Development of the British colonies in America Flashcards
1
Q
When did the Spanish first start making colonies in America?
A
The 16th Century
2
Q
When did the French and British start making colonies in America?
A
The 17th Century
3
Q
When and where did the British establish their first successful colony?
A
Virginia in 1607
4
Q
What areas over America did the French and British each control?
A
- The French controlled the areas from Mississippi, running down from the Gulf of Mexico through to Canada
- The British controlled their 13 colonies on the Eastern Seaboard and had colonies running from New England down to some areas of the South such as Virginia and Carolina
5
Q
What was the aim of the French colonists arriving in America?
A
- They wanted to make good relationships with the Native Americans, learn how to survive, and trade goods such as fur and fish with France
6
Q
What was the aim of the British colonists arriving in America?
A
- The British mainly wanted to gain resources from farming and start producing goods such as tobacco, cotton, and sugar, rather than building relationships with the Native Americans
7
Q
What was the difference in population between the colonies owned by France and Britain?
A
- The population of the French colonies was low, compared to that of the British colonies which were expanding rapidly
- While by the 18th Century, there were only around 60,000 French colonists, there were over 1 million British colonists
8
Q
What were the different ideas towards migration into the colonies between France and Britain?
A
- The British were much more acceptable towards migration into their colonies, whilst France was restricting the number of migrants coming through
- In total, Britain let in around 400,000 migrants into their colonies from 1700 to 1763
9
Q
What were the religious differences between France and Britain?
A
- The French were purely Catholic and didn’t tolerate any other religions in their colonists
- The British were mostly Protestant, but also tolerated some other Christian denominations
10
Q
What were the political differences between the French and British colonies?
A
- France was ruled by a divine, absolutist monarchy and was levying heavy taxes and controlling carefully its colonists rights
- Britain was much more liberal and had a minimalist central government, a press, and freedom of speech. It followed the idea of salutary neglect
11
Q
What was mercantilism?
A
- This was the belief that the main purpose of the colonists was to serve the interests of Britain by providing it with job opportunities, raw materials, and goods
12
Q
What are enumerated goods?
A
- These were goods that could only be exported to certain areas and these could be collected with customs duties and this increased colonial influence
13
Q
What were the Navigation Acts?
A
- Navigation Acts which had been passed from 1651 to 1673 stated that only British ships could carry colonial goods and that these ships had to be crewed by mostly British people
- The government passed laws that restricted the colonial manufacturing of goods, such as woolen yarn, cloth, and iron.
14
Q
How did agriculture differentiate across different British colonists?
A
- 90% of the population were farmers, despite growth in manufacturing. In the middle colonies, mainly wheat and flour were produced and exported
- In the southern colonies mainly tobacco was produced, and the rise of the price of tobacco exports rose from £14 million in the 1670s to £100 million in the 1770s
15
Q
What were the different groups within colonial society?
A
- Teachers and doctors held responsibility for the local communities and had their own pieces of land
- In the towns, there were shops and craftsmen and everyone had their own land, but the landowner had the most
- Slaves were often moved from Africa and worked on plantations in the South or were domestic servants for landowners
16
Q
What were the religious developments?
A
- There were a variety of denominations and immigration from different countries
- The colonies were affected by a religious revival called the ‘Great Awakening’
- Colonial Britain was much more tolerant of different religions than Britain
17
Q
What were the educational developments?
A
- Literacy rates in the colonies of adult males were 15% higher by 1763 than those in Britain
- Bookshops and printing presses were encouraged to be built and enlightenment influenced different people
18
Q
What is self-government and how did it change in the colonies over time?
A
- A self-governing colony is a colony where elected rulers are able to make decisions without having to refer to imperial powers with nominal colonial control
- The 1689 Bill of Rights encouraged the idea of self-government, establishing that British Parliament and not the king, had the ultimate authority in government.
19
Q
Who were the governors of the colonies?
A
- The governors could enforce laws, controlled internal administration, granted lands, and controlled military matters
- The governors could be dismissed at will by the British government, the term in office was only five years and they were dependent on political support
20
Q
What were the upper and lower houses?
