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to The Boisterous Sea of Liberty Teaching Guide
Creating
a New Nation
Historical
Overview
The
Constitution had scarcely been drafted and ratified when political
divisions began to emerge over Alexander Hamilton's economic
program, which envisioned a political economy that had no place
for slavery. Political polarization was intensified by the French
Revolution, by France's efforts to entangle America in its war
with Britain, by popular protests in western Pennsylvania against
a federal excise tax on whiskey, an undeclared naval war with
France, and enactment of the Alien and Sedition Acts. For a
quarter century, the new nation wrestled with threats to its
existence. It faced repeated schemes to manipulate presidential
elections, plots to dismember the country, and threats of secession.
A former Vice President even found himself put on trial for
treason.
Overseas
events carried profound consequences for the new republic. The
French defeat by the Haitians in 1803 convinced Napoleon to
sell the Louisiana Territory to the United States. The prolonged
war between France and Britain led both countries to interfere
with American shipping. This commercial warfare gradually escalated
into the War of 1812, in which the United States waged war with
Britain and defeated powerful Indian confederations in the Old
Northwest and the South.
Debating
the Issues
The
entire history of the United States encompasses just three seventy-year
life times. Seventy years ago, the United States had entered
into the Great Depression. Seven decades earlier, the United
States was undertaking Reconstruction. And seventy years before
that, the United States was just beginning to institute a new
system of government based on the U.S. Constitution.
It
is extraordinary how much American society is transformed over
the course of a single human lifetime. A person born seventy
years ago witnessed the introduction of antibiotics, computers,
and television into American life. A person born two lifetimes
ago lived through the appearance of the electric light, the
telephone, the modern corporation, professional sports, and
the movies. And a person born three life times ago witnessed
unprecedented urban growth, the first stages of the industrial
revolution, the emergence of the first political party systems,
and the appearance of the first movements to reform society
through collective action. It may be enlightening to ask students
which generation witnessed the most profound and far-reaching
societal and technological transformations.
1.
What conflicts did the Framers of the Constitution have to overcome
in order to design a new system of government?
Disagreements
between larger and smaller states, between advocates of a
strong central government and strong state governments, as
well as differences over slavery.
2.
How did the Framers try to prevent abuses of power within the
central government? They adopted a system of checks and balances.
3.
The framers of the Constitution adopted a rule of secrecy. Do
you think they were justified in drafting the Constitution in
secret?
4.
An impassioned debate erupted following the Constitutional Convention.
Federalists defended the Constitution as vital to the nation's
survival, while Anti-Federalists criticized it as unnecessary
and unrepublican. Why did Anti-Federalists oppose the Constitution?
They claimed it weakened the states and undermined the peoples'
liberties. They felt the new government created by the Constitution
was insufficiently democratic and that because the House of
Representatives was small, ordinary citizens would find it difficult
to influence Congressional decisions. Further, they feared that
a president might become a tyrant. Finally, the Anti-Federalists
observed that the Constitution lacked a bill of rights, placing
clear limits on the central government's powers and specifying
the peoples' rights.
5.
Would you have supported or opposed the War of 1812?
6.
Do you think it would have been best for the Indian people of
the eastern United States to: form alliances across tribal lines
and mount armed resistance? move westward, across the Mississippi
River? learn the ways of the Americans and become, like them,
farmers and traders?
What
If?
How
would American history be different if:
1.
Northern delegates at the Constitutional Convention had refused
to give in to demands from delegates from South Carolina and
Georgia for strong protections for slavery?
2.
If Congress had voted during the 1780s or 1790s to exclude slavery
from all western territories, just as the Northwest Ordinance
barred slavery from the Northwest territories?
Interpreting
Maps
Compare
the size of the United States in the 1780s to the size of countries
in Europe.
Compare
the location of Indian peoples in 1492 and 1840.
Making
Ethical Judgements
1.
Imagine you were a delegate to the Constitutional Convention
who opposed slavery. Would you, like George Mason, refuse to
sign the Constitution? Or would you, like Benjamin Franklin,
sign it?
2.
The cotton gin revitalized the institution of slavery and led
to rapid western settlement in the South, all the way to Texas.
