THE RISE OF THE UNITED STATES

THE RISE OF THE UNITED STATESPrepared by:Jesse G. CalingAB History-3

OBJECTIVES:At the end of this chapter, the student will be able to:

Learn more about the life of Americans under Colonization;Familiarize on how the Americans fight for their liberation and;Discuss on how America was free from the colonizer.

BRITISH COLONIAL POLICYEngland won the North American continent from France, but lost the affection of the American settlers.In her desire to rehabilitate her financial resources which had been exhausted by the costly wars, she levied many taxes on the settlers and Restricted their trade.

When the liberty-loving Americans showed signs of opposition, King George III sent ruthless governors, generals, and customs collectors to the Thirteen colonies in order to enforce the British authority.These minions of British power forcibly collected taxes, enforced restrictions on colonial trade, had trampled down the colonist political rights.

AMERICAN RESISTANCE TO BRITISH RULEThe American settlers refused to pay taxes on the ground that the laws providing for their collection were promulgated by the British Parliament, where they had no representation.According to them Taxation without representation was illegal. To evade paying taxes, they smuggled rum, sugar, coffee, and Textiles.

They also boycotted British goods in the Colonies. In the different colonial assemblies, representatives delivered fiery speeches against the restrictive policy of the mother country.At the Virginia House of Burgesses, Patrick Henry urged his compatriots to make any sacrifice in defense of their rights.

With stirring eloquence, he thundered: Is life so dear, or peace so sweet, as to be purchased at the price of chains and slavery? Forbid it, Almighty God! I know not course others may take; but as for me, give me liberty, or give me death!

Violent anti-British riots broke out in some cities. British officials, particularly the collectors of customs, were stoned or beaten up by the colonists.In several colonies, especially in Massachusetts, the Patriots organized themselves into militias called minutemen drilled daily, and stored up millitary supplies.

On March 5, 1770, some British soldiers fired on a hostile mob, killing five men and wounding six. This incident was called the Boston Massacre.More dramatic, though less bloody, was the Boston Tea Party. In the dark night of December 16, 1773, a group of American patriots, disguised as Indians, silently boarded the British vessels at the harbor and dumped their cargoes of tea into the sea.

Angered by the loss of the valueable tea, Parliament passed the Intolerable Acts (1774) which closed the port of Boston until the tea should be paid, repealed the liberal charter of Massachusetts, and empowered the British colonial governors to quarter troops in private homes.

FIRST CONTINENTAL CONGRESS (1774)As tension mounted in the colonies, the First Continental Congress met at Philadelphia, on September 5, 1774.It was attended by 56 delgates from twelve colonies (Georgia did not participate). Among the prominent delgates were George Washington and Patrick Henry from Virginia, and John Jay from New York.

During the session, Patrick Henry expressed the new spirit of American nationalism in the following words: The distinctions between Virginians, Pennsylvannians, New Yorkers, and New Englanders are no more. I am not a Virginian, but an American.

The first continental Congress organized a Continental Association, with local comittees in all colonies, to enforce the boycott on English goods.It also prepared the Declaration of Rights and Grievances which was submitted to the British people and government. This document won some British sympatizers to the American cause in England, among them Edmund Burke, Adam Smith, and William Pitt the Younger.

THE FIRST AMERICAN FREEDOMInstead of heeding the grievances of the American colonists, King George III ordered General Thomas Gage, commnader of the British army in America and governor of Massachusetts, to arrest the leader and confiscate all millitary stores.

At dawn of April 19, 1775, the first shot of American freedom was fired in Lexington. A company of 70 minutemen, alerted by Paul Revere who galloped through the night from Boston, fought 700 redcoats (British soldiers in red uniforms) who were on their way to destroy the colonial military stores at Concord, about 20 miles from Boston.

After a brief but furious fight, the outnumbered patriots retreated, leaving eight dead comrades on the field. This skirmish at Lexington ignited the War of American Independence.The British pushed on to Concord, where they met more resistance from the fighting patriots. However, they were able to destroy the millitary stores. News of the fight at Lexington and Concord spread like a forest fire. Everywhere the patriots rushed to arms.

