Notes: Andrew Jackson
Big Question
• How well did Andrew Jackson promote
democracy?
Jackson Timeline
• 1767- Jackson was born into poverty
on the South Carolina frontier.
• 1788- Jackson moved to Tennessee to
practice law.
• 1815- Jackson became a national
hero for his defense of New Orleans
during the War of 1812.
• 1824- Jackson ran for president but
did not have enough electoral votes
to win a majority
• 1828- Jackson ran for president a
second time and won.
Andrew Jackson
• The presidential election of
Andrew Jackson ushered in a new
era of politics.
• Jackson was a war hero. He was
also a self-made man who said
that the common man should
control their government.
Election of 1824
• Andrew Jackson vs. John Quincy Adams
• Jackson received more electoral and
popular votes than any other candidate,
but not the majority of 131 electoral
votes needed to win the election
• Since no candidate received the
required majority of electoral votes, the
presidential election was decided by the
House of Representatives
Election of 1824
Number of Electoral Votes
Jackson:
99
Adams:
84
Crawford:
43
Clay:
37
Needed to Win: 131
Election of 1824
• Henry Clay was speaker of the
house, and supported Adams.
• Adams won and made Clay his
Secretary of State.
• Jackson called it a “corrupt
bargain”.
Election of 1828
• Dirtiest election in American history
• “Mud-Slinging”- intense personal
attacks on the candidates and their
families
• Generally elites (upper class) voted for
Adams and “common folk” (working
class) voted for Jackson
• Jackson won
Inauguration of Jackson
Finally, one of us has been elected
president! We have rescued the
country from being taken over by
the rich!
Is Jackson really the best this
country has to offer? He represents
the uneducated commoners—look
how they behaved after his
inauguration!
Spoils System & The Kitchen Cabinet
• Spoils System- firing your
enemies and hiring your
friends.
• Kitchen Cabinetunofficial group of trusted
friends and advisors
Jackson’s Approach to Governing
Jackson is a strong leader who does what
he thinks is right. We agree with his
decision to replace civil servants. Rotating
them is more democratic than lifetime
service.
The men in Jackson’s kitchen cabinet are
not the proper sort to be running the
country. And Jackson has created a
spoils system that rewards his
supporters, not the most qualified.
Nullification Crisis
- Tariff of Abominations
- South Carolina declared the tariffs “null
and void” and threatened to leave the
Union.
- Jackson called the act treasonous and
wanted to use the military
- Henry Clay introduced a compromise
tariff and avoided trouble
- Foreshadowed the eventual succession
of the South in 1860
Nullification Crisis
We support the new tariff law.
Higher prices for imported factory
goods means we can sell the
products made in our own
factories.
The new tariff law is
unconstitutional. The tariffs hurt our
cotton sales to other countries. We
will secede if the government tries to
enforce the law.
Jackson vs. the Banks of the United States
https://www.youtube.co
m/watch?v=gx5IyumKmD
I
Jackson vs. the Bank of the United Sates
President Jackson’s dismantling of the bank
shows he is a champion of the people! The bank
is an unconstitutional monopoly that makes the
rich richer at the expense of farmers and
workers.
The bank is important to our economy. It
supports business-people who depend on it for
loans. Jackson has overstepped his authority by
dismantling the bank and putting federal deposits
in his “pet banks.”
Fun Facts
• Nickname: “Old Hickory”
• Carried a bullet from a duel in his
chest until his death.
• Killed a man in a duel.
• Unknowingly married his wife
before she was legally divorced
from her first husband.
• His assassin’s guns misfired and
Jackson caned the man into
submission.
• He hated paper money… and he’s
on the $20 bill.