Chapter 14
“Jacksonian Democracy at Flood Tide”
“Nullies” in South Carolina
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South Carolina state legislatures declared the
existing tariff to be null and void within South
Carolina, called upon the state to take military
preparations, and warned of secession.
President Jackson privately threatened to hang
the nullifiers.
Compromise Tariff of 1833
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Authored by “The Great Compromiser” Henry Clay.
The bill gradually reduce the Tariff of 1832 by about
10% over a period of eight years, so that by 1842 the
rates would be down to 20% to 25%.
To save face, Congress passed the Force Bill that
authorized the president to use the army and navy, if
necessary, to collect tariffs.
South Carolina repealed the ordinance of
nullification but as a final defiant gesture it nullified
the unnecessary Force Bill.
This contemporary cartoon shows Calhoun reaching for
power over the dead bodies of the Constitution and the
Union. Jackson, at the far right, threatens to hang the
nullifiers.
The National Bank Issue
Jackson and his followers distrusted
monopolistic banking and oversized
businesses.
In 1832, Henry Clay, in a strategy to
bring Jackson’s popularity down so
that he could defeat him for
presidency, rammed a bill for the
rechartering of the National Bank—
four years early.
Plan:
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Jackson would have to either veto
the bill or sign it. Either was, Clay
felt it was a no-win situation for
Jackson
If he vetoed he would upset the rich
easterners
If he signed it he would alienate his
western followers
Jackson’s Veto
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The recharter bill passed through Congress,
but Jackson killed the bill with a scorching
veto.
Attached a letter to the American people
explaining the veto and characterized the bank
as anti-Western and anti-American.
The veto amplified the power of the president
by ignoring the Supreme Court and aligned the
West against the East.
Election of 1832
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Democrats – Andrew
Jackson
National Republicans –
Henry Clay
Rise of “Pet Banks”
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Hoping to kill the BUS and believing that he had a
mandate from the American people, Jackson began
to withdraw federal funds from the bank, so as to
drain it of its wealth.
Money was put into “pet banks” throughout the
country.
Led to competition among the banks which resulted
in cheap money and “land fever.”
Economy skyrocketed which eventually led to
uncontrolled inflation
Specie Circular
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With easy credit available,
sales of government lands
skyrocketed from $2.6
million in 1832 to $24.9
million in 1836.
required payment in gold or
silver for all purchases of
government lands.
The deflationary Circular
contracted the money supply
too rapidly, leading in part to
the panic of 1837.
Results of Specie Circular
$ Banknotes loose their value.
$ Land sales plummeted.
$ Credit not available.
$ Businesses began to fail.
$ Unemployment rose.
The Panic of 1837
Transplanting the Tribes
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Jackson’s Indian policy was to uproot them and move
them to the west.
Most Indian tribes resisted forced assimilation
programs but the Cherokee were among the few that
tried to adopt the Americans ways, utilizing a system
of settled agriculture, devising an alphabet, legislating
legal code in 1808, and adopting a written
constitution in 1827.
The Cherokees, the Creeks, Choctaws, Chickasaws,
and the Seminoles were known as the “Five Civilized
Tribes.”
Five Civilized Tribes
Worcester v. Georgia
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An 1832 case in which the United States Supreme
Court held that Cherokee Indians were entitled to
federal protection from the actions of state
governments.
Overturned a Georgia state court ruling taking land
away from the Cherokee. Marshall’s ruling would allow
the Cherokee to keep land in Georgia.
reaction to this decision, President Andrew Jackson has
often been quoted as defying the Supreme Court with
the words: "John Marshall has made his decision; now
let him enforce it!"
Indian Removal Act
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Congress passed the Indian
Removal Act, in which 100,000
Indians were moved to
Oklahoma.
Thousands of Indians died on
the “Trail of Tears” after being
uprooted from their sacred lands
that had been theirs for
centuries.
The Bureau of Indian Affairs
was established in 1836 deal
with Indians.
Indian Removal Act
Texas
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Mexico gained independence from Spain and in
1823 concluded an arrangement for granting a
huge tract of land to Stephen Austin, with the
understanding that he would bring into Texas
300 American families.
Texans had to become Mexican citizens, speak
Spanish, practice Roman Catholicism, and give
up their slaves.
Early Texas
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Texas, the sparsely settled
northeastern frontier of Mexico,
was inadequately mapped when
Stephen Austin visited there in
1821-1822 to locate and confirm a
colonization grant originally made
to his father. As a result of his
travels, he prepared a manuscript
map showing settlements in eastern
Texas, annotated to show
vegetation -- prairie land in yellow
and wood land in green -- making
it one of the earliest examples of
American thematic mapping.