Should Eli Whitney have thought about the consequences of his
invention? Should inventors be held responsible for the consequences
of their inventions?
3.
Were missionaries right or wrong to want to share their religion
with Native Americans?
4.
Did whites have a right to settle land that the United States
owned, even though the land was inhabited by Indians?
Analyzing
Primary Sources
The
United States was one of the first nations in history to win
independence from colonial rule. It was followed in the late
eighteenth century by Haiti, in the early nineteenth century
by many of Spain's New World colonies, and in the twentieth
century by European colonies in Africa and Asia.
Unlike
most other former colonies, the United States was much more
successful in establishing a stable political system and a prospering
economy. Nevertheless, the first two decades under the new Constitution
were marked by mob violence, threats of disunion, attempts to
suppress political dissent, and efforts to manipulate presidential
elections.
The
story of the 1790s and the first decade of the nineteenth century
is how Americans took an abstract framework of government and
put it into practice. In the process, they developed a host
of innovations that had not appeared in the Constitution itself,
such as a two-party political system and the principle of judicial
review.
Document
2
What
were the Revolution's consequences for Native Americans? In
his 1780 letter, what does Thomas Jefferson regard as the most
effective Indian policy?
The
American victory brought a surge of American settlers westward,
onto Indian lands. Jefferson rejects the idea of stationing
troops on the frontier; instead he calls for removal of Native
Americans beyond the Great Lakes and Mississippi River.
Document
4
Why
did the Revolution make Americans more sensitive to the issue
of slavery-and encourage many states in the North to either
emancipate slaves or adopt gradual emancipation schemes?
The
Revolution's promise of natural rights and equality underscored
the contradiction between slavery and fundamental American values.
Why is the Quaker abolitionist James Pemberton hesitant to admit
African Americans into membership into the Society of Friends?
Because
of his concern about racial intermarriage.
Documents
8 and 9
Compare
and contrast John Adams's and Thomas Jefferson's appraisal of
American-British relations immediately following the Revolution.
Why do you think they reached such different conclusions?
According
to Adams, the King committed himself to recognizing the United
States as an independent power, while Jefferson was convinced
that the King and his ministers hated the United States and
treated America's trade overtures with derision.
Documents
10 and 11
Why
did Massachusetts Governor James Bowdoin issue a proclamation
calling on all judges and sheriffs to suppress Shays' Rebellion?
Because
he feared that they would "subvert all law and government,...dissolve
our excellent Constitution, and introduce universal riot,
anarchy, and confusion...." How does Benjamin Lincoln
describe the causes and significance of Shays' Rebellion?
He
attributes the rebellion to high taxes, the scarcity of money,
and the large number of debtors in the state.
Document
33
On
what grounds does Judith Sargent Stevens Murray argue for the
equality of the sexes?
She
maintains that women's occupations, such as cooking and needlework,
are inadequate to stimulate women's minds and that women's
intellectual capabilities are equal to men's.
Document
37
What
economic vision did Alexander Hamilton lay out in his "Report
on Manufacturers"?
He
believed that manufacturing would ensure the nation's economic
independence, which was necessary to secure the nation's political
independence. How does he respond to those who object to the
growth of manufacturing?
That
industry will offer job opportunities to farmers and people
who are not yet in the work force; it will encourage foreign
immigration and attract foreign capital; it will reduce prices
by providing competition for foreign imports; and it will
provide an expanded market for agricultural products.
Document
53
Why
does Washington refuse to consider running for the presidency
in 1800?
Because
politics has grown so partisan that he would not get a single
Republican vote. How would you describe his attitude toward
the Jeffersonian Republicans?
He
considers the Republicans naive in their attitude toward Revolutionary
France.
Documents
75
Why
did many New Englanders, like J.C. Jones and other citizens
of Boston and the Columbian Centinel, oppose the War of 1812?
Because
they believed that the war was unnecessary, was an effort
to help France in its conflict with Britain, and hurt the
American economy.
Document
80
On
what grounds does Niles' "Weekly Register" defend
the war?
Because
peaceful measures, like the embargo, had failed and because
Britain had incited Indian attacks and slave revolts.
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