US History Chapter 6

Constitution

(1787) Document which established the organization, function and power of the government and is considered the "Supreme Law of the Land." It followed the Articles of Confederation and was drafted at the Constitutional Convention in 1787. The government reflected the influence of British, Roman, Greek, and colonial state governments, as well as many ideas from the Enlightenment.

Non-Intercourse ACT

(also known as the Indian Intercourse Act or the Indian Nonintercourse Act) is the collective name given to six statutes passed by the Congress in 1790, 1793, 1796, 1799, 1802, and 1834. The Act regulates commerce between Americans and Native Americans.

Order of Council

A type of legislation in many countries, especially the Commonwealth realms. In the United Kingdom this legislation is formally made in the name of the Queen by the Privy Council (Queen-in-Council), but in other countries the terminology may vary.

Battle of Tippecanoe

Americans v. Shawnee Indians. It was led by governor William Henry Harrison, the Americans defeated the Shawnee's and Tecumseh in the Indiana Territory.

Warhawk

Any of the congressmen from the South and West, led by Henry Clay and John Calhoun, who wanted war against Britain in the period leading up to the War of 1812.

John Marshall

Appointed by John Adams (1801) as Chief Justice of the Supreme Court- was a Virginia Federalist who was disliked by the state's rights Jeffersonians. The Federalists died out but Marshall continued to hand down Federalist decisions. IMPORTANT ACT- Although he dismissed the Marbury suit ( 1801) to avoid direct political showdown, he said that part of the Judiciary Act of 1789, on which Marbury tried to base his appeal was unconstitutional. Marshall greatly magnified the authority of the court. In the Marbury v. Madison case Marshall inserted the keystone into the arch that supports the tremendous power of the Supreme Court. Marshall's decision regarding Marbury spuried the Jeffersonians to lay rough hands on the Supreme Court through impeachment. Jefferson's ill advised attempt of " Judge Breaking" was a reasuring victory for the independence of the juiciary and the separation of powers among the three branches.

Robert Livingston

Bought New Orleans and all the French territory west of the Mississippi River from Napoleon for 15 million dollars. He was only supposed to negotiate for a small part of New Orleans for 10 million so Jefferson was upset when he heard about Livingston's deal.

Aaron Burr

Burr was a running mate with Thomas Jefferson. They tied for the presidency. Jefferson won the run off. Burr killed Alexander Hamilton in a famous duel. He was tried and aquitted for treason involving a plan to seperate the US and combine with Spain.

Treaty of Ghent

December 24, 1814 - Ended the War of 1812 and restored the status quo. For the most part, territory captured in the war was returned to the original owner. It also set up a commission to determine the disputed Canada/U.S. border.

Henry Clay

Distinguished senator from Kentucky, who ran for president five times until his death in 1852. He was a strong supporter of the American System, a war hawk for the War of 1812, Speaker of the House of Representatives, and known as "The Great Compromiser." (responsible for the Missouri Compromise). Outlined the Compromise of 1850 with five main points. Died before it was passed however.

Lord Baltimore

Established Maryland as a haven for Catholics. He unsuccessfully tried to reconstitute the English manorial system in the colonies and gave vast tracts of land to Catholic relatives, a policy that soon created tensions between the seaboard Catholic establishment and back-country Protestant planters

William Clark

Explorer along with Merriwether Lewis sent out to explore the recently purchased Louisiana Territory. He served as the artist and cartographer. Their exploring lasted from 1804-1806. They traveled up the Missouri River, through the Rockies, and to the mouth of the Columbia River. This exploration bolstered America's claim to western lands as well as opening the west to Indian trade and further exploration.

William Henry Harrison

He was elected the first Whig President, but before he had been in office a month, he caught a cold that developed into pneumonia. His nickname was "Old Tippecanoe"

Land Law

Land Ordinance of 1785- A law that divided much of the United States into a system of townships to facilitate the sale of land to settlers and raise money. Part of the Articles of Confederation.

