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ADVANCED PLACEMENT

® EDITION

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Printed in the United States of America

Authors

John J. Newman, Ed.D., served for many years as an Advanced Placement® U.S. History teacher and the Department Coordinator of Art, Foreign Language, and Social Studies at Naperville North High School, Naperville, Illinois. He continued his career as Adjunct Professor of History at the College of DuPage and Adjunct Assistant Professor of History Education at Illinois State University.

John M. Schmalbach, Ed.D., taught Advanced Placement® U.S. History and was Social Studies Department head at Abraham Lincoln High School, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He continued his career as Adjunct Assistant Professor at Temple University.

This book is dedicated to our wives, Anne Newman and Rosemarie Schmalbach; our children, Louise Newman, and John, Suzanne, and Robert Schmalbach; and our students, who share our study of America’s past.

Reviewers and Consultants

Chris Averill, Former Member of the AP® U.S. History Development Committee Cosby High School | Midlothian, Virginia

Paul Faeh, AP® U.S. History Exam Leader Hinsdale South High School | Darien, Illinois

Kamasi Hill, AP® U.S. History Teacher Evanston Township High School | Evanston, Illinois

John P. Irish, Former Co-Chair of the AP® U.S. History Development Committee Carroll Senior High School | Southlake, Texas

Michael Kim, AP® U.S. History Exam Table Leader Schurr High School | Montebello, California

Susan Pingel, AP® U.S. History Exam Table Leader Skaneateles High School (retired) | Skaneateles, New York

James Sabathne, Former Co-Chair of the AP® U.S. History Development Committee Hononegah Community High School | Rockton, Illinois

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Contents

Preface xxv Introduction xxvi

UNIT 1—Period 1: 1491–1607

Topic 1.1 Contextualizing Period 1 1 Learning Objective: Explain the context for European encounters in the Americas from 1491 to 1607.

Analyze the Context and Landmark Events 2

Topic 1.2 Native American Societies Before European Contact 3 Learning Objective: Explain how various native populations interacted with the natural environment in North America in the period before European contact.

Cultures of Central and South America 3 Cultures of North America 4 Topic Review and Practice 6

Topic 1.3 European Exploration in the Americas 8 Learning Objective: Explain the causes of exploration and conquest of the New World by various European nations.

The European Context for Exploration 8

Expanding Trade 9 Developing Nation-States 10 Dividing the Americas 10 Topic Review and Practice 12

Topic 1.4 Columbian Exchange, Spanish Exploration, and Conquest 14 Learning Objective: Explain causes of the Columbian Exchange and its effect on Europe and the Americas during the period after 1492.

Christopher Columbus 14 The Columbian Exchange 15 The Rise of Capitalism 15 Historical Perspectives: Was Columbus a Great Hero? 15 Topic Review and Practice 16

Topic 1.5 Labor, Slavery, and Caste in the Spanish Colonial System 19 Learning Objective: Explain how the growth of the Spanish Empire in North America shaped the development of social and economic structures over time.

Spanish Exploration and Conquest 19 Spanish Caste System 20 Topic Review and Practice 20

Topic 1.6 Cultural Interactions in the Americas 23 Learning Objective: Explain how and why European and Native American perspectives of others developed and changed in the period.

European Treatment of Native Americans 23

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Survival Strategies by Native Americans 25 The Role of Africans in America 25 Topic Review and Practice 25

Topic 1.7 Causation in Period 1 27 Learning Objective: Explain the effects of the development of transatlantic voyages from 1491 to 1607.

Questions About Causation 27 Think as a Historian: Analyzing Evidence 28

UNIT 1—Period 1 Review: 1491–1607 30 Write As a Historian: Checklist for a Long Essay Answer 30 Long Essay Questions 31

UNIT 2—Period 2: 1607–1754

Topic 2.1 Contextualizing Period 2 32 Learning Objective: Explain the context for the colonization of North America from 1607 to 1754.

Early Settlements 32 Sources of Labor 33 Analyze the Context and Landmark Events 33

Topic 2.2 European Colonization in North America 34 Learning Objective: Explain how and why various European colonies developed and expanded from 1607 to 1754.

Spanish Colonies 34 French Colonies 35 Dutch Colonies 35 British Colonies 36 Topic Review and Practice 36

Topic 2.3 The Regions of British Colonies 38 Learning Objective: Explain how and why environmental and other factors shaped the development and expansion of various British colonies that developed and expanded from 1607 to 1754.

Early English Settlements 38 Development of New England 41 Restoration Colonies 43 Early Political Institutions 46 Topic Review and Practice 46

Topic 2.4 Transatlantic Trade 49 Learning Objective: Explain the causes and effects of transatlantic trade over time.

Triangular Trade 49 Mercantilism and the Empire 50 The Dominion of New England 52 Ongoing Trade Tensions 52 Topic Review and Practice 52

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Topic 2.5 Interactions Between American Indians and Europeans 54 Learning Objective: Explain how and why interactions between various European nations and American Indians changed over time.

Conflict in New England 54 Conflict in Virginia 55 Spanish Rule and the Pueblo Revolt 56 Topic Review and Practice 56

Topic 2.6 Slavery in the British Colonies 59 Learning Objective 1: Explain the causes and effects of slavery in the various British colonial regions.

Learning Objective 2: Explain how enslaved people responded to slavery.

Demand for Labor 59 The Institution of Slavery 60 Topic Review and Practice 61

Topic 2.7 Colonial Society and Culture 63 Learning Objective 1: Explain how and why the movement of a variety of people and ideas across the Atlantic contributed to the development of American culture over time.

Learning Objective 2: Explain how and why the different goals and interests of European leaders and colonists affected how they viewed themselves and their relationship with Britain.

Population Growth 63 The Structure of Colonial Society 65 The Great Awakening 67 Cultural Life 68 The Enlightenment 70 The Colonial Relationship with Britain 70 Politics and Government 71 Historical Perspectives: Was Colonial Society Democratic? 72 Topic Review and Practice 73

Topic 2.8 Comparisons in Period 2 75 Learning Objective: Compare the effects of the development of colonial society in the various regions of North America.

Questions About Comparison 76 Think as a Historian: Argumentation 77

UNIT 2—Period 2 Review: 1607–1754 78 Write As a Historian: Historical Thinking Skills and Long Essays 78 Long Essay Questions 79 Document-Based Question 80

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UNIT 3—Period 3: 1754–1800

Topic 3.1 Contextualizing Period 3 84 Learning Objective: Explain the context in which America gained independence and developed a sense of national identity.

Analyze the Context and Landmark Events 85

Topic 3.2 The Seven Years’ War 86 Learning Objective: Explain the causes and effects of the Seven Years’ War (the French and Indian War).

Empires at War, 1689–1763 86 The First Three Wars 86 The Decisive Conflict 87 Reorganization of the British Empire 89 Topic Review and Practice 90

Topic 3.3 Taxation Without Representation 92 Learning Objective: Explain how British colonial policies regarding North America led to the Revolutionary War.

British Actions and Colonial Reactions 92 New Revenues and Regulations 93 Second Phase of the Crisis, 1767–1773 94 Renewal of the Conflict 95 Intolerable Acts 96 The Demand for Independence 96 Topic Review and Practice 97

Topic 3.4 Philosophical Foundations of the American Revolution 100 Learning Objective: Explain how and why colonial attitudes about government and the individual changed in the years leading up to the American Revolution.

Enlightenment Ideas 100 Thomas Paine’s Argument for Independence 101 Historical Perspectives: Why Did the Colonies Rebel? 101 Topic Review and Practice 102

Topic 3.5 The American Revolution 104 Learning Objective: Explain how various factors contributed to the American victory in the Revolution.

The First Continental Congress 104 Fighting Begins 105 The Second Continental Congress 106 Peace Efforts 106 The Declaration of Independence 106 The Revolutionary War 107 The Competing Sides 107 Initial American Losses and Hardships 108 Alliance with France 108

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Victory 109 Topic Review and Practice 109

Topic 3.6 The Influence of Revolutionary Ideals 111 Learning Objective 1: Explain the various ways the American Revolution affected society.

Learning Objective 2: Describe the global impact of the American Revolution.

Women in the Revolutionary Era 111 The Status of Enslaved African Americans 112 Native Americans and Independence 112 International Impact of the American Revolution 112 Historical Perspectives: How Unusual Was the Revolution? 113 Topic Review and Practice 114

Topic 3.7 The Articles of Confederation 117 Learning Objective: Explain how different forms of government developed and changed as a result of the Revolutionary Period.

Organization of New Governments 117 State Governments 117 The Articles of Confederation 118 The United States Under the Articles, 1781–1789 118 Weaknesses of the Articles 120 Topic Review and Practice 120

Topic 3.8 The Constitutional Convention and Debates Over Ratification 123 Learning Objective: Explain the differing ideological positions on the structure and function of the federal government.

The Annapolis Convention 123 Drafting the Constitution at Philadelphia 123 The Delegates 124 Key Issues at the Convention 125 Federalists and Anti-Federalists 126 The Federalist Papers 127 The Path to Ratification 127 Topic Review and Practice 128

Topic 3.9 The Constitution 130 Learning Objective: Explain the continuities and changes in the structure and functions of the government with the ratification of the Constitution.

Federalism 130 Separation of Powers 131 The Bill of Rights 131 Topic Review and Practice 132

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Topic 3.10 Shaping a New Republic 135 Learning Objective 1: Explain how and why competition intensified conflict among peoples and nations from 1754 to 1800.

Learning Objective 2: Explain how and why political ideas, institutions, and party systems developed and changed in the new republic.

Washington’s Presidency 135 Organizing the Federal Government 135 Hamilton’s Financial Program 136 Foreign Affairs Under Washington 137 Domestic Concerns under Washington 138 The First Political Parties 139 Origins 140 Differences Between the Parties 140 Washington’s Farewell Address 141 John Adams’ Presidency 141 Topic Review and Practice 142

Topic 3.11 Developing an American Identity 145 Learning Objective: Explain the continuities and changes in American culture from 1754 to 1800.

Social Change 145 Political Change 146 Cultural Change 147 Topic Review and Practice 147

Topic 3.12 Movement in the Early Republic 149 Learning Objective 1: Explain how and why migration and immigration to and within North America caused competition and conflict over time.

Learning Objective 2: Explain the continuities and changes in regional attitudes about slavery as it expanded from 1754 to 1800.

Migration and Settlement 149 American Indians 149 Population Change 151 Slavery 151 Topic Review and Practice 152

Topic 3.13 Continuity and Change in Period 3 155 Learning Objective: Explain how the American independence movement affected society from 1754 to 1800.

Questions About Continuity and Change 155 Think As a Historian: Developments and Processes 156

UNIT 3—Period 3 Review: 1754–1800 157 Write As a Historian: Analyze the Question 157 Long Essay Questions 158 Document-Based Question 159

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UNIT 4—Period 4: 1800–1848

Topic 4.1 Contextualizing Period 4 163 Learning Objective: Explain the context in which the republic developed from 1800 to 1848.

Analyze the Context and Landmark Events 164

Topic 4.2 The Rise of Political Parties and the Era of Jefferson 165 Learning Objective: Explain the causes and effects of policy debates in the early republic.

The Election of 1800 165 Jefferson’s Presidency 166 Aaron Burr 169 John Marshall’s Supreme Court and Federal Power 170 Madison’s Presidency 172 Topic Review and Practice 172

Topic 4.3 Politics and Regional Interests 175 Learning Objective: Explain how different regional interests affected debates about the role of the federal government in the early republic.

The Era of Good Feelings 175 Western Settlement and the Missouri Compromise 178 Topic Review and Practice 180

Topic 4.4 America on the World Stage 182 Learning Objective: Explain how and why American foreign policy developed over time.

Jefferson’s Foreign Policy 182 President Madison’s Foreign Policy 183 The War of 1812 184 Monroe and Foreign Affairs 189 Topic Review and Practice 191

Topic 4.5 Market Revolution 193 Learning Objective: Explain the causes and effects of the innovations in technology, agriculture, and commerce over time.

Development of the Northwest 193 Transportation 194 Communication 195 Growth of Industry 195 Commercial Agriculture 197 Cotton and the South 197 Topic Review and Practice 197

Topic 4.6 Effects of the Market Revolution on Society and Culture 200 Learning Objective: Explain how and why innovation in technology, agriculture, and commerce affected various segments of American society over time.