SECOND CONTINENTAL CONGRESS (1775)The Second Continental Congress met at Philadelphia on May 10, 1775. It decided to fight for American rights.It organized an army and appointed George Washington as its commander. It established a navy and issued paper money to raise funds for the persecution of the libertarian struggle. It also declared war on England.

EARLY BATTLES OF THE REVOLUTIONIn May, 1775, while the Second Continental Congress was in session, Ethan Aller of Vermont and his famous Green Mountain Boys seized Ticonderoga and Crown point, thus cutting off the British route between Canada and New York.

On June 17, 1775, the British forces attacked Breeds Hill overlooking Boston, which was fortified and defended by the patriots under Colonel William Prescott.After a bloody and fierce battle, the patriots evacuated the hill, having used up all their ammunition. This battle has been erroneously called Battle of Bunker Hill.

Other battles flared up in New England and North Carolina. The heroic attempt of the American patriots to capture Quebec failed, and they were forced out of Canada.

AMERICAN DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE (JULY 4, 1776)While the patriots were busy fighting, their leaders were discussing in the Second Continental Congress the fundamental issue of independence.On July 2, 1776, the resolution submitted by Richard Lee of Virginia asserting the right of the colonies to be free and independent was approved by an overwhelming majority vote.

Thomas Jefferson, who was a master of forceful prose style, was assigned to write the American Declaration of Independence.On July 4, the historic document was approved by the Congress. The first signer was John Hancock, presiding officer of the congress, followed by the members.

The American Declaration of Independence consists of three parts: (1) the right of revolution against a government which denies the peoples inalienable rights to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness; (2) a long list of the oppresive acts of King George III; and (3) the pledge of the members of the congress to defend the independence of the new nation with their lives, their fortunes, and their sacred honor.

DARK DAYS OF REVOLUTIONSince Lexington, the tide of war was against the rebelling Americans. Washington was handicapped for lack of men, ammunition, and funds.On the other hand, the British forces were reinforced by redcoats and Hessians (German mercenaries from Hesse-Cassel, a state in Germany), who were adequately armed and well-fed.

Many Americans, especially in New York, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Georgia, remained loyal to England and were called Torries.

In August 1776, General William Howe, Gages successor as commander of the British army in America, deteated Washington at Long Island and took New York City.Washington, with his small army, fled across New Jersey to Delaware. He returned in December and captured Trenton and Princeton.

Howe counter-attacked in the summer of 1777, beat Washington at Brandywine, and took Philadelphia.Washingtons defeat was offset by the American victory at Saratoga (October 17, 1777). General Burgoyne, commander invading British army from Canada, lost of the battle and surrendered to the Americans. Meanwhile, Washington was on retreat. He established his headquarters at Valley Forge, where he and his men spent gloomy winter of 1777.

FOREIGN AID TO FIGHTING AMERICANSFortunately for the American patriots, France, Spain, and Holland came to their aid. It was Benjamin Franklin, American diplomat and distinguished man of letters and science who was instrumental in persuading these European powers to declare war on England and help thirteen colonies.

Certain liberty-loving Europeans actually served under the American against the British. Most famous of them was the French noblemen, Marquis Lafayette, who fought gallantly and was wounded at the Battle of Brandywine. Baron von Steuben, Prussian army officer and former aide-de-camp of King Frederick the Great, became the drillmaster of Washingtons army.

Two brave Poles, Casimir Pulaski and Thaddeus Kosciusko, also rendered valuable services to the American forces.Pulaski died in battle, while Kosciuko survived the war and returned to Poland.

THE WAR AT SEAThroughout the war, Englands mighty navy dominated the sea. Yet the few and small American frigates under the command of bold Yankee naval captains were able to inflict heavy damage on British sea power and commerce.

Most dashing of Americas naval heroes during revolution was John Paul Jones. With a squadron of five small warships, he cruised in the waters of Ireland and Scotland in August, 1779, capturing many British merchantmen.

