Period 3 (1754 - 1800) - Road to Revolution and the New Republic (APUSH)
Loyalists (also known as Tories)
- wealthy and conservative - 520,000 to 780,000 soliders (apport 20-30% of population) - fought along side the British / were given arms + food - supported by Native Americans
Abigail Adams
- wife of John Adams - wanted women to be included in the writing of the Constitution - "i desire you would remember the ladies and be more generous and favorable to them than your ancestors"
James Madison
- "father of the Constitution" - helped to adjust specific articles of Constitution
Constitutional Convention
- 13 states were to send delegates to Philadelphia to revise the Articles of Confederation / Rhode Island refuses to send delegates DELEGATES: - white - male - (mostly) college educated - (relatively) young - well acquainted with law and politics - wealthier than the average American KEY ISSUES: - Representation -> should large states have proportionally more delegates in Congress than small states? - Slavery -> should enslaved people be counted in state populations? - Trade -> how/who will trade be regulated?
Pontiac's Rebellion
- 1763 - Chief Pontiac leads major attack against colonial settlements - Natives were angry about British westward expansion + their refusal to offer gifts - destroyed forts and settlements from New York to Virginia - Britain sends troops to put down the uprising
Parliament
- British government - primarily dominated by the Whigs - wanted American colonies to bear more of the cost of maintaining the British government
Salutary Neglect
- British government did not enforce legislation from Parliament that was meant to keep the colonists obedient and loyal to the Crown - discontinued after the British victory in the French and Indian War
Boston Tea Party
- December 16, 1773 - a group of Bostonians disguised themselves as Native Americans, boarded British ships and dumped 342 chests of tea into the Boston harbor
Boston Massacre
- March 5, 1770 - a crowd of Bostonians began throwing snowballs at British troops. This situation escalates drastically as the British troops retaliate by shooting into the crowd, resulting in the death of five Bostonians. - described as a "massacre" to increase/escalate anti-British feeling [INCREASES COLONIAL RESISTANCE TO BRITISH RULE]
Second Continental Congress
- May 1775 DELEGATES: - (mainly) New England -> colonies should declare independence - (mainly) Middle Colonies -> colonies should negotiate a new relationship with Great Britain MILITARY ACTIONS: 1) Declaration of the Causes and Necessities for Taking Up Arms - colonies needed to provide troops 2) George Washington is appointed Commander-in-Chief 3) Benedict Arnold and his military force are authorized to raid Quebec in order to draw Canada away from Britain 4) American navy and marine corps is organized (fall of 1775) PEACE EFFORTS: - "Olive Branch Petition" - colonists pledged loyalty to the king / asked the king to negotiate with Parliament to secure peace and the protection of colonial rights (July 1774) *dismissed by the king - Prohibitory Act - declares that the colonies are in rebellion (August 1775) *approved by the king*
First Continental Congress
- September 1774 PURPOSE: - to respond to what the delegates viewed as Britain's alarming threats to their liberties DELEGATES: - Radicals: Patrick Henry of Virginia, Samuel + John Adams of Massachusetts - Moderates: George Washington of Virginia, John Dickinson of Pennsylvania - Conservatives: John Jay of New York, Joseph Galloway of Pennsylvania *colonists loyal to the king's government were unrepresented* ACTIONS: 1) Suffolk Resolves - immediate repeal of the Intolerable Acts / colonists should resist Intolerable Acts by making military preparations and boycotting British goods 2) Declaration of Rights and Grievances - urged the king to take care of colonial grievances and restore colonial rights / recognized Parliament's authority to regulate commerce 3) Continental Association (also known as Association) - network of committees that would enforce the economic sanctions of the Suffolk Resolves 4) Delegates would meet again in May 1775 if colonial rights were not recognized
XYZ Affair
- U.S merchant ships were being seized by French warships and privateers - Adams sends a delegation to Paris to negotiate with the French government - French ministers, known as X, Y and Z request bribes in order to begin negotiations / Americans refuse AMERICAN'S RESPONSE: - start war with France - "millions for defense, but not one cent for tribute" PRESIDENT'S RESPONSE: - new minsters sent to Paris - U.S army and navy were not strong enough to fight a major power - avoids war
Two-Term Tradition
- Washington leaves office after two terms which prompts other presidents to follow to do the same (Jefferson, Jackson, Monroe, Madison etc.) - Constitution placed no limits on a president's tenure in office - 1940 - FDR becomes first president to be elected to a third term - 22nd Amendment (1951) - president's time in office is limited to two terms
Writs of Assistance
- a general license to search anywhere - introduced during the Townshend Acts of 1767
Declaration of Independence
- adopted on July 4, 1776 - drafted by Thomas Jefferson - declared that the colonies independent and no longer under British rule - listed specific grievances against the British monarchy