Louisiana Purchase

In 1803 Thomas Jefferson purchased 828,000 square miles of land for 15 million dollars from Napoleon the leader of France. The land mass stretched from the Gulf of Mexico all the to the Rocky Mountains and Canada. The purchase of this land sprouted national pride and ensured expansion.

Hartford Convention

Meeting of Federalists near the end of the War of 1812 in which the party listed it's complaints against the ruling Republican Party. These actions were largley viewed as traitorous to the country and lost the Federalist much influence

Meriwether Lewis

Meriwether Lewis was an American explorer, soldier, politician, and public administrator, best known for his role as the leader of the Lewis and Clark Expedition, also known as the Corps of Discovery, with William Clark. The expedition was one of the main explorations of the West. The area explored was: The Missouri River through the Rockie Mountains.

Tecumsah

Native American leader of the Shawnee. He attempted to unify the tribes of the Northwest against the whites. He opposed the United States and became an ally of Britain in the War of 1812.

1801:The Judiciary Act of 1801

Passed by the Federalist congress where the old capital was located. This law allowed the president, then President Adams, would stay up until midnight signing in new federal judges across the nation. It allowed the Federalists to still maintain power in the nation after they were a minority party in congress. This act brought bitterness between the two parties. These judges that were passed during the last day of President Adams were called "midnight Judges".

15 Million

Robert Livingston bought New Orleans and all the French territory west of the Mississippi River from Napoleon for 15 million dollars.

Sacajawea

Sacagawea, also Sakakawea or Sacajawea, was a Lemhi Shoshone woman who helped the Lewis and Clark Expedition achieve each of its chartered mission objectives exploring the Louisiana Purchase.

Algiers, Tunis, Tripoli, and Morrocco

The Barbary States were a collection of North African states, many of which practiced state-supported piracy in order to exact tribute from weaker Atlantic powers. Morocco was an independent kingdom, Algiers, Tunis, and Tripoli owed a loose allegiance to the Ottoman Empire.

Marbury V. Madison

Sec. of State James Madison held up one of John Adams' "Midnight Judges" appointments. The appointment was for a Justice of the Peace position for William Marbury. Marbury sued. Fellow Hamiltonian and Chief Justice John Marshall dismissed Marbury's suit, avoiding a political showdown and magnifying the power of the Court. This case cleared up contorversy over who had final say in interpreting the Constitution: the states did not, the Supreme Court did. This is judicial review.

Judicial Review

The doctrine under which legislative and executive actions are subject to review by the judiciary. A court with judicial review power may invalidate laws and decisions that are incompatible with a higher authority, such as the terms of a written constitution.

Oliver Hazard Perry

United States commodore who led the fleet that defeated the British on Lake Erie during the War of 1812

Thomas Jefferson

Writer of the Declaration of Independence; elected to Virginia's colonial legislature. In 1779 he was elected gov of Virginia. In 1785 he was appointed minister to France, architect of Monticello, and founder of Chiversity of Virginia.

Laissez-faire

a policy or attitude of letting things take their own course, without interfering.

Fort Mc Henry

fort which defended harbor in Baltimore, American beat off British Warship attack - battle was inspiration for National Anthem, War of 1812 site where Francis Scott Key was held prisoner. As battle ranges outside, he penned the words of Star Springled Banner

Old South/West

refers to the area of the United States west of the Appalachians and south of the Ohio, which were settled in the early nineteenth century, (Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana, and Arkansas)

Secede

withdraw formally from membership in a federal union, an alliance, or a political or religious organization.

Narrow Interpretation

.A theory of interpretation of the Constitution that holds that the courts, particularly the Supreme Court, should be bound by the exact words of the Constitution, or by the original intent of the framers of the Constitution, or a combination of both.