Women 200 Economic and Social Mobility 201

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Population Growth and Change 201 Organized Labor 202 Topic Review and Practice 203

Topic 4.7 Expanding Democracy 205 Learning Objective: Explain the causes and effects of the expansion of participatory democracy from 1800 to 1848.

Greater Equality 205 Changes to Parties and Campaigns 206 Historical Perspectives: The Jacksonians and Expanding Democracy 207 Topic Review and Practice 208

Topic 4.8 Jackson and Federal Power 210 Learning Objective: Explain the causes and effects of continuing policy debates about the role of the federal government from 1800 to 1848.

Jackson Versus Adams 210 The Presidency of Andrew Jackson 211 The Two-Party System 214 The Western Frontier 216 Topic Review and Practice 218

Topic 4.9 The Development of an American Culture 222 Learning Objective: Explain how and why a new national culture developed from 1800 to 1848.

Cultural Nationalism 222 A Changing Culture: Ideas, the Arts, and Literature 222 Topic Review and Practice 226

Topic 4.10 The Second Great Awakening 229 Learning Objective: Explain the causes of the Second Great Awakening.

Causes of Religious Reform 229 Revivals 229 New Denominations 231 Reforms Backed by Religion 231 Topic Review and Practice 231

Topic 4.11 An Age of Reform 234 Learning Objective: Explain how and why various reform movements developed and expanded from 1800 to 1848.

Improving Society 234 Changes in Families and Roles for Women 236 Antislavery Movement 237 Other Reforms 238 Topic Review and Practice 239

Topic 4.12 African Americans in the Early Republic 241 Learning Objective: Explain the continuities and changes in the experience of African Americans from 1800 to 1848.

Free African Americans 242

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Resistance by the Enslaved 242 Topic Review and Practice 244

Topic 4.13 Southern Society in the Early Republic 247 Learning Objective: Explain how geographic and environmental factors shaped the development of the South from 1800 to 1848.

Agriculture and King Cotton 247 Slavery, the “Peculiar Institution” 248 White Society 249 Topic Review and Practice 250 Historical Perspectives: What Was the Nature Of Slavery? 250

Topic 4.14 Causation in Period 4 253 Learning Objective: Explain the extent to which politics, economics, and foreign policy promoted the development of American identity from

1800 to 1848.

Questions About Causation 253 Think As a Historian: Claims and Evidence in Sources 254

UNIT 4—Period 4 Review: 1800–1848 255 Write As a Historian: Gather and Organize the Evidence 255 Long Essay Questions 256 Document-Based Question 257

UNIT 5—Period 5: 1844–1877

Topic 5.1 Contextualizing Period 5 260 Learning Objective: Explain the context in which sectional conflict emerged from 1844 to 1877.

Analyze the Context and Landmark Events 261

Topic 5.2 The Idea of Manifest Destiny 262 Learning Objective: Explain the causes and effects of westward expansion from 1844 to 1877.

Conflicts Over Texas, Maine, and Oregon 262 Settlement of the Western Territories 265 Expansion After the Civil War 268 Topic Review and Practice 268

Topic 5.3 Manifest Destiny and the Mexican–American War 271 Learning Objective: Explain the causes and effects of the Mexican– American War.

Conflict with Mexico 271 Consequences of the War 272 Historical Perspectives: WhyWas Manifest Destiny Significant? 273 Topic Review and Practice 273

Topic 5.4 The Compromise of 1850 276 Learning Objective: Explain the similarities and differences in how regional attitudes affected federal policy in the period after the Mexican– American War.

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Southern Expansion 276 Conflict Over Status of Territories 277 Compromises to Preserve the Union 278 Topic Review and Practice 279

Topic 5.5 Sectional Conflict: Regional Differences 282 Learning Objective 1: Explain the effects of immigration from various parts of the world on American culture from 1844 to 1877.

Learning Objective 2: Explain how regional differences related to slavery caused tension in the years leading up to the Civil War.

Immigration Controversy 282 Ethnic Conflict in the Southwest 284 The Expanding Economy 284 Agitation Over Slavery 285 Topic Review and Practice 287

Topic 5.6 Failure of Compromise 289 Learning Objective: Explain the political causes of the Civil War.

National Parties in Crisis 289 Extremists and Violence 290 Constitutional Issues 292 Topic Review and Practice 294

Topic 5.7 Election of 1860 and Secession 297 Learning Objective: Describe the effects of Lincoln’s election.

The Road to Secession 297 A Nation Divided 300

Historical Perspectives: What Caused the Civil War? 301 Topic Review and Practice 302

Topic 5.8 Military Conflict in the Civil War 304 Learning Objective: Explain the various factors that contributed to the Union victory in the Civil War.

War 304 First Years of a Long War: 1861–1862 305 Foreign Affairs and Diplomacy 308 The Union Triumphs, 1863–1865 309 Topic Review and Practice 310

Topic 5.9 Government Policies During the Civil War 313 Learning Objective: Explain how Lincoln’s leadership during the Civil War impacted American ideals over the course of the war.

The End of Slavery 313 Effects of the War on Civilian Life 315 Assassination of Lincoln 317 Topic Review and Practice 318

Topic 5.10 Reconstruction 320 Learning Objective: Explain the effects of government policy during Reconstruction on society from 1865 to 1877.

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Postwar Conditions 320 Reconstruction Plans of Lincoln and Johnson 321 Congressional Reconstruction 322 Reconstruction in the South 326 The North During Reconstruction 328 Women’s Changing Roles 329 Topic Review and Practice 330

Topic 5.11 Failure of Reconstruction 332 Learning Objective: Explain how and why Reconstruction resulted in continuity and change in regional and national understandings of what it meant to be American.

Lincoln’s Last Speech 332 Evaluating the Republican Record 332 The End of Reconstruction 333 Historical Perspectives: Did Reconstruction Fail? 335 Topic Review and Practice 336

Topic 5.12 Comparison in Period 5 339 Learning Objective: Compare the relative significance of the effects of the Civil War on American values.

Questions About Comparison 339 Think As a Historian: Support, Modify, and Refute Claims 340

UNIT 5—Period 5 Review: 1844–1877 341 Write As a Historian: Develop a Thesis 341 Long Essay Questions 342 Document-Based Question 343

UNIT 6—Period 6: 1865–1898

Topic 6.1 Contextualizing Period 6 346 Learning Objective 1: Explain the historical context for the rise of industrial capitalism in the United States during the period from 1865 to 1898.

Learning Objective 2: Explain a historical context for the increased international and internal migration in the United States during the period from 1865 to 1898.

Analyze the Context and Landmark Events 347

Topic 6.2 Westward Expansion: Economic Development 348 Learning Objective: Explain the causes and effects of the settlement of the West from 1877 to 1898.

Transcontinental Railroads 348 Settlement of the Last West 349 Farmers Organize 352 Topic Review and Practice 354

Topic 6.3 Westward Expansion: Social and Cultural Development 357 Learning Objective: Explain the causes and effects of the settlement of the West from 1877 to 1898.

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The Closing of the Frontier 357 American Indians in the West 358 Mexican Americans in the Southwest 361 The Conservation Movement 361 Topic Review and Practice 362

Topic 6.4 The “New South” 365 Learning Objective: Explain how various factors contributed to continuity and change in the “New South” from 1877 to 1898.

Growth of Industry 365 Agriculture and Poverty 366 Segregation 367 Responding to Segregation 368 Topic Review and Practice 369

Topic 6.5 Technological Innovation 371 Learning Objective: Explain the effects of technological advances in the development of the United States over time.

Inventions 371 Technology and Growth of Cities 372 Marketing Consumer Goods 373 Topic Review and Practice 373

Topic 6.6 The Rise of Industrial Capitalism 375 Learning Objective: Explain the socioeconomic continuities and changes associated with the growth of industrial capitalism from 1865 to 1898.

The Business of Railroads 375 Industrial Empires 377 Laissez-Faire Capitalism 379 Business Influence Outside the United States 380 Topic Review and Practice 380

Topic 6.7 Labor in the Gilded Age 383 Learning Objective: Explain the socioeconomic continuities and changes associated with the growth of industrial capitalism from 1865 to 1898.

Challenges for Wage Earners 383 The Struggles of Organized Labor 384 Topic Review and Practice 387

Topic 6.8 Immigration and Migration in the Gilded Age 389 Learning Objective: Explain how cultural and economic factors affected migration patterns over time.

Growth of Immigration 389 Immigration and Growth of Cities 390 Topic Review and Practice 392

Topic 6.9 Responses to Immigration in the Gilded Age 394 Learning Objective: Explain the various responses to immigration in the period over time.

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Opposition to Immigration 394 Boss and Machine Politics 395 Settlement Houses 396 Historical Perspectives: Was the United States a Melting Pot? 396 Topic Review and Practice 397

Topic 6.10 Development of the Middle Class 400 Learning Objective: Explain the causes of increased economic opportunity and its effects on society.

The Expanding Middle Class 400 The Gospel of Wealth 400 Working Women 401 Impact of Income on Urban Development 401 Changes in Education 402 Growth of Popular Culture 404 Topic Review and Practice 405

Topic 6.11 Reform in the Gilded Age 408 Learning Objective: Explain how different reform movements responded to the rise of industrial capitalism in the Gilded Age.

Awakening of Reform 408

Literature and the Arts 410 Topic Review and Practice 412

Topic 6.12 Role of Government in the Gilded Age 415 Learning Objective: Explain the continuities and changes in the role of the government in the U.S. economy.

Government Actions 415 Political Issues: Civil Service, Currency, and Tariffs 416 Topic Review and Practice 419

Topic 6.13 Politics in the Gilded Age 421 Learning Objective: Explain the similarities and differences between the political parties during the Gilded Age.

Political Stalemate 421 Rise of the Populists 422 Depression Politics 423 Turning Point in American Politics: 1896 424 Topic Review and Practice 427

Topic 6.14 Continuity and Change Period 6 430 Learning Objective: Explain the extent to which industrialization brought changes from 1865 to 1898.

Questions About Continuity And Change 430 Think As a Historian: Contextualization 431

UNIT 6—Period 6 Review: 1865–1898 432 Write As a Historian: Write the Introduction 432 Long Essay Questions 433 Document-Based Question 434

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UNIT 7—Period 7: 1890–1945

Topic 7.1 Contextualizing Period 7 438 Learning Objective: Explain the context in which America grew into the role as a world power.

Analyze the Context and Landmark Events 439

Topic 7.2 Imperialism: Debates 440 Learning Objective: Explain the similarities and differences in attitudes about the nation’s proper role in the world.

Expansion after the Civil War 440 The Era of “New Imperialism” 441 Opposition to Imperialism 442 Latin America 443 Topic Review and Practice 444

Topic 7.3 The Spanish-American War and U.S. Foreign Policy to 1917 446 Learning Objective: Explain the causes and effects of the Spanish-American War.

Spanish-American War 446 Open Door Policy in China 451 Theodore Roosevelt’s “Big Stick” Policy 452 Roosevelt and Asia 453 William Howard Taft and Dollar Diplomacy 454 Woodrow Wilson and Foreign Affairs 455 Topic Review and Practice 457

Topic 7.4 The Progressives 461 Learning Objective: Compare the goals and effects of the Progressive reform movement.

Origins of Progressivism 461 Who Were the Progressives? 462 The Muckrakers 463 Political Reforms in Cities and States 465 Political Reform in the Nation 468 African Americans in the Progressive Era 472 Women and the Progressive Movement 474 Topic Review and Practice 474

Topic 7.5 World War I: Military and Diplomacy 478 Learning Objective: Explain the causes and consequences of U.S. involvement in World War I.

Neutrality 478 Economic Links with Britain and France 479 Public Opinion 480 The War Debate 481 The Election of 1916 481 Peace Efforts 482 Decision for War 482

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Fighting the War 483 Making the Peace 484 The Treaty of Versailles 485 The Battle for Ratification 486 Topic Review and Practice 487

Topic 7.6 World War I: Home Front 491 Learning Objective: Explain the causes and effects of international and internal migration patterns over time.

Mobilization 491 Public Opinion 492 Civil Liberties 493 Armed Forces 493 Effects on American Society 494 Postwar Problems 495 Topic Review and Practice 496

Topic 7.7 1920s: Innovations in Communication and Technology 499 Learning Objective: Explain the causes and effects of the innovations in communications and technology in the United States over time.

