Origins of the American Republic

7/31/2019 Origins of the American Republic

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Origins of the

American Republic


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Historical Sources of the Constitution British customs and traditions (Magna

Charta, English Bill of Rights) Colonial experiences (power of electedassembly)

State constitutions written after the

Declaration of Independence Experiences under Articles of

Confederation


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Constitutional Convention 1787

Background: Declaration of Independence

Revolutionary War

Articles of Confederation and itsweaknesses

Shays Rebellion


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Toward Unity and Order

Goal: to bring the thirteenstates together while allowingeach state to remainindependent

Proposed in 1775 and debated

almost longer than theyexisted--Adopted on March, 1,1781 Under the Articles, each

state issued its owncurrency


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Weakness of Articles

No power to tax No chief executive

No national judiciary No power to regulate interstateor foreign commerce

No national currency Unanimous vote for any changes

No Power to Tax for Army orNav


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What other factors contributed tothe economic crisis for farmers in

Massachusetts that led to ShaysRebellion?

A: Changes in the Landby William Cronin


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The early republic produced rapid deforestation inthe region between the Atlantic Ocean and

Mississippi River.

1. 360 million acres of trees stretched between these

areas. 1 of the worlds greatest deforestations inhistory. Comparable to the current Amazondeforestation

2. there is no such thing as an environmentally neutralaction What do you think of this statement

3. Like all organisms humans radically change theirecosystem

4. Beavers radically effect their ecosystem by creatingdams that capture water and sediment gradually

transforming forests and streams into ponds andmeadows 18 feet dee and 4 000 feet lon .


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5. Amerindians altered their ecosystem by cuttingdown trees for firewood and burning for theclearing of lands.

6. This had little effect because of their small

numbers and lack of permanent dwellings.7. White settlers cut down trees to clear farm land,

to produce naval stores and potash and toproduce energyfire. Deforestation had 3 important ecological consequences

1. The destruction of animal habitat lowered speciesdiversity.

2. The lack of tree canopies affected the climate, makingSummers hotter and Winters colder.

3. The lack of trees increased the volume of water thatflowed directly into streams, leaving the soil drier and

vulnerable to erosion.


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The climate during the New Republic wasunpredictable and dangerous!

The century between 1750 and 1850 was the transition between theLittle Ice Age (1350-1850) and our modern climate.

Unpredictable weather made farming a high stakes gamble. In 1788 and 1789 poor harvests in NY, PA, and New England were

blamed on the Hessian Fly, but the real culprit was climate. Climatic instability from the end the Little Ice Age contributed to the

economic distress of the farmers and helped to precipitate ShaysRebellion.

Farmers in Western MA ran into debt because the growing season for13 years was so short as to result in a total loss for farmers (1774-1787).

There were several other domestic insurrections in addition to ShaysRebellion (1786/87): NH, VT, upstate NY, & VA


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Whats the Point?

Shays rebellion was a symptom oflarger national problems not really acause for writing the constitution.

There is typically more to the story!


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Annapolis Convention George Washington as the president of a company

dealing with an interstate trade commission led to aproposal to invite PA and DE to join negotiationsand create a commercial policy for the river system.

1786: Called to improve Articles of Confederation(AofC)

Ultimately this meeting included invitations to all ofthe 13 states to meet in Annapolis; only 12representatives from 5 states attended

End result was to call for a new meeting to makechanges to the AofC in Philadelphia


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Delegates

well-read, well-bred, well-fed, and well-wed - James

McGregor Burns (historian)


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55delegates attended the C.C. 4 delegateswithdrew in protestJohn Francis Mercer, LutherMartin, Robert Yates and John Lansing RIboycotted the convention and VT was not invited

34 lawyers, 26 were college graduates, 9 wereforeign-born 16 were slave owners, 33 were landgentry


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Each state had 1 vote, 7 states made quorum, andeach delegate was limited to 2 speeches/issues

The delegates kept the changes a secret toinsulate it from outside pressures

The official journal of the ConstitutionalConvention was published in 1819 & JamesMadisons notes in 1840


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Notable participants James Madison Father of Constitution

because of leadership and detailed notesof proceedings. George Washington presiding officer Benjamin Franklin elder statesman

Gouverneur Morris largely responsible forthe final wording

Alexander Hamilton most forcefuladvocate for strong central government


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Quiz Question

What was Charles A. Beards view ofthe delegates present at theconstitutional convention?

