Failures of the articles of confederation
France and others wanted their debt paid back, yet the national government didn’t have money. States had individual economies that didn’t collaborate.
First political parties
Divisions over neutrality in the French revolution, the Jay treaty, the financial plan, and existing sectionalism created the first political parties.
Federalists
Boston massacre
Parliament sent 1,000 troops to boston to enforce the townshend acts. Protesters began throwing snowballs, and eventually rocks at a group of soldiers. Someone fired a shot, and the soldiers killed 5 protesters
Fries rebellion
Weak national government
Election of 1797
First contested election in American history, won by John Adams (Washington's vice president)
Virtual representation
The idea that each representative in parliament represented the empire as a whole, and therefore, the colonies were represented.
Battle of Bunker hill
British won, but had many casualties. They eventually abandoned Boston
A dispute over a french fort spiraled into a global conflict. Indigenous tribes tried to play Britain and France off of each other.
Olive branch petition
Congress wanted king George to intervene on their behalf and end the violence. He didn’t read it.
2nd Continental Congress
How would the colonists win? George Washington would lead an army
How would they pay for it? New currency
Common sense
Attacked the obstacles to independence. It was the best selling work in American history because it presented his ideas in a vernacular way.
civic virtue
Different branches of government could check each other to prevent abuse of power.
Whiskey rebellion
violent tax protest from 1791-1794.
the whiskey was the first tax imposed on a domestic product by president Washington to pay for the war. It unfairly burdened poor farmers west of the Appalachian mountains because they couldn't do business anymore
Shay’s rebellion
Farmers had to take debt because they weren’t getting paid. Their land was being repossessed so they rebelled and closed the courts. They used Republican ideals to justify it.
Annapolis convention
Secret meeting between delegates of 6 states to discuss how to fix the articles of confederation
British beliefs after 7 years war
They viewed the colonies as subordinates. They had spent billions on defending them, and thought they'd want to help pay the debt.
pinckney's treaty
between US and spain, defined border US and spanish florida, guranteed US navigation rights in mississippi river
Jay treaty
alien laws
authorized the president to deport "aliens" and permitted their arrest imprisonment and deportation during war time
A dispute over a French fort spiraled into a global conflict. Indigenous tribes tried to play Britain and France off of each other.
Reduced the tax on molasses, but strengthened the court system to end smuggling, making many wealthy smugglers angry.
Proclamation of 1763
Lexington and Concorde
British troops marched to take a militia's weapons. They we're beaten back and chased back to boston by militia minutemen
Hamilton's financial plan
1) Establish the U.S. credit worthiness 2) Unify the states' debt 3) Create a national bank 4) Whiskey tax to pay for the revolution 5) Establish tariffs to protect american businesses
drafted by thomas jefferson and james madison, claimed that alien and sedition acts were unconstitutional and overstepped federal authority under the constitition, and could therefore be nullified by the states
Federalism
Ethan Allen and the Green mountain boys surround fort Ticonderoga, steal it's cannons, and bring them back to Boston