Causes of Economic Prosperity 499 Farm Problems 500 Labor Unions Struggle 501 Technology and Culture 501 Topic Review and Practice 503

Topic 7.8 1920s: Cultural and Political Controversies 505 Learning Objective 1: Explain the causes and effects of international and internal migration patterns over time.

Learning Objective 2: Explain the causes and effects of the developments in popular culture in America.

Religion, Science, and Politics 505 Opposition to Immigration 507 Ku Klux Klan 508 Arts and Literature 509 Women, Family, and Education 509 African American Cultural Renaissance 510 Republican Majority 511 Historical Perspectives: How Conservative Were the 1920s? 514 Topic Review and Practice 514

Topic 7.9 The Great Depression 518 Learning Objective: Explain the causes of the Great Depression and its effects on the economy.

Causes of the 1929 Crash 518 Underlying Causes of the Great Depression 519 Effects of the Great Depression 520 President Hoover’s Policies 521

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Changing Directions 522 Topic Review and Practice 523

Topic 7.10 The New Deal 525 Learning Objective: Explain how the Great Depression and the New Deal impacted American political, social, and economic life over time.

The Election of 1932 525 Franklin D. Roosevelt as President 526 The Second New Deal 529 The Election of 1936 531 Opponents of the New Deal 532 The Supreme Court 533 Labor Unions and Workers’ Rights 534 Recession, 1937–1938 535 Life During the Depression 536 Topic Review and Practice 538

Topic 7.11 Interwar Foreign Policy 541 Learning Objective: Explain the similarities and differences in attitudes about the nation’s proper role in the world.

Post-World War I Agreements 541 Business and Diplomacy 542 War Debts and Reparations 542 Herbert Hoover’s Foreign Policy 543 Franklin Roosevelt’s Policies, 1933–1939 545 Prelude to Another War 547 Outbreak of War World II in Europe 548 Roosevelt Changes Policies 550 The Election of 1940 550 Arsenal of Democracy 551 Disputes with Japan 552 The War in Europe in 1941–1942 553 Topic Review and Practice 553

Topic 7.12 World War II Mobilization 556 Learning Objective: Explain how and why U.S. participation in World War II transformed American society.

The Federal Government Takes Action 556 The War’s Impact on Society 558 Topic Review and Practice 560

Topic 7.13 World War II: Military 562 Learning Objective: Explain the causes and effects of the victory of the United States and its allies over the Axis powers.

Fighting Germany 562 Fighting Japan 563 Topic Review and Practice 565

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Topic 7.14 World War II and Postwar Diplomacy 567 Learning Objective: Explain the consequences of U.S. involvement in World War II.

American Leadership 567 Wartime Conferences 568 The War’s Legacy 569 Topic Review and Practice 570

Topic 7.15 Comparison in Period 7 572 Learning Objective: Compare the relative significance of major events of the first half of the 20th century in shaping American identity.

Questions About Comparison 572 Think As a Historian: Making Connections 573

UNIT 7—Period 7 Review: 1890–1945 574 Write As a Historian: Write the Supporting Paragraphs 574 Long Essay Questions 575 Document-Based Question 576

UNIT 8—Period 8: 1945–1980

Topic 8.1 Contextualizing Period 8 579 Learning Objective: Explain the context for societal changes from 1945 to 1980.

Analyze the Context and Landmark Events 580

Topic 8.2 The Cold War from 1945 to 1980 581 Learning Objective: Explain the continuities and changes in the Cold War policies from 1945 to 1980.

Origins of the Cold War 581 Containment in Europe 583 Cold War in Asia 586 Eisenhower and the Cold War 589 To the Brink of War and Back 593 Lyndon Johnson Becomes President 594 Nixon’s Detente Diplomacy 595 Another Chill in the Cold War 595 Topic Review and Practice 597

Topic 8.3 The Red Scare 600 Learning Objective: Explain the causes and effects of the Red Scare after World War II.

Rooting Out Communists 600 Espionage Cases 601 The Rise and Fall of Joseph McCarthy 602 Topic Review and Practice 602

Topic 8.4 Economy after 1945 605 Learning Objective 1: Explain the causes of economic growth in years after World War II.

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Learning Objective 2: Explain causes and effects of the migrations of various groups of Americans after 1945.

Postwar Economy 605 Truman versus the Republican Congress 607 Eisenhower in the White House (1953–1961) 608 Economy under the Democrats (1961–1969) 610 Nixon’s Domestic Policy 611 Ford and Carter Confront Inflation 612 Topic Review and Practice 613

Topic 8.5 Culture after 1945 615 Learning Objective: Explain how mass culture has been maintained or challenged over time.

Historical Perspectives: A Silent Generation? 618 Topic Review and Practice 619

Topic 8.6 Early Steps in the Civil Rights Movement, 1945–1960 621 Learning Objective: Explain how and why the civil rights movement developed and expanded from 1945 to 1960.

Origins of the Movement 621 Desegregating the Schools and Public Places 622 Topic Review and Practice 624

Topic 8.7 America as a World Power 626 Learning Objective: Explain various military and diplomatic responses to international developments over time.

Unrest in the “Third World” 626 The Middle East 627 Latin America 630 Policies in Africa 631 Limits of a Superpower 632 Topic Review and Practice 632

Topic 8.8 The Vietnam War 635 Learning Objective: Explain the causes and effects of the Vietnam War.

Eisenhower’s Domino Theory 635 Escalation of the Vietnam War in the 1960s 636 America’s War 638 Coming Apart at Home, 1968 639 Richard Nixon’s Vietnam Policy 640 Defeat in Southeast Asia 642 Topic Review and Practice 643

Topic 8.9 The Great Society 646 Learning Objective1 1: Explain the causes and effects of continuing policy debates about the role of the federal government over time.

Learning Objective 2: Explain the contributions and changes in immigration patterns over time.

The War on Poverty 646

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The Election of 1964 646 Great Society Reforms 647 Changes in Immigration 648 Topic Review and Practice 648

Topic 8.10 The African American Civil Rights Movement in the 1960s 651 Learning Objective 1: Explain how and why various groups responded to calls for the expansion of civil rights from 1960 to 1980.

Learning Objective 2: Explain the various ways in which the federal government responded to the calls for the expansion of civil rights.

The Leadership of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. 651 Federal Civil Rights Acts of 1964 and 1965 652 Black Muslims and Malcolm X 653 Race Riots and Black Power 653 Topic Review and Practice 654

Topic 8.11 The Civil Rights Movement Expands 657 Learning Objective: Explain how and why various groups responded to calls for expansion of civil rights from 1960 to 1980.

The Women’s Movement 657 Latino Americans 658 American Indian Movement 658 Asian Americans 659 Gay Rights Movement 659 The Warren Court and Individual Rights 660 Topic Review and Practice 661

Topic 8.12 Youth Culture of the 1960s 663 Learning Objective: Explain how and why opposition to existing policies and values developed and changed over the course of the 20th century.

Baby Boom Generation 663 Student Movement and the New Left 663 Students Against the Vietnam War 664 The Counterculture 665 In Retrospect 665 Topic Review and Practice 666

Topic 8.13 The Environment and Natural Resources from 1968 to 1980 668 Learning Objective: Explain how and why policies related to the environment developed and changed from 1968 to 1980.

Origins of the Environmental Movement 668 Public Awareness 669 Government Environmental Protection 670 Backlash to Environmental Regulations 672 Topic Review and Practice 672

Topic 8.14 Society in Transition 674 Learning Objective 1: Explain the causes and effects of continuing policy debates about the role of the federal government over time.

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Learning Objective 2: Explain the effects of religious movements over the course of the 20th century.

American Society in Transition 674 The Nixon Presidency 674 Watergate Scandal 675 Gerald Ford in the White House (1974–1977) 677 The Election of 1976 678 An Outsider in the White House 678 The Burger Court 679 Conservative Resurgence 680 A New Era in American Politics 681 Topic Review and Practice 681

Topic 8.15 Continuity and Change in Period 8 684 Learning Objective: Explain the extent to which the events of the period from 1945 to 1980 reshaped national identity.

Questions About Continuity And Change 685 Think As a Historian: Argumentation—Support and Reasoning 685

UNIT 8—Period 8 Review: 1945–1980 686 Write As a Historian: Write the Conclusion 686 Long Essay Questions 687 Document-Based Question 688

UNIT 9—Period 9: 1980–Present

Topic 9.1 Contextualizing Period 9 692 Learning Objective: Explain the context in which the United States faced international and domestic challenges after 1980.

Analyze the Context and Landmark Events 693

Topic 9.2 Reagan and Conservatism 694 Learning Objective: Explain the causes and effects of continuing debates about the role of the federal government.

Ronald Reagan and the Election of 1980 694 The Reagan Revolution 695 President George H. W. Bush 698 Political Polarization 699 Topic Review and Practice 702

Topic 9.3 The End of the Cold War 705 Learning Objective: Explain the causes and effects of the end of the Cold War and its legacy.

Foreign Policy During the Reagan Years 705 George H. W. Bush and the End of the Cold War 708 Aftermath of the Cold War in Europe 709 Topic Review and Practice 710

Topic 9.4 A Changing Economy 713

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Learning Objective: Explain the causes and effects of economic and technological change over time.

Election of 1992 713 Clinton’s Focus on the Economy 713 Technology and a Changing Economy 715 Income and Wealth 716 Topic Review and Practice 717

Topic 9.5 Migration and Immigration in the 1990s and 2000s 720 Learning Objective: Explain the causes and effects of domestic and international migration over time.

Changing Immigration Policies 720 Influence of the American South and West 722 American Society in 2000 723 Topic Review and Practice 724

Topic 9.6 Challenges of the 21st Century 726 Learning Objective: Explain the causes and effects of the domestic and international challenges the United States faced in the 21st century.

Disputed Election of 2000 726 The War on Terrorism 727 Elections of 2004 and a Bush Second Term 729 Election of 2008 731 Foreign Policy of the Obama Presidency (2009–2017) 731 Domestic Policy of the George W. Bush Years (2001–2009) 733 Domestic Policy of the Obama Presidency (2009–2017) 736 The Trump Presidency (2017–Present) 739 Historical Perspectives: What Does Freedom Mean? 742 Topic Review and Practice 742

Topic 9.7 Causation in Period 9 746 Learning Objective: Explain the relative significance of the effects of change in the period after 1980 on American national identity.

Questions About Causation 747 Think As a Historian: Argumentation—Developing Complexity 747

UNIT 9—Period 9 Review: 1980–Present 748 Write As a Historian: Reread and Evaluate 748 Long Essay Questions 749

U.S. History Practice Examination 750 Index 779

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PREFACE

Preface

This new edition of AMSCO® Advanced Placement® United States History involved a major revision based on the 2019 College Board Course and Exam Description (CED). The recent CED divided the course into 105 topics. Eighteen of these topics focused on historical thinking skills and reasoning processes.

This new edition also includes updated review questions and activities at the end of each topic and the units to increase practice of skills, such as “Think As an Historian” and “Write As a Historian” features.

The other 87 topics provide the essential historical content and accessible explanations of events that have been the heart of this textbook. The topics from the new CED are not equal in length or depth, and therefore the amount of time needed for each one will vary. Many can be treated in one class period or less, but others may take two or more class periods. The College Board recommends that treatment of each topic should be at the pace best suited to the needs of the students and school. There is also a separate teacher resource book that includes an answer key and additional activities on race and justice that is available exclusively for teachers and schools.

Since 1997, this textbook has been used by more than a million students in various ways. Many teachers have successfully used it as a core textbook in conjunction with college-level resources and supplemental materials. Others have used it as a supplemental text to bridge the gap between a college-level textbook and the needs of their AP® high school students. In addition, students have effectively used it on their own to support their study of the content.

Given the diverse instructional settings across the nation, the most effective use of this textbook is an instructional decision best made by the educators responsible for their students’ performance.

We continue to be committed to keep this textbook current and to incorporate revisions from the College Board. Teachers and students should also check the College Board websites for the latest updates: AP® Central site (apcentral.collegeboard.com) and the Advances in AP® section (advancesinap. collegeboard.org). We appreciate your feedback on the new edition and how it works for students and teachers during these challenging times.

The authors want to thank the staff of Perfection Learning Corporation for their support and the tireless effort they have put into this new edition. We also appreciate the continued opportunity to support the efforts of high school students and teachers as they strive to meet the challenges of the Advanced Placement® U.S. History examination.