A
- Colonial legislatures consisted of the upper houses and the lower houses
- The upper houses were appointed by the governors and were chosen by colonial elites and their members served as an advisory board to the governors
- Lower houses were elected by the wider franchise and most could be summoned and dismissed by the governors and their decisions could be vetoed by the governors and the privy council in London
21
Q
What did the assemblies do?
A
- The assemblies were responsible for the initiating of money bills and controlling expenditures and they represented their provincial communities in a way that neither the governors nor upper houses could
22
Q
What was the range of representation?
A
- Representative government was wider in the colonies than in Britain
- Most American white males could own enough property to be able to vote and at least 50% of white men could vote
- Not all men owned sufficient property entitling them the right to vote and women and slaves couldn’t vote
- Higher property qualifications for office and customs and defenses towards men of higher social standing ensured that great landowners, rich merchants, and lawyers were elected usually
23
Q
What was salutary neglect?
A
- British governments tried not to get into trouble in the colonies and as they were 3000 miles away from Britain, the colonies were left on their own terms and this policy is known as salutary neglect
- It was the policy that it would let the British colonies get on with their business
24
Q
What was the issue with the expansion?
A
- British settlers on the Eastern Seaboard wished to expand their influence into the American interior to pursue new economic interests in land or trade
- There was mutual beneficial prosperity between Britain and the colonies so Britain supported these aims that colonial America had and it would support the mercantilist policy
- There were issues with overpopulation in the tidewater region so expansion was necessary, although when in contact with the French and Native Americans this could prove problematic
25
How did the Seven Year's War start?
- The war started when the British tried to rid French colonists from their forts in Pennsylvania and the most obvious cause of the war was territorial expansion
- The French were shuffled out of their Ohio and Mississippi colonies leaving the British with the Native Americans
26
What part did France play in the war?
- Britain’s greatest rivalry in the 18th Century was France although Spain had a more significant Empire in North America, although their colonies were sparsely populated
- By 1800, Los Angeles only had a population of 300 and only 17 freeways. In 1749 the governor of Virginia awarded a huge land grant to the Ohio company, which the Native Americans and the French thought was a bad idea as they thought they had rights to the land
27
How did the war end?
- In 1759, the British were luckier when they finally managed to capture fort Duquesne, Ticonderoga and Louisbourg. In September 1759, Montreal and Quebec surrendered to the British after another attack
- Under the terms of the 1763 Peace of Paris after the war, Britain got Canada from France and Florida from Spain, and in return France got the Caribbean islands and Martinique and Spain got Cuba
- After the end of the Seven years’ war, Native Americans organized an armed revolt known as Pontiac’s rebellion
28
What were some of the consequences of this need for expansion?
- The consequences of this included the war of Austrian succession
- The War of Austrian succession was significant as it spread from Europe to America and it gave colonists the opportunity to defeat the French and Spanish
- The British had to get colonists to sign the treaties of Friendship with the North Americans
29
What was the Proclamation Act of 1763?
- To keep the Native Americans happy, the British government with Lord Bute decided to make a line cutting off westward expansion from their colony, called the proclamation line
- They only let the colonists have a certain part of the Appalachian mountains when the need to expand came again, and the Native Americans owned the other part
- There was also a 10,000 men army which the colonists were levied heavy taxes on for paying for their own protection from this army
30
What were the colonist reactions to the Imperial authority actions?
- Politicians were angry that colonists hadn't done enough to help during the Seven Year's War
- The interest payments on the debt by 1763 were around £8 million, but government income was only £4.4 million so Grenville had to find ways of reducing spend and increasing income
- Many colonists were angry themselves and tried to smuggle goods and travel secretly across the Appalachian mountain borders
- They saw it as a threat of liberty, especially after a period of salutary neglect, and they started seeing the British as stopping colonists from acquiring new and fertile lands
31
What were some of the consequences of the Proclamation Act of 1763?
