Forging the Republic: Revolution & the New Nation (1754-1820s)

French & Indian War (1754-1763)

Consequences of French & Indian War

• No French threat on the frontier to create a common enemy for colonists and British Empire

• Possibility of enhanced westward expansion for colonists – not welcomed in London

• Weakened relations between the Crown and the Thirteen Colonies thanks to a “culture clash” from military partnership

Prelude to Revolution

Colonial Grievances

• Restrictions on westward expansion• Taxation without representation• Conspiracy theory that gradual enslavement

politically was the British goal• Inability to trade internationally• Connections and social standing mattered

more than merit

Boston as the Flashpoint

Proverbial “Shot Heard ‘Round the World” – Lexington Green – Apr 1775

Declaration of Independence

Strategic Overview of War

Patriot Battle Plan

• Win a war of attrition by wearing down British• Not necessary to win battles and occupy much

territory• Use guerilla tactics with small units and

skirmishes and quick retreats with armies• Avoid conventional, 18th Century style

engagements that favored British• Took some setbacks for this strategy to be

accepted

Most Desperate Hour for Patriots – Trenton – Dec 1776

French Join the Patriots – Keyed by Victory at Saratoga – Oct 1777

Final Victory – Yorktown – Oct 1781

Problems Within Patriot Movement

• Slavery question – more slaves won their freedom serving with British than among Patriots

• Class tensions – commoners wanted more of a voice than gentry class was generally willing to allow

• State authorities often uncooperative with Washington and Continental Congress

Treaty of Paris (1783)

Weaknesses of Articles of Confederation

• No chief executive of any significance• No ability for national government to tax or

set trade policy• No high court of the land• Unanimous consent required to amend

Articles• In effect, a recipe for chaos

Constitutional ConventionMay-Sep 1787

• Consensus around establishing what scholars call a republican regency – essentially protecting the people from themselves

• Slavery question put off through 3/5 Compromise and ban on international slave trade after 1808

• Large state/small state differences settled with two-house Congress as we know it today

Ratification Debate

• Federalists vs. Anti-Federalists• Liberty vs. Order – Where is proper

equilibrium?• Argument by James Madison in Federalist

Essay #10• Federalists win the day with promise of

national Bill of Rights

Election of George Washington

Emergence of Rudimentary Political Parties

• Federalists led by John Adams and Alexander Hamilton

• Favored loose interpretation of Constitution• Desired strong national government• Order prioritized over liberty• Pro-British foreign policy• Self-styled “aristocrats”• Ceased to be national force after Adams

presidency (1797-1801)

Emergence of Political Parties (continued)

• Republicans led by Thomas Jefferson and James Madison

• Favored strict interpretation of Constitution• States’ rights party• Pro-French foreign policy• Self-styled “democrats”• Favored by agricultural interests vs. industrially-

and commercially-oriented Federalists

XYZ Affair & Quasi-War with France

Louisiana Purchase - 1803

War of 1812 (1812-1815)

Missouri Compromise - 1820

Rise of Andrew Jackson

Political Impact of Jackson

• Democratic Party and its eventual opposition initially built around him

• Signified rise of the common man and necessity to cater politics towards the public

• Took everything in politics personally• Used more vetoes than all previous presidents

combined• Made the presidency a more powerful institution

than most Founders had anticipated

Recommended Primary Sources for Papers & Other Assignments

• Novanglus essay by John Adams (1775)• “Give me Liberty or Give me Death “ speech

by Patrick Henry (1775)• Common Sense and The American Crisis

essays by Thomas Paine (1776)• Declaration of Independence (1776)• Farewell Address by George Washington

(1796)

Primary Sources (continued)

• Virginia Statute for Religious Freedom by Thomas Jefferson (1786)

• Virginia and Kentucky Resolutions by James Madison and Thomas Jefferson (1798-1799)

• Monroe Doctrine (1823)• U.S. Supreme Court decision in Cherokee

Nation v. the State of Georgia (1831)