A month later (September 23), his flagship Bon Homme Richard engaged the British warship Serapis in single combat near the coast of Scotland.He won after terrific fight and captured the Serapis, thereby establishing a fine tradition of heroism in Americas naval anal.

THE WAR IN THE SOUTH AND WESTFailing to crush Washington, the British transferred the war to the South. They hoped to win the support of the Tories of Georgia and the Carolinas.At first, they were victorious, for they captured Savannah (December, 1778) and Charleston (May, 1780). They were, however, checked at Kings Mountain in North Carolina (October, 1780) by the Americas guerrillas.

In the West, the British were strongly intrenched for they made the Indians their allies. Kentucky was revaged by Indian raids, which were instigated by the British authorities.Led by George Rogers Clark, the Americans smashed the British forces at Kaskaskia and Vincennes (1778-79) in Illinois. The successful campaign of Clark broke the British power in the west.

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AMERICANS WIN THEIR INDEPENDENCEAs the tide of war was turning in favor of the Americans, General Cornwallis, British Commander, made a serious blunder in Virginia.He allowed himself to be trapped by the American and French forces at Yorktown. On land, he was surrounded by Washington and Comte de Rochambeau (French General).

He could not escape by the sea for French fleet under Admiral Francois de Grasse blockaded Chesapeake Bay.On October 19, 1781, General Cornwallis surrendered to Washington at Yorktown, thus ending the American war of Independence. At last, the Americans won their independence, which was recognized by England in the Treaty of Paris, signed on September 3, 1783.

PROBLEMS OF A NEW NATIONThe period (1781-87) was a critical one which threatened to destroy the independence that has been so dearly won by so much blood, sweat, and tears.Serious problems as follows:

WEAKNESS OF THE NATIONAL GOVERNMENTThe articles of confederation of 1781 established a confederation of sovereign states, each enjoying great powers. The national government was weak because it had no power to levy taxes and to regulate commerce.

DISUNITY AMONG THE STATESAfter winning independence, the states fell apart and resumed their old jealousies and quarrels They imposed tariff against one anothers products and quarreled over their boundary lines.

ECONOMIC CRISISThe economy of the new nation was paralyzed. Agriculture and industries were ruined. The paper money issued by the Continental congress became worthless because the national treasury was bankrupt. People derisively referred to things without value as worthless as the continental. Prices of commodities soared sky-high and thousands of people became unemployed. The government could not pay its obligations to foreign governments and to its own people.

LACK OF FOREIGN MARKETSSuffering economic distress at home, the new nation lost its markets in foreign lands. England, Spain, and the other European countries closed their doors to American trade.

ABSENCE OF PRESTIGE ABROADForeign powers did not respect the new nation because it was poor and unstable. American diplomats abroad were shabbily treated. As Thomas Jefferson, US minister in France, reported: We are the lowest and most obscure of the diplomatic tribe.

EMERGENCE OF A STRONGER NATIONAs the condition of the new nation grew worse, Benjamin Franklin, George Washington, Alexander Hamilton, and other leaders urged the strengthening of the national government.Accordingly, the Philadelphia Convention met on May 14, 1787 to draft a constitution.

It was attended by delegates from twelve states. Rhode Island sent no delgate. Among the prominent delegates were George Washington, James Madison, and Edmund Randolf from Virginia; Alexander Hamilton from New York; Benjamin Franklin from Pennsylvania; and John Dickinson from Delaware.

On September 17, 1787, after nearly four months of work, the Constitution of the United States was finished and signed by 139 delegate.James Madison who had worked very hard for its passage came to be called the Father of the Constitution.

The Constitution required the ratification of at least nine states before it could be put into effect.Many Americans strongly opposed its ratification. Their objections to the Constitution were as follows: (1) it is godless because it does not mention God; (2) it contains no Bill of Rights; and (3) it deprives the states of their sovereign rights.

A brilliant defense of the Constitution was put up by Alexander Hamilton, James Madison, and John Jay, resulting in the ratification of the Constitution by nine states at the end of June, 1788. The first state to ratify the historic document was Delaware (1787) and the ninth state, New Hamsphere (1788).

