AM History Chp. 7 Confederation

How many and which states came out of the NW Territory from the NW Ordinance of 1787

Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Ohio and Wisconsin; and part of Minnesota (5 and part of a 6th)

Why did the U.S. have problems with nations that had supported the war for independence?

Mainly because the U.S. owed them money and could not repay it; also because they feared further expansion by the U.S. into their territories

When did the Philadelphia Convention begin? Where was it held? Who was the chairman? What was its original purpose?

- Began May 14, 1787 -Independence Hall in Philadelphia -George Washington was the chairman -Original purpose was to the revise the articles of confederation so that the national govt. would be strong enough to govern the country

Powers of the confederation congress

-COULD NOT TAX -could raise and maintain an army -declare war -make treaties with foreign countries -manage Indian affairs -establish a postal system -borrow and coin money These powers were not held exclusively by congress, the states without congressional consent could also coin their own monies, issue bills of credit, deal directly with foreign gov'ts. and even declare war

What was the organizational weakness that caused most of the failures of the Confederation Congress?

-Primary weakness - no power to enforce the laws that it made because there were no executive or judicial branches to enforce or interpret the laws allowing for national govt.s laws to be ignored or disobeyed with little fear of punishment - economic weakness - 1.Congress could not levy taxes therefore it lacked the necessary funds to run the govt. and pay war debts 2. Congress lacked the power to regulate domestic and foreign trade 3. Congress did not have the sole authority to coin money or to regulate its value; Gold and silver, needed for coinage or to back the paper money in circulation, were scarce so states printed paper money with so little backing that it was almost worthless;as a result, when worthless state money was not accepted by creditors, people who owed debts could not repay them and in some places creditors got control of state legislatures and levied heavy taxes to pay off state debts; when small farmers could not pay, the courts moved in and took their property

Powers held only by the states during the 8 years of the Confederation Congress

-controlled both domestic and foreign trade -had the right to act in economic matters involving debts, contracts, and family affairs, and had the right to tax citizens

Benjamin Franklin

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James Madison

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What were 3 benefits of keeping the discussion at the Philadelphia convention secret?

1. Gave them the ability to speak their minds, and also to change them without fear of public criticism. 2. Helped avoid the pressures of special interest groups 3. made it more likely the states would ratify the document when it as presented to them

Name 6 notable men who were at the Philadelphia Convention

1. George Washington 2. James Madison- "America's first political scientiest" and "Father of the Constitution" 3. George Mason - had written the constitution and bill of rights for Virginia; preamble of the Virginia bill served as a model for the preamble of the Declaration of Independence. 4. Benjamin Franklin - leader of the Pennsylvania delegation; oldest delegate at 82 and humor relieved tension 5. Alexander Hamilton - NY's delegation; favored a strong central govt. "one that could stand like a Hercules"; believed that the states should have little power and that the govt. should appoint the governor for each state 6. Jonathan Dayton - youngest delegate; later became a proprietor in the Ohio Land Company

What 2 meetings prepared the way for the Philadelphia convention?

1. Meeting at Mount Vernon on the Potomac in 1785 attended by delegates from Maryland and Virginia -met about use and navigation of the Potomac River and Chesapeake Bay -encouraged by their success, issued an invitation to Delaware and Pennsylvania to join them to discuss tariffs on imports, the use of paper money, aother common commercial problems 2.Virginian legislators who were more open to a stronger union called for a meeting of all the states at Annapolis in 1786 -Annapolis convention did not solve any commercial disputes however 3 delegates - NY Alexander Hamilton, VIRGINIA's James Madison, and DELAWARES John Dickinson persuaded the other to ask for a meeting of all the states at Philadelphia

Lasting Achievements of the Confederation Govt.

1. Northwest Ordinance of 1785 2. Northwest Ordinance of 1787

What problems were there with France?

1. Since the states failed to supply the money requested by Congress, the U.S. could not pay even the interest on its debt to France; when Americans asked France for more loans they were refused; as a result French merchants who thought they would benefit from the decline in America's trade with Britain were disappointed

What problems were there with Spain?

1. Spain still held land in North America and feared further expansion of the new nation into the Southeast along the Mississippi River and in Florida 2. Spain maintained its forts in the Southeast 3. Spain easily convinced indians to raid American frontier settlements to discourage further American settlement so they could keep their land 4. Americans expected to have RIGHT OF DEPOSITS for goods at ports on the lower Mississippi until ships came to transport them overseas; Spain wanted to deny them this right; John Jay went to negotiate 5. Spain disputed the placement of America's southern boundary at the 31st parallel; Spain placed it 100 miles further north DISPUTES WITH SPAIN FLARED UNTIL SETTLED WITH THE PICKNEY TREATY in 1795

What were 2 main reasons some states objected to Congress's disposal of western lands?

1. States with western land claims didn't want to give them up. 2. Influential land speculators were upset they would be unable to resell the cheap land they had purchased for huge profites

What were the poor foreign relation issues with Britain during the Continental Congress?