- The cost of colonial defense had increased from £70,000 in 1748 to £350,000 by 1763 and would rise further
- Pontiac’s revolt in May 1763 against their Ohio lands had led to a bloody revolt which had killed 2000 colonists, who were killed in parts of Pennsylvania, Maryland, and Virginia
- Detroit was under siege until in August when colonists persuaded Native Americans to depart
32
How did the amount of taxations and tariffs imposed increase after the Seven Years War?
- Britain was in heavy debt, so increased taxations much more and also Britain's imperial and military interference with America increased
- As a result, the British thought it was ideal for the colonists to have to pay for their part during the war to help pay off Britain's debts
- The taxation caused serious tension and there was no colonial representation on the matters and colonists thought that their colonial liberties were being undermined
33
How did political factors affect the issue with taxation?
- King George III only chose ministers in parliament who could control and serve his demands well and parliament had to control financial matters well
- Only around 215,000 wealthy males were allowed to vote by 1761 and rich landowners determined who could stand in parliament and MPs had little say
- Whiggism dominated British governmental opinion throughout the 18th Century
34
What impact did George Grenville have?
- In 1763 Lord Bute was replaced by George Grenville as Prime Minister and he wanted to reduce the National Debt for Britain
- Grenville helped put in money to pay for the army of 10,000 men as defense and he also increased taxations on the British
- In 1765 he was criticized for increasing taxation that could be argued as partly starting the American Revolutionary War and he brought in the 1767 Townshend Acts
35
What did the Anti-Smuggling Act of 1763 do?
- There were trade laws introduced to raise revenue except that they were always avoided by the colonists and custom officials were corrupt
- In 1763 the Anti-Smuggling Act was passed to restrict all smuggling permanently
- This a sign from Britain that it was becoming much more arbitrary and absolutist and it was abandoning the policy of salutary neglect
36
What is the idea of Whiggism and where did it come from?
- The Whigs and the Tories were the two most important parties in the 17th to 19th Century
- They founded their parties with aristocratic men, who in the 1670s demanded the exclusion of Charles II Catholic brother James from inheriting the throne
- In the 1700s and 1800s they continually supported moderate and modern progress and reform, while also the Whigs later formed the Liberal party
37
What do the Whigs believe in?
- They believed in aristocracy, and opposed excessive monarchal and parliamentary power
- They tried to serve the nation, religious toleration, and protecting people from oppressions
- The Whigs believed much more in Parliamentary power and civil liberties
38
Who was Samuel Adams?
- Sam Adams was from Boston and a key leader of a resistance group and he was an idealist and a radical who became a key figure
- He believed that the ruling elite in Britain were corrupt and he was willing to misrepresent British policy to gain mass support
- He developed protest in Massachusetts which led to opposition developing elsewhere and he attacked those who supported the Stamp Act, and he sent the Circular Letter by the 1768 Massachusetts assembly
39
Who was John Dickinson?
- He was a Pennsylvanian lawyer and politician who in 1768 published his works 'Letters to a Pennsylvanian Farmer'
- He attacked the Townshend Duties and argued that the New York Restraining Act was attacking the liberties of the colonists
- He was influential because he encouraged other people to also attack the British government
40
Who was John Adams?
- He was a lawyer from Boston and was the cousin of Sam Adams and he collaborated with him
- He defended the soldiers after the Boston Massacre, claiming that they were only carrying out their orders as commanded
- He played a major role in persuading congress to declare independence
41
Who was Thomas Paine?
- He was a radical from Britain, famous for publishing his 1776 pamphlet 'common sense'
- Paine hated the absolutism and he attacked the ideology of monarchical privileging
- He supported the Americans
42
How did British policies affect the tensions between relations?
- The increasing national debt gave Britain no other choice but to start levying heavy taxations and tariffs
- It was the idea that the colonists had their liberties taken away from them, that increased the opposition
- This was due to the fear of Native Americans and the abandoning of salutary neglect
43
What happened at the First Continental Congress?
