cabinet pressed for an immediate declaration of war, but Adams favored a peaceful solution.
b. Nevertheless, Congress passed 20 defensive measures consolidate national defense
5.
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2.
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4.
1.
2.
(1) Washington was named commanding general and Hamilton, inspector general.
(2) Department of the Navy was established (May 1796) with Benjamin Stoddert named Secretary and the
Marine Corps was established.
c. Congress terminated the treaties with France in July 1798, thus ending the alliance.
d. An undeclared naval war with France began when France captured the USS Constellation in November
1798.
e. Some 80 French ships were captured through 1800.
Convention of 1800
a. The situation changed in France in 1800 when Napoleon seized power.
b. William Vans Murray , became new US minister to France after Talleyrand assured the US that our
diplomat would be received.
c. A new 3-man commission negotiated the Treaty of Morfontaine (September 1800) which superseded
the treaties of 1778
C. Domestic Issues Under Adams
Alien and Sedition Acts 1798
a. The threat of war with France sharpened public hostility toward aliens, esp. refugees from France.
b. Federalists imposed many severe restrictions, including
(1) Naturalization Act - increased the period of residency before becoming a citizen to 14 years (repealed
in 1802);
(2) Alien Act - permitted the President to order out of the US any alien deemed danderous to the public
peace and safety or suspected of treasonable or secret inclinations (expired in 1802);
(3) Sedition Act - made it illegal to impede any government policy or to defame a government official
(including the President and the Congress) under penalty of imprisonment of two years and/or a fine of up
to $2000.
(4) Alien Enemies Act - authorized the President, in time of declared war, to arrest, imprison, or banish
aliens subject to an enemy power;
c. The uneven enforcement of these acts confused political opposition with sedition.
d. Twenty-five cases were prosecuted involving Republican editors and politicians (including one
congressman) in which ten were fined and/or jailed.
Virginia and Kentucky Resolutions
a. Two states (VA led by Madison December 1798 and KY drafted by Jefferson 1798-99) passed
resolutions, invoking the compact theory of the Constitution -- where the national government exercized
powers not specifically delegated to it, each state has an equal right to judge for itself.
b. In other words, the resolutions advocated the right of the state to declare national acts unconstitutional
and declared the Alien and Sedition Acts unconstitutional.
c. Although no way yet existed to test the constitutionality of congressional acts, it was generally felt that
states could not
(1) No other state joined them with similar actions;
(2) Several northern states suggested the judiciary was the "exclusive arbiter of constitutionality."
d. Both states reaffirmed their attachment to the Union and no other action was taken.
Other issues
a. The first Federal Bankruptcy Law (April 1800) was extended only to merchants and traders (repealed
in 1803).
b. Congress convened in Washington for the first time in November 1800.
c. John Adams appointed John Marshall , Chief Justice of the Supreme Court.
George Washington died at Mt Vernon (14 December 1799), after which Henry Lee eulogized him as first
in war , first in peace , first in the hearts of his countrymen
E. Election of 1800 -- Revolution of 1800
Candidates
a. Federalists - The handling of the French crisis by Adams created a rift among Federalists with those who
favored war with France (hawkish elements led by Hamilton), resulting in an unenthusiastic renomination
of Adams for president and Charles Cotesworth Pinckney (SC) Vice-President.
b. Prominent among Republicans were Jefferson and Burr (NY).
Results
a. Both Burr and Jefferson received 73 electoral votes, Adams 65, and Pinckney 64.
b. According to the constitution, it was now up to the House of Representatives.
3.
4.
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6.
1.
2.
3.
c. The Federalist-dominated House of Representatives remained tied (17 February) after 35 ballots.
d. Although the Federalist caucus backed Burr, Jefferson supposedly agreed not to scuttle the navy nor
remove Federalists from lower posts (but no reliable evidence supports this).
e. While VA threatened to march on Washington to force a settlement, three Federalists cast blank ballots
and Jefferson was chosen president by ten states (each receiving one vote) and Burr became vice-president.
Although the presidential vote was close, the Republicans won an emphatic majority in Congress with most
new Senators being Republicans and every branch of government being controlled by them, except for the
Judiciary.
For the first time in US history, a member of the opposition party won the presidency.
Although apprehension was in the air, an orderly transfer of government took place which demonstrated
that the American system worked.
The inadequacy of the election machinery was changed with the 12th Amendment .
F. Aftermath of the Election
Adams, a Federalist, was fearful of a Republican winning the election, thinking that Jefferson would undo
all the things that the Federalists had done.
In the remaining weeks of his presidency, he made several judicial appointments, which because of the
lateness of them, are called midnight appointments .
Many of these were delivered just before Adams left office.