l1-l3: colonial history review the founding period: ideals, contradictions, and uncertainties

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L1-L3: Colonial History ReviewThe Founding Period: Ideals, Contradictions, and

UncertaintiesAgenda

Objective: 1. To refresh our memory of

colonial American history.2. To analyze the Declaration of

Independence and its role in the founding vision of America.

3. To analyze the Articles of Confederation and its role in the founding vision of America.

4. To develop a preliminary understanding of the founding vision of America.

Schedule: 1. Opening activity2. Lecture, Discussion, and

Readings

Homework:1. Consult unit

schedule. No modifications to assignments at this time.

The Founding Period: Ideals, Contradictions, and Uncertainties

Introductory Unit• Our introductory unit will look at the founding period of American history (1776-1787)• In particular we will look at the Constitution, supported by other founding documents, to analyze the ideals, contradictions, and

uncertainties contained in our founding texts. We will do so with a particular focus on our course themes.

• We will do this through a series of discussions.



The Founding Period: Ideals, Contradictions, and UncertaintiesUnit Schedule, Assignments, and

Assessments

• Unit Schedule (website)• Assignments (website)• Assessments (website)

Getting Started!Jogging Our Memory…

• What do you remember about American history from abut 1607-1787?



British Colonization• 1607: First British settlement

at Jamestown• 1630: British Puritans establish

Massachusetts Bay Colony• 1733: 13 original Colonies

established– Delaware, Pennsylvania, New

Jersey, Georgia, Connecticut, Massachusetts Bay, Maryland, South Carolina, New Hampshire, Virginia, New York, North Carolina, and Rhode Island and Providence Plantations





Colonial History in a Nutshell

• Each colony developed its own system of self-government• Population was growing rapidly• Steady flow of Northern European immigrants• Slave system in the South

– Slaves comprised 20% of American population in 1770s• More and more taxes being imposed by the British on the

colonies in an effort to raise money to pay off debts incurred during the French and Indian War 1754-1763



Build Up to War• Boston Tea Party (1773)

– Protest against increased British taxes

• First Continental Congress (1774)– Convention of delegates from 12 colonies (no Georgia) – Called for a boycott of British trade– Published a list of grievances against the king and petitioned him to redress these

grievances

• Second Continental Congress (1775)– Convention of delegates from 13 colonies– Met in response of the failure of the king to address the list of grievances from the First Continental Congress – Adopted the Declaration of Independence on July 4, 1776



Declaration of Independence• Document in which the

thirteen colonies declared that they were no longer a part of the British empire, but rather were a series of independent states

• First time a people had formally and successfully claimed independence from the imperial power that ruled them

• Primary Author: Thomas Jefferson

• July 4, 1776



Declaration of Independence

• First of the founding documents we will be considering• Document lays out guiding principles / vision for the values on which the new nation will be founded• Read & Discuss

– What is the political theory laid out by the document?– What does the document say about our course themes?

• Equality and Hierarchy?• Individualism and Collectivism?

– Balance of power between state and national government?– View of liberty and democracy?– Balance between individual rights and the greater good?

• Foreign Policy?



American Revolutionary War

• 1776-1783• British vs. Continental Army• Americans received supplies and support

from the French• Americans win• Result is that the United States is created

as a separate nation



Now What?• America was now confronted with the

challenge of establishing a government for the new nation.

• What does the Declaration of Independence suggest about what this new government might look like?



Articles of Confederation• First national constitution• November 1777• Read & Discuss

– What type of government does it establish?

– What powers does it give to the national government?

– What powers does it give to the state governments?

– What is the “vision” of the document?– Does it embody the ideals of the

Declaration of Independence?– What are the strengths of the

document? What are the weaknesses?



Articles of Confederation Shows its Weaknesses

• Articles of Confederation proved inadequate in the face of two post-war crisis:

• Economic Depression – Significant post-war debt– Inability for Americans to obtain loans– Currency shortages

• Shay’s Rebellion (1786)– Armed uprising throughout central and western Massachusetts by rural war veterans over economic conditions– Successfully shut down courts throughout Mass– No strong federal government to intervene; state of Mass had to find volunteers to

raise an independent army

• In light of the nation’s economic problems and Shay’s Rebellion some began to call for a new constitution that had a stronger national government.



Constitutional Convention• May 1787• Goal was to create a new constitution--a new design--for the American government.• 55 delegates representing each state--except Rhode Island who opposed an increase in central authority.

– Most delegates were men of property, merchants, or slaveholding planters.

– There were no artisans, tenants, blacks, or women.



The Constitutional Convention• The Convention drafted a constitution which consisted of a preamble and seven articles.

– You should all be familiar with this text!

• To be accepted as the new “law of the land” required 9 states to approve.

• Two parties soon emerged one in support of ratification and one opposed.– Federalists (supported ratification)– Anti-Federalists (opposed ratification)



Who Were the Federalists?• Alexander Hamilton (1755-1804)

– Was the primary intellectual force for nationalism throughout the founding period

– Was Washington’s most trusted advisor– Was the principle architect of the nation’s

economic policy as Secretary of the Treasury.• James Madison (1751-1836)

– Was the principle architect of the Constitution. – Delegate to the Virginia Ratification

Convention• John Jay (1745-1829)

– President of the Continental Congress– Governor of New York State

• The Federalist Papers– Series of 85 articles or essays promoting the

ratification of the Constitution published in The Independent Journal and the The New York Packet between 1787-1788.