How were they different from the leaders ofthe revolutionary era?


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Charles Beards Economic Interpretation

of the United States (1913) Constitution written by propertied class therefore, it

naturally reflects those interests: (4 Groups)1. creditors2. holders of public securities3. manufacturers and4. traders and shippers

Beard claimed that 83% of the delegates stood to gain

financially from the adoption of the Constitution Rebuttals:

Most people owned property Even the poor (had hopes of someday owning property)

wanted to protect property Establishing a democratic government involved risks &

dangers need to build in safeguards and protections


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The Constitutional Convention of

1787: Consensus

The commonphilosophy accepted

by most of thedelegates was that ofbalanced government


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Areas of agreement among the founders

Scrap the Articles of Confederation

Establish a republican government Establish a constitutional government Establish a balanced govt where no single

interest dominated

Suffrage for property owners only Stronger central govt Protection of property rights (main purpose

of govt)

Keep the proceedings secret


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Areas of disagreement (Compromises) Representation among the states

Large states favored the Virginia Plan (JamesMadison, Edmund Randolph): based uponpopulation VA, NY, PA, MA, wanted proportionaterepresentation

Small states favored the New Jersey Plan

(William Patterson): equal representation CN,NJ, DE, NC, SC, & GA Should DE 59,000 receive equal rep. with VAs

748,000 Debate over representation lasted about 1 month

June 19-July16


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The Constitutional Convention of 1787:Conflict and Compromise

The Conflict

State-based approach versus anindividual-based approach

The Compromise

House of Representatives:Proportional; Senate: Equal numberof representatives from each state

The Conflict

The fact that Northerners hated slaveryworried Southerners who feared that

their greater representation in Congresswould be used to end slavery

The Compromise

The Constitution was to protectthe Atlantic Slave Trade for at

least twenty years


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The Constitutional Convention of 1787:Conflict and Compromise

The ConflictIf representation is proportional

in the House ofRepresentatives, how should

slaves be counted?

The Compromise

Three-Fifths of the slaves in eachstate would be counted


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The Great Compromise The Great Compromise July 5, 1787 had 3

provisions Equal representation for the States in the Senate but the

Senators would vote as individuals

Proportionate representation for the House ofRepresentatives and the house had the sole authority toinitiate appropriate bills

Slaves counted 3/5 of a person for representation in the

House of Representative the 3/5 clause and the GreatCompromise pass 5-4-1CN, NJ, DE, MD, NC, voted forthe Great Compromise

PA and VA voted against the Great Compromisebecause of the 3/5the clause they wanted 5/5ths

NY left, NH had not yet arrived, and RI never came

MA was divided


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Ratification politics Federalists (Leaders: Hamilton, Madison,

Washington, Jay) Supporters: property owners, creditors,merchants

Main principles

Elites most fit to govern Feared excesses of democracy Favored strong central government


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Federalists versus Anti-Federalists

The Federalist Papers

James Madison, AlexanderHamilton and John Jay

To rally support for theratification of the Constitution

Ratification, 1788: by stateratifying conventions of popularly-elected delegates

The Brutus Essays


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Ratification politics (cont)

Anti-federalists (Leaders: Henry, Mason, Jerry) Supporters: small farmers, frontiersmen, debtors,

shopkeepers

Main principles

Feared concentration of power in hands of elites Believed that govt should be closer to the people

Feared strong central government favored stronger stategovernments

Feared the lack of Bill of Rights (their strongest argument)


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Ratification politics (cont

Federalist advantages Were better represented in state legislatures

Controlled the press

Began ratification procedures quickly before

Anti-federalists could get organized Agreed to a Bill of Rights after ratification of

the constitution


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Election of the President

Life term v. annual election compromiseof a 4 year term Method of election

Some wanted election by Congress

Some wanted election by state Legislatures Some wanted direct election

Compromise Electoral College

Documents

Origins of the American Republic