The Revolutionary Era
Creating a New Government
Forging the New Republic
Tensions between Britain and America,
1765-1775
Strengths and Weaknesses of the
Continental and British Armies
The Revolutionary Era
Weaknesses of the Articles of Confederation
The Great Compromise
Checks and Balances
Creating a New Government
Causes and Effects of the War of 1812
Federal Office Terms and Requirements
Federal Judicial System
Federalism
Visual Summary: The Constitution of the
United States
The Revolutionary Era
Creating a New Government
Forging the New Republic
Battles of the American
Revolution, 1778-1781
The Louisiana Purchase
Signing of the Declaration of
Independence
The Constitutional Convention
The Burning of the White House
Poll Tax Amendment

The Main Idea
America declared independence from Great Britain in 1776 and won the Revolutionary War in 1783.
Reading Focus
• What events led to the American Revolution?
• Why did the colonists declare independence?
• What key events took place as the Revolution continued?
• How did Americans achieve victory?

The Sugar Act - 1764
• First British law to raise war debt money from colonists
• Taxed sugar from French and
Spanish West Indies, forcing colonists to buy British sugar
• Colonial leader Sam Adams called this “taxation without representation.”
The Stamp Act - 1765
• Required colonists to pay for an official government stamp on certain paper items
• Marked the first time the British had taxed the colonists directly, which
Americans openly protested
• Parliament eventually repealed the
Stamp Act.
The Quartering Act - 1765
• Required colonists to provide food, drink, fuel, living space, and transportation to British soldiers living in America
• Was the policy in Britain, but colonists saw it as an attack on their rights
The Townshend Act - 1767
• The Townshend Acts taxed certain goods imported from England.
• It also also gave customs officers the right to search any house for smuggled goods — without a search warrant.
• Powerful opposition to these acts forced Britain to send troops to enforce them.

The Boston Tea Party
• In 1773, the Tea Act gave the British East India control over the tea market.
• Colonists resisted Britain’s control by throwing the company’s tea overboard.
• Furious British officials enacted four harsh laws, known as the Intolerable
Acts, to punish Massachusetts and set an example for other colonies.
The Boston Massacre
• In March 1770, five colonists died when British soldiers shot at a protesting crowd, including Crispus Attucks, an African/Native American sailor.
• These killings were called the Boston Massacre.
The First Continental Congress
• In September 1774, delegates from 12 colonies met in Philadelphia at the
First Continental Congress.
• The delegates agreed to issue a Declaration of Rights, boycott goods, form a military force of minutemen, and meet again in the spring.

• Before the Continental Congress could meet again, war broke out.
• British general Thomas Gage was ordered to arrest local Patriot leaders, including Samuel Adams and John Hancock, as well as capture weapons the Patriots stored in Concord, Massachusetts.
• In April 1775, about 700 British troops set out for Concord.
• Colonial alarm riders, including Paul Revere, rode out to warn the
Patriots.
• By the time the British reached Lexington, about 70 minutemen were waiting.
• A shot rang out and fighting began, killing eight colonists in the
Battle of Lexington.
• The British then marched to Concord, where a stronger force of minutemen forced them to retreat to Boston.

• The Second Continental Congress met a few weeks after the Battles of
Lexington and Concord, and included Benjamin Franklin, John Hancock, and Thomas Jefferson.
• Attitudes toward Britain were mixed. All delegates felt the taxes were unfair, but only some wanted full independence.
• The Congress created a Continental Army, led by George Washington.
• Other delegates sent a petition to King George III asking for reconciliation.
• While the Congress met, battle raged on. Key battles included:
Battle of Bunker Hill
• British troops retreated to Boston after the Battle of Concord and were met by 10,000 militia.
• The British won the battle, but the
Patriots’ brave defense encouraged resistance.
Battle of Dorchester Heights
• Two weeks after Bunker Hill,
Washington took command of the struggling Continental Army.
• Washington’s strategies allowed the Patriots to retake Boston and fortify Dorchester Heights.

• Intensifying battles made more colonists lean toward independence, as did anger at the king’s unfavorable response to their petition for reconciliation.
• Thomas Paine’s pamphlet Common Sense echoed John Locke’s
Enlightenment thinking, calling for independence from Britain.
• In June of 1776 Virginia issued a citizens’ declaration of rights, the first official call for independence, which Congress discussed.
• The Declaration of Independence formally announced the break with
Great Britain. It expressed three main ideas
–“Inalienable rights” such as life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness
– King George III passed unfair laws and unfairly taxed the colonies
– Britain had violated the social contract by passing these laws.
• Jefferson wrote the first draft, but the final document was presented on
July 2, 1776. Congress approved it two days later on July 4th.