- This was in 1774 when influential politicians and writers first came together and united to think of an answer to solve the tensions
- Originally the congress came together to solve the issue of the Intolerable Acts
- One of the First Acts of the continental congress was to endorse the Suffolk resolves drafted by Joseph Warren in Massachusetts September 1774
44
How did the British react to the Intolerable Acts?
- The British saw the Acts as necessary for regaining control, although policy towards settlement was linked with Acts punishing the colonists in the colonies points of view
- The Intolerable Acts showed a change of attitude by King George III
By the 1770s The government felt pressured to repeal the Stamp Act and certain other Acts
45
How had military authority changed in the colonies?
- Broken authority had broken down by 1775 in New England, New York, and Virginia
- Britain had to maintain its position in Boston and the colonists were becoming more protesting
- British troops were limited, whilst the colonists were gaining ammunition and guns and increasing in number
46
How important was Paul Revere?
- In 1775 he was successful in warning people of the British arrival from Lexington and he's a great example of an ordinary man who became a symbolic figure from getting politically involved
- He became involved politically and in 1768 he created the famous engraving of the Boston Massacre, which helped to influence ideas
- He was one of the leaders of the Boston Tea Party and he was the first person to make paper money for the USA
47
How did the Concord and Lexington battles start?
- February 1775 General Lord Gage sent an expedition to sea to seize an arms depot in Massachusetts
- When there was a Concord expedition armed hostilities began
48
What happened at Lexington?
- April 19th 1775 700 British troops arrived in Lexington and were faced by 77 minute men
- The British aimed to arrest Samuel Adams and John Handcock and to take weapons and their ammo
- The British won in Lexington whilst the colonists fled,
49
What happened at Concord?
- When the British arrived at Concord, they started burning down houses, when hundreds of militia men ambushed them
- The British fled Concord when they ran out of ammo and the British failed to arrest Adams and Handcock and the hidden weapons still weren't found
- The British fled back to Boston and stayed at Bunker Hill
50
What happened at Bunker Hill?
- After the failure at Lexington and Concord, the British fled back up to Boston and aimed to hide in and hold position at Bunker Hill, but 1200 colonists built forts near bunker hill that night to surprise the British
- June 17th 1775 the British dispatched 2400 troops and the colonists killed many of them, although in the end the colonists had to flee
- However the British had sustained thousands more casualties than the colonists and militia and the Victory at Bunker Hill boosted American confidence and it promised American Independence for the future
51
What was the 1775 Olive Branch petition?
- This was the final attempts by the colonists to avoid war with the British and it was a document where colonists pledged their rights as British citizens and claimed their loyalty to the crown
- It was established by Congress on the 5th July 1775 and Thomas Jefferson wrote the first draft but John Dickinson finished it
- The purpose of the petition was to appease King George III and to prevent the conflict between the colonies and the British government from turning into a full scale war
52
Was the petition successful?
- The petition begins by explaining why the colonists had been rebelling against the British and it states that it was because they felt as though they weren't thanked enough for their part in the Seven Years' War
- Instead they said that they thought the government had passed laws and taxes that seemed much more like a punishment
- Men were sent to give the petition to the King and it arrived to him in August 1775, but by September 1st the King had rejected the petition and refused to respond
53
Why was Washington forced to cross the Delaware river?
- The colonists had an army, a navy and an overall commander after 1775 and the colonists also succeeded in Massachusetts
- although there were British reinforcements in New York
- Washington had to retreat from Staten island to Brooklyn and eventually had to cross the River Delaware
54
What happened when Washington crossed the Delaware river?
- He crossed the river with 5,400 troops trying to escape a Hessian attack from New Jersey after numerous fails and retreats from New York
- Only around 2,400 men led by Washington managed to survive and reach his meeting point across the Delaware on time
- The other 3,000 men made up of infantry and artillery units failed to do so
55
What is the importance of William Howe?
- William Howe commanded the British troops in 1776 and declared in 1774 that he was against a policy of coercion and was fond of the Americans
- He was scared that British victory would permanently make America ungovernable, so he tried to win with the least casualties and damage as possible
- By August 1776 he commanded 32,000 men and led the largest transoceanic expedition ever sent from Britain
56
What was happening in New York?
