Chapter 7: Practicing Democracy Flashcards
Bill of Rights
The first 10 amendments to the Constitution passed by Congress in 1789 and ratified by the states in 1791. Added onto the end of the Constitution as Madison believed it too soon to alter the Constitution itself and to appease the states that desired a firm set of the people’s rights.
Bank of the U.S.
The first federal bank, chartered in 1781, issued currency for the country and stabilized the economy, though created a further divide between Federalist and D-R supporters. Created by Hamilton to solve the country’s economic issues.
Treaty of Greenville
A treaty agreed to in 1795 in which Native Americans in the NW Territory were forced to cede most of the present states of Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Michigan, and Wisconsin to the U.S. This put an end to the major fighting and accomplished Washington’s goals of maintaining the western frontier in the hands of the U.S. government.
Whiskey Rebellion
Armed uprising in 1794 by farmers in western Pennsylvania who attempted to prevent the collection of the excise tax on whiskey as they saw it as unfair because they paid the same amount of tax as far wealthier landowners.
Citizen Genet Affair
The efforts of Edmond Charles Genet, French ambassador to the U.S. (1793-94), to stir up military support for France and the French Revolution among Americans, leading to long-term anti-French sentiment.
Jay’s Treaty
A treaty with Britain, negotiated in 1794, in which the United States made major concessions to avert war over the British seizure of American ships. This treaty was largely ineffectual, gravely disappointed the Americans, and displayed the growing party divide as all Federalists voted to ratify it and no D-Rs did.
Pinckney’s Treaty
A treaty with Spain that set the border between the U.S. and Spanish Florida lower than it had been before and opened the Mississippi River and New Orleans to U.S. trade. Came about because Spain did not want the U.S. and France to make major territory decisions in North America without being included.
XYZ Affair
Diplomatic incident in 1798 in which Americans were outraged by the demand of the French for a bribe as a condition for negotiating with American diplomats. It caused more support for war with the French and Adams continued to expand the navy for fear of a French attempt at invasion.
Quasi-War
An undeclared war–1797-1800–between the U.S. and France in which the U.S. repealed treaties with the French, launched an attack on French shipping and boats, and supported the independence of Haiti, leading to Talleyrand wanting peace in order to invade England.
Alien and Sedition Acts
A series of three acts passed by Congress in 1798 that made it harder for new immigrants to vote by extending the time it took to become a citizen and made it a crime to criticize the president or Congress. These damaged Adams’s reputation and came about out of hysteria of the French spreading their ideas in the U.S. The Sedition Acts undermined support for the Federalists as it was infringing upon free speech.
Kentucky and Virginia Resolutions
Resolutions written by Jefferson and Madison that criticized the Alien and Sedition Acts and asserted the right of states to declare federal law null and void within a state. The D-Rs saw this as well within the limits of the Constitution while the Federalists saw it as a direct attack on the authority of the federal government.