1. Treaty of Paris of 1763 called for all British troops in colonies to return to England; HOWEVER Britain kept troops in western forts they held before the war; British reasoned that the Americans could not pay the debts they owed British subjects so they would continue their fur trade in America as a way to collect the money owed; with no American army to dislodge the troops, Britain so need to bring them home 2. Treaty of Paris of 1763 called for fair treatment Loyalists; many Americans were still bitter and treated them poorly by keeping Loyalists property and even lynching some of them; acts which annoyed the British 3. British navy was stopping American ships especially those using old British trade routes; therefore American ships had to find new trade routes and were unprotected from pirates especially along the Barbary Coast in the Mediterranean

States agreed to cooperate during the 8 years of the congressional congress in relation to

1. give full faith and credit to public civil acts of other states including respecting others' birth, marriage and death certificates and wills 2. agreed to return criminals and runaway slaves who crossed state lines at the request of a state governor 3. agreed to settle disputes between states with arbitration

What 2 principles were included in Montesquieu's writings?

1. outlined 3 branches of govt. (executive, legislative, and judicial) with 3 separate specific functions 2. balance of power between the 3 branches so that no one branch of the govt. could become more powerful than the others

What steps did a region take as it moved toward stateshood?

1. when population reached 5,000 adult white free males of voting age, could elect its own territorial legislature but congress would still select its governor who had the right to approve or veto acts of the legislature 2. when population reached 60,000, people could write a constitution and submit it to congress - had to be a republican form of govt. -each new state would get the same powers and rights as the original states

What 2 groups were responsible for governing the colonies before and during the War for Independence?

1st and 2nd Continental Congress and state assemblies

Annapolis Convention

A convention held in 1786 to consider problems of trade and navigation, attended by five states and important because it issued the call to Congress and the states for what became the Constitutional Convention.

John Jay

American delegate who signed Treaty of Paris; tried to negotiate with Spain on the right of deposit issue in New Orleans but told he could not compromise on the RIGHT OF DEPOSIT; resulted in high tariffs on on imported goods; congress did not ratify the treaty he worked out with Spain on the trade issue

Philadelphia Convention

Beginning on May 25, 1787, the convention recommended by the Annapolis Convention was held in Philadelphia. All of the states except Rhode Island sent delegates, and George Washington served as president of the convention. The convention lasted 16 weeks, and on September 17, 1787, produced the present Constitution of the United States, which was drafted largely by James Madison.

Who wrote most of The Articles of Confederation?

Delaware's John Dickinson

How is a republic better than a true democracy?

Doesn't allow the wishes of small groups to be overrun by the changing attitudes of the majority -rules for governing can only be changed by changing the constitution in a republic and not by wishes of a majority; ensuring the freedoms of all American people

Alexander Hamilton

Hamilton emerged as a major political figure during the debate over the Constitution, as the outspoken leader of the Federalists and one of the authors of the Federalist Papers. Later, as secretary of treasury under Washington, Alexander Hamilton spearheaded the government's Federalist initiatives, most notably through the creation of the Bank of the United States.

townships

Land was divided into squares - part of this was set aside for schools and also set aside to be sold

Shay's Rebellion

Occurred in the winter of 1786-7 under the Articles of Confederation. Poor, indebted landowners in Massachusetts blocked access to courts and prevented the government from arresting or repossessing the property of those in debt. The federal government was too weak to help Boston remove the rebels, a sign that the Articles of Confederation weren't working effectively.

New Jersey Plan/Small State Plan

Opposite of the Virginia Plan, it proposed a single-chamber congress in which each state had one vote. This created a conflict with representation between bigger states, who wanted control befitting their population, and smaller states, who didn't want to be bullied by larger states.

Northwest Ordinance of 1787

PROVIDED FOR GOVERNING THIS LAND; -DIVIDED IT INTO 5 TERRITORIES; -EACH TERRITORY HAD A GOVERNOR, 3 JUDGES and a SECRETARY (All were appointed by Congress and the people of the territory had no voice in their govt.) Congress defined the steps for the creation and admission of new states. It forbade slavery while the region remained a territory although citizens could legalize it. First congress would appoint a territorial governor and judges. Second as soon as 5 thousand male adults lived in a territory, the people could write a temporary constitution and elect a legislature that would pass the territories laws. Third, when the total population reached 60,000 the settlers could write a constitution with a republican form of govt. which Congress would have to approve before granting statehood; each new state would have the same powers and rights as the original 13 states; Congress had to accept no fewer than 3 and no more than 5 states from the western lands

Northwest Ordinance of 1785

PROVISIONS FOR SETTLING THE LAND BY SURVEYING AND SELLING THE LAND 1. land to be divided into areas 6 miles square called TOWNSHIPS; Each TOWNSHIP was divided into 36 smaller parcels 1-mile square called SECTIONS 2. provided for sale of the land at auctions -minimum acceptable was $1 per acre and minimum area was 1 section or at least 640 acres PROBLEMS: even though congress could have set a hire price to make more money, wanted people of modest means to be able to purchase for family farms, many did but many saw no need or could not raise the $640 necessary so Congress sold short of cash sold the land at wholesale prices to several large land companies with the OHIO LAND COMPANY being the best known CONDITION PLACED ON THE SALE OF THE LAND: Congress had to obtain legal title to the land before selling it by making treaties with the native indians to buy the lands they claimed before any of the land could be sold

Federalists

Supporters of the Constitution that were led by Alexander Hamilton and John Adams. They firmly believed the national government should be strong. They didn't want the Bill of Rights because they felt citizens' rights were already well protected by the Constitution.

