A little song before we begin

The APUSH ReviewWHAT DID WE GET OURSELVES INTO?

the constitutional era

The APUSH ReviewWHAT DID WE GET OURSELVES INTO?

the constitutional era

It’s all about the $

• America suffered a depression during the 1780s – Huge national and state debts were left from the Revolution. – Excessive use of credit to purchase consumer goods after the

war (especially debts to British merchants. – British flooded American ports with cut-rate goods.

• Economic democracy preceded political democracy: land readily available and inexpensive.

• Manufacturing was bolstered by non-importation agreements – Americans lost markets in the British empire (Navigation

Laws) – New commercial outlets compensated for lost ones (Baltic

region; Asia)

Why can’t we all just get along?

• Foreign Policy challenges of the New Nation – Britain

• Refused to make a commercial treaty or repeal Navigation Laws

– Spain • Closed the Mississippi River at the mouth in 1784

– France • Demanded repayment of money loaned during the war• U.S. trade with its profitable West Indies and other ports

– The Mediterranean -- North African Pirates (Barbary Pirates) • U.S. previously enjoyed protection under Britain who paid

for its subjects' protection -- without protection, & without money to pay, U.S. was vulnerable

Ok, the Articles were just a rough draft

• Miracle at Philadelphia – the Philadelphia Convention – Early decision to re-write, rather than tinker with the

Articles of Confederation • Open agreement secretly arrived at - Washington's plea

– Intent of the Convention • Economic - protect property rights and make America

safe from democracy. • Idealistic - make a perfect Union • Pragmatic - dealing with the question of sovereignty.

Placing common interests over regional or personal concerns.

Who was invited to the party?

• 55 delegates from 12 states – Young (average age 42), professional (over half were

lawyers), men of economic substance – Many were Revolutionary War veterans – Absent: Thomas Jefferson, Patrick Henry, other

Revolutionary War heroes– Key Participants

• Washington - president of the convention • Madison - researched every previous republic • Franklin - 81 years old, the steadying influence

How about a compromise?

• Great Compromise (bicameral legislature representing both people and states) – Virginia Plan or Large States Plan (Edmund Randolph)

• 2 house legislature with representation based on population for both • President and courts chosen by legislature

– New Jersey Plan (William Patterson) • Congress with each state having l vote • separate executive and judicial branches • increased powers of Congress

– Great Compromise • Lower house membership dependent on population • Upper house with two members from each state • All revenue bills must begin in lower house

How much is a person worth?

• North-South issues came to dominate the convention • Slavery was the biggest issue• "Three-fifths" Compromise

– North argued that slaves should not be counted since they were not citizens

– South argued their smaller population would lead to northern domination

– Compromise: Slaves would count as 3/5 of a person for representation purposes in the House

– African slave trade to end in 1808– Fugitive slave provision allowed southerners to cross state

lines to reclaim their "property"

Let’s ratify the darned thing already

• Because of fear of opposition from states, only 9 of the 13 were needed for the Constitution to take effect

• Because of opposition from state legislatures, conventions elected by the people were given authority to approve or reject Constitution

• Federalists vs. Antifederalists – Most Federalists were wealthy and well-educated and sought

the creation of a more powerful central government – Most Antifederalists were farmers who were loyal primarily to

their state governments • Feared taxation power of federal government • Republican government could not rule a large nation

The finished product• Preamble • Article I

– Legislative

• Article II – Executive

• Article III – Judicial

• Article IV – States Rights

• Article V – Amendments

• Article VI – Law of the Land

• Article VII – Ratification

Separation of Powers

Ability to adapt

Appease the states

I know my rights!Bill of Rights - One of first priorities facing the new government • Antifederalists had sharply criticized the Constitution for not having one. • Many states had ratified under the condition that one be included. • First ten amendments to the Constitution adopted in 1791. Provided

safeguards for some of America's most precious principles: – I. Freedom of speech, press, assembly, & religion – II. Right to bear arms – III. Troops may not be arbitrarily quartered on the people – IV. Unreasonable searches and seizures forbidden – V. The individual is guaranteed certain rights when on trial and the right to life,

liberty and property – VI. Right to a fair and speedy trial in criminal cases – VII. Right to a trial in civil cases (law suits against other citizens) – VIII. Excessive fines and unusual punishments are forbidden. – IX. The people retain rights not enumerated in the Constitution – X. Powers not delegated to the federal government are reserved to the states and

the people.

