UNIT III - 1780-1800
The Federalists
THEMES:
Positive and negative aspects of the Articles of Confederation
Development of the Constitution and the Bill of Rights
The emergence of political parties; Hamilton and Jefferson
States' Rights vs. Federalism
The development of American foreign policy

OUTLINE:

Federalists Democratic-Republicans
Leaders John Adams
Alexander Hamilton 		Thomas Jefferson
James Madison
View of the Constitution loose interpretation
strong central gov't.		 strict interpretation
weak central gov't.
View of the National Debt National debt a blessing if properly funded National debt a bane; rigid economy
Business gov't. fosters business; concentrated wealth in capitalistic enterprisesno favors for business; agrarian preference
Foreign policy pro-British (conservative Tory tradition) pro-French (radical Revolutionary tradition)
Military policy large peacetime army and navy small peacetime army and navy
Domestic policy aid business
national bank
tariffs		favor agriculture
state banks favored
low/no tariffs(protective)
Chief supporters Northern businessmen and large land-owners (along seacoast)skilled workers, farmers, and plantation owners (South and Southwest)
Othersexpansion of bureaucracy
restrictions on free speech		 reduction of officeholders
guaranteeing free speech

Under Articles of Confederation Under the Constitution
a loose confederation of states
1 vote in Congress per state
2/3 vote for important measures(9 states)
laws executed by committees of Congress
no Congressional power over commerce
no power to levy taxes
no federal courts
unanimous vote for Amendments
no direct power over states or individuals		a firm union of people
2 votes in Senate and rep.in House based on pop.
majority vote, subject to Pres.veto
laws executed by powerful president
Congress may regulate foreign &interstate commerce
power to levy taxes
Supreme Court heading federal courts, less difficult for Amendments
adequate power to enjorce laws by coercion of individuals and states, to a degree

More Constitution stuff:

Virginia plan: By Madison, this favored the large states (idea of the House)
New Jersey plan: Favored the small states (idea of the Senate)
Connecticut plan/Great Compromise: provided for a two-house Congress
Three-fifths Compromise: Counted each slave as three-fifths of a person for the purpose of determining a state's level of taxation and representation
Commercial Compromise: Allowed Congress to regulate interstate and foreign commerce, including placing tariffs on foreign imports, but it prohibited placing taxes on any exports
Electoral College: Even though the delegates of the Philadelphia Convention limited a presidential term to four years but not a limit on number of terms, they had trouble deciding about the president's election. Rather than having the people elect a president directly, they decided to assign to each state a number of electors equal to the total of that state's representatives and senators. They feared that too much democracy would lead to "mob rule" (mobocracy was developed after Shays" Rebellion)
Delaware, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania were the 1st three states to rectify w/ New Hampshire being the required ninth state. The last four were in this order: Virginia, New York, North Carolina, and Rhode Island.

The Bill of Rights/ The 1st Ten Amendments:
1. Congress may make no laws that infringe a citizen's right to freedom of religion, speech, press, assembly, and petition. Congress may not favor one religion over another (separation of church and state)
2. The people have the right to keep and bear arms in a state militia.
3. The people cannot be required to quarter soldiers during peacetime.
4. The government may not carry out unreasonable searches or seizures of the people's property
5. No individual may be deprived of life, liberty, and property without due process of law. No defendant in a criminal case may be forced to give evidence against himself or herself or to stand trial twice for the same crime (double jeopardy).
6. Anyone accused of a crime has the right to a speedy and public trial and the right to call and question witnesses.
7. In most civil cases (one person suing another in court), citizens have the right to trial by jury.
8. Persons accused or convicted of crimes are protected against excessive bail and fines and cruel and unusual punishments.
9. Any rights not specifically m mentioned in the Constitution are also guaranteed against government infringement.
10. All powers not delegated to the federal government belong to the states or to the people.

Accomplishments under the Articles of Confederation:
1. Winning the war: The U.S. government could claim some credit for the ultimate victory of Washington's army and for negotiation favorable terms in the treaty of peace with Britain.
2. Land Ordinance of 1785: The congress established a public policy for the western lands. The policy provided for setting aside one section of land in each township for public education.
3. Northwest Ordinance of 1787: For the large territory lying between the Great Lakes and the Ohio River, the congress passed an ordinance that set the rules for creating new states. The Northwest Ordinance granted limited self-government to the developing territory and prohibited slavery in the region.

