Launching the New Nation
SECTION 1
Washington Heads the New Government
SECTION 2
Foreign Affairs Trouble the Nation
SECTION 3
Jefferson Alters the Nation’s Course
SECTION 4
The War of 1812
NEXT
Section 1
Washington Heads the
New Government
President Washington transforms the ideas of the
Constitution into a real government.
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SECTION
1
Washington Heads the
New Government
Demographics of the New Nation
1790 Census
• 4 million people
• 1/30 live in cities
--Philly (#1) NY (2) Boston (3)
• Slaves = 18% of the population
--40,000 slaves in the North (1/2 in
NY state)
--MA has zero slaves
New States
• Vermont = 14th state (1777, broke off from
NY)
--1st state for universal male suffrage
--1st state to forbid slavery in constitution
• Kentucky = 15th state
--permitted slavery in its constitution
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SECTION
1
Washington Heads the
New Government
The New Government Takes Shape
Judiciary Act of 1789
• Judiciary Act of 1789 creates Supreme (6
Justices), 3 federal circuit courts, 13 district courts
• State court decisions may be appealed to federal
courts ***Supremacy Clause
• John Jay appointed first Chief Justice
Washington Shapes the Executive Branch
• Washington elected first president of U.S. in 1789
--executive branch is president, vice president(Adams)
• Cabinet: State (Jefferson), War (Henry Knox),
Treasury (Hamilton), Justice (Edmund Randolph)
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Washington’s First Inaugural
On April 30, 1789, Washington took the oath as the first president of the United States. The oath was
administered by Robert R. Livingston, the Chancellor of New York, on a second floor balcony of Federal
Hall, above a crowd assembled in the streets to witness this historic event. President Washington and the
members of Congress then retired to the Senate Chamber, where Washington delivered the first inaugural
address to a joint session of Congress. Senator William Maclay of Pennsylvania observed that even the great
Washington trembled when he faced the assembled representatives and senators. "This great man was
agitated and embarrassed,"
SECTION
1
Hamilton and Jefferson Debate
Hamilton and Jefferson in Conflict
• Hamilton: strong central government led by wealthy,
educated
• Jefferson: strong state, local government; wants a nation
led by small farmers
• Cities: Hamilton = pro cities; Jefferson = anti-corrupt
cities
• Sectionalism: Hamilton has Northern support; Jefferson
has Southern, Western
Hamilton’s Economic Plan
• U.S. owes millions to foreign countries, private citizens
• Plan
• pay foreign debt to establish credit by selling western
lands, creating new excise taxes, and higher tariffs
• assume states’ debt
• Some Southern states have paid debts, against taxes to
pay for North
Continued . . .
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SECTION
1
continued Hamilton
and Jefferson Debate
Plan for a National Bank
• Hamilton proposes Bank of the United States:
- funded by government, private investors
- issue paper money, handle taxes
• Jefferson opposed such a bank
- claims the Constitution did not give the Federal
government authority to establish such a bank
• Hamilton argued the Constitution “implied” such
authority
• Debate begins over strict and loose interpretation of
Constitution
The District of Columbia
• To win Southern support for his debt plan, Hamilton
suggests:
- moving nation’s capital from NYC to South
• Washington, D.C. planned on grand scale;
government seat by 1800
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The Nation’s Capital
The area is the “District of Columbia” in honor of Christopher Columbus.
The site plan was in the form of a square, 10 miles on each side along the
Potomac River. A French engineer, Pierre Charles L’Enfant, evolved a
plan of broad streets radiating out from the part of the city in which the
Executive Mansion and the congressional hall were to be placed. The hall
was evenutally to be called the “Capitol” in imitation of a similar building
in ancient Rome.
SECTION
1
The First Political Parties and Rebellion
Federalists and Democratic-Republicans
• Split in Washington’s cabinet leads to new political
parties:
- Jefferson’s allies: Democratic-Republicans
- Hamilton’s allies: Federalists
• Two-party system established as two major
parties compete for power
Continued . . .