- Washington had to retreat because was indefensible, and he was convinced that Manhattan Island being invaded was the key to success
- At the battle of Long Island on the 27th August Howe defeated the Americans who suffered 2000 casualties
- Washington managed to withdraw his army to the mainland on 29th August and Howe then actually wanted to negotiate peace
57
What did the Peace of Paris do in 1783?
- After the battle of Yorktown, Britain had faced one of its last major defeats and tried to negotiate peace while making good trade agreements maintained
- Britain wanted the US to now be free, sovereign, and to be able to have its own independent state whilst also being able to keep its property, and slaves were freed
- They established the territorial rights and boundaries for the US and included those between Mississippi to the Southern colonies and also Britain surrendered their land
58
What rights were enforced and now allowed for the colonists?
- They granted fishing rights at certain coasts and they released prisoners from both sides and made British military and artillery forfeit in America if still there
- The Congress allowed rightful owners for all pieces of land each
- Each side entered the war with tens of thousands of prisoners' of war and around 20,000 colonists died on British prison ships during the war in total
59
What led to the signing of the Treaty of Paris agreement in 1783?
- A combined American and French force at Yorktown completely surrounded around 9,000 troops led by British general Cornwallis
- The British were heavily loosing the war and were defeated at Yorktown, so morale seriously dropped and Britain decided to start peace negotiations instead
- After Yorktown, the Continental Congress appointed Benjamin Franklin, John Jay, John Adams, and some others to travel to Europe and to negotiate a peace treaty with Britain
60
What were the actual terms of the peace treaty?
- The Treaty was signed by Benjamin Franklin, John Adams, and John Jay at Paris in September 3rd 1783, and ratified by the continental congress on 14th January 1784
- Great Britain allowed America to become an independent nation and granted northwest territory to the United States
- Resolved issues with American debts owed to British creditors and they provided for fair treatment of American citizens who had remained loyal to Great Britain during the war
61
What challenges did the USA face after Independence?
- The colonists upheld their personal liberties, although all of the states weren't fully united
- Although the country was called the first 'Empire of Liberty', the war had not been won by national unity and the army had depended on the contribution of the self-governing colonies
- Although negotiations had been made with foreign powers, there was no national taxes, or proper uniform laws
62
What was republicanism?
- The controversies between the British and the colonists created the idea of republicanism and it represented a form of government that represented the whole people
- By 1763 the colonial assemblies had substantial power, most white men could vote, and colonial politics had become increasingly democratic
- The Sons of Liberty brought awareness and got new people involved in politics, whilst republicanism became the only acceptable system of political values
63
How did colonies change to states?
- British authority collapsed in 1774, and most colonial assemblies reconstituted themselves, and an establishment of founding for these governments seemed extremely urgent
- In 1775 Congress was unsure if they should draw up new constitutions and in May 1776 Congress demanded all states to adopt new constitutions
64
How did the elites believe the new government should be run?
- The elites felt that the government should keep order more as well as maintaining liberties for people
- They were afraid that too much democracy would make the government unstable and that would create anarchy
- They wanted to develop sovereignty where people could chose the best man to govern then let them do so
65
How did the views of the democrats differ?
- The democrats however wanted a broader franchise and for lower property qualifications for the office holding
- They wanted frequent elections and for a weak executive with unicameralism
- The elites aimed to create governments where the franchise would be limited to property holders and there would be high property qualifications for the office holders
- The right to vote would be exercised relatively infrequently and there would be bicameralism
66
How were the new state constitutions made?
- Most of the new constitutions were put in place by state legislatures and they all agreed the sovereignty lied within the power of the people
- They supported a legislature consisting of two houses and the lower house represented the people whilst the upper house represented the elites
- All of the original states required property ownership or tax payments in order to vote but now property qualifications for voting were made lower
67
What did the Bill Of Rights do?
