Liberty: Are We To Be A Nation?
Name:
Backdrop: Shay’s Rebellion
 In 1786, amid a worsening economy, many farms, unable to pay off their debts, were seized. Daniel
Shays, an army veteran, organized a protest army of about 1000, and proceeded to march from the
Massachusetts countryside into Boston. Merchants in the city hired their own army to confront Shays and
his fellow rebels. In the end, the rag-tag army was beaten, and Shays was eventually pardoned. Most
importantly, though, the rebellion forced colonial leaders to reassess the effectiveness of the Articles of
Confederation.
Terms: George Washington, Alexander Hamilton, Shay’s Rebellion, Articles of Confederation, debt,
creditors, debtors, Noah Webster, democracy, popular government, Philadelphia, delegates, James
Madison, Framers, tyranny (of the majority/minority), faction, Patrick Henry, Federalists, AntiFederalists, ratification-ratify, Bill of Rights, Patrick Henry,
Questions:
1. What were Alexander Hamilton’s concerns about the Articles of Confederation? How did he
view the Confederation government?
2. Describe the key financial problems in the Articles of Confederation system.
3. What caused Shay’s Rebellion? What were its effects? Why did the rebellion “shake people’s
belief in popular government”?
4. What was the initial goal of the convention in Philadelphia?
5. Why was secrecy important? How did many ordinary Americans seem to respond to the
“news blackout”?
6. What do you think the word “faction” might have meant? Why did the Framers—especially
James Madison—believe that a large, extensive country with lots of factions was actually good
for a democracy? Why were factions important?
7. What kind of tyranny did Madison fear—tyranny of the minority or tyranny of the majority, and
why?
8. Who were the Federalists and Anti-Federalists?
9. In the debate over the Constitution, what were the concerns of the Anti-Federalists? Why
were their attitudes more popular than the Federalists?
10. How did the Federalists respond?
11. What did the ratification process involve?
12. Why did the Anti-Federalists insist on a Bill of Rights? Why did some of the Federalists think
the Bill of Rights unnecessary?