John Newman and John Schmalbach, June 2020

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Introduction

Studying Advanced Placement® United States History

Since 1998, the number of high school students taking the Advanced Placement® exam in United States History has more than tripled. Students enroll in AP® U.S. History classes for many reasons. Some of these are related to doing well on the AP® exam:

• to demonstrate one’s ability to succeed as a college undergraduate

• to become eligible for scholarships

• to save on college expenses by earning college credit

• to test out of introductory college courses

The College Board’s website provides a list of colleges and universities that normally use AP® exam grades for determining placement and credits.

However, the placement and credit offered vary from school to school. To find out a particular college’s or university’s policy on AP® exams, see that school’s website.

Even within high school, AP® U.S. History classes are beneficial because they enrich a student’s experience. They teach students how to read complex passages, to write clearly and persuasively, and to develop higher level thinking skills. Most students who have taken AP® courses report that these courses are more difficult than regular ones but are worth the extra effort because they are more engaging. The rewards of these challenging classes can foster lifelong reading, thinking, and writing skills and, for many students, an increased interest in and enjoyment of history.

Overview of the AP® U.S. History Exam This edition of this textbook was revised to address the most recent changes to the AP® United States History Course and Exam Description (CED). The revision places a greater focus on the historical thinking skills and reasoning processes used by historians and on historical themes and related concepts in order to deepen a student’s understanding of U.S. history. The 3-hour-and-15-minute exam relies heavily on excerpts, images, and other data sources.

The AP® exam includes the following components, along with the amount of time allotted for each and the percentage each is weighted in the final grade:

• 55 Multiple-Choice Questions (MCQs)

55 minutes 40%

• 3 Short-Answer Questions (SAQs)

40 minutes 20%

• 1 Document-Based Question (DBQ)

60 minutes 25%

• 1 Long Essay Question (LEQ)

40 minutes 15%

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The multiple-choice section still has the greatest weight in a student’s final grade, but students’ performances on recent exams suggest that working on writing skills may offer the greatest opportunity for improvement. Each of these components, along with a guide to sequential skill development, will be explained in this Introduction.

The College Board grades student performance on Advanced Placement® examinations, including the AP® U.S. History exam, on a five-point scale:

• 5: Extremely well qualified

• 4: Well qualified

• 3: Qualified

• 2: Possibly qualified

• 1: No recommendation

An AP® grade of 3 or higher is usually considered evidence of mastery of course content similar to that demonstrated in a college-level introductory course in the same subject area. However, since the requirements of introductory courses may vary from college to college, some colleges may accept a 2 on the AP® History exam, while others may require a score of 4.

How This Book Can Help The goal of this textbook is to provide U.S. history students with the essential content and instructional materials to develop the knowledge, the mastery of historical thinking skills and reasoning processes, and the writing skills needed to understand U.S. history and to approach the past as historians do. The book includes these elements:

Introduction This section introduces students to the historical thinking skills and reasoning processes, course themes, and nine periods of the AP® U.S. History program. A step-by-step skill development guide explains how to answer the four types of questions found on the exam: (1) multiple-choice, (2) short-answer, (3) long essay, and (4) document-based.

Concise History The organization of the content into topics within each unit/period reflects the new Fall 2019 AP® U.S. History Course and Exam Description. Each of the nine units/periods is divided into a number of topics based on the new CED. These topics provide the essential historical content and accessible explanations of events that form the heart of this textbook. Each unit begins with an overview of the context of the period and concludes with the practice of one of the three reasoning processes used in argumentation.

Maps and Graphics Maps, charts, graphs, cartoons, photographs, and other visual materials are integrated into the text to help students practice their analytical skills.

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Historical Perspectives Certain topics include a Historical Perspective section that introduces students to conflicting interpretations about significant historical issues. These are integral to the content of the book.

Key Terms by Themes Each of the 87 narrative topics includes a list of key names, places, and words, organized by theme, as an aid for student review of the topic.

Multiple-Choice Questions Each of the 87 narrative topics contains at least one set of source-based, multiple-choice questions to evaluate students’ historical knowledge and skills using sources.

Short-Answer Questions Each of the 87 narrative topics contains at least one set of short-answer questions for review of the topic and opportunities to apply AP® historical thinking skills and reasoning processes.

Long Essay Questions Periods 2 through 9 conclude with a review section that includes four to eight long essay questions. The long essay questions prompt students to deal with significant issues and to apply course reasoning and writing skills.

Document-Based Questions The reviews for periods 2 through 8 each include one DBQ.

Practice Examination Following the final unit is a complete practice examination using the current format.

Index The index is included to help locate key terms for review.

Answer Key A separate Answer Key is available from the publisher for teachers and other authorized users of the book.

The Study of AP® U.S. History Historians attempt to give meaning to the past by collecting historical evidence and then explaining how these “facts” are connected. Historians interpret and organize a wide variety of evidence from both primary and secondary sources in order to understand the past. Students should develop their ability to analyze and use historical sources, to answer probing questions about past events, and to demonstrate these abilities in their writing. For many historical questions, no one “answer” is accepted by all historians, nor can one find all answers in any one historical source. AP® teachers and exam readers are looking for a student’s ability to think about history and to support ideas with evidence.

AP® students should appreciate how both participants and historians differ in their interpretations of critical questions in U.S. history. The Historical Perspectives feature introduces readers to some of the issues raised by historians over time. AP® U.S. History does not require an advanced knowledge of historiography, sometimes described as “the history of history.” Nevertheless, prior knowledge of the richness of historical thought can add depth to a student’s analysis of historical questions.

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The study of AP® U.S. History includes three basic components that shape the course: (1) the thinking skills and reasoning processes of history, (2) thematic analysis, and (3) the concepts and understandings of the nine periods that organize the content. These three components are explained below for orientation and future reference.

How Historians Think The Advanced Placement® History courses encourage students to think like historians. The practices and skills that historians use in researching and writing about historical events and developments are the foundation of the AP® U.S. History course and exam. Learning these skills and reasoning processes can be developed over a course of study, but an introduction to them is a good place to start.

• Historians need to be able to analyze historical evidence found in a wide variety of primary sources from written records to historical images and artifacts. Historians also need to explain and evaluate the evidence from secondary sources, especially the work of other historians with differing points of view.

• As historians research the evidence, they look for connections and patterns among historical events and developments. They use reasoning processes, such as making comparisons, studying causation, and analyzing continuity and change to find and test possible connections.

• Most historians communicate their findings through publications and presentations. This creative process takes the additional practice of argument development, which includes making a defensible claim and marshaling relevant and persuasive evidence to support an argument.

Writing about history also challenges one to clarify and refine one’s thinking about the subject or the question under study.

Historical Thinking Skills The study of history includes the use of many thinking skills. Of these, AP® courses focus on six.

1. Developments and Processes The ability to identify and explain historical concepts, developments, and processes is fundamental to the analysis of historical evidence. For example, “salutary neglect” has proved a useful concept to describe and explain British behavior toward the American colonies before the 1750s. During that period colonists were relatively autonomous. That is, the British allowed colonies to govern themselves with minimal interference.

Students need to be able to explain the historical concepts and developments and provide specific historical evidence to illustrate or support such a historical concept or development. For example, a multiple-choice question on the AP® exam might ask “Which of the following is the best example of British salutary neglect in the American colonies before 1750?”

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2. Sourcing and Situations The use of historical evidence involves the ability to explain and evaluate diverse kinds of primary and secondary sources, including written works, data, images, and artifacts. Students need to be able to explain (1) the historical setting of a source, (2) its intended audience, (3) its purpose, and (4) the point of view of the original writer or creator. For example, an AP® exam question might ask “Which of the following best reflects the point of view expressed by the author?” Another possible question is “Briefly explain ONE characteristic of the intended audience for this image.” For secondary sources, this skill also involves understanding how particular circumstances might influence authors. Historians can “rewrite” history because their personal perspective or society’s perspective changes, because they discover new sources and information, and, above all, because they ask new questions.

3. Claims and Evidence in Sources The analysis of either primary or secondary sources also includes the ability to identify the author’s argument and the evidence used to support it. For example, an AP® question might provide short quotations from two secondary sources about the causes of the American Revolution. The reading might be evaluated by a multiple-choice question such as “Which of the following would best support the argument of historian A?” A short-answer question might ask “Briefly explain ONE major difference between historian A’s and historian B’s historical interpretations.” Questions can also ask students to discover patterns or trends in quantitative data found in charts and graphs.

4. Contextualization The skill of contextualization involves the ability to accurately and explicitly explain how a historical event, policy, or source fits into the broader historical picture, often on the regional, national, or global level. Placing the specifics of history into their larger context gives them additional usefulness and significance as historical evidence. Contextualization is evaluated through questions such as this: “(The excerpt) best reflects which of the following developments in U.S. foreign policy?” or “The conditions shown in the image depict which of the following trends in the late 19th century?”

5. Making Connections This skill involves identifying and analyzing patterns and connections between and among historical developments and processes, and how one development or process relates to another. Making connections on the AP® exam will use the three reasoning processes of comparisons, causation, and continuity and change (see below). For example, the developments of large-scale industrial production, concentration of wealth, and the labor movement were taking place during the same period from 1865 to

1900. Are any patterns and connections common among these developments?

The exam could ask an essay question such as this: “To what extent was the rise of labor unions related to the development of large corporations during the period from 1865 to 1900?”

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6. Argumentation Developing an argument includes the skill of using evidence effectively to make a point. Students need to recognize that not all evidence has equal value in support of a position. Writers need to select examples that are accurate and relevant to their argument. Making judgments about the use of relevant historical evidence is an essential skill in free-response questions on the AP® exam.

Again, the focus of the question will be not on the simple recall of facts but on a conceptual understanding of the evidence and the ability to link that understanding to the argument. For example, to support the argument about the impact of technology from 1865 to 1900, it is not enough to describe the technologies of the period. In addition, one should explain the connection of specific new technologies, such as railroads or electric power, to the changes in the economy. The AP® exam also values the use of diverse and alternative evidence to qualify or modify an argument in order to develop a more complex insight into history.

Reasoning Processes The study of history includes the use of several reasoning processes. Of these, AP® courses focus on three very important ones.

1. Comparison Thinking about comparison involves the ability to describe and evaluate similarities and differences between two or more historical developments. The developments might be in the same era or in different ones.

This process also asks one to explain the relative significance of similarities and differences between historical developments and to study a given historical event or development from multiple perspectives.

The ability to make a comparison is evaluated in questions such as “The ideas expressed in the excerpt were most similar to those of which of the following?” or “Compare and contrast views of the United States’ overseas expansion in the late 19th century.” Expect AP® questions to test similarities and differences of conceptual understandings rather than simple recall.

2. Causation The study of causation is the primary tool of historians to explore the connections—both causes and effects—among events. Historians are often challenged to make judgments between primary and secondary causes and between short-term and long-term effects for developments such as the American Civil War or the Great Depression.

Students will need to not only identify causes or effects but also explain the relationship between them. For example, it will not be enough to state that either imperialist attitudes or idealistic beliefs led to U.S. involvement in the War in Vietnam. One must be able to explain the connections of specific evidence to one’s position. At the AP® level, a causation question might ask “Which of the following most strongly influenced A?” or “B contributed most directly to which of the following trends?” The use of causation as a reasoning process is used with all historical thinking skills.

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3. Continuity and Change The study of history also involves the ability to describe and explain patterns that reveal both continuity and change over time.

The study of themes especially lends itself to discovering continuity and change in varying lengths of time from a few decades to hundreds of years.

For example, one might argue that President Washington’s foreign policy from the 1790s continued as the standard for American foreign policy into the mid-20th century. The AP® exam might evaluate the understanding of continuity and change by asking “Which of the following developments best represents the continuation of A?” or “Which of the following best represents a later example of the change B?” A more complex essay question can ask “Evaluate the extent to which C contributed to maintaining continuity as well as fostering change in D.” Responding to this item involves understanding not only an event but also its significance in longer trends in United States history.

Thematic Learning Objectives Just as historians combine the use of multiple historical thinking skills and reasoning processes, they address multiple themes in their work. Questions on the AP® exam will focus on one or more of eight themes that recur throughout U.S. history. Following are analyses of each of the eight. The quotations are from the AP® U.S. History Course and Exam Description.

1. American and National Identity (NAT) “This theme focuses on how and why definitions of American and national identity and values have developed among the diverse and changing population of North America as well as on related topics, such as citizenship, constitutionalism, foreign policy, assimilation, and American exceptionalism.” Students should be able to explain how identities related to American values and institutions, regions, and societal groups developed in response to events and how they have affected political debates. For example, the American Revolution changed the identity of Americans from British colonial subjects to citizens of a free and independent republic.