- Although most constitutions agreed on the separation of powers, authority was largely maintained in legislatures
- Legislatures however had to hold annual elections and include most constitutions in the Bill Of Rights
- The Virginia Declaration of Rights in 1776 provided the idea and gave essential key British liberties, including the right to opinion, proper trials, protection against punishment and the freedom to worship
- These were originally the British rights, but the American colonists made them their own
68
What powers did elites have against new men?
- The constitutions believed that political rights should be held by property owners and property qualifications either allowed or restricted the right to vote
- In states such as South Carolina and Virginia there was total elite authority although over time more state governments responded to popular opinion and the property qualifications needed to vote were reduced
- By 1783, the proportion of men from old elite families in legislatures had dropped from 46% to 22% and before 1775 farmers and middle class men had only accounted for around 1/5 of assembly members
69
Cosmopolitans vs. Localists
- The main division in American politics was between the richer and the poorer, and many thought there were divisions between local agriculture and political and commercial interests
- in the North cosmopolitans came from higher class areas and in the South they were elites, and in general they were seen as more influential, knowledgeable and having better opinions
- The localists however came from more trading and Southern farm ownership backgrounds and owned smaller amounts of land, and they weren’t as experienced in the social, economic, or political world
70
What were politics in the states like?
- For a certain period, individual states held some political authority and each state controlled its finance, trade, policy, and its political and social issues
- Some people were concerned the new constitutions were too democratic and many states had concerns with independence still, and there were territorial issues
- Civil administration was difficult due to the war and colonies had to raise taxation because revenue otherwise was insufficient and colonies were threatened with inflation
71
What divisions were created within the colonies?
- Loyalists were divided from patriots and many people were forced to flee to Canada in order to avoid persecution
- There were wealth divisions between the elites and the middle class, farmers, and traders and there had been open conflict between rich and poor in some states
- An example of this had been South Carolina, where there had been civil war between loyalists and patriots
- There had been divisions between slave owners, slaves, and the Native Americans too, and the colonists no longer wanted to be bound by treaties
72
Why was there a sudden desire for liberty?
- Liberty meant being free from state control and many colonists saw centralised states in Europe as too restrictive
- Liberty meant being free to live your own life and everyone wanted independence in America, and a stronger government didn’t always mean more liberty
- States had become more democratic and had rejected the idea of a strong government with elite rulers, and the new authorities met in public and were elected by a wider population
- There was a much more egalitarian political system, and less of a balance of power between governments and assemblies, where all states had equal rights in voting in Congress
73
Why was debt such a large issue?
- Congress had raised money by borrowing from abroad and by taxing individuals
- The new republics faced a substantial burden of debt and there had been economic disruptions during the war, so there were debts from small farmers and producers
- The land had been divided between creditors and debtors and even soldiers owed lots of money for their military services
- Creditors needed a stable currency to ensure that finance and law were all paid for, and debtors needed printing of paper money and rising prices so that debt was reduced
74
Why was there a desire to expand?
- There was a period of increased rapid population rise, and this increased the pressures to expand and the tension between colonists and Native Americans
- There were issues with other territorial controls, such as Florida and Louisiana where the Spanish kept the colonists from taking its lands
- A strong government was needed in order to ensure westward expansion whilst there was law and order
- A strong government was needed in order to conduct negotiations from a position of strength
75
Differences between the North and the South
- The slave economy of the South was developing faster than the trading and mixed economy of the North, and a Puritan heritage could lead to a separate New England state
- There was no ensuring that westward expansion would lead to the creation of new states that would join the USA
- The southern colonies had been deeply divided from the war and its plantation economy and use of slaves had been heavily affected
76
What were the Articles of Confederation?
- They formed the basis of the first government of the United States and they lasted from 1781 – 1789 as the Constitution of the First United States
- This was changed to a federal system, which meant there was a group of states aligned with a weak government and it was replaced with the constitution the US has today
- There were many strengths and weaknesses to the controversial Articles of Confederation
77
How successful were the Articles of Confederation?