WASHINGTON, FIRST PRESIDENT

The new government under constitution was inaugurated at New York, temporary capital of the nation on April 30, 1789

President Washington took his oath of office before Robert Livingston. As he bent his head to kiss the Bible on which he had taken the oath, the vast crowd that witnessed the inagural ceremony cheered: Long Live George Washington, President of the United States!

Washington, great in war and in peace, successfully laid the solid foundation of the American republic.Honest, sincere, and devoted, he gave his people a fruitful and clean administration. At the end of his second term in 1796, he was urged by the people to run for a third term, but he refused. In his famous Farewell Address, he advised his people to stay out of entangling alliances with other powers.

ORIGIN OF THE PARTY SYSTEMAlthough the framers of the Constitution had no intention of establishing a government by party system, the political parties arose because of the conflict between two members of Washingtons Cabinet- Jefferson, Secretary of State, and Hamilton, Secretary of Treasury.

Hamilton favored a strong federal government, high tariff to protect the infant manufacturing industries, and a liberal interpretation of the Constitution. He and his followers came to be called the Federalists.

Opposing Hamilton, Jefferson championed the rights of the states, low tariff to help the farmers and landowners, and a strict interpretation of the Constitution.He and his followers were called Anti-Federalists, or Democratic Republican or simply Republicans.

John Adams (Federalists) was elected President in 1796, succeeding Washington who retired to his happy plantation home called Mt. Vernon. Adams held office for only one term (1796-1800).

JEFFERSONIAN DEMOCRACY

JEFFERSONIAN DEMOCRACY

In the presidential election of 1800, Thomas Jefferson (Democratic Republican) defeated Adams at polls.

He was the first President to be inagurated at the nations capital Washington, D.C.Jefferson, a cultured and versatile Virginian, was one of Americas greatest men. His presidency (two terms, 1800-08) introduced a new type of democracy known as Jeffersonian Democracy.

It was a democracy of the common people farmers, small landowners, and middle-class intelligentista.This democracy differed from the democracy differed from the democracy of rich industrialists and aristocratic landlords which prevailed during the time of Washington and Adams.

Jefferson believed in equal opportunities for all men, regardless of birth and social position. He also believed that popular education, free press, vigilant public opinion, and economic security were prerequisites of a good democracy.

Other achivements of President Jefferson were (1) the purchase of Louisiana (1803) from Napoleon the Great for $15,000,000; (2) victory in the war (1801-05) against the Barbary States of North Africa (Tunis, Algiers, Morocco, and Tripoli) which preyed on American shipping in the Mediterranean;

(3) reduction of taxes, government debts, and army expenses; and (4) explorations of the west by Meriwether Lewis and William Clark (1804-06) and Lieutenant Zebulon Pike (1805-07).

SECOND WAR FOR INDEPENDENCE (1812)In 1808 James Madison, another Democratic Republican, succeeded Jefferson to the Presidency.At that time there was an intense anti-British feeling in America because of (1) Englands instigation of Indian attacks on American frontier settlements and (2) kidnapping of American seamen by British naval officers.

Despite Americas unpreparedness for war, the fiery War Hawks a group of anti-British politicians, compelled President Madison and Congress to declare war on England (June 18, 1812).American Historians call this needless war the Second war for independence, once more the Americans fought England in defense of their land and freedom.

Surprisingly, the small American fleet won some amazing victories against the mighty English navy.On August 19, 1812, the American warship constitution (later rechristened Old Iron Sides), captained by Isaac Hull, defeated the British Guerrire in a sea duel off the Gulf of St. Lawrence.

Later, on September 13, 1813, Captain Oliver H. Perry, with a flotilla of new ships, defeated the British squadron at Lake Erie.But in the end the British navy prevailed and it blockaded the coast of the United States.

Early in the war the American invaded Canada, but they were repulsed. In retaliation, the British forces in Canada invaded the United States.They captured and burned Washington, D.C. (August 24, 1814). But the attempt of the British fleet to take Baltimore was foiled by the heroic resistance of Fort McHenry.