2. Work, Exchange, and Technology (WXT) “This theme focuses on the factors behind the development of systems of economic exchange, particularly the role of technology, economic markets, and government.” Students should understand how the economy has shaped society, labor systems, government policy, and innovation. For example, the transportation revolution in the 1800s transformed the economy and the lives of farmers, workers, and consumers.

3. Geography and the Environment (GEO) “This theme focuses on the role of geography and both the natural and human-made environments in the social and political developments in what would become the United States.” Students need to examine how geography and climate have contributed to regional differences and how debates over the use and control of natural resources have impacted different groups and government policies. For example, how did the frontier experience shape early settlers’ attitudes toward the natural environment?

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4. Migration and Settlement (MIG) “This theme focuses on why and how the various people who moved to and within the United States both adapted to and transformed their new social and physical environments.” Students should be able to answer questions about the peoples who have moved to and lived in the United States. For example, they should be able to explain how Irish and German Catholics in the 19th century, southern and eastern Europeans in the early 20th century, and Hispanics and Asians in recent decades have each affected U.S. society.

5. Politics and Power (PCE) “This theme focuses on how different social and political groups have influenced society and government in the United States, as well as how political beliefs and institutions have changed over time.” Students need to understand the debates over power between branches of government, between the national and state governments, and among voters and special interest groups. For example, the debate over government policies in Congress during the 1790s led to the development of political parties in the United States.

6. America in the World (WOR) “This theme focuses on the interactions between nations that affected North American history in the colonial period and on the influence of the United States on world affairs.” Students need to understand key developments in foreign policy as well as domestic debates over these policies. For example, they need to understand how the French Revolution and the Napoleonic Wars challenged U.S. efforts to remain neutral and ultimately contributed to U.S. involvement in the War of 1812.

7. American and Regional Culture (ARC) “This theme focuses on how and why national, regional, and group cultures developed and changed as well as how culture has shaped government policy and the economy.” It also addresses how various identities, cultures, and values have shaped the lives of citizens, politics, and the economy. Students should be able to explain why and how cultural components both hold constant and change over time, as well as the conflicts between traditional and modern values. For example, “In what ways did artistic expression change in response to war and to the growth of industry and cities from 1865 to 1898?”

8. Social Structures (SOC) “This theme focuses on how and why systems of social organization develop and change as well as the impact that these systems have on the broader society.” It involves the study of the roles of men, women, and other categories of family and civic units, and how they have been maintained, challenged, and transformed throughout American history. This theme could be evaluated with questions such as “To what extent were the roles of women in the United States transformed during the period from 1890 to 1945?” Another question might ask “In what ways did government policies change the role of children in American society during the Progressive Era?”

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Using the Themes The tracing of multiple themes through each period of U.S. history is an effective way to study and review content throughout the course. A thematic approach encourages one to think about specific events in a larger framework and to make judgments about comparison, causation, and continuity and change over time. A theme also provides a frame in which to view issues. Students can use themes to organize an essay.

Historical Periods The content of AP® U.S. History is also organized by the AP® unit framework of nine chronological periods.

Period 1: 1491–1607 The period from before Columbus arrived in the Americas to the founding of the English colony at Jamestown covers the interaction of Native American, European, and African cultures to create a “new” world.

Period 2: 1607–1754 The mixtures of people from various heritages living in different geographic settings created colonies with distinctive cultures, economies, and populations.

Period 3: 1754–1800 Wars over empires provided the context for the American Revolution and the founding of the United States, including the political struggles to form a “more perfect union.”

Period 4: 1800–1848 The promise of the new republic played out during a period of rapid economic, territorial, and population growth that tested the political institutions that held the nation together.

Period 5: 1844–1877 A war with Mexico intensified the conflict over slavery and states’ rights, which led to the Civil War and then to struggles to reconstruct the Union and address the legacy of slavery.

Period 6: 1865–1898 Industrialization, the rapid growth of cities, and a large new wave of immigration transformed the American economy, society, culture, and regional identities.

Period 7: 1890–1945 While the United States responded to the impact of industrialization during the Progressive Era and New Deal years, it also became deeply involved in world affairs during World Wars I and II.

Period 8: 1945–1980 The United States assumed a world leadership role during the Cold War while society became more divided over issues of economic and social justice, especially for minorities and women.

Period 9: 1980–Present A renewed conservative movement challenged the efficacy of government at home while the end of the Cold War, the spread of globalization, and the increase in terrorism prompted the federal government to redefine its policies.

The text does not attempt to cover every historical fact, but it includes all of the essential evidence and understandings needed to address the challenges of the AP® U.S. History exam.

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The College Board provides a key to the amount of emphasis to be put on each period of history, but it also recognizes that the allocation of time will vary from class to class. Usually the emphasis will fall within these ranges:

• Period 1, 1491–1607: between 4% and 6%

• Period 2, 1607–1754: between 6% and 8%

• Periods 3 to 8, 1754 to 1980: each between 10% and 17%

• Period 9, 1980–Present: between 4% and 6%

In the AP® U.S. History exam, some multiple-choice and short-answer questions will be based on periods 1 and 9, and content from these periods may be used in the long essays and DBQs. However, no long essay or DBQ will focus exclusively on these two periods of history.

History, like any other field of study, is a combination of subject matter and methodology. The practices, skills, and themes are methods or tools to explore the subject matter of history. One cannot practice these skills without knowledge of the historical situation and understanding of specific historical evidence. The following section provides suggestions for development of another set of skills useful for answering the questions on the exam. Again, the “mastery” of these skills, particularly writing answers to AP® questions, takes practice.

Keeping Perspective The skills and understandings required for learning AP®-level U.S. history may strike many students as overwhelming at first. Mastering them takes time. Working on the AP® U.S. History skills and understandings will take an ongoing step-by-step effort throughout the course of study. While the effort may seem challenging, what keeps students and teachers in the program is the impressive intellectual growth that can be achieved during an AP® course.

Some students also may become discouraged with the difficult level of AP® exams. AP® exams are unlike most classroom tests. They are not designed to measure mastery of a lesson or unit on which 90 percent or more correct may receive an “A,” 80 percent a “B,” etc. Rather, the AP® exams are more difficult than most classroom tests. Only a small percentage of students will gain more than 80 percent of the possible points. Further, they are deliberately constructed to provide a wider distribution of scores and higher reliability (the likelihood that a test-taker repeating the same exam will receive the same score). AP® students who are having difficulty with a large number of the questions on the practice AP® exams should not be discouraged.

A specific grade on the AP® exam is also not the main purpose of the course. What is most important in the long run are the thinking and writing skills, understandings of the complexities of historical developments, and habits and appreciation of lifelong learning. Students’ educational and personal development during the course will have a greater impact on their futures than a number.

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To the Student: The Course and Exam Description The CED describes the four types of questions on the AP® U.S. History exam: (1) multiple-choice, (2) short-answer, (3) long essay, and (4) document-based.

On the exam, the long essay questions are last. Once you have developed the long essay writing skills, you are more than halfway to writing a competent answer to the DBQ. For this reason, in the following section, the long essay is presented before the DBQ.

Answering the Multiple-Choice Questions The AP® exam asks 55 multiple-choice questions (MCQ), and you will have 55 minutes to answer them. The value of the MCQs is 40 percent of your score.

Each question is related to the analysis of a stimulus, which is a primary or secondary source such as a text excerpt, image, chart, graph, or map. Three or four questions will be asked about each stimulus. Each MCQ assesses one or more historical thinking skills but also requires historical knowledge you have learned studying U.S. history.

Each question will have one BEST answer and three distractors. Compared to most history tests, the AP® exam will place less emphasis on simple recall and more emphasis on your ability to analyze primary and secondary sources and to use history reasoning processes.

This book includes 87 topics that are each followed by MCQs based on sources. The MCQs in the topic reviews are similar to ones on the AP® exam but are also designed to review the content and understanding of the topic.

In addition to the MCQs in the topics, the practice AP® exam includes 55 multiple-choice questions.

Analyzing Historical Evidence Below is one example of a primary source, a political cartoon from 1934. Your first step in analyzing this kind of evidence, whether an image or a reading, is to ask these questions: What was the historical situation in which it was created? Who was the intended audience? What was the point of view of the author? What was the author’s purpose? The development of these four skill-building questions is part of the foundation of studying U.S. history at the AP® level.

You might recognize the patient in the cartoon as Uncle Sam, a characterization used by political cartoonists since the early 19th century as a stand-in for the United States. The doctor (President Franklin D. Roosevelt) is clearly under pressure from “Old Lady” Congress to cure the ills of the United States. However, in order to interpret and use the evidence in this cartoon, you need knowledge about the 1930s. You need to understand both the economic problems of the era known as the Great Depression and about Roosevelt’s New Deal program that were a response to these problems. A source by itself will not reveal the answers to the MCQs: You will also need to call upon your knowledge and skills to effectively unlock and use the evidence.

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Source: C.K. Berryman, Washington Star, 1934. Library of Congress

Below are examples of the kinds of MCQs that might be asked on the AP® exam about a source and the skills being assessed. Each would be followed by four possible answers:

• Analyzing Historical Evidence: Which of the following statements most directly supports the argument in the cartoon?

• Causation: Which of the following events most clearly explains what caused the cartoonist to take the point of view reflected in the cartoon?

• Comparison: Which of the following ideas most closely resembles the point of view of the cartoon?

• Contextualization: Which of the following developments most clearly provided the context for the cartoonist’s point of view?

• Continuity and Change: Which of the following events represents a continuation of the ideas expressed in the source?

Making a Choice Read the stem of the question and all four choices carefully before you record your answer. A number of choices may appear to be correct, but you should select the BEST answer. Choices that reflect absolute positions, such as “always,” “never,” and “exclusively,” are seldom correct because historical evidence rarely offers such complete certainty. Keep in mind the need to make judgments about the significance of a variety of causes and effects.

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Should you guess on the AP® exam? The current format does not penalize guessing. Obviously, the process of first eliminating a wrong answer or two increases your chances of guessing correctly.

Budgeting Your Time The AP® History exam gives you 55 minutes to answer the 55 questions. You will not have enough time to spend two or three minutes on difficult questions. Follow a relaxed but reasonable pace rather than rushing through the exam and then going back and second-guessing your decisions. Avoid skipping questions and be careful changing answers.

Recommended Activity Become familiar with the type of multiple-choice questions on the exam before taking it. This will reduce the chance of surprises over the format of the questions.

However, for many students, reviewing content through multiple-choice questions is not the most productive way to absorb the information. The purpose of the content in this textbook is to provide a useful and concise presentation of the essential concepts and evidence needed for the exam. By reviewing the essential facts in their historical situations, you will better recall and understand the connections between events—so important for applying the history reasoning processes.

Answering the Short-Answer Questions The short-answer questions (SAQ) section of the AP® U.S. History exam will have three sets of questions and allow you 40 minutes to answer them. They will count for 20 percent of your final score. The first two sets of questions are required, but in the third set, you can choose between question 3 from periods 1–5 and question 4 from periods 6–9. This option gives students an opportunity to write in an area of their strength. Each question consists of three tasks, and you receive one point for a successful response to each task, so each question is worth three points.

In the format for the current exam, question 1 will involve analyzing a secondary source. Question 2 will involve analyzing a primary source and the reasoning process of either causation or comparison. Questions 3 and 4 will involve the reasoning process of either causation or comparison without a reference to a source.

Below is an example of how an SAQ without a source could be structured.

It consists of three tasks, labeled (a), (b), and (c). All involve the reasoning process of comparison.

1. Answer (a), (b), and (c). (a) Briefly describe ONE difference between the economies of the British North American colonies in the Chesapeake region and in New England in the period from 1607 to 1754. (b) Briefly describe ONE similarity between the economies of the British North American colonies in the Chesapeake region and in New England in the period from 1607 to 1754.

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(c) Briefly explain ONE reason for the difference between the economy of the Chesapeake colonies and the economy of the New England colonies.

Writing Short Answers SAQs, unlike DBQs and long essay questions, do not require the development of a thesis statement. However, they do need to be answered in complete sentences. An outline or bulleted list alone is not acceptable. Students have a total of 40 minutes to answer three questions, each of which consists of three tasks. “Briefly” is a key direction in most short-answer questions. The number of sentences that it will take to answer the question will depend on the task in the question. As you write responses to SAQs, work on your ability to write clear and complete sentences supported with specific and accurate evidence. If the question calls for specific evidence, try to provide it using the proper names of persons, places, and events.