Early Texans
Davy Crockett
Stephen Austin
James Bowie inventor of
the Bowie knife
Texans Declare Independence in
1836
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Texans eventually
outnumber Mexicans
10:1
Mexican dictator Santa
Anna tried to take away
their constitution
Texans led by
Commander-in-Chief
Sam Houston.
Battle of the Alamo
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In the Texas Revolution, San Antonio was taken
by Texas revolutionaries in Dec., 1835, and was
lightly garrisoned. When Mexican General Santa
Anna approached with an army of several
thousand in Feb., 1836, only some 150 men held
the Alamo, and confusion, indifference, and
bickering among insurgents throughout Texas
prevented help from joining them, except for 32
volunteers from Gonzales who slipped through
the Mexican siege lines. Defying surrender
demands, the Texans in the fort determined to
fight. The siege, which began Feb. 24, ended with
hand-to-hand fighting within the walls on Mar. 6.
William B. Travis, James Bowie, Davy Crockett,
and some 180 other defenders died, but the heroic
resistance roused fighting anger among Texans,
who six weeks later defeated the Mexicans at San
Jacinto, crying, “Remember the Alamo!” The
chapel-fort became a state preserve in 1883. Its
surroundings were added in 1905, and the
complex, restored in 1936–39, is now a major
tourist attraction.
San Antonio Today
The Alamo
CREDIT: Moran, Percy, artist. "Battle of the Alamo." Reproduction of an
original painting. Joliet, Illinois, Gerblach Barklow Co., copyright 1912.
Prints and Photographs Division, Library of Congress.
Battle of San Jacinto
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The Battle of San Jacinto lasted less
than twenty minutes, but it sealed the
fate of three republics. Mexico would
never regain the lost territory, in spite
of sporadic incursions during the
1840s. The United States would go on
to acquire not only the Republic of
Texas in 1845 but Mexican lands to the
west after the Treaty of Guadalupe
Hidalgo ended the Mexican War in
1848.
630 Mexicans were killed and 730
taken prisoner. Texans lost only 9 killed
or mortally wounded; thirty were less
seriously wounded. Among the latter
was General Houston, whose ankle was
shattered.
Surrender of Santa Anna, by William
H. Huddle
Texas: An International Derelict.
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Texans asked the U.S. for
statehood in 1837
U.S. refused because of
the slave balance issue
and fear of war with
Mexico
1 Mar 1836 - 10 Dec 1836
Adopted 24 Jan 1839
Whig Party
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A new party emerged
called the Whigs, a
group united only by
their opposition to
Jackson and, at first,
led by Clay and John C.
Calhoun.
Election of 1836
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Democrats – Martin Van Buren
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Jackson’s hand picked successor.
Rode the coattails of Jackson
Whigs – W. H. Harrison
Whig – Hugh White
Whig – Daniel Webster
Because of departing Jackson’s
immense popularity the Whigs only
hope was to get the election
thrown into the house so Harrison
would win.
Van Buren won election
Jackson’s Legacy
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Increased the power of the presidency with his veto
power
Increased the power of the west
Universal white manhood suffrage
Caucus was replaced with the nominating convention
Common man had more access to land because of the
cheap money available from the pet banks
Abuse of the spoils system
Single-handedly threw the U.S. into a depression with
his fiscal policies
Martin Van Buren
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Van Buren was the first president to have been born
under the American flag.
Inherited Jackson-caused depression
The panic of 1837 was caused by the “wildcat banks”
loans, the over-speculation, the “Bank War,” and the
Specie Circular.
Van Buren proposed the “Divorce Bill” (separating
the bank from the government and storing money in
some of the vaults of the larger American cities, thus
keeping the money safe but also unavailable) that
advocated the independent treasury, and in 1840, it
was passed.
Election of 1840
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Democrats – Van Buren
Whigs – William Henry
Harrison
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“Tippecanoe and Tyler
Too.”
Harrison’s victory in the
election was a protest
against the hard times of
the era.
1840 Election
The Two-Party System Emerges
The Democrats
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Glorified the liberty of the individual
Clung to states’ rights and federal restraint in social and economic
affairs
Generally more humble, poorer folk
The Whigs
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Trumpeted the natural harmony of society and the value of
community
Berated leaders whose appeals and self-interest fostered conflict among
individuals
Favored a renewed national bank, protective tariffs, internal
improvements, public schools, and moral reforms
Generally more aristocratic and wealthier