Proclamation of Neutrality (1793)
- belief by Washington that the United States was not strong enough to engage in a European war - United States must remain neutral in conflicts - leads to Jeffersons resignation
President's Cabinet
- cabinet of advisers with whom the President meets with regularly to discuss policy issues - consists of the Secretary of State, Secretary of the Treasury, Secretary of War, Attorney General
Tea Act of 1773
- created in order to stimulate the sales of the East India Company - the British government offers the EIC multiple rebates and tax exemptions - EIC dumps low cost tea onto the American market which was cheaper than smuggled Dutch tea - severely affects merchants and smugglers. [INCREASES COLONIAL RESISTANCE TO BRITISH RULE]
Coercive Acts (aka Intolerable Acts of 1774)
- created in retaliation to the Boston Tea Party - punished the people of Boston and Massachusetts - consisted of four acts: 1) Port Act - closed the port of Boston which prohibited trade in and out of Boston until all the destroyed tea was payed for 2) Massachusetts Government Act - reduced the power of Massachusetts legislature while increasing the power of the royal governor 3) Administration of Justice Act - allowed royal officials accused of crimes to be tried in Great Britain instead of in the colonies 4) Quartering Act (expanded) - enabled British troops to lodge in private colonial homes [INCREASES COLONIAL RESISTANCE TO BRITISH RULE]
Albany Plan of Union (1756)
- developed by Benjamin Franklin - called for an intercolonial government and a system for recruiting troops and collecting taxes from colonies for their common defense - never takes effect (leads the way for future congresses during the Revolutionary War)
Three-fifths Compromise
- established for the purpose of determining a states level of taxation and representation - enslaved people were counted as three-fifths of a person
Checks and Balances
- established to ensure that no one branch of government was more powerful than the others - Executive / Legislative / Judicial
Electoral College
- established to help decide who becomes president - delegates feared that too much democracy might lead to "mob rule" - each state is assigned a number of electors equal to the total of that states representatives and senators
Northwest Ordinance of 1787
- establishes a method for territories to become states - one success of the Articles of Confederation
Land Ordinance of 1785
- establishes a system to divide land among settlers - one success of the Articles of Confederation
Articles of Confederation (1783 - 1789)
- first government of the United States of America - established a central government that had only one body (Congress) - extremely ineffective at building a stable and cohesive nation
Bill of Rights
- first ten amendments of the Constitution - stated the rights of the people
Stamp Act Congress
- formed in 1765 - declared that only their own elected representatives had the legal authority to approve taxes - "no taxation without representation"
French and Indian War (Seven Years War)
- fought between 1754 - 1763 CAUSE: - Britain and France were fighting for control of the Ohio River & Canada - Algonquins & Mohawks (feared British expansion) allied w/ French - remaining Iroquois allied w/ British DURING WAR: - Albany Plan of Union, developed by Benjamin Franklin - established a inter colonial government and a system of recruiting troops and collecting taxes for the colonies common defense - never took effect -> did inspire colonial governments during the Revolutionary War EFFECT: - British supremacy in North America - British become dominant naval power - colonists no longer faced the threat of attack from the French, Spanish and Natives - changes relationship between Britain and colonies BRITAIN: - low opinion of colonial military abilities - colonial militia was poorly trained and disorderly - colonists were unable and unwilling to defend new frontiers of the expanded British empire - colonists were unwilling to contribute troops or money to the war effort COLONIES: - developed confidence that they could successfully protect/fight for themselves - were not impressed with British troops/British leadership - believed Britains method of warfare was bad
John Adams
- husband of Abigail Adams - 2nd POTUS - 1st VPOTUS (w/ George Washington) - delegate at the Continental Congress
Committees of Correspondence
- initiated in 1772 by Samuel Adams - GOAL: to keep enforcing the view that British officials were undermining colonial liberties - committees would regularly exchange letters about suspicious/potentially threatening British activies
Stamp Act of 1765
- introduced by Prime Minister George Grenville - Parliament attempted to raise money to support British military forces in the colonies - required that all printed materials (newspapers, books, court documents, court documents, commercial papers, land deeds, almanacs etc.) produced must carry a stamp purchased from authorities - first direct tax paid by the people in the colonies EFFECTS: - unrest in colonies - Stamp Act Congress formed in 1765 -> concluded that only their own elected representatives had the legal authority to approve taxes - Sons and Daughters of Liberty -> secret society organized for the purpose of intimidating tax agents / destroyed revenue stamps and tarred and feathered revenue officials - boycott of British products [INCREASES COLONIAL RESISTANCE TO BRITISH RULE]
