Transcript Unit 4: A New American Nation

Journal #21
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Constitution – a set of basic principles and laws that state the
powers and duties of the government
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Republicanism – a system where citizens elect representatives
who are responsible to the people
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Limited Government – a government where all leaders have
to obey laws and no one has total power
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Suffrage – voting rights
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Ratification – official approval
Quotes of the Day
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“Every man must decide whether he will walk in the light of creative
altruism or in the darkness of destructive selfishness.”
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“Life's most persistent and urgent question is, 'What are you doing for
others?”
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“Love is the only force capable of transforming an enemy into friend.”
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“Never succumb to the temptation of bitterness.”
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Martin Luther King Jr.
Unit 5: A New American Nation
Chapters 7-9
Bonus Questions
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During what years was the American Revolution fought?
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Name an important leader of the American Revolution
besides George Washington
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What was the final major battle of the American
Revolution?
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What was the final peace agreement of the American
Revolution?
In This Unit We Will Learn About
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The Articles of Confederation
Problems with the new nation after the Revolution
The Constitution
Citizenship and the new government (the 3 branches of
government)
The Bill of Rights
Ideas About Government
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After the colonies declared independence in 1776, they
needed to form governments
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They used many political ideas from other people
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The Romans – republicanism and balance of power
English Law – The Magna Carta and the English Bill of Rights
both limited the King/Queen’s power
The Enlightenment, especially philosopher John Locke –
natural rights
American political traditions – the town hall meeting and the
Virginia House of Burgesses
English Law
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2 documents in English law had
limited the power of Kings and
Queens
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The Magna Carta – 1215
document which required the king to
follow the law just like everybody else
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The English Bill of Rights – 1689
document that said that the king or
queen couldn’t pass new laws without
Parliament’s approval
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Parliament is the British (English)
lawmaking body (similar to our
Congress)
The Enlightenment
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When people began to argue
for using reason and logic to
solve problems – in the 1700s
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John Locke – believed that
the government had a duty to
protect people’s unalienable
rights, if leaders failed to do
this, they should be replaced
American Political Traditions
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The Mayflower Compact
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The Fundamental Orders
of Connecticut
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Is considered the first
written constitution in
the colonies
The Declaration of
Independence
State Constitutions
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During the Revolution, nearly every colony wrote a new
state constitution
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These constitutions showed a belief in republicanism,
limited government, and suffrage for more people
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White men gained more voting rights
Forming a Union
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Some wanted a national
government to hold the
country together – others
did not
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Eventually the 2nd
Continental Congress
created a committee to
create a national
constitution
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The committee creates the
Articles of
Confederation
The Articles of Confederation
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A new Confederation Congress would become the national
government
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The Articles of Confederation did not have a president or court
system
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The Confederation Congress had very limited powers
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It could make coins and borrow money
It could make treaties
It could settle conflicts between the states
It could ask for money and troops
The Articles of Confederation were ratified in March of 1781
The Northwest Territory
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Under the Articles of Confederation, the national government
controlled newly claimed “western” land
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The Confederation Congress decides to sell the land to the
public
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The Land Ordinance of 1785 set up a system for dividing
the public territory
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It divided the land into townships of 36 square miles
Each township was divided into 36 lots of 640 acres each
One of the lots was for a school, 4 went to Revolutionary War
veterans and the rest were for sale to the public
Importance: this is the basis for the Public Land Survey System
which is still used today to identify land parcels for undeveloped land
Township
The Northwest Ordinance of 1787
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Created the Northwest Territory which is the land that now
includes Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Ohio, and Wisconsin
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The Northwest Ordinance had other important provisions
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It created a system for bringing new states into the Union
It required that public education be provided in the region
Stated that “there shall be neither slavery nor involuntary servitude in
the territory.” – based on a proposal by Thomas Jefferson
Problems in the New Nation
7.2
Weaknesses of the Confederation Congress
and the Articles of Confederation
1.
Problems with other countries – they did not respect our
weak central government
2.
Problems with trade – the government couldn’t regulate it
3.
Economic problems in the U.S. – related to interstate
(between state) trade and inflation – led to a depression
Problems with Other Countries
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The story of Thomas Amis on the Mississippi River in 1786
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The Confederation Congress couldn’t protect citizens because it
could not force states to provide soldiers
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Britain was slow to turn over their forts in the U.S.
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The Spanish closed the lower Mississippi to U.S. shipping
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People began to criticize the weak Confederation Congress
Problems with Trade
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After the Revolution the British refused to trade with the
U.S.
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The British also forced Americans to pay high taxes, called
tariffs, in order to sell their goods in Britain
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At the same time, British goods flowed freely into the
U.S.
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The Confederation Congress could not fix the problem
because it didn’t have the power to pass its own tariffs
Economic Problems in the U.S.
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Trade among the states was a problem
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The ability of states to print their own money was another
problem
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Some states printed large amounts of money to pay off war debts –
this leads to inflation (when money becomes less valuable)
The Confederation Congress couldn’t regulate the printing of money
These factors lead to a depression
Shay’s Rebellion
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Farmers were having economic
trouble in Massachusetts,
courts were taking their land
as payment of debts
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In September 1786, some of
the farmers started a revolt
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Armed with pitchforks and
other farm tools, the citizens
shut down courts in part of the
state
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A Revolutionary War veteran
named Daniel Shays was the
main leader of the revolt
Shays Rebellion
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The state government orders the farmers to stop the revolt or
die
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Most of Shays’ rebels are arrested or surrender by 1787
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14 of the rebels are sentenced to death, but most are eventually
freed, including Shays
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The state knew that many citizens agreed with the rebels
There were different responses to Shays’ Rebellion
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George Washington and Thomas Jefferson
The Significance of Shays Rebellion
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Shays Rebellion showed the weakness of the
Confederation government and led some Americans to
admit that the Articles of Confederation were not
working
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Massachusetts asked the national government to help but
Congress could not do much
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Many Americans began to call for a stronger national
government
A Push for Change
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In 1786 the Virginia legislature
called for a conference to talk
about changing the Articles of
Confederation
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A convention was held in
Annapolis, Maryland but not every
state sent representatives
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James Madison and Alexander
Hamilton, who were at the
Annapolis Conference, called for
another conference in 1787 to
improve the constitution of the
national government