Defeats and Victories
• Washington moved the
Continental Army to New York, where General Howe attacked.
• The British took control of New
York City and Washington’s troops were forced into
Pennsylvania.
• British troops settled down in
New Jersey for the winter.
• Washington ignored traditional
European warfare tactics and attacked in winter while the
British and Hessians (hired
German soldiers) slept.
• Washington drove the British out of Princeton.
Saratoga and its Aftermath
• Two British generals tried to cut off New England from the rest of the colonies by attacking from two sides.
• One general did not show up, and the colonists attacked and defeated the other’s troops in Saratoga, New York.
• The Battle of Saratoga turned the Revolutionary War in the colonists’ favor.
• Washington’s troops retired to
Valley Forge in Pennsylvania, where a harsh winter and lack of supplies killed many.

Continental Army
Strengths:
– Strong leadership
– Fighting for a cause they believed in
– Fighting on home territory
British Army (Redcoats)
Strengths:
– Well-trained military
– Ample resources
– Alliances with Native
Americans, loyalists, and some slaves
Weaknesses:
– Small, untrained military
– Shortage of resources
– Weak central government
Weaknesses:
– Unfamiliar, far away territory
– Fighting for a cause they didn’t necessarily believe in
African Americans and Women in the Revolutionary War
• When Washington took over the army, he barred black soldiers from enlisting, but after Valley Forge more manpower was needed and the order was rescinded.
• While men fought, women took over important duties at home.

War in the West and the South
• After Saratoga, action shifted to the South and the western frontier.
• Americans won important victories in in present–day Ohio, Indiana, Illinois,
Michigan, Wisconsin and part of Minnesota.
The Colonists Gain Allies
• Victories gained the colonists help from Europeans, including Bernardo de
Gálvez, governor of Spanish Louisiana and Marquis de Lafayette, of France.
• These allies would eventually help the colonists win the war.
The British Shift Strategies
• In 1778 the British stopped sending troops, instead they encouraged loyalists in the colonies to rise up against the Patriots.
• Patriot raiders such as Francis Marion, the “Swamp Fox,” hindered loyalists.
• The British army won in North Carolina, but British losses were so great that their commander, Lord Cornwallis, stopped the campaign against the colonists.

• The colonists, helped by Lafayette’s French troops, forced the
British to Yorktown Peninsula in Chesapeake Bay.
• Cornwallis built a fort and waited for the British to rescue them.
• Washington saw his chance and blocked British ships from rescuing Cornwallis’s troops.
• After bombardment by land and sea, Cornwallis surrendered on behalf of the British.
• The Battle of Yorktown was the last major battle of the
Revolutionary War.
Though some hoped that America would remain part of the
British Empire, the September 3, 1783, Treaty of Paris formalized America’s independence from Britain.

The Main Idea
After the Revolution, American leaders struggled to form a national government and eventually wrote the Constitution.
Reading Focus
• What were the weaknesses of the Articles of Confederation?
• What did the founders discuss when drafting the Constitution?
• What was involved in ratifying the Constitution?

• The states formed new governments quickly after the Declaration of
Independence, but had trouble with central government principles.
• Americans wanted a republic that ruled “with consent of the governed” instead of a monarchy or supreme authority.
• After the Revolutionary War, America still worked under the Articles of
Confederation, which established an association of independent states.
• Under the Articles, the central government had power to set national policies and carry on foreign relations.
• The Articles also had several weaknesses:
Congress could not impose taxes to repay war debts.
Congress could not regulate trade.
9 of 13 states needed to agree in order to pass laws.
All states had to agree to amend the Articles.
No executive branch to enforce laws passed by Congress
No judicial branch to interpret laws passed by Congress

Struggles
• Economic problems in the states:
– New England’s valuable trade with Britain and British West
Indies was ruined.
– Paper money issued during the war wasn’t backed up with gold or silver, which led to inflation.
– The states collected taxes, sometimes in “hard currency” instead of paper money.
– People who could not pay taxes were jailed.
• Poverty led to many riots:
– During Shays’s Rebellion in
Massachusetts, angry farmers shut down debtor courts.
Important Plans
• In 1784 Jefferson proposed a plan to settle the Northwest
Territory
– Each of ten districts could join Congress when population hit 20,000.
– Later, districts could be admitted as new states.
• Congress had its own plan
– Surveyed land was divided into a grid of townships.
– Each had 36 sections, four government owned.
• In 1787 Congress passed a law for western settlement, promising religious freedom but not allowing slavery.

• Frustration with the Articles of Confederation built for years among many Americans.
• In the fall of 1786 George Washington and James Madison convened a meeting of the states in Maryland, but delegates from only five showed up.
• Congress then called the states to meet in Philadelphia in 1787 for a Constitutional Convention.
• James Madison kept a diary with a detailed account of this event, which was a turning point in American history.
• Because of his role, James Madison is often called the Father of the Constitution.
• The convention unanimously chose George Washington as its president.