Sugar Act of 1764 (also known as Revenue Act of 1764)
- introduced by Prime Minister George Grenville - tax on foreign sugar and certain luxuries - CHIEF PURPOSE: raise money for the crown -established new machinery to end widespread smuggling by colonial merchants. [INCREASE IN COLONIAL RESISTANCE TO BRITISH RULE]
Townshend Acts of 1767
- introduced by the chancellor of the Exchequer (the cabinet's chief financial minister), Charles Townshend - imposed new taxes on goods imported into the colonies (tea, glass and paper) - allowed the search of private homes for smuggled goods [INCREASES COLONIAL RESISTANCE TO BRITISH RULE]
King George III
- king of England from 1760 to 1820 - wanted American colonies to bear more of the cost of maintaining the British government
Shays' Rebellion (1786 - 1787)
- led by Daniel Shays, a Massachusetts farmer and Revolutionary War veteran and other farmers - uprising against high state taxes, imprisonment for debt, and lack of paper money - showed that the Articles of Confederation were weak - leads to the Constitutional Convention
Boycotts
- popularized during 1765 and 1766 - most effective form of protest against the British government - colonists would not purchase any product that was of British origin
Patriots
- primarily from Virginia and New England states - were short of supplies, poorly equipped and rarely paid - 5000 African American soldiers (were promised their freedom) - led by George Washington
Proclamation of 1763
- prohibited colonists from settling west of the Appalachian Mountains
The Great Compromise
- proposed by Roger Sherman of Connecticut - established a two house Congress - the Senate and House of Representatives - Senate: states would have equal representation - House of Representatives: each state would have representation according to the size of its population
Thomas Paine's Common Sense
- published in January 1776 - called for the colonies to become independent states and break all political ties with the British monarchy - argued that it was illogical for a large continent to be ruled by a small, distant island whose government was corrupt and laws unreasonable
Quartering Act of 1765
- required colonists to provide food and living quarters for British soldiers who were stationed in the colonies [INCREASE IN COLONIAL RESISTANCE TO BRITISH RULE]
Sons and Daughters of Liberty
- secret society organized by colonists for the purpose of intimidating tax agents - members sometimes destroyed revenue stamps and tarred/feathered revenue officials
Treaty of Paris
- signed in 1783 between Great Britain and the United States - ends the Revolutionary War ESTABLISHES: 1) Great Britain would recognize the United States as an independent nation 2) The Mississippi River would be the western boundary of this new nation 3) Americans would have fishing rights off the coast of Canada 4) Americans would pay debts owed to British merchants 5) Americans would honor Loyalist claims for property confiscated during the war
Whiskey Rebellion (1794)
CAUSE: - Hamilton persuades Congress to pass a excise tax, specifically on the sale of Whiskey - group of farmers in western Pennsylvania refuse to pay the federal tax / attack revenue collectors in response in order to protect their "individual liberties" - - Washington sends in 15,000 state militiamen under the authority of Alexander Hamilton EFFECT: - shows positive contrast in federal response to conflict (Shays' Rebellion under the Articles of Confederation) - Thomas Jefferson gains popularity as a champion of the western frontier
Jay Treaty (1794)
CAUSE: - Britain begins searching and seizing American ships and impressing seamen into the British navy EFFECT: - Britain agrees to evacuate its posts on the U.S western frontier - maintained Washington's policy of neutrality
Hamilton (Federalists) vs. Jefferson (Democratic-Republicans)
FEDERALISTS: Leaders: John Adams + Alexander Hamilton Views of the Constitution: loose construction, strong federal government Foreign Policy: pro-Britain Military Policy: large peacetime army and navy Economic Policy: aid business, national bank, high tariffs Supporters: Northern business owners, large landowners DEMOCRATIC-REPUBLICANS: Leaders: Thomas Jefferson + James Madison Views of the Constitution: strict construction, weak federal government Foreign Policy: pro-French Military Policy: small peacetime army and navy Economic Policy: agriculture, no national bank, no tariffs Supporters: skilled workers, small farmers, plantation owners
Anti-Federalists
Leaders: (Virginia) George Mason + Patrick Henry, (Massachusetts) James Winthrop + John Hancock, (New York) George Clinton - believed a strong central government would destroy the Union, limit democracy, + restrict states rights - common along the western frontier, were small farmers and settlers
Federalists
Leaders: George Washington, Benjamin Franklin, James Madison, Alexander Hamilton - believed a strong central government was needed to maintain and preserve the Union - common along the Atlantic Coast and large cities