Problems with the Articles:
1. Financial: Most war debts were unpaid. Individual states as well as the congress issued worthless paper money. The underlying problem was that the congress had no taxing power and could only request that the states donate money for national needs.
2. Foreign: European nations had little respect for a new nation that could neither pay its debts nor take effective and united action in a crisis. Britain and Spain threatened to expand interest in the western lands soon after the war ended.
3. Domestic: Shays' Rebellion (because of high state taxes, imprisonment for debt, and lack of paper money; January, 1787).

Social Changes:
1. End of Primogeniture: No legislature could grant titles of nobility, nor could any court recognize the feudal practice of primogeniture (the fist born son's right to inherit his parents' property). Further weakened by confiscation of large estates owned by Loyalists.
2. Separation of Church and State: In other words, most states refused to give financial support to any religious group. This resulted in the Anglican church to be disestablished in the South(lost state support). Only in New Hampshire, Connecticut, and Massachusetts did the Congregational church continue to receive state support in the form of a religious tax. This was completely discontinued in the early 1800's.
3. Women: Women were very important during this era. Mary McCauley, a.k.a. Molly Pitcher, took her husband's place at the Battle of Monmouth; Deborah Sampson passed as man and served as a soldier. Women maintained the colonial economy and provided much of the food and clothing necessary for the war effort. Abigail Adams--"I desire you would remember the ladies and be more generous and favorable to them than you ancestors." (to her husband, John).
4. Slavery: The idea of slavery contradicted the spirit of the Revolution and that "all men were created equal". Realizing this, the Continental Congress voted to abolish the importation of slaves. and most states went along with the prohibition. In the south, some plantation owners voluntarily freed their slaves. After the Revolutionary War, most of the southern slave owners came to believe that slave labor was essential to their economy.

Foreign Affairs:
The Franco-American Alliance (1778): It bound the U.S. to help the French defend their West Indies against future foes; the British fleets were certain to attack these strategic islands.
Neutrality Proclamation (1793): George Washington not only proclaimed the government's official neutrality in the widening conflict but sternly warned American citizens to be impartial toward both armed camps. It was a major prop of the spreading isolationist tradition and proved to e enormously controversial. Because of this, Thomas Jefferson resigned from the cabinet in disagreement with Washington's order.
"Citizen" Genet: Objecting to Washington's neutrality policy, the French minister to the U.S., Edmond Genet, broke all the normal rules of diplomacy by appealing directly to the American people to support the French cause. Washington requested that the French government remove this diplomat.
The Jay Treaty (1794): Washington sent Chief Justice John Jay on a special mission to Britain to talk that country out of its offensive practice of searching and seizing American ships and impressing seamen into the British navy. After a year of negotiations, Jay brought back a treaty in which Britain agreed to evacuate its posts on the U.S. western frontier, but mentioned nothing about British seizures of American merchant ships. This angered the American supporters of France, but it maintained Washington's policy of neutrality.
The Pinckney Treaty (1795): With Spain, this granted the Americans virtually everything they demanded, including free navigation of the Mississippi and the large disputed territory north of Florida. The right of deposit was granted to Americans so that they could transfer cargoes in New Orleans without paying duties to the Spanish government. Spain further agreed to accept the U.S. claim that Florida's northern boundary should be at the 31st parallel (Spain had insisted that it was north of the line).
Convention of 1800: Signed in Paris, France agreed to annul the 22 year old treaty but as a type of alimony, the United States agreed to pay the damage claims of American shippers.

Domestic Concerns:
Judiciary Act of 1789: The act organized the Supreme Court (chief justice and five associated), federal district and circuit courts, and established the office of attorney general.
Whiskey Rebellion (1794): Southwestern Pennsylvanians challenged the new national government and regarded Hamilton's high excise tax as a burden on an economic necessity and a medium of exchange.
Battle of Fallen Timbers (1794): A battle between Americans and Native Americans, won by Anthony Wayne (Americans).
The Treaty of Greenville (1795): Abandoned by the British, the Native Americans surrendered their claims to the Ohio Territory and promised to open it up to settlement.
Public Land Act (1796): Congress encouraged the rapid settlement of these lands by passing this, which established orderly procedure for dividing and selling federal lands at reasonable prices.