Berlin/Milan Decrees

1806 and 1807- Berlin decree- Napoleon declared his own paper blockade of the British Isle and barred British ships from ports under French control. The Milan decree ruled that neutral ships that complied with the British orders in council were subject to seizure when they reached continental ports. This helped lead to the War of 1812. It was harassment of US neutrality. Put the US in an awkward spot, either orders/decrees they followed they would be in trouble with the other.

Chesapeake V. Leopard

1807 - The American ship Chesapeake refused to allow the British on the Leopard to board to look for deserters. In response, the Leopard fired on the Chesapeake. As a result of the incident, the U.S. expelled all British ships from its waters until Britain issued an apology.

John Quincy Adams

6th president from 1825-1829; served in the Senate and House of Representatives; son of President John Adams; helped formulate the Monroe Doctrine as Secretary of State; lost his re-election to Andrew Jackson; viewed as one of the greatest diplomats in American history.

Andrew Jackson

A Democratic-Republican who was voted into office in 1828. The people wanted representation and reform from the administration of John Quincy Adams. Jackson believed that the people should rule. He was the first president from the west, and he represented many of the characteristics of the west. Jackson appealed to the common man as he was said to be one. He believed in the strength of the Union and the supremacy of the federal government over the state government.

Midnight Judges

A few weeks before his term as president was over, John Adams signed into law the Judiciary Act of 1801, which reorganized the federal court system. The "midnight judges" were selected by President John Adams, who signed appointments up until midnight on his last day in office. The term the Democrat-Republicans associated with the judicial appointments made by President John Adams at the very end of his presidential term.

Judiciary Act of 1789

A landmark statute adopted on September 24, 1789, in the first session of the First United States Congress. It established the U.S. federal judiciary. It organized the Supreme Court with a Chief Justice and five associate justices, as well as the federal district and circuit courts and established the office of attorney general.

Francis Scott Key

A lawyer and poet of the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries. Key wrote the words to " The Star-Spangled Banner" while watching the British bombardment of Fort McHenry, Maryland, in the War of 1812.

Strict Construction

A literal interpretation of a statute or document by a court. Interpreting the Constitution based on a literal and narrow definition of the language without reference to the differences in conditions when the Constitution was written and modern conditions, inventions and societal change

Mountain Men

A mountain man is a male trapper and explorer who lives in the wilderness. Mountain men were most common in the North American Rocky Mountains from about 1810 through the 1880s

Zebulon Pike

A pioneer who explored the Louisiana territory between 1805 - 1807. He explored Colorado, New Mexico, & Mississippi. He was a leader of the new land. He has set up the portal to allow people to migrate toward the west.

John Pickering

In 1804 Jefferson used the impeachment power against Pickering, a partisan Federalist judge. District Judge Pickering of New Hampshire. Pickering was clearly insane and was given to profane and drunken harangues from the bench. Although insanity is not a high crime or misdemeanor, the Senate decided that the drinking on the bench was an impeachable offense and Pickering was impeached.

New Orleans

Jefferson feared that a strong French presence in the midcontinent would force the U.S. into an alliance with Britain. Jefferson wanted to see if he could solve this problem by buying New Orleans and West Florida from the French. The Battle of New Orleans caused hundreds of British troops to die, while only handful of Americans lost their lives.

1803

Napoleon saw no reason to keep Louisiana. In 1803 he offered to sell the entire Louisiana Territory to the U.S.

Samuel Chase

Samuel Chase was a strong supporter of the American Revolution, a signer of the Declaration of Independence, an ardent Federalist, and the only Supreme Court Justice ever to be impeached. A lawyer by profession, in 1796 he was appointed to the U.S. Supreme Court by president Washington. This was after he served as Chief Justice of the General Court of Maryland in 1791. In 1804, for alleged prejudice against the Jeffersonians in treason and sedition trials. The senate, however, in a decision that indicated reluctance to remove judges for purely political reasons, did not convict him, and he remained on the court until his death.