While the College Board does not give specific directions, most exam readers recommend labeling the three tasks in your answer A, B, and C. You will have one page in the exam booklet that includes approximately 23 lines on which to write your answers to the three tasks of each SAQ.

Recommended Activity Each of the 87 topics in this textbook contains short-answer questions based on the models provided by the College Board.

Some questions contain greater emphasis on reviewing content than the questions found on the AP® exam. As you answer the SAQs, first identify the reasoning process used in the question. This will help orient you to the purpose of the question, whether it involves comparison, causation, or continuity and change. To evaluate your progress in answering these short-answer questions, use this simple scoring standard:

• 1 point for accomplishing the task identified in the prompt

• 0 points for each task that is not accomplished or completed

You might need to answer many short-answer questions over several weeks to learn how to budget the 12 to 14 minutes available to answer each of the three-point questions.

Answering the Long Essay Question In the current format of the AP® U.S. History exam, students choose ONE long essay question (LEQ) from among THREE options. Each option will focus on the same theme and same reasoning process, but the options will be about different sets of periods. This means that students choose to answer a question from periods 1–3 (1491–1800), from periods 4–6 (1800–1898), or from periods 7–9 (1890–2001). The suggested writing time is 40 minutes. The long essay represents 15 percent of the final grade on the exam. An edited copy of the current format released by the College Board is reproduced below:

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Students will choose one of the three long essay questions to answer. The long essay requires students to demonstrate their ability to use historical evidence in crafting a thoughtful historical argument.

Question from periods 1–3: Evaluate the extent to which transatlantic interactions fostered change in the labor systems in British North American colonies from 1600 to 1763.

Question from periods 4–6: Evaluate the extent to which new technology fostered change in the United States economy from 1865 to

1898.

Question from periods 7–9: Evaluate the extent to which globalization fostered change in the United States economy from 1945 to 2000.

In the sample above, all three essays are based on the same theme— Work, Exchange, and Technology (WXT)—and the same reasoning process —Continuity and Change. Much like the SAQ format, the LEQ format gives students the choice to answer a question from a period that best reflects their understanding of the relevant examples from that period.

Requirements of the Long Essay Question The AP® exam is very specific in what is expected in answering an LEQ. The grading rubric is based on a six-point scale, which is worth 15 percent of one’s final grade. While the traditional model of writing an essay with an introduction, body, and conclusion is still useful in the overall organization of your essay, the AP® U.S. History exam rubrics for the LEQ clearly define what you need to do to gain each point.

• Point 1: Thesis Earn one point for making a historically defensible thesis or claim that establishes a line of reasoning and how it will be argued. This thesis must do more than restate the question. It must create an argument. The thesis must consist of one or more sentences in either the introduction or the conclusion.

• Point 2: Contextualization Earn one point for describing a broader historical context that is relevant to the question. This context might be events or development before, during, or after the time frame of the question. This requires more elaboration than a mere reference.

• Points 3 and 4: Evidence Earn one point for describing at least two specific examples that are relevant to the question. For two points, you must explain how the specific examples support your arguments stated in the thesis.

• Points 5 and 6: Historical Reasoning and Complexity Earn one point for using the reasoning process in the question (comparison, causation, or continuity and change) to frame your arguments that address the question. To gain a second point, you must demonstrate a complex understanding that uses evidence to corroborate, qualify, or modify your argument, such as using an additional historical reasoning process.

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The next section on writing long essay question answers explains how to achieve each of these points.

Practice Writing Long Essay Question Answers The long essay question (LEQ) and the document-based question (DBQ) have proven to be the two parts of the exam on which students need to improve the most. Although the DBQ is worth more than the LEQ, it is better to start with learning how to master the LEQ skills, because they include the fundamental skills for writing the DBQ and also have fewer elements to handle. For many students, writing an AP® history essay is much different from writing an essay for an English or literature class.

The skills you need to write AP® history essays take time and practice to master, so you will benefit from starting to work on them as early as possible.

Instead of writing and rewriting complete essays until all elements are mastered, break down the essay writing into sequential steps to develop the skills needed for each point. The following steps have proven useful in developing the skills needed to answer the AP® long essay question:

1. Analyze the Question

2. Organize the Evidence

3. Write the Thesis Statement

4. Provide Context

5. Use Evidence

6. Address Historical Reasoning and Complexity

7. Evaluate a Long Essay Answer

Let’s look at the sequential steps that you can use to develop your skill at writing long essays.

1. Analyze the Question Students who rush to start writing risk overlooking what the question is asking. Take time to fully understand the question in order to avoid the mistake of writing an excellent essay that receives little or no credit because it answered a question that was not asked. Consider this sample long essay question:

Evaluate the extent to which transatlantic interactions fostered change in the labor systems in British North American colonies from 1600 to 1763.

Before writing, ask yourself, “What are the key words in the question?

What is the targeted history reasoning process in the question?” Underline words related to the reasoning process and the time frame, such as “evaluate the extent,” “change,” and “from 1600 to 1763.” Next, circle the content words, such as “transatlantic interactions,” “labor systems,” and “British North American colonies.” During this step, identify all parts of the question. In the answer to the above essay question, the writer should apply the reasoning process of continuity and change over time.

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Simply describing transatlantic interactions and labor systems in the colonies is not enough for a good essay. You must also explain and evaluate how interactions, such as trade and migration, contributed to continuity and change in labor systems such as free labor, indentured servitude, and slavery.

Recommended Activity As an initial skill-building activity, analyze the LEQs in the period review sections throughout this book.

• Underline the key words that indicate the targeted reasoning process.

These say what the writer should do.

• Circle the words that indicate the specific aspects of the content that need to be addressed. These say what the writer should write about.

2. Organize the Evidence Many students start writing their answers to an essay question without first thinking through what they know, and they often write themselves into a corner. Directions for the AP® History exam suggest you spend some time reading and planning before starting to write. Take a few minutes to identify what you know about the question and organize your information by making a rough outline in the test booklet, using abbreviations and other memory aids. This outline is not graded. Taking a few minutes to organize your knowledge can help you answer an important question: Do you have enough evidence to select a certain essay or to support your argument?

Below is a sample list of items that could be used in answering the long essay question about the impact of transatlantic interactions on the continuity and changes in the labor systems in the British North American colonies.

Transatlantic Interactions Labor Systems British North American Colonies

• Migration over time

• Mercantilism

• Triangular trade

• Navigation Acts

• Slave trade

• Racial prejudices

• Cash crops such as tobacco

• Adventurers

• Free labor

• Family units

• Indentured servants

• Headright system

• Slavery

• Native Americans

• Labor shortages

• Plantation system

• Raw materials for export

• New England

• Middle Colonies

• Chesapeake region

• Carolina and Georgia

Facts are important. However, the key to writing an effective long essay answer is that your thesis and arguments drive your writing so that you do not simply list information.

Recommended Activity Create a list of the kinds of relevant information that could be incorporated into the responses to the long essay questions found in the period reviews. Organize the information under headings that reflect the major parts of the question. This activity parallels the lists developed by AP® consultants before readers start scoring essays. It is a very useful prewriting

activity.

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3. Write the Thesis Statement The development of a strong claim or thesis is an essential part of every AP® History essay answer. Some students have difficulty taking a position because they are afraid of making a mistake.

Remember, understanding different interpretations of events is part of the study of history. AP® readers are looking not for the “right answer.” Rather, they want to see a writer’s ability to interpret the historical evidence and marshal it into a persuasive argument.

A thesis must be more than a restatement of the question. The AP® scoring guide requires that the thesis address the history reasoning process in the question, such as causation, comparison, or continuity and change over time.

The following thesis is one effort to address the long essay question presented earlier:

Transatlantic interactions fostered continuity in the demand for labor in the British North American colonies from 1600 to 1783 but also fostered change in the kinds of labor systems in use.

This statement is straightforward, and it takes a position on the question and the reasoning process of continuity and change, but does it provide a well-developed line of reasoning? Below is an example of how to extend and develop the short thesis statement from the question about labor systems:

Not surprisingly, the colonies from New England to Georgia tried different labor systems, such as indentured servitude, slavery, and free labor. Changes in these labor systems were affected by changes in trade and migrations, but the racial attitudes of the period also hardened the institution of slavery against change, especially in the Southern colonies.

By developing and extending a thesis statement, one both clarifies the thesis and provides the organizing ideas and arguments that will guide the development of the essay.

An effective introductory paragraph should also introduce the main arguments of the essay. The above example of an extended thesis does that by identifying three labor systems, which will be evaluated for continuity and change. This second feature of the introduction is sometimes called the essay’s “blueprint” or “organizing ideas.” By the end of the first paragraph, a reader should not only know your thesis but also have a clear idea of the main arguments to be developed in support of the thesis.

The AP® exam rubric states that the thesis must be “located in one place, either in the introduction or in the conclusion.” Based on experience, most teachers and readers of the exam recommend putting your thesis in the introductory paragraph. While it might seem to create more drama to reveal the thesis in the last paragraph, you are not writing a “who-done-it” mystery.

Recommended Activity Practice writing an introductory paragraph with a thesis statement and introduction of main arguments to support it. Use LEQs from this text and from prior AP® exams. Use the following criteria to assess your work:

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• Does the thesis consist of one or more sentences?

• Does the thesis make a historically defensible claim?

• Does the thesis address the history reasoning process?

• Does the thesis address all parts of the question?

• Does the introduction provide a framework for understanding the main arguments that will be used to support the thesis?

• How could you improve the thesis and supporting arguments?

4. Provide Context The AP® program describes the context requirement as “describe a broader historical context relevant to the prompt.” For the above essay question about continuity and change in the “labor systems,” an explanation of the competition among European powers, such as Britain, France, and Spain, could provide context for “transatlantic interactions” and what was happening in the colonies. Explaining the growing political conflicts over slavery after independence could also provide the context for the significance of this question.

Context could become a separate second introductory paragraph, since the AP® exam expects “more than a mere phrase or reference.” However, the placement for the contextualization point should be determined by the logical flow of the essay. Explaining the context from after the time frame of the question may make more sense at the end of the essay than the beginning.

Recommended Activity The first step is to think about the possible historical context that you can provide for the question. It can be historical events or developments before, during, or after the time frame of the question.

Next, write a separate paragraph for the context point. For practice use LEQs from this text and from prior AP® exams. Use these criteria to assess your work:

• Is the context more than a phrase or reference?

• Is the context passage or paragraph relevant to the topic of the question?

• Does the response explain broader historical events, developments, or processes that occur before, during, or after the time frame of the question?

• How can the explanation of context for the question be improved?

5. Use Evidence As explained above, to receive at least one point for use of evidence, you should try to describe at least two specific examples of evidence (such as proper nouns, historical terms, and developments) relevant to the topic of the question. However, two examples are the minimum. Most teachers and graders recommend more. What if one example is wrong? For the above LEQ about impact of trade on labor systems in the colonies, a writer could receive one point for describing the three labor systems of free labor, indentured servitude, and slavery in the colonies supported with specific historical facts.

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Recommended Activity Before your first efforts to write paragraphs for the evidence points, practice outlining three paragraphs of evidence to back up your thesis and arguments. Incorporate historical terms, such as proper names or terms in each paragraph. Once you understand the reasoning process involved, practice writing complete paragraphs. Use the following criteria to assess your work:

• Does the response earn one point by providing at least two specific examples of historical evidence relevant to the question?

• Does the response earn two points by using examples of specific historical evidence to support the arguments made to support the thesis?

• How effectively is the evidence linked to the arguments?

• How can the variety, depth, and analysis of the evidence be improved?

6. Address Historical Reasoning and Complexity To receive one point for historical reasoning, one must use the appropriate reasoning process (causation, comparison, or continuity and change over time) to structure the argument used to address the question. In the question above on changes in colonial labor systems, the writer should frame the argument using continuity and change over time.

For example, one argument might explain how the growing demand for cash crops from the Britain’s American colonies promoted the growth of a plantation system that depended on a large supply of low-cost labor to be profitable. The landowners’ desire for labor was then satisfied by slavery. This requirement does not demand writing a separate paragraph for the point, but the historical reasoning process can and should be integrated into your use of evidence.