Virginia Plan
• Proposed a new form of government with three branches: executive, judicial, legislative
• The legislature would be bicameral, with an upper and lower house.
• Members would be chosen in proportion to each state’s population.
• Disliked by small states that would have less power
New Jersey Plan
• Retained many of the features of the
Confederation
• Gave Congress additional powers
• Suggested a one-house legislature with equal representation for each state
• Tried to equalize power for states
The Great
Compromise
• A Connecticut plan to balance state powers
• Two-house legislature: upper house Senate represented the state, the lower house the population.
• The Three-Fifths
Compromise allowed only part of the slave population to be counted.

• The delegates needed to find a balance of power between the
Congress and the president.
• Questions arose about states’ rights versus federal powers.
• The outcome was a compromise: instead of people directly choosing a president, state legislatures chose electors to do it.
• The delegates set up a system of checks and balances.
Legislative Branch
• Makes the laws
• Gives advice and consent to president
• Can pass over vetoes with twothirds vote
Executive Branch
• President and cabinet
• Carries out laws
• Makes treaties and nominates judges
• Vetoes laws
Judicial Branch
• Supreme Court and lower courts
• Interprets laws as they relate to the Constitution

Debates
Federalists
Antifederalists
When the Constitution was finally published, supporters and opponents presented their arguments.
• Wanted to ratify, or accept, the Constitution
• Believed in a strong national government
• Believed the separation of powers in the Constitution limited government power
• Popular with the wealthy
• Inspired the Federalist Papers, essays written by James
Madison, Alexander Hamilton, and John Jay, which offered practical arguments for strong government
• Feared a strong national government would lead to tyranny and abuse of states’ rights and individual liberties
• Did not trust government to protect people’s rights
• Popular with farmers and planters
• Thought the new government favored the wealthy and educated over ordinary people

• Before agreeing to ratify the Constitution, Antifederalists wanted a Bill of Rights added to protect individual liberties.
• Only 9 of 13 states needed to ratify the Constitution
• Some important states only agreed because they were promised a Bill of Rights.
• Article V gave Congress or state conventions the right to propose amendments, which then went to the states for approval.
• James Madison, a supporter of the Constitution, took charge of getting a Bill of Rights through Congress so that the document would finally be ratified.
• By 1791, ten approved amendments became the Bill of

The Bill of Rights protected individual rights.
• The first eight amendments dealt with individual civil liberties.
• The Ninth Amendment stated that listing certain rights in this document did not mean that other unlisted rights did not exist.
• The Tenth Amendment defined two types of government powers: delegated and reserved powers.
– Delegated powers are those given out to the three branches of government.
– Reserved powers belonged to the states or the people.
• Most of the amendments echoed rights listed in the Virginia
Declaration of Rights, written by George Mason.

The Main Idea
Under presidents Washington, Adams, and Jefferson, the United
States continued to shape its new government while facing both foreign and domestic challenges.
Reading Focus
• What actions did Washington take when he became president?
• What challenges did the United States face in the 1790s?
• What were the main events of Jefferson’s presidency?
• What were the causes and effects of the War of 1812?

• The Constitution mentions “heads of the executive departments” but does not specify what those cabinet departments are.
• Congress created the first three executive departments and Washington began to choose his cabinet:
Henry Knox became secretary of war.
Alexander Hamilton, a Federalist, became secretary of the treasury.
Thomas Jefferson, an Antifederalist, was secretary of state.
• Hamilton wanted a strong centralized nation with a role in world affairs.
• Jefferson envisioned a more rural nation with power residing in state governments.
– Along with James Madison and Jefferson, those who shared these beliefs called themselves the Democratic-Republicans.
• The Judiciary Act of 1789 organized a judicial branch with a six-person
Supreme Court, as well as district courts and circuit courts of appeal.
– Washington named John Jay as chief justice of the Supreme Court.

• The new government had no money to pay for daily expenses, and owed money to foreign nations, private lenders, and soldiers.
• Hamilton did not share Republican ideals, and believed the wealthy were the key to a stable government.
• Hamilton created a controversial three–point plan.
1. The federal government should take on both state and national debt.
2. The government should raise revenue by passing tariffs.
3. The United States should create a national bank and mint to stabilize the banking system.
• Some thought Hamilton’s plan favored the wealthy who bought war bonds from original bondholders.
• Southerners protested — they had already paid their war debts.
• Tensions in the North and South were partially solved by moving the capital from New York to Philadelphia, and finally to Washington, D.C.