What problems were there with the Netherlands?

The U.S. also owed the Netherlands who had contributed financial aid to the war effort; though less vigorous in getting trying to seek payment, they did not decrease the debt

Virginia Plan/Large State Plan

The Virginia Plan was presented to the Constitutional Convention and proposed the creation of a bicameral legislature with representation in both houses proportional to population. The Virginia Plan favored the large states, which would have a much greater voice. In opposition, the small states proposed the New Jersey Plan. In the end, the two sides found common ground through the Connecticut Compromise.

Bill of Rights

The first ten amendments of the U.S. Constitution, containing a list of individual rights and liberties, such as freedom of speech, religion, and the press.

What convinced the leaders of the need for a more permanent form of government?

The need for cooperation in the War for Independence; cooperation in fighting and financing the war had been essential

Anti-federalists

They opposed the ratification of the Constitution because it gave more power to the federal government and less to the states, and because it did not ensure individual rights. Many wanted to keep the Articles of Confederation. The Antifederalists were instrumental in obtaining passage of the Bill of Rights as a prerequisite to ratification of the Constitution in several states. After the ratification of the Constitution, the Antifederalists regrouped as the Democratic-Republican (or simply Republican) party.

The Federalist Papers

This collection of essays by John Jay, Alexander Hamilton, and James Madison, explained the importance of a strong central government. It was published to convince New York to ratify the Constitution.

What was the difference between the Virginia Plan and the New Jersey Plan?

Virginia Plan - Large State Plan; govt. would have 2 legislative houses with membership in both of them based on a state's population New Jersey Plan - Small State Plan; advocated 1 legislative house with all the states having the same number of representatives

census

a periodic and official count of a country's population

republic

a political system in which the supreme power lies in a body of citizens who can elect people to represent them; power of these elected representatives as well as the govt. as a whole is limited by the Constitution; slightly different than a true democracy where each person has a vote in every matter

tariffs

a tax on foreign goods brought into a country

The Commerce Compromise

commerce disputes centered on whether the nation needed to pass navigation and tariff laws - Northern states wanted Congress to pass laws to protect their industries from foreign competition -Southern states feared navigation and tariff laws would make the raw materials they needed to purchase cost more COMPROMISE - Favored the North by allowing navigation laws to be passed by a simple majority Favored the South by forbidding states to levy taxes on one another's exports -ENSURED THE DEVELOPMENT OF A LARGE HOME MARKET AND MADE THE U.S> LESS DEPENDENT ON FOREIGN TRADE

Articles of Confederation

drafted in 1777, written largely by John Dickinson of Delaware - Govt. had one governing body, a congress -congress members to be elected yearly -had to be ratified ( Given formal approval by each state) -took almost 4 years to become law -Maryland, a smaller state refused to ratify until power was given to congress to dispose of western lands -states with western land claims did not want to give them up and influential land speculators were upset that the would be unable to make huge profits reselling the cheap land they had purchased -compromise was the Confederation Congress gained control of the western lands but in return each state, no matter what size was given an equal vote in congress -to satisfy the large southern states, tax assessments in the slave states were based on teh value of improved lands rather than on the population -Virginia held out on the compromise until Jan. 1781 when it agreed to give up its claims north of the Ohio River -in response to Virginia's compromise, Maryland ratified the articles the same month -laws could be passed when 9 out of 13 states approved them -articles themselves could only be changed with unanimous consent of the states

electoral college

group of persons chosen in each state and the district of columbia every four years who make a formal selection of the president and vice president

Daniel Shays

leader of over 1,000 Massachusetts farmers in an uprising after the state seized and sold their farms for non-payment of taxes

Great Compromise/Connecticut Compromise

the agreement by which Congress would have two houses, the Senate (where each state gets equal representation-two senators) and the House of Representatives (where representation is based on population). proposed by ROGER SHERMAN OF CONNECTICUT

three-fifths compromise

the agreement by which the number of each state's representatives in Congress would be based on a count of all the free people plus three-fifths of the slaves; purpose was to keep the tax burden on the larger population of the south from being a burden and protected the North from having less representation based on population than the south -ALSO included a law that said for 20 years Congress could not make laws interfering with slavery

right of deposit

the freedom to stockpile goods until ships came to transport them overseas at the port of New Orleans

confederation

the state of being allied or confederated; a loose association of a league of states

Northwest Territory

the vast territory of land that included present-day Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Ohio and Wisconsin; land NORTH OF THE OHIO RIVER, AND BETWEEN THE MISSISSIPPI AND APPALACHIAN MOUNTAIN CHAIN; was politically organized by the Northwest Ordinance of 1787