Barbary States/Pirates

Sometimes called Barbary corsairs or Ottoman corsairs, were pirates and privateers who operated from North Africa, based primarily in the ports of Salé, Algiers, Tunis, and Tripoli. This area was known in Europe as the Barbary Coast, a term derived from the name of its Berber inhabitants.

1812-1815

The British Royal Navy had impressed at least 6,000 mariners who claimed to be citizens of the United States. In addition to impressments, Americans were dismayed by British agitation of the native population on the western frontier. Congress declared war on June 18, 1812. The war ended December 23, 1814, but to about 1815.

Impressment

The British practice of taking any sailors (not just British) and forcing them into military service if needed in an emergency. Infuriated Jefferson and American merchants.

Embargo Act

The Embargo Act of 1807 was a law passed by Congress forbidding all exportation of goods from the United States. Britain and France had been continuously harassing the U.S. And seizing U.S. ships and men. The U.S. was not prepared to fight in a war, so Pres. Jefferson hoped to weaken Brittian and France by stopping trade. The Embargo Act ended up hurting our economy more than theirs. It was repealed in 1809. The Embargo Act helped to revive the Federalists. It caused New England's industry to grow. It eventually led to the War of 1812.

Whiskey Tax

The House passed, by a 35 to 21 majority, the Excise Whiskey Tax—legislation that proved wildly unpopular with farmers and eventually precipitated the "Whisky Rebellion." The measure levied a federal tax on domestic and imported alcohol, earmarked to offset a portion of the federal government's recent assumption of state debts. Southern and western farmers, whose grain crop was a chief ingredient in whiskey, loudly protested the tax.

States Rights

The rights and powers held by individual US states rather than by the federal government.

Alien andSedition Acts

These consist of four laws passed by the Federalist Congress and signed by President Adams in 1798: the Naturalization Act, which increased the waiting period for an immigrant to become a citizen from 5 to 14 years; the Alien Act, which empowered the president to arrest and deport dangerous aliens; the Alien Enemy Act, which allowed for the arrest and deportation of citizens of countries at was with the US; and the Sedition Act, which made it illegal to publish defamatory statements about the federal government or its officials. The first 3 were enacted in response to the XYZ Affair, and were aimed at French and Irish immigrants, who were considered subversives.

Northeast

These tribes were fairly spread out along the East Coast. They were the first tribes US settlers came in contact with. Some tribes were peaceful and some were not. This included the Huron, Mohawk, Ojibwe, and Shawnee tribes, as well as many others.

Manifest Destiny

This expression was popular in the 1840s. Many people believed that the U.S. was destined to secure territory from "sea to sea," from the Atlantic to the Pacific Ocean. This rationale drove the acquisition of territory.

"Old Ironsides"

United States 44-gun frigate that was one of the first three naval ships built by the United States. One of many American ships that had thicker sides, heavier firepower, and larger crews with a single gun. They were used in the war of 1812 and were very useful in helping the Americans dominate the sea; something they could not accomplish on land.

John C. Calhoun

Vice President under Andrew Jackson; leading Southern politician; began his political career as a nationalist and an advocate of protective tariffs, later he becomes an advocate of free trade, states' rights, limited government, and nullification.

War of 1812

War between US and Britain; America declared war in 1812 because of trade restrictions, impressments, British support of American Indian tribes against American expansion, and humiliation of American honor.

James Monroe

Was sent to Paris in 1803 to buy New Orleans and as much land as possible to the east for a maximum of ten million dollars. Monroe and Robert Livingston arranged the of all of Louisiana for fifteen million dollars. Monroe later became James Madison's Secretary of State.

Washington D.C.

Washington, DC, the U.S. capital, is a compact city on the Potomac River, bordering the states of Maryland and Virginia. The burning of DC occurred August 24,1814 (during the War of 1812); British Army occupied Washington DC and set fire to many public buildings following the American defeat at the Battle of Bladensburg; Facilities of the US Government (i.e. White House and Capitol) were largely destroyed