• By far the most controversial part of Hamilton’s plan was the idea of a national bank.
– Some people, such as Jefferson, believed the government did not have the power to create a national bank because it was not specifically granted in the Constitution.
• Those people were called strict constructionists.
– Some people, such as Hamilton, pointed out that the Constitution allows actions that are not strictly prohibited, including a creating a national bank.
• Those people were called loose constructionists.
• Jefferson urged Washington to veto the bank bill, but Hamilton convinced him that being flexible was important to the government.
• Hamilton and Jefferson’s differences led to the creation of political parties.
– Those who supported Jefferson were the Democratic-Republicans.
– Those who supported Hamilton were the Federalists.

Jay’s and Pinckney’s Treaties The French Revolution
• In 1789 France exploded into revolution over food shortages, high prices, and taxes.
• The revolutionary government won and
France became a constitutional monarchy.
• In 1793, radicals called Jacobians took over, declared a republic, and beheaded and imprisoned thousands in a Reign of
Terror.
• Democratic-Republicans supported the
French Revolution because it was a turn toward liberty.
• Federalists were unhappy that the government was overthrown and that
France was at war.
• Washington issued the Neutrality
Proclamation because he believed that the prosperity of the U.S. depended on neutrality.
• Chief Justice John Jay negotiated Jay’s
Treaty, which required Britain to
– Pay damages for ships they had seized from the U.S.
– Vacate their forts in the
Northwest Territory
• The treaty was unpopular in the U.S. because many thought the British should have been punished more harshly.
• In Pickney’s Treaty, the U.S. settled boundary disputes with Spain over
Spanish Florida.
• This treaty opened the frontier to further settlement.

The Whiskey
Rebellion
• 1794: Farmers objected to
Hamilton’s tax on whiskey.
• They attacked tax collectors and burned barns of those who told where whiskey was stilled.
• Washington responded quickly, making it clear that rebellion was not tolerated.
Northwest
Conflict
• Americans fought
Native Americans in the Northwest
Territory
• 1794: General
Anthony Wayne defeated Native
Americans at the
Battle of Fallen
Timbers.
• The Treaty of
Greenville then claimed most of the Indian land in the territory.
President Adams
• John Adams wanted better relations with
France.
• Adams sent three diplomats, but
French officials demanded bribes and a loan.
• Outrage over this allowed Congress to pass laws protecting against foreign enemies and domestic dissent.

Key Election
Facts
• 1800: first election that changed the party in power
• The tied election between Jefferson and Burr led to the
12th Amendment, which set up separate ballots for president and vice president
Inaugural
Address
• Jefferson’s presidency was to be guided by two principles:
– Reducing taxes passed under Hamilton’s plan
– Reducing the size and influence of the federal government
Supreme
Court
Grows
Stronger
• Jefferson’s March 1801 inauguration date gave Federalists time to create several new judgeships.
• Adams worked late into the night appointing Federalists.
• Secretary of State James Madison refused to deliver a commission to one of the “midnight judges.”
• In Marbury v. Madison, the Supreme Court ruled that the
Constitution couldn’t make Madison deliver it.
• This crucial decision established the Supreme Court’s right to declare laws unconstitutional.

• One of Jefferson’s major achievements was the purchase of the
Louisiana Territory from France, known as the Louisiana
Purchase.
• The purchase of new territory raised complicated questions for
Jefferson.
– He was a strict constructionist and followed the Constitution literally.
– The Constitution didn’t give him the authority to purchase new land.
• Jefferson finally decided that the right to purchase territory was implicit in the constitutional power to make treaties.
• Once the purchase was approved, Jefferson sent out expeditions, including the Lewis and Clark expedition.
• The Lewis and Clark expedition reached the Pacific Ocean and mapped and surveyed much territory along the way.

• Americans were happy about the Louisiana Purchase and reelected Jefferson by a landslide in 1804.
• In 1803 the Napoleonic Wars broke out between France and Great Britain.
• The U.S. was involved, as both French and British warships stopped American merchant ships, and the British began seizing and drafting Americans at sea.
• Americans were angered by the British seizures and also when they discovered the British were helping Native
Americans against the settlers in the Northwest Territory.
• A group of young members of Congress known as the War
American interests.

• The War of 1812 was the second war between the British and
Americans in North America. It ranged from Canada in the north to
Louisiana in the south.
• In the final battle, Americans won a decisive victory when General
Andrew Jackson led American troops against a large British force in
New Orleans.
• Unfortunately, while Jackson fought at New Orleans, a peace treaty had already been signed. Slow communications prevented Jackson from receiving the message.
Causes
• British impressment of American sailors
• International conflicts over commerce
• British military aid to Native
Americans on the Northwest
Territory frontier
Effects
• Foreign respect for the U.S.
• National pride
• Increase in American manufacturing
• Less Native American resistance

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