A young American, Francis Scott Key, witnessed the all-night battle. The thrilling sight of the American flag still waving proudly at dawn (September 13) on Fort McHenrys parapet inspired him to compose the Star-Spangled Banner, Americas national anthem.

Unable to capture Baltimore, the British fleet left, sailing for New Orleans. The city was defended by Andrew Jackson, aided by tough frontiersmen, pirates, and fishermen.The Americans won a brilliant victory (January 8, 1815). The British army under the command of Sir Edward Pakenham (the Duke of Wellingtons brother in law) suffered a humiliating defeat.

Jackson was acclaimed Americas military hero. Because of his great popularity, he became governor of Florida, then U.S senator, and later President of the United States.Although the Battle of New Orleans was a dramatic success, it had no effect on the Outcome of the war.

Two weeks before the battle took place, the treaty ending the war was signed at Ghent, Belgium (December 24, 1814).Officially, the Battle of New Orleans was illegal, for it was fought after the signing of the Treaty of Ghent.

THE MONROE DOCTRINE (1823)After the Second War for independence, the United States developed a new foreign policy known as the Monroe Doctrie. This was provoked by the attempt of Metternich and Concert of Europe to help Spain recover her lost colonies in Latin America.

England, who had resigned from the Concert of Europe in 1822, proposed to the United States an Anglo-American measure against the projected European intervention.President James Monroe, however, decided to act without Englands help. On December 2, 1823, he presented in a message to Congress the Famous Monroe Doctrine.

It contained the following provisions: (1) the Western Hemisphere is no longer open to European colonization, (2) any attempt to extend European influence in the Western Hemisphere would be considered dangerous to American interests, and (3) the United States does not interfere with the affairs of Europe and expects Europe not to interfere with American affairs.

The Monroe Doctrine stopped the European imperialistic designs in the Western Hemisphere and saved the new republics of Latin America (Mexico, Peru, Chile, Argentina, etc.) from being reconquered by Spain.

JACKSONIAN DEMOCRACYIn 1828 Andrew Jackson, the popular Hero of New Orleans, became the seventh President of the United States, succeeding John Quincy Adams.He was the first President from the West, where he had grown up admidst simple and rough pioneer folks.

With little formal education, he trained himself to be a lawyer and a general. Aggressive, fearless, and strong, he became a glamorous leader of the masses.He was affectionately called Old Hickory because he was tough and durable as hickory.

During his presidency (two terms, 1829-37), Jackson introduced a new kind of democracy called Jacksonian Democracy.Jefferson believed in a democracy for the common people but those who would govern must have proper training and education.

Jackson was of the opinion that such education and training were not necessary because men of ordinary intelligence and sincerity could be officials in as much as the duties of public office were so plain and simple.

MANIFEST DESTINY, TERRITORIAL EXPANSIONAs soon as the United States emerged as an independent nation, she aspired to expand from the Atlantic across the mountains to the west.She believed in her destiny to be continental power. Out of the Indian lands west of the original Thirteen Colonies were created the states of Kentucky (1792), Tennessee (1796), and Ohio (1803).

Despite his belief in the strict interpretation of the Constitution, President Jefferson purchased from France in 1803 the Louisiana Territory between the Mississippi and Rockies.Florida was purchased from Spain in 1819. The Republic of Texas, which had obtained its independence from Mexico, was annexed to the United States in 1845. The following year Oregon was aquired by treaty with England.

In 1846-48 the United States fought the Mexican War because of her expansionist aim to obtain California and New Mexico and also because of her grievances against Mexico.

The treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo (1848) which ended the war, set the Rio Grande as the boundary between Mexico and Texas and ceded to the United States the Mexican territories of the Southwest, including California, Arizona, and New Mexico.

Five years later (1853) the United States, by the so-called Gadsden Purchase, bought from Mexico a strip of disputed territory between Arizona and Mexico, thereby rounding out her continental boundaries.