The second point for complexity is often the hardest one for students to earn. It is not given out just for good essays that are clearly written and organized with no historical errors. The response needs to show a deeper, more complex understanding of the question. The AP® exam rubrics from the College Board state the following ways to demonstrate a complex understanding:

• Explaining nuance of an issue by analyzing multiple variables

• Explaining both similarities and differences, or explaining both continuity and change, or explaining multiple causes, or explaining both causes and effects

• Explaining relevant and insightful connections within and across periods

• Confirming the validity of an argument by corroborating multiple perspectives across themes

• Qualifying or modifying an argument by considering diverse or alternative views or evidence

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For example, a point for a complex understanding of historical developments for this LEQ could be gained by explaining both change and continuity. As another example of complexity, one could explain that the institution of slavery developed in the colonies not only for economic causes but also for social or racial reasons.

However, to receive two points one must explain the relationship of evidence to the arguments used to support the thesis. For example, it is not enough to simply describe the labor systems used in the colonies. You must explain and evaluate, for example, how changes in voluntary and involuntary migration were linked to the growth of free labor and slavery and the decline of indentured servitude. Linking the evidence to your arguments also helps you avoid writing out a “laundry list” of unrelated facts.

Recommended Activity The demonstration of the targeted reasoning process (causation, comparison, or change and continuity over time) and the complex understanding can be integrated into paragraphs using evidence to support one’s arguments. However, for initial practice, write a separate paragraph for each process that demonstrates the use of it to frame the argument and a complex understanding of the question using one of the various ways outlined above. Use the following criteria to assess your work:

• Does the essay use historical reasoning to frame or structure the argument made?

• How could the targeted reasoning process be better analyzed in the arguments?

• Does the response demonstrate a complex understanding of the question using evidence to corroborate, qualify, or modify an argument that addresses the question?

• How could a complex understanding of the question be better demonstrated?

7. Evaluate a Long Essay Answer The feedback from your practice essays—whether from teachers, peers, or self-evaluation—is essential for making the practice produce progress and for learning to master the exam requirements. You might find teacher evaluation and self-evaluation of essays less threatening than peer evaluation. However, once you establish more confidence, peer evaluation is a useful form of feedback. The comments you receive from your peers, as well as the comments you make on their essays, will help you become a better writer.

Recommended Activity Before writing out your first practice essay, it helps to first organize your arguments by outlining each paragraph for the essay. The first effort for writing a complete AP® History essay will be a more positive experience if it is an untimed assignment. After you gain some confidence in writing the long essay, you should apply these skills in a timed test, similar to that of the AP® exam (e.g., 40 minutes for the long essay). The purpose of this practice is to become familiar with the time restraints of the AP® exam.

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Use the following practice scoring guide for the LEQ or the most recent rubric released by the College Board to evaluate your own work and to help you internalize the grading standards used on the AP® exam. While the AP® exam booklet will list what needs to be done to gain each point, with effective practice you should know going into the exam what you need to write before opening the booklet.

Scoring Guide for a Long Essay Question Answer

A. Thesis/Claim: 0–1 Point

❑ 1 point for a historically defensible thesis/claim that establishes a line of reasoning to address the question and not merely restate it. The thesis must be at least one sentence and located in one place, either in the introduction or in the conclusion.

B. Contextualization: 0–1 Point

❑ 1 point to describe the broader historical context of the question, such as developments either before, during, or after its time frame. Describing the context requires more than a mere phrase or reference.

C. Evidence: 0–2 Points

❑ 1 point for identifying specific historical examples of evidence relevant to the question.

OR (Either the 1 point above or the 2 points below, but not both.)

❑ 2 points for using specific and relevant historical examples of evidence that support the arguments used to address the question.

D. Analysis and Reasoning: 0–2 Points

❑ 1 point for using historical reasoning to frame or structure the arguments that address the question, such as causation, comparison, or continuity and change over time. Reasoning may be uneven or not as complex as needed to gain 2 points.

OR (Either the 1 point above or the 2 points below, but not both.)

❑ 2 points for using historical reasoning and demonstrating a complex understanding of the historical developments by analyzing the multiple variables in the evidence. This can include analyzing more than one cause, both similarities and differences, both continuity and change, and/or the diversity of evidence that corroborates, qualifies, or modifies an argument used to address the question.

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Other Suggestions for Writing Essay Questions The following suggestions, while not part of the formal rubrics for grading essays, can help or detract from the impact of your essay writing in AP® history.

Be accurate and clear. AP® readers realize that students are writing a first draft under pressure. However, accuracy and clarity become problems when they interfere with the overall quality of the work. Does the historical content of the essay demonstrate accurate knowledge? Do grammar mistakes obscure the demonstration of the content knowledge and thinking skills in the essay?

The scoring guidelines allow for some errors in content and grammar, unless they detract from the students’ overall demonstration of knowledge and skills.

Follow the writing style used by historians. Avoid use of the first person (“I,” “we”). Rather, use the third person (“he,” “she,” “they”). Write in the past tense, except when referring to documents or sources that currently exist (e.g., “the document implies”). Use the active voice rather than the passive voice because it states cause and effect more strongly (e.g., “Edison developed a practical light bulb” is in the active voice; “a practical light bulb was created” is in the passive voice). The AP® long essays do not call for a narrative style of historical writing or “stories.” Rather, they should be analytical essays that support the writer’s argument with specific knowledge and historical reasoning.

Remain objective. Avoid emotional appeals, especially on social or political issues. The AP® test is not the place to argue that a group was racist or that some people were the “good guys” and others the “bad guys.” Avoid absolutes, such as “all” and “none.” Rarely in history is the evidence so conclusive that you can prove that there were no exceptions. Do not use slang terms!

Communicate awareness of the complexity of history. Distinguish between primary and secondary causes, short-term and long-term effects, and the more and less significant events. Use verbs that communicate judgment and analysis, such as “reveal,” “exemplify,” “demonstrate,” “imply,” and “symbolize.”

Communicate the organization and logical development of your argument. Each paragraph should develop one main point that is clearly stated in the topic sentence. Provide a few words or a phrase of transition to connect one paragraph to another.

Use words that are specific. Clearly identify persons, factors, and judgments.

Replace vague verbs such as “felt” and “says” with more precise ones. Do not use words such as “they” and “others say” as vague references to unidentified groups or events.

Define or explain key terms. If the question deals with terms (such as “liberal,” “conservative,” or “Manifest Destiny”), an essential part of your analysis should include an explanation of these terms.

Anticipate counterarguments. Consider arguments that are against your thesis, not to prove them but to show that you are aware of opposing points of view. Doing so demonstrates your complex understanding of a question.

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Recognize the role of a conclusion. An effective conclusion should focus on the thesis. Some teachers also recommend that this is fine place to demonstrate your complex understanding (see above rubric). However, if you are running out of time and have written a well-organized essay supporting your argument, do not worry about omitting the conclusion.

Model for Organizing Answers to Essay Questions This model for a five-paragraph expository essay illustrates how an introductory paragraph relates to a well-organized essay. An essay should not always consist of five paragraphs.

The total number of paragraphs is for the writer to determine. What the model does suggest is that the introductory paragraph is crucial because it should shape the full essay. An effective introduction tells the reader the arguments you will develop in the body of the essay and then explains how you will develop that view, identifying the main points you will be making in the body of your essay. If your introductory paragraph is properly written, the rest of the essay will be relatively easy to write, especially if you have already organized your information.

Paragraph 1: Introduction Background and context to the question

Thesis statement Development of the thesis with preview of main arguments

Paragraph 2: First Argument Topic sentence explaining first argument related to the thesis

Evidence to support argument using the targeted reasoning process

Paragraph 3: Second Argument Topic sentence explaining second argument related to the thesis

.

Evidence to support argument using the targeted reasoning process

Paragraph 4: Third Argument Topic sentence explaining third argument related to the thesis .

Evidence to support argument using the targeted reasoning process

Paragraph 5: Conclusion and Complex Understanding

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Answering the Document-Based Question This part of the AP® exam comes closest to the challenges and work of practicing historians. The AP® exam’s document-based question (DBQ) will be drawn from the concepts and content of periods 3 through 8 (1754–1980).

Students have no choice of questions, but they are given 60 minutes to write their answers. Directions suggest that students use the first 15 minutes to read and study the seven documents because they are the essential focus for this kind of question. These documents include mostly texts, but they will usually include one or more images, such as cartoons, maps, or graphs.

These sources will include differing points of view and often contradictory evidence.

Requirements of the Document-Based Question The rubric used to grade the DBQ includes seven possible points, and the question counts for 25 percent of one’s overall exam grade. Many of the DBQ requirements are the same or similar to ones for the LEQ. However, in addition students need to be able to analyze at least six of the seven historical documents provided and use them to support the arguments of the essay.

• Point 1: Thesis Respond to the prompt with a historically defensible thesis or claim that establishes a line of reasoning.

• Point 2: Contextualization Describe a broader historical context relevant to the prompt.

• Points 3 and 4: Evidence from the Documents Earn one point for using the content of at least three documents to address the question.

For two points you must use at least six documents and must also explain how the documents are related to the thesis arguments.

• Point 5: Evidence Beyond the Documents Use at least one additional piece of specific historical evidence, beyond the evidence found in the documents, that is relevant to your arguments.

• Point 6: Analysis of the Sources For at least three documents, one must explain how or why the document’s point of view, purpose, historical situation, or audience (or more than one of these) is relevant to your arguments.

• Point 7: Complexity Demonstrate a complex understanding of the question by using the evidence to corroborate, qualify, or modify an argument that addresses the question.

Practice Writing the Document-Based Question Keep in mind that writing a DBQ answer is similar to writing an effective long essay and that many of the same skills apply. As with an LEQ, a DBQ answer needs an effective thesis that addresses all parts of the question and uses a historical reasoning process, usually causation. As in a long essay, you need to make persuasive arguments supported by evidence.

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However, in a DBQ much of the evidence can be drawn from the seven documents. You must still utilize your knowledge of history to help you analyze the documents. The better you understand the concepts and evidence from the historical periods used in the question, the greater understanding you are likely to gain from the documents and the less likely you are to misinterpret them.

Below is a sample DBQ prompt. Use the steps following it to develop the skills for writing an effective DBQ answer.

Analyze major changes in the social and economic experiences of African Americans who migrated from the rural South to urban areas in the North in the period 1910 to 1930.

1. Analyze the Question and the Documents Besides analyzing the question, as explained under the LEQ section, the preparation for answering a DBQ must include analyzing the seven documents. This is why the directions for the DBQ on the exam recommend taking 15 minutes to read the documents before you begin writing. Use the first 15 minutes not only to read the documents but also to underline and make notes on them in the margin.

While reading the documents, note what side of possible arguments each document could be used to support. Also identify at least three documents that you could use to explain the relevance of the source’s point of view, purpose, historical situation, or audience to your arguments.

2. Organize the Evidence Unlike the LEQ, the DBQ provides much of the evidence to support a thesis and arguments. The poorest approach to answering a DBQ is to write about just the seven documents from 1 to 7 and hope for the best. Instead, much like with the LEQ, take time during the reading of the documents to organize them into categories such as northern experiences versus southern experiences. You might create a chart or matrix that uses a combination of rows and columns to organize information. For example, you might have one row for each region (South and North). Each column might be a type of information (economic conditions such as jobs) and social conditions (such as degree of prejudice and segregation). If time allows, add short notes about relevant knowledge from outside the documents to support your arguments.

3. Write a Thesis Statement The requirement for gaining the one point for a thesis or claim is the same as the LEQ. The thesis must be historically defensible and establish a line of reasoning. (See the LEQ section for details.)

4. Provide Context As with the LEQ, the DBQ essay also requires you to describe a broader historical context for the question. This involves explaining a relevant historical development not found in the documents. For example, in the response to the sample DBQ, you could broaden the discussion of the African American migrant experience by explaining a context not found in the documents, such as the race riots in northern cities like Chicago during and after World War I. This contextualization point also requires an explanation of multiple sentences or a full paragraph. Most AP® teachers recommend that contextualization should be addressed in the essay’s introduction or second paragraph as part of the background to the question.

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5. Use Evidence from the Documents You must use six of the seven documents in writing the essay to gain two points for use of evidence. To use the documents well, link the evidence in them to your arguments. Your thesis and arguments, not the arrangement of the documents in the exam booklet, should control the organization of the essay.