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SECTION
1
continued The
First Political Parties and Rebellion
The Whiskey Rebellion
• Protective tariff— import tax on goods produced
overseas
• Excise tax charged on product’s manufacture,
sale, or distribution
• In 1794, Pennsylvania farmers refuse to pay
excise tax on whiskey
- beat up federal marshals, threaten secession
• Federal government shows it can enforce laws by
sending in militia
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The Whiskey Rebellion
In western PA, farmers had difficulty transporting grain over primitive
roads. It was usual for them to convert their surplus grain into whiskey,
which was easier to transport, which they could keep indefinitely, and
which was in high demand. The tax on whiskey cut heavily into their
livelihoods. Tar and feathering of tax collectors, as seen after the Stamp
Act were frequent.
Section 2
Foreign Affairs Trouble
the Nation
Events in Europe sharply divide American public
opinion in the late 18th century.
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SECTION
2
Foreign Affairs Trouble the Nation
U.S. Deals with Europe at Home and Abroad
Reactions to the French Revolution
• Federalists pro-British; Democratic-Republicans
pro-French
• French revolutionaries declare war on Brit, Spain,
Holland
• Washington declares neutrality, will not support
either side
• Edmond Genêt, French diplomat, violates
diplomatic protocol; encourages Americans’
activity
Troubles with Great Britain
• Treaty of Paris violations
--Brits remain in fortified posts
--US fails to pay debts, compensate Loyalists
• Impressment of American sailors
Continued . . .
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The Genet Affair
Since the French Revolutionaries had abolished all titles
and had decreed that everyone, without exception, be
addressed as “Citizen”, Genet is usually referred in
history as “Citizen Genet”.
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2
continued U.S.
Response to Events in Europe
Treaty with Spain
• Spain negotiates with Thomas Pinckney, U.S. minister to
Britain
• Pinckney’s Treaty of 1795, or Treaty of San Lorenzo, signed:
- Spain gives up claims lands east of Miss. River
- Florida-U.S. boundary set at 31st parallel
- Mississippi River open to U.S. traffic
Jay’s Treaty
•Chief Justice John Jay makes treaty with Britain, angers
Democratic-Republicans
•British evacuate posts in Northwest, stop arming Natives,
decrease impressment; may continue fur trade
•US pays Britain $2.5 million
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SECTION
2
continued U.S.
Response to Events in Europe
Washington Leaves Office
• 1796: At 64 yrs old, tired of Dem-Repub criticism, he retires
• Farewell Address
- Largely prepared by Hamilton
- Denounced political parties
- Defended policy of neutrality; steer clear of permanent
alliances
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Washington’s Farewell Address
“We may safely trust to temporary alliances for extraordinary
emergencies. This advice was twisted in order to represent Washington
as advising the US against ALL foreign alliances. This led the nation into
a course of isolationism which worked well in the 19 th century but very
badly in the 20th.
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2
Adams Provokes Criticism
First Party-Based Elections
• 1796, Federalist John Adams elected president
- Jefferson, a Democratic-Republican, is
vice-president
• Result of sectionalism, placing regional interests
above nation
Adams Tries to Avoid War
• French see Jay’s Treaty as violation of alliance;
seize U.S. ships
• XYZ Affair—French officials demand bribe to see
foreign minister
• Congress creates navy department, marine corps;
Washington called to lead army
• Undeclared naval war rages between France,
Continued . . .
U.S. for two years which US wins
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SECTION
2
continued Adams
Provokes Criticism
The Alien and Sedition Acts
• Federalists fear French plot to overthrow U.S. government
• Federalists suspicious of immigrants because:
- many are active Democratic-Republicans, critical of Adams
• Federalists push Alien and Sedition Acts of 1798 through
Congress
• The Naturalization Act, which extended the residency period from
5 to 14 years for those aliens seeking citizenship; this law was aimed at
Irish and French immigrants who were often active in Republican
politics
• The Alien Act, which allowed the expulsion of aliens deemed
dangerous during peacetime
• The Alien Enemies Act, which allowed the expulsion or
imprisonment of aliens deemed dangerous during wartime. This was
never enforced, but it did prompt numerous Frenchmen to return home
• Sedition Act: which provided for fines or imprisonment for individuals
who criticized the government, Congress, or president in speech or
print
• Some Democratic-Republican editors,
publishers, politicians jailed
Continued . . .
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Satiric portrayal of the first fight in Congress—between Matthew Lyon and Roger Griswold. Lyon
was later prosecuted under the Sedition Act.
The first man actually indicted under the new Sedition Act was a member of Congress, Matthew
Lyon. Charges stemmed from publication of two letters. One, Lyon wrote to a newspaper in reply to
an attack on him. When I shall see the efforts of that power bent on the promotion of the comfort… of
the people, that executive shall have my zealous and uniform support: but whenever I shall see the
public welfare swallowed up in a continual grasp for power …I shall not be their humble advocate.
The other letter, published by Lyon, was written by Joel Barlow. Commenting on a speech of Adams',
Barlow wondered why Congress had not sent the president "to a mad house."
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2
continued Adams
Provokes Criticism
Virginia and Kentucky Resolutions
• Jefferson, Madison see Alien and Sedition Acts as
misuse of power
• Organize opposition in Virginia, Kentucky
legislatures
• Resolutions call acts violation of First Amendment
rights
• Nullification—states have right to void laws
deemed unconstitutional
The Death of Washington
• Washington dies December 14, 1799
NEXT
Death of George Washington
http://www.themedicalbag.com/story/george-washington
Section 3
Jefferson Alters the
Nation’s Course
The United States expands its borders during
Thomas Jefferson’s administration.
NEXT
SECTI
ON
3
Jefferson Alters the
Nation’s Course
Jefferson Wins Presidential Election of 1800
Presidential Campaign of 1800
• Bitter campaign between Adams and Jefferson; wild
charges hurled
• To Dems/Repubs—Adams was for the rich and a
monarchist tied to Britain
• To Feds—Jefferson’s devoted to the violent French
Revolution; an atheist!
Electoral Deadlock
• Jefferson beats Adams, ties running mate Aaron Burr
• House of Representatives casts 35 ballots
without breaking tie…Burr refuses to back out of race.
• Hamilton intervenes with Federalists to give Jefferson
victory
• Reveals flaw in electoral process; Twelfth Amendment
passed: electors cast separate ballots for president,
vice-president
• Dem-Repubs win Congress for the first time.
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The Election of 1800: The Birth of Negative
Campaigning
Jefferson's camp accused President Adams of having a "hideous hermaphroditical character, which has neither
the force and firmness of a man, nor the gentleness and sensibility of a woman." In return, Adams' men called
Vice President Jefferson "a mean-spirited, low-lived fellow, the son of a half-breed Indian squaw, sired by a
Virginia mulatto father."•
As the slurs piled on, Adams was labeled a fool, a hypocrite, a criminal, and a tyrant,
while Jefferson was branded a weakling, an atheist, a libertine, and a coward. Even Martha Washington
succumbed to the propaganda, telling a clergyman that Jefferson was "one of the most detestable of mankind."
SECTION
3
The Jefferson Presidency
Simplifying the Presidency
• Jefferson replaces some Federalists with
Democratic-Republicans
• Reduces size of armed forces; cuts social
expenses of government
• Eliminates internal taxes; reduces influence of
Bank of the U.S.
• Favors free trade over government-controlled
trade, tariffs
Southern Dominance of Politics
• Madison appointed Secretary of State
• South dominates politics (Madison, Monroe from VA);
Northern, Federalist influence decline
• Jefferson wins 1804 election over Charles Pinckney;
Continued . . .
Congress overwhelmingly Dem-Repub
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SECTION
3
continued The
Jefferson Presidency
John Marshall and the Supreme Court
• Federalist John Marshall is chief justice for more
than 30 years; strong Federalist
• Adams pushes Judiciary Act of 1801, adding 16
federal judges
• Appoints Federalist midnight judges on his last day
as president, an attempt to increase Federalist
power
• Jefferson argues undelivered appointment papers
are invalid
Continued . . .
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SECTION
3
continued The
Jefferson Presidency
Marbury v. Madison
• Marbury v. Madison—William Marbury sues to have
papers delivered
- Judiciary Act of 1789 requires Supreme Court order
- Marshall rules requirement unconstitutional
• Judicial review—Supreme Court able to declare laws
unconstitutional
The Duel
• Burr doesn’t run for VP in 1804…runs for Governor of
NY
• Hamilton electioneered hard against him…Burr
loses…last straw for Burr
• Challenges Hamilton to a duel…Hamilton accepts
• 7/11/1804 on the banks of Weehawken, NJ Burr shoots
and kills Hamilton
• Burr’s career ruined; moves west and is eventually tried
for treason; wins the case but dies in obscurity
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The Duel
All first-hand accounts of the duel agree that two shots were fired; however, Hamilton and Burr's seconds
disagreed on the intervening time between the shots. It was common for both principals in a duel to fire a shot at
the ground to exemplify courage, and then the duel could come to an end. Hamilton apparently fired first, and
into the air, though it is not clear whether this was intentional, much less that Burr perceived him to be "throwing
away his fire" (as it did not follow the standard protocol). Burr returned fire and hit Hamilton in the lower
abdomen above the right hip. The musket ball ricocheted off Hamilton's second or third false rib—fracturing it—
and caused considerable damage to his internal organs, particularly his liver and diaphragm before becoming
lodged in his first or second lumbar vertebra. According to Pendleton's account, Hamilton collapsed immediately.
SECTION
3
The United States Expands West
Westward Migration
• From 1800–1810, Ohio population grows from
45,000 to 231,000
• Ohio admitted as the 17th state (1803)
• Most settlers use Cumberland Gap to reach Ohio,
Kentucky, Tennessee
• In 1775, Daniel Boone leads clearing of Wilderness
Road
Continued . . .
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SECTION
3
continued The
United States Expands West
The Louisiana Purchase
• Louisiana returned to France by Spain; Jefferson fears
strong French presence
• Jefferson buys Louisiana Territory from Napoleon
- doubts he has constitutional authority
- contradiction of his political philosophy?
- realities of presidency forced him to abandon small gov’t
principles at times
• Louisiana Purchase doubles size of U.S.
Lewis and Clark
• Jefferson appoints Lewis and Clark to lead Corps of
Discovery:
- explore new territory, find route to Pacific
- gather information about people, plants animals
• Native American woman, Sacajawea, serves as interpreter,
guide
• Zebulon Pike explored Colorado, Minnesota, New Mexico
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SECTION
3
Jefferson’s Foreign Conflict
The Barbary Pirates
• North African “Barbary States” of Morocco, Algeria,
Tunis, Tripoli prey on commercial ships
• European powers paid protection $ (tribute) to keep
their ships safe
• Washington and Adams reluctantly pay 20-30k a
year to each Barbary state
• Ruler of Tripoli declares war on US; Jefferson
strengthens navy
• American ship the Philadelphia captured and sailors
imprisoned
• Jefferson orders blockade of Tripoli and sends
marines on a successful attack; US freed of tribute
• US first offensive war and first overseas conflict
Continued . . .
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The Barbary Pirates
The conflict with the Barbary Pirates is similar to recent events dealing with Somali
pirates hijacking American ships, as depicted in the film Captain Phillips. Similar to
the Somali pirates, Barbary pirates used small boats to take over much larger ships and
held crews for ransom. Shipping companies today fork over as much as $100 million
in ransoms to the Somali pirates, a strategy that saves their cargoes, but encourages
more hijacking
Section 4
The War of 1812
War breaks out again between the United States
and Britain in 1812.
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SECTION
4
The War of 1812
The War Hawks Demand War
British and French Rivalries
• British blockade French ports to prevent ships
from entering
• Britain, France (1000, 500) seize American ships,
confiscate cargoes
Grievances Against Britain
• Impressment—seizing Americans, drafting them
into British navy
• Federalist party (pro-Brit) shrinks in popularity
• Chesapeake incident further angers Americans
• Jefferson convinces Congress to declare
embargo, or ban on exports
• Embargo, meant to hurt Europe, also hurts U.S.
- Congress lifts it, except with Britain, France Continued . . .
NEXT
The Chesapeake incident
The actual number of Americans pressed into service in the Royal Navy is
unknown, but it is estimated that a thousand American seamen per year
were illegally pressed into British service. The British removed four
“deserters” from the Chesapeake’s crew. Only one of them was British –
the rest were American seamen who had been impressed into British
naval service. The Leopard then sailed to England so that the men could
be tried.
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4
continued
The War Hawks Demand War
Tecumseh’s Confederacy
• William Henry Harrison (Gov. of Indiana territory)
makes land deal with Native American chiefs
• Shawnee chief Tecumseh tries to form Native
American confederacy:
- tells people to return to traditional beliefs, practices
- presses Harrison to leave land, negotiates British
help; many tribes don’t join
The War Hawks
• Harrison is hero of Battle of Tippecanoe but suffers
heavy losses
• Broke Tecumseh’s plans for unity
• War hawks—want war with Britain because natives
used British arms
--Henry Clay of Kentucky leads the War Hawks
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SECTION
4
The War Brings Mixed Results
Americans’ Advantages
• Canadian population still strongly French
• British have to send troop reinforcements 3000
miles across the stormy Atlantic
• British worn out from recent wars with France and
Spain
• American ships strongest in the world, manned by
skilled sailors
--Most famous ship, the Constitution, named
because Paul Revere did the metalwork
American Disadvantages
• Northeast against the war, contributes little and
even helps the British at times
• Old and incompetent war generals
Continued . . .
NEXT
SECTION
4
The War Brings Mixed Results
The War in Canada
• Madison (wins landslide presidential election of
1808..Dem-Rep.) chooses war, thinks Britain is
crippling U.S. trade, economy
• U.S. army unprepared; early British victories in
Detroit, Montreal
• Oliver Hazard Perry defeats British on Lake Erie;
U.S. wins battles on Atlantic Ocean
• Native Americans fight on both sides; Tecumseh
killed in battle
• British blockade U.S. ports along east coast
Election of 1812
• Madison defeats Federalist, anti-war candidate
DeWitt Clinton (mayor of NY)
• Sectional results: Madison wins South and westContinued . . .
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SECTION
4
continued
The War Brings Mixed Results
British Burn the White House
• By 1814, British raid, burn towns along Atlantic
coast
• British burn Washington D.C.
The Battle of New Orleans
• General Andrew Jackson fights Native
Americans, gains national fame
• Jackson defeats Native Americans at Battle of
Horseshoe Bend
- destroys military power of Native Americans in
South
• In 1815, defeats superior British force at Battle
of New Orleans (the Yorktown of War of 1812)
Continued . . .
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British burn Washington D.C. and the White
House
The individual states, while eager to defend themselves, felt no obligation
to defend D.C. This was the only time in history that D.C. was occupied.
President Madison and the rest of the government was forced to flee to
Virginia. The British set fire to the Capitol building and other public
buildings. The Executive Mansion was painted white to hide some of the
effects of the fire and it has since been known as the White House.
SECTION
4
continued
The War Brings Mixed Results
The Treaty of Ghent
• Treaty of Ghent, peace agreement signed
Christmas 1814
• Declares armistice or end to fighting; does not
resolve all issues
• 1815, commercial treaty reopens trade between
Britain and U.S.
• 1817, Rush-Bagot agreement limits war ships on
Great Lakes
• 1818, northern boundary of Louisiana Territory set
at 49th parallel
• Agree to jointly occupy Oregon Territory for 10
years
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Battle of Fort McHenry
During a night-long bombardment of Fort McHenry, an American lawyer was on one of the ships
trying to negotiate the release of an aged physician, a friend of his who was captured in Washington.
He spent an anxious night wondering if Fort McHenry would be forced to surrender. When the
dawn was breaking, the old doctor kept asking “Is the flag still there?”. Inspired Key wrote a poem
“The Defense of Fort McHenry”. It was noted that the words could be made to fit an old drinking
song called “To Anacreon in Heaven”, and the poem sung in this fashion became the “Star Spangled
Banner”