- They weren’t ratified by the colonists until 1781 despite being a basis of government from 1777 and radical and divided state assemblies were allowed to print money and represent the creditors
- It broke treaties made with the Native Americans and there was a weak central government and they didn’t successfully maintain an army or navy so the republic wasn’t in a good position
- Congress was unable to levy taxes yet still able to print money which generated higher inflation, and this led to a crisis in the government
78
What laws were passed about territory in the Articles of Confederation?
- Jefferson suggested creating new states in the west with the idea of making people free from slavery, and although it failed in 1784, it was the basis for the 1787 Northwest Ordinance agreement
- This divided the new land in thousands of towns of 26 sections and of 640 acres, and in 1786, Congress agreed that the Native Americans land could only be taken by the military or by legal purchases to prevent more conflict
- This gave the national government control over Native American policy and the Northwest Ordinance established that all territories would become part of the union
- It made a governor for the head of Ohio and judges to create order, whilst when there were 5000 land owning white inhabitants a legislature could be passed allowing a non-voting representative into Congress
79
What troubles faced the colonies in the 1780s?
- The new national government had to decide what to do with land acquired by Congress and starting in 1784 Congress passed a series of land ordinances which made the foundations for what made up new states
- This allowed more land to be available for settlement and Congress didn’t have an independent source of revenue to pay of its debts
- There was no protection as the Continental Army had been demobilized, and domestic trade was interrupted and more states began imposing tariffs on other states and goods
- Congress planned to hold a convention in Philadelphia in May 1787 to revise the Articles of Confederation
80
What economic issues were created from the Articles of Confederation?
- Manufacturers needed a tariff so that they could protect their products from European competition, and creditors needed to prevent the issuing of paper money which devaluated the currency
- Slave owners needed to keep their property and their titles and slaves to keep their income
- People moving west needed federal support and people lending money back to Congress needed to ensure government could raise taxes and payback debt
- Internal markets were increased by population growth and ending the war meant a rise in transatlantic trade and good restrictions were banned
81
How did people feel about the Articles of Confederation?
- Many Americans were dissatisfied with the Articles of Confederation and there were concerns that the national government was powerless in foreign affairs and commercial matters
- Men like Washington wanted respect for the Americans and a national society where local and state attachments were subordinate to American loyalty
- Whilst many colonists accepted the needs for reform, most thought that individual states should reform some sort of power
- With boundary disputes and western issues being mostly resolved by 1787, there was still uncertainty about the overall form of government and so in 1787 the Philadelphia Convention was signed
82
What happened in the 1787 Philadelphia Convention?
- The delegates had to revision the Articles of Confederation on May 14th and all delegates were property owning white males
- The Articles of Confederation was voted to go away and to start a new more democratic document for the Constitution
- Every state was represented by 55 delegates except Rhode Island, and all delegates had held public office and were past governors of states
- All agreed on the need to strengthen the central government but some wanted to centralise power to abolish state sovereignty overall
- There was no agreement made over monopolised power of legislature, but all wanted more to have a voice in government and all agreed that federal government power needed extending
- There was disagreements about the extent of power the federalist government deserved, and there was a long debate about bicameralism
83
What did the new constitution do about the issue of slavery and territory?
- There was a large concern that the African slave trade wasn't showing equality, liberty, and that it was out of date
- 40% of Carolina and Georgia were slaves and the economy depended on them, so if slavery was abolished a new constitution couldn't be made, so slaves were part of the population and slaves had to be counted as both property and a proportion of the population
- The Founding Fathers made a compromise to avoid divisions and to bring more representation, so each slave was counted as three-fifths of a population, and slavery was planned to be abolished in 1808
84
How was the power of the government extended and better organised?
- The solution was to create the office of a president who had the authority to chose their own cabinet and to conduct foreign relations
- The elected house of Congress could legislate over a wider area and states couldn't annul laws passed by both Congress or the President
- The supreme courts helped keep legislation within the constitution and laws passed had to be accepted by each other to maintain power balance
- Presidents were offered four year terms and were impeached if they didn’t obey the laws
85
How were the rights of states made more fair?