John Adams' Presidency:
The XYZ Affair (1798): Since U.S. merchant ships were being seized by French warships and privateers, Adams sent a delegation to Paris to negotiate with the French government. Known only as X,Y,and Z, three French foreign minister Talleyrand. Americans wanted war, but Adams recognized that the U.S. Army and Navy were not yet strong enough to fight a major power.
The Alien and Sedition Acts (1798): The Alien laws raised the requirements for aliens who desired to become citizens from a tolerable five years to an intolerable fourteen. The president was also empowered to deport dangerous foreigners in time of peace and to deport or imprison them in time of hostilities. The Sedition Act provided that anyone who impeded the policies of the government or falsely defamed its officials, including the president, would be liable to a heavy fine and imprisonment. (went against the First Amendment)
The Virginia (Madison) and Kentucky (Jefferson) Resolutions (1798/1799): To stress the "compact theory" (It meant that the 13 sovereign states, in creating the federal government , had entered into a "compact", or contract, regarding its jurisdiction), Madison and Jefferson drafted the resolutions fearing prosecution for sedition in the process. Kentucky approved them in 1798 and 1799 while Virginia did the same in 1798.

Washington's Cabinet:
Secretary of State: Thomas Jefferson
Secretary of the Treasury: Alexander Hamilton
Secretary of War: Henry Knox
Attorney General: Edmund Randolph

Hamilton's Financial Program:
1. Pay off the national debt at face value and have the federal government assume the war debts of the states.
-Jefferson and his supporters agreed with Hamilton, so Hamilton agreed to Jefferson's idea to establish the nation's capital in the South along the Potomac River. (today's Washington, D.C.)
2. Protect the young nation's "infant" industries and collect adequate revenues at the same time by imposing high tariffs on imported goods.
-The tariff rates set by Congress were lower than Hamilton wanted. To raise enough revenue to pay the government's debts, Hamilton persuaded Congress to pass excise taxes, particularly on the sale of whiskey.
3. Create a national bank for deposing government funds and for printing banknotes that would provide the basis for a stable U.S. currency.
-Washington supported Hamilton's idea and made the bank into law. Although chartered by the government, the Bank of the United States was privately owned. As a major shareholder of the bank, the federal government could print paper currency and use federal deposits to stimulate business.

Time line:
1774: First Continental Congress calls for abolition of slave trade
1775: Philadelphia Quakers found world's first anti- slavery society
1776: New Jersey constitution temporarily gives women the vote
1777: Articles of Confederation adopted by Second Continental Congress
1780: Massachusetts adopts first constitution drafted in convention and ratified by popular vote.
1781: Articles of Confederation put into effect
1783: Military officers form Society of the Cincinnati
1785: Land Ordinance of 1785
1786: Virginia Statute for Religious Freedom
Shay's Rebellion
Meeting of five states to discuss revision of the Articles of Confederation
1787: Northwest Ordinance
Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia
1788: Ratification by nine states guarantees a new government under the Constitution
1789: Constitution formally put into effect
Judiciary Act of 1789
Washington elected president
French Revolution begins
1790: First official census
1791: Bill of Rights adopted
Vermont becomes fourteenth state
Bank of the United States created
Excise tax passed
1792: Washington reelected president
1792-1793: Federalist and Democratic-Republican parties formed
1793: Louis XVI beheaded; radical phase of French Revolution
France declares war on Britain and Spain
Washington's Neutrality Proclamation
Citizen Genet Affair
1794: Whiskey Rebellion
Battle of Fallen Timbers
Jay's Treaty with Britain
1795: Treaty of Greenville: Indians cede Ohio
Pinckney's Treaty with Spain
1796: Washington's Farewell Address
1797: Adams becomes president
XYZ Affair
1798: Alien and Sedition Acts
1798-1799: Kentucky and Virginia Resolutions
1798-1800: Undeclared war with France
1800: Convention of 1800: peace with France
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