Washington’s in charge

• Washington's Neutrality Proclamation (1793) • U.S. still obligated to France under alliance of 1778 • Washington believed war should be avoided at all costs

– Proclaimed US neutrality in the war between Britain & France – Warned citizens to be impartial to both Britain & France

• American Reaction – Jeffersonians enraged, especially by Washington not consulting

Congress– Federalists supported it

• America & France benefited from U.S. neutrality – America's neutrality meant it could still deliver goods to the West

Indies– France did not officially call upon U.S. to honor its obligation– If U.S. entered war, British navy would blockade coasts

Mr. Jay’s Treaty• Jay Treaty (1794) -- Temporarily eased U.S. conflict w/ Britain • Significance: Most important cause for formation of Democratic

Republican party– British had continued menacing Americans on U.S. soil and on the high

seas – Federalists unwilling to go to war – Washington sent Jay, the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, to London in

1794 • America won few concessions

– British renewed their pledge to remove their posts from U.S. soil (as in 1783)

– British consented to pay damages for recent seizures of American ships – Jay forced to bind U.S. to pay pre-Revolution debts owed to British

merchants • Jeffersonian outrage vitalized the new Democratic-Republican

party– South felt betrayed that northern merchants would be paid damages – Southern planters would be taxed to pay pre-Revolution debt

Goodbye George

• He had reluctantly accepted a second term when his friends begged him to stay

• Washington lost his nonpartisan standing when he became a Federalist, took a lot of abuse from Jefferson

• Refused to accept a third term as President • Farewell Address

– 2/3 domestic related: warned against evils of political parties -- partisan bitterness

– Warned against permanent foreign alliances (like treaty w/ France)

– Jeffersonians angered that speech seemed to declare U.S. hostility toward France

– Isolationism - dominant U.S. foreign policy for next 100 years

Hello Mr. Adams

• XYZ Affair – French try to extort US envoys who are on a diplomatic mission– War hysteria sweeps US

• Undeclared Naval Warfare, 1798-1799 - “Quasi -War” – Guess we’d better create a navy!

• Convention of 1800– France agreed to end the 22-year Franco-American alliance– Significance:

• Major war with France avoided • Rapprochement made possible the Louisiana Purchase • If war occurred, Napoleon would not have sold Louisiana • Adams felt this to be his finest achievement

It’s an alien invasion!

• Alien and Sedition Acts (1798) – Federalists passed a series of oppressive laws to reduce power of

Jeffersonians and silence anti-war opposition

• Alien Acts – Attack on pro-Jeffersonian "aliens" – Most immigrants lacked wealth and were welcomed by Jeffersonians. – Scorned by Federalists who did not want the "dregs" of Europe voting in

U.S.

• Sedition Act – Anyone who impeded the policies of gov't or falsely defamed its officials,

would be liable to a heavy fine and imprisonment – Direct violation of the 1st Amendment to the Constitution

Mr. Jefferson makes a power play

• Virginia and Kentucky Resolutions– Republicans convinced Alien and Sedition acts were

unconstitutional • Process of deciding constitutionality of federal laws hitherto undefined

– Jefferson & Madison secretly created a series of resolutions • Premise: States had the right to nullify unconstitutional laws passed by

Congress • Aim not to break up the union but preserve it by protecting civil

liberties– Result:

• No other states passed the Jefferson & Madison resolutions • Federalists argued that the people, not the states, had made the original

compact. Argued Supreme Court, not states, could nullify laws– Significance: Later used by southerners to support

nullification and ultimately secession prior to Civil War