– Written by Hamilton, Madison, and Jay– Published under the pseudonym “Publius” to

keep their anonymity.







Who Were the Anti-Federalists?• George Mason (1725-1792)

– Wrote the Virginia Declaration of Rights, detailing specific rights of citizens, which became the model for the Declaration of Independence and the first ten Amendments to the U.S. Constitution.

• Patrick Henry (1736-1799) – Prominent figure in the Revolution, known

for his “Give me liberty or give me death” speech,

– Governor of Virginia• Others

– George Clinton, Robert Yates, Samuel Bryan, Richard Henry Lee

• Writings– Wrote independently– Unlike the Federalists, never had a

coordinated writing effort– Wrote under pseudonyms: Cato, Brutus,

Centinel, and Federal Farmer

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Patrick_henry.JPG


Understanding the Federalists and the Anti-Federalists

• Working in small groups, you will be assigned a brief excerpt from a piece by either a Federalist or an Anti-Federalist.

• Using this excerpt…– Identify the main beliefs of either the

Federalists or Anti-Federalists.– Identify one quote/evidence to support

each belief.

• We will then use this information to build an understanding of the philosophy/platform of each group.



Understanding the Federalists and Anti-Federalists

Federalists Anti-Federalists

Federalists and Anti-Federalists Discussion

• What is the philosophy/platform of each group?• How would each group respond/relate to our

themes?– Equality and Hierarchy– Individual and Collective

• Individual and Community• State Government and National Government

– Foreign Policy



Compromise: Ratification and the Bill of Rights• Overall, the Federalists were

more organized in their efforts and had a wider readership of their essays.

• However, the Anti-Federalists were influential and were successful at preventing ratification until a Bill of Rights was added to the Constitution.

• Bill of Rights– First 10 Amendments of

the Constitution– What do they say?

• Following the addition of the

Bill of Rights the Constitution was ratified.



Reason for the Bill of Rights

• Fulfill the Promise to Anti-Federalists

• Keep the Constitutional Scheme Intact

• Limit the National Government

• Protect the States• Create Legally

Enforceable Rules



The Two-Party System• Following ratification, the divisions between the Federalists

and Anti-Federalists coalesced around the issue of federalism.

• Federalists favored broad construction of the Constitution and strong national powers. – George Washington, Alexander Hamilton, John Adams, and John Marshall were proponents of this general philosophy.

• Anti-Federalists favored strict- construction of the Constitution and advocated popular (State’s) rights against what they saw as aristocratic, centralizing tendencies of their opponents.

– Thomas Jefferson’s Democratic-Republican Party formed around these beliefs

• In one form or another, these two competing philosophies have dominated American politics throughout its 200-year history from the Civil War to regulating the economy during the New Deal to current debates over abortion.





Our Task From Here: Background

• Our goal this unit is to understand the ideals, principles, and vision for the United States that emerged during the founding period. These notions influence American society and government throughout history and up through today.

• The Constitution will form the central part of this analysis, because as a blueprint for the American government it is imbued with a set of values.



Our Task From Here: Plan• To explore the ideals,

principles and vision for the United States during the founding period we will analyze the Constitution along with a variety of founding documents in light of what they have to say about our course themes.

• We will do this in a series discussions.



United States Census 1790 and Representation in the Congress of 1793

State

Free White Males (16 and

over)

Free White Males (Under 16)

Free Whites Females

All Other Free Persons

Slaves

Total Population

Number of Representatives in the House of Representatives

1793

Connecticut

60,523

54,403

117,7448

2,808

2,764

237,946

7

Delaware

11,783

12,143

22,384

3,899

8,887

59,094

1

Georgia

13,103

14,044

25,739

398

29,264

82,548

2

Kentucky

15,154

17,057

28,922

114

12,430

73,677

2

Maine

24,384

24,748

46,870

538

0

96,540

N/A

Maryland

55,915

51,339

101,395

8,043

103,036

319,728

8

Massachusetts

95,453

87,289

190,582

5,463

0

378,787

14

New Hampshire

36,086

34,851

70,160

630

158

141,885

4

New Jersey

45,251

41,416

83,287

2,762

11,423

184,139

5

New York

83,700

78,122

152,320

4,654

21,324

340,120

10

North Carolina

69,988

77,506

140,710

4,975

100,572

393,751

10

Pennsylvania

110,788

106,948

206,363

6,537

3,737

434,373

13

Rhode Island

16,019

15,799

32,652

3,407

948

68,825

2

South Carolina

35,576

37,722

66,880

1,801

107,094

249,073

6

l1-l3: colonial history review the founding period: ideals, contradictions, and uncertainties

Documents

founding documents

founding vision of america

founding texts

british puritans

british settlement

british colonization1607

british empire

new york