To receive two points, it is not enough to accurately explain the content from six documents. You also need to integrate the content into a persuasive argument to support your thesis.

In the use of documents as evidence, you must do more than just quote or paraphrase the documents. The readers already know the content of the documents, so there is no need to quote them. Another novice mistake is to write no more than a description of each document. “Document 1 says . . .

Document 2 says . . .” This approach can gain you only one point.

Below is a sample document for the above AP® sample DBQ. It is just one of seven documents that a DBQ would include.

Document 2. Letter from a prospective African American migrant, April 27, 1917, New Orleans, Louisiana “Dear Sirs: Being desirous of leaving the South for the betterment of my condition generally and seeking a Home Somewhere in Ill’ Chicago or some other prosperous town, I am at sea about the best place to locate having a family dependent upon me for support. I am informed by the Chicago Defender a very valuable paper which has for its purpose the Uplifting of my race, and of which I am a constant reader and real lover, that you were in position to show some light to one in my condition.

Seeking a Northern Home. If this is true, Kindly inform me by next mail the next best thing to do. Being a poor man with a family to care for, I am not coming to live on flowery Beds of ease for I am a man who works and wish to make the best I can out of life. I do not wish to come there hoodwinked not knowing, where to go or what to do, so I Solicit your help in this matter and thanking you in advance for what advice you may be pleased to Give. I am yours for success.”

The sample below illustrates a couple of ways to integrate documents in support of an argument and how to reference them in an essay. Documents 3 and 7 (not included in this book) describe discrimination in employment and housing:

The southern reader of the northern African American newspaper, Chicago Defender (Doc. 2), had cause for being suspicious that moving his family North would not be an easy escape from conditions in the South. During this period, black migrants to the North faced racial barriers in finding a place to live in segregated cities like Chicago (Doc. 7) and discrimination on the job in northern industries (Doc. 3).

The documents should influence your arguments to the extent that you will have to deal with the complexity, contradictions, and limitations found in

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them. Realize that not all documents will have equal weight. Communicate to the reader your awareness of the contradictions or limitations of a document or how a document might not support your thesis but fits into the historical situation relevant to the question.

6. Use Evidence Beyond the Documents Much like the LEQ, the DBQ does require at least one example of historical evidence to support your arguments, but it should not duplicate the evidence in the documents or their analysis. For example, the documents provided for the sample DBQ might not explicitly address the impact of African American music during the Harlem Renaissance in the North. Explaining how African American music enhanced the image of black artists and changed their experience in northern cities after migration would be going beyond the documents.

You could establish that you understand the era by setting the historical

scene early in the essay using “outside” information. However, do not “double-dip” by using the same example from your outside information in the explanation of context. If you do, you will not receive credit for both.

7. Source the Documents One additional point is gained for analyzing at least three of the documents in one or more of the following aspects: a) historical situation for the document, b) intended audience for the document, c) purpose of the document, and/or d) point of view of the author. Identifying one of the sourcing elements, such as historical situation, is not enough to get over the threshold for sourcing. To receive a point, you must also explain how or why this element of the source is relevant to an argument. In the example, for the 1917 letter from a reader of the Chicago Defender, you could explain the historical situation of the letter, that it was written during World War I. This was significant because labor shortages in the North encouraged employers to recruit workers from the South, which contributed to the great migration of African Americans.

In this text, you will find dozens of excerpts, cartoons, and other kinds of documents that provide you opportunities to practice sourcing documents as a prewriting activity. In writing the DBQ, the sourcing requirement can be accomplished in the same paragraph in which the document is used as evidence.

To explain the historical situation for a document, you need not take more than one sentence or modifying phrase in the paragraph that uses the document as evidence. The readers are looking for the sourcing of three documents for the one point.

8. Provide Complexity As explained before, an essay needs to show a deeper, more complex understanding of the question to gain this point.

Refer back to the AP® Guidelines for complexity under “Writing the LEQ” for the many ways to demonstrate a complex understanding. The options are the same for both the LEQ and the DBQ. In recent exams, few students have received the complexity point for their DBQ answers. This suggests that most students should focus on linking the document evidence to their arguments and on achieving both the contextualization and outside evidence points before tackling complexity.

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9. Evaluate a DBQ Answer At this point, some students may ask, how can one possibly juggle all the requirements to write a strong DBQ essay?

First remember that in writing a DBQ, you apply many of the same skills you learned in writing a strong LEQ answer, such as writing an effective thesis, providing context for the question, and using outside knowledge to support your arguments. As recommended for development of LEQ writing, use a step-by-step skill development approach to the DBQ. It will take time to master each new skill, such as the use of documents as evidence. Only practice can prepare you to answer a challenging DBQ successfully.

After writing your first untimed and timed DBQ essays, use the DBQ practice scoring guide, or the rubrics released by the College Board, to evaluate your essays. Using the scoring guide will help you to internalize the criteria for writing an effective DBQ. Samples of recent DBQ rubrics, scoring guidelines, and graded essays can be found at https://apcentral.collegeboard.org.

Finally, AP® readers counsel students to “take ownership of the question.” This means to address the LEQ and DBQ directly and commit your writing to supporting your arguments, rather than just describing documents and other evidence like isolated bits of information. Again, the time you spend on the front end thinking about the question and organizing the documents and other evidence into categories can give your essay purpose, direction, and clarity while you write.

Recommended Activity In this textbook, you will have dealt with more than a dozen excerpts, cartoons, and other forms of sources before practicing the first DBQ. There are DBQs in the reviews at the ends of period 2 through period 8 and in the practice exam. As a prewriting activity, identify and discuss each document’s point of view, historical situation or context, intended audience, and purpose.

In writing a DBQ answer, apply the same skills you use in writing a strong long essay answer. In addition, use the documents to support your thesis. After writing your first DBQ answers, use the scoring guide that follows or the DBQ exam rubrics released by the College Board to help you internalize the criteria for writing a strong DBQ answer.

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INTRODUCTION

Scoring Guide for a Document-Based Question Answer

A.Thesis/Claim: 0–1 Point

❑ 1 point for a historically defensible thesis/claim that establishes a line of reasoning to address the question and does not merely restate it. The thesis must be at least one sentence and located in one place, either in the introduction or in the conclusion.

B. Contextualization: 0–1 Point

❑ 1 point to describe the broader historical context of the question, such as developments either before, during, or after its time frame. Describing the context requires more than a mere phrase or reference.

C. Evidence: 0–3 Points

Evidence from the Documents: 0–2 Points

❑ 1 point for accurately describing the content of three documents that address the question.

OR (Either the 1 point above or the 2 points below, but not both.)

❑ 2 points for accurately describing the content of six documents and using them to support the arguments used in response to the question. Using the documents requires more than simply quoting them.

Evidence Beyond the Documents: 0–1 Point

❑ 1 point for using at least one additional piece of specific historical evidence beyond those found in the documents that is relevant to the arguments for the question. The evidence must be different from evidence used for the contextualization point and more than a mere phrase.

D. Analysis and Reasoning: 0–2 Points (Unlike the LEQ scoring, both points can be gained)

❑ 1 point for using at least three documents to explain how or why the document’s point of view, purpose, historical situation, and/or audience is relevant to an argument used to address the question.

❑ 1 point for demonstrating a complex understanding of the historical developments by analyzing the multiple variables in the evidence. This can include analyzing more than one cause, both similarities and differences, both continuity and change, and/or the diversity of evidence that corroborates, qualifies, or modifies an argument used to address the question.

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Review Schedule Under the best conditions, preparation for the AP® U.S. History exam takes place within the context of an Advanced Placement® or Honors course.

However, whether this text is used in conjunction with the course or as a review book before the exam, the teacher or students will benefit from organizing a review schedule before the exam. Many AP® candidates find that study groups are helpful, especially if the students bring to the group a variety of strengths.

Following is a sample of a six-week review schedule using this text that either teachers or students might construct to organize their preparation.

Proposed Review Schedule

Week Time Period Content

1

1491 to 1754 Units 1–2

2

1800 to 1848 Units 3–4

3

1844 to 1898 Units 5–6

4

1890 to 1945 Unit 7

5

1945 to the Present Units 8–9

6 Final Review Practice Exam

Staying with such a schedule requires discipline. This discipline is greatly strengthened if a study group chooses a specific time and place to meet and sets specific objectives for each meeting. For example, students might divide up the material and prepare outline responses to key terms and review questions.

Some individuals may find it more productive to review on their own. Either way, the essential content presented in and the reasoning processes developed through the use of this book should make it a convenient and efficient tool for understanding U.S. history.

1 TOPIC 1.1 CONTExTUALIzING PERIOD 1

Topic 1.1

Contextualizing Period 1

Learning Objective: Explain the context for European encounters in the Americas from 1491 to 1607.

Today, the United States is a synthesis, or combination, of people from around the world. The first people arrived in the Americas at least 10,000 years ago. A survey of how these indigenous people lived before the arrival of Christopher Columbus in the Americas in 1492 provides the context for understanding the interaction of the Europeans and Native Americans and the impact this had on both groups. Columbus’s first voyage was a turning point in world history because it initiated lasting contact between people on opposite sides of the Atlantic Ocean. His voyages, followed by European exploration and settlement in the Americas, had profound results on how people on every continent lived.

Another landmark change came in 1607 with the founding of the first permanent English settlement at Jamestown, Virginia. The Jamestown settlement marked the beginning of the framework of a new nation.

Cultural Diversity in the Americas When Columbus reached the Americas, the existing cultures varied greatly, partially because of differences in geography and climate. Each culture developed distinctive traits in response to its environment, from tropical islands where sugar grew to forests rich in animal life to land with fertile soil for growing corn (maize). Native Americans also transformed their environments. For example, people in dry regions created irrigation systems, while those in forested regions used fire to clear land for agriculture.

Motives for Exploration The European explorers in the Americas— first the Spanish and Portuguese, then the French and Dutch, and later the English—competed for land in the Americas. Some were motivated by desires to spread Christianity. Others hoped to become wealthy by finding an all-water route to Asia, establishing fur-trading posts, operating gold and silver mines, or developing plantations. Europeans often relied on violence to subdue or drive away native inhabitants.

Transatlantic Exchange Contact between Europeans and the natives of America touched off a transatlantic trade in animals, plants, and germs known as the Columbian Exchange that altered life for people around the globe.

UNIT 1 — Period 1: 1491–1607

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UNITED STATES HISTORY: AP® EDITION

Crops originally from America such as corn (maize), potatoes, and tomatoes revolutionized the diet of Europeans. However, germs that had developed in Europe caused epidemics in the Americas. Typically, the native population of a region declined by 90 percent within a century after the arrival of Europeans.

Addition of Enslaved Africans Adding to the diversity of people in the Americas were enslaved Africans. They were brought to the Americas by Europeans who desired low-cost labor to work in mines and on plantations.

Africans, like Native Americans, resisted European domination by maintaining elements of their cultures. The three groups influenced the others’ ideas and ways of life.

European Colonies Within a century of the arrival of Columbus, Spanish and Portuguese explorers and settlers developed colonies that depended on natives and enslaved Africans for labor in agriculture and mining precious metals. In particular, mines in Mexico and South America produced vast amounts of silver that made Spain the wealthiest European empire in the 16th and 17th centuries.

ANALYZE THE CONTEXT

1. Describe a historical context for understanding the diverse Native American cultures that had developed in the Americas by the 1490s.

2. Explain a historical context for the European exploration in the Americas from the 1490s to early 1600s.

3. Explain a historical context for the interactions between Europeans and Native Americans in the period from 1491 to 1607.

LANDMARK EVENTS: 1450–1650

1450

1500

1550

1600

1650

The first permanent English colony is established at Jamestown.

1607

Spain subjugates Native Americans through the encomienda system.

1512

1525

The transatlantic slave trade begins expanding.

Europeans become aware of a world new to them.

1492

1494

The Treaty of Tordesillas divides Spanish and Portuguese claims to the Americas.

1492

The Columbian Exchange of goods and diseases across the Atlantic begins.

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TOPIC 1.2 NATIVE AMERICAN SOCIETIES BEFORE EUROPEAN CONTACT

Topic 1.2

Native American Societies Before European Contact

The American Indian is of the soil, whether it be the region of forests, plains, pueblos, or mesas. He fits into the landscape, for the hand that fashioned the continent also fashioned the man for his surroundings.

Luther Standing Bear, Oglala Lakota Chief, 1933

Learning Objective: Explain how various native populations interacted with the natