The Age of Jackson
1824-1844
CC: Age of Jackson
Mr. Owens
Essential Questions
• What were the causes of the rise of the 2nd
Two-Party System and what were the key
positions held by the Democrats led by
Andrew Jackson and the Whigs led by Henry
Clay?
• How did regional interests (sectionalism) often
trump national political concerns especially on
economic policy and slavery?
Jacksonian Democracy
• Rise of Democratic Society: equality, “self-made
man” - Spread of newspapers & education
Politics of the Common Man
• Universal (White) Male Suffrage – removal of
property and tax requirements
• Party Nominating Conventions – gatherings in
large meeting halls – death of “King Caucus”
• Popular Election of the President – voters choose
electors
• Two-Party System – parties needed for elections
& campaigning on a national level
• Rise of Third Parties – Anti-Mason’s, Working
Man’s Party
• More elected offices – esp. state & local level
• Popular Campaigning- parades, floats, rallies with
free food & drink
• “Spoils System” – rewarding supporters w/
federal jobs – office rotation after 1 term
Jackson vs. JQA
• Election of 1824: clear end to Good Feelings – D.R.
split into 4 candidates: Jackson got most electoral
votes, but not a majority. Decision in House – Clay
supported JQA – Jackson supporters “Corrupt
Bargain”
• John Quincy Adams agenda: internal improvements
& national university – blocked by Jacksonians in
Congress
• 1828 “Tariff of Abominations” – alienated southern
planters raising rates on manufactured goods
• 1828 Election: Jackson “Old Hickory” easily defeats
Adams in ugly “mudslinging” campaign with strong
support from South (Calhoun as V.P.) & West
Jackson’s 1st Term
• Frugal Jeffersonian on gov. spending, veto 12 bills
(more than previous 6 presidents combined)
• “Kitchen-Cabinet” – relied on informal group of
advisers & “Spoils System”
• Peggy Eaton Affair – scandal over Sec of War’s
wife causing most of official cabinet to resign &
V.P. John Calhoun 1 year later
• Indian Removal Act (1830) removal west of the
Mississippi
– Cherokee Nation v. Georgia (1831) &
Worcester v. Georgia (1832) – Marshall sides
with Cherokee “Marshall has made his
decision, now let him enforce it.” - Jackson
– Bureau of Indians Affairs (1836) to oversee
removal
– “Trail of Tears” Army marched 15,000
Cherokee to Oklahoma, 4,000 died on march
(1838)
Nullification & Bank War
Nullification Crisis
• SC “nullifies” 1828 Tariff
• 1830 Webster-Hayne Debate: Daniel Webster (MA) &
Robert Hayne (SC) over state vs. federal power
– “Our federal union, it must be preserved.” – Jackson
– “The Union, next to our liberties, most dear!” John
C. Calhoun
• 1832 Tariff – SC again nullifies
• Jackson responds with Force Bill & “Proclamation to the
People of South Carolina”
• Clay gets a Compromise Tariff passed
Bank War
• 1832 Clay gets Congress to recharter National Bank –
Jackson vetoed the “hydra or corruption” hated
Nicholas Biddle the bank’s president
• 1832 Election: Jackson defeats Clay with ¾ of the
electoral vote
2nd Two-Party System
• Democratic Party: similar to Jeffersonian
Republicans, supporters of Jackson
• Whig Party: similar to Federalists headed by
Clay, Calhoun & Webster
Jackson’s 2nd Term & MVB
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Pet Banks: Jackson destroys BUS – new Sec of
Treasury Roger Taney redistributes federal funds
to state banks. BUS is dead by 1836.
Specie Circular: 1836 fear of inflation federal
land could only be purchased with specie (hard
currency) control “wildcat banks”
Roger Taney replaces John Marshall as Chief
Justice in 1835
Election of 1836: Martin Van Buren defeats
Whig strategy of running 3 regional candidates
Panic of 1837: banknotes lost value, land sales
plummeted, credit tightened, depression
MVB & Democrats believed in laissez-faire & did
nothing – Whigs blame them & make gains
Election of 1840
• “Log Cabin and Hard Cider” Campaign
• Whigs: William Henry Harrison (war hero) & John
Tyler – Tippecanoe & Tyler Too!
• Van Buren – depicted as an out of touch elitist &
blamed for Panic of 1837 “Martin Van Ruin”
• Popular campaign – 78% of eligible voters voted
• Whigs out-common manned the party of the
common man
• Harrison wins but dies of pneumonia 1 month
after taking office – replaced by Tyler “His
Accidency”
“Tippecanoe and Tyler Too”
William Henry Harrison
(Words and Music by "A member of the Fifth Ward Club“, 1840
Campaign
Song
Performed
by They Might
Be Giants)
What has caus'd this great com-mo-tion,
mo-tion, mot-ion our country through,
It is the ball that's rolling on,
For Tip-pi-ca-noe, and Ty-ler too,
And with them we'll beat lit-tle Van, Van,
Van is a used up man,
And with them we'll beat lit-tle Van. Sure, let 'em talk
about hard cider (cider cider) and log cabins too
T'will only help to speed the ball for Tippecanoe and Tyler
too and with him we'll beat Little Van, Van,Van is a used
up man and with him we'll beat Little Van.
1840 Election Results