AMERICAN CIVIL WAR (1861-65)The remarkable economic, social, and political progress of the United States since winning her independence was hampered by the bloody and destructive Civil War, which American writers called the War between the States, a bloody conflict between brother Americans. The causes of the Civil War were as follows:

SECTIONALISMNorthern Americans and Southern Americans had clashing sectional feelings due to differences in economic interests and character.The north was industrial, while the South was agricultural. The Northerners were more democratic and progressive, while the Southerners were more aristocratic and conservative.

SLAVERYNorthern Americans opposed Negro slavery because they do not need slave labor in their factories and small farms.On the other hand, Southern Americans favored slavery because they needed Negro slaves to cultivate their vast platations of cotton, tobacco, and rice.

SECESSIONNorthern Americans, led by Senator Daniel Webster of Massachusetts, believed that the Union is one and indivisible. As President Jackson toasted in 1831: Our Federal Union... it must and shall be preserved! President Abraham Lincoln in his first inagural address on March 4, 1861, asserted: No state upon its own mere motion can lawfully get out of the union. Southern Americans led by Vice-President John C. Calhoun of South Carolina, believed that any state could secede from the Union.

The Civil War began on April 12, 1861 when the Confederates (Southerners) bombarded Fort Sumter in Charleston harbor, South Carolina.Not with standing their handicaps in manpower and resources, the Confederates under their able commanders (Robert E. Lee and Stonewall Jackson) were able to fight the North in four bloody years, winning some brilliant victories against overwhelming odds.

Their first victory was won in the First battle of Bull run (July 21, 1861), thirty miles south of Washington, D.C. They won again in the Second Battle of Bull Run (August 29-September 1, 1862).

Inspired by his victory at the Second Battle of Bull Run, General Robert Lee, greatest military commander of the South, invaded the north.He was checked at Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, where the fiercest and most famous battle of the war was fought (July 1-3, 1863).

Later President Lincoln visited the historic battleground and delivered his famous Gettysburg Speech honoring the gallant dead both Northerners and Southerners.On September 22, 1862, he proclaimed the emancipation of the Negro slaves in all Confederate states begining January 1, 1863.

This Emancipation Proclamation was implemented by the Thirteen Amendments (1865) to the US Constitution which abolished slavery in the United States.After Gettysburg, the Confederate cause was lost. Lees military genius and the splendid courage of the Confederate armies could not win without adequate armanent and reinforcements.

The South grew weaker for lack of food, machines, ammunitions, and Men. The ruinous war was finally ended on April 9, 1865, when General Lee and his tired and starving army surrendered to Ulysses S. Grant, greatest general of the North, at Appomatox Courthouse, Virginia.

RESULTS OF THE CIVIL WARThe results of the American Civil War were as follows: (1) a stronger American nation emerged out of the ashes of war, with strengthened spirit of unity; (2) the Union was preserved; (3) slavery was abolished; and (4) the planter aristocracy, whose wealth and prestige depended on slave labor, disappeared in the South.

THE RECONSTRUCTION PERIODThe story of the vanquished South after Civil War is a dark chapter in American History.Had President Lincolns life not been cut short by an assassins bullet, many of the evils of the Reconstruction Period would not have flourished.

The Carpetbaggers, poor Northern officials who went South carrying their wordly goods in a carpetbag, connived with the Scalawags, corrupt Southern whites, to gain control of Southern politics and enrich themselves.

The Postwar governments which were established in the different states of the South were the worst governments in American history, being dominated by unscrupulous officials.The Southern whites, who later gained control of state legislatures, passed discriminatory laws against the Black Americans (Negroes).

They also organized a secret society called, the Ku Klux Klan, which terrorized the helpless negroes.Ku Klux Klan activities intensified the conflict between black and white Americans, thereby fostering racial prejudice which still exist in a few States.

In 1866, the Fourteenth Amendment was added to the Constitution, making the emancipated Negro slaves citizens of the United States and protecting their rights as citizens. It also disqualified former leaders of the Confederacy from holding federal and state offices.

THANK YOUANDGOD BLESS