- The senate had two representatives from each state and it had two no matter what the size of the state was, although in the house of representatives, the number of senators was based on state size and there was around one per 30,000 people
- The federal budget depended on population size so that smaller states were fairer
- To maintain state rights, elections for the president were not voted nationally but for each state
86
What were the Federalist papers?
- In October 1787, the first in a series of 85 essays arguing for ratification of the proposed U.S. Constitution appeared, which were the Federalist papers
- They were written by the main supporters of the new constitution after the Articles of Confederation and it created a strong national government
- They are considered as one of the most important political documents in US history
87
What was the debate over the Constitution?
- The Articles of Confederation granted Congress the power to conduct foreign policy, and maintain money and the army
- The centralised government of the Articles had little authority over each of the individual states and there was no power to regulate commerce or levy taxes
- As soon as 39 delegates signed the new Constitution in September 1787 after the Articles , the document went to the states for ratification, there was a huge debate between federalists and antifederalists, who opposed the Constitution and resisted giving stronger powers to the national government
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Who was Publius and how did he affect the new constitution?
- In New York, opposition to the Constitution was strong, so after the document was signed, antifederalists started criticizing it, and they argued that the document gave Congress too much power, and that it could lead to the American people losing their liberties again
- In response to criticism, Alexander Hamilton decided to write essays (the federalist papers) to help give more support for the Constitution, and Hamilton recruited John Jay and they both then later got help from James Madison, and they wrote a series of essays together
- To avoid receiving charges of betraying the Convention’s confidentiality, Hamilton chose the pen name “Publius” and he wrote the first essay
- In it, Hamilton argued that the Constitution was not only over ratification of the proposed new system, but over the question of if societies can establish a good government with both a strong system and liberties at the same time
89
What was the impact of the federalist papers?
- Despite the influence they had, and their importance today for understanding the Constitution and the foundation of the U.S. government, the federalist papers weren’t read much outside of New York
- They didn’t convince many New York voters to the state ratification convention, and actually there were more Anti federalists than federalists after the federalist papers
- In July 1788 however, a small majority of New York delegates voted in favour of the Constitution as long as they were edited a bit, and
though Hamilton had opposed this, Madison did write the Bill of Rights
90
What were the differences between Federalism and Anti-Federalism?
- One of the greatest debates in American history was the ratification of the constitution in 1787
- People who supported the constitution and a stronger national republic were called federalists and those who opposed them were known as Anti-federalists
- Both were concerned with the preservation of liberty, although they disagreed on whether a stronger national government would preserve or destroy liberties
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What did Anti-Federalists believe in?
- The Anti-Federalists were not as organized as the Federalists and they did not share one unified position on the proper form of government
- They argued against the expansion of national power and they favored smaller localized governments with limited national authority
- They believed a republican government was only possible on a state level and therefore would never work on a national level
- They believed that there wasn’t enough bills of rights and they feared the constitution wouldn’t be able to sufficiently protect the rights of individuals and the states
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What did Federalists believe in?
- The federalists were led by Alexander Hamilton, James Madison, and John Jay and they believed that establishing a large nationalist government would improve relationships amongst states
- The Federalists claimed that a strong national republic would better preserve the individual liberties of the people and by extending the rights, individual and minority rights would be better protected from infringement by a majority
- The federalists also wanted to preserve the sovereignty and structure of the states, and to do so, they advocated for a federal government with specific, delegated powers
- Their goal was to preserve the principle of government by consents so by building a government upon a foundation of popular sovereignty, legitimacy of the new government could be secured
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Why did the Federalists win the arguments over the ratification of the New Constitution in 1787?
- Many respected political leaders, teachers, preachers, editors, and lawyers supported it and Washington and Benjamin Franklin were also supported too which persuaded a lot of people to support the constitution, and the Federalist Papers were very influential amongst educated people
- The anti-federalists were more disliked and negative, and the problem of weak government was accepted and anti-federalists found it difficult to suggest one main clear alternative
- The opposition was divided and there were all sorts of different reasons why the constitution was opposed and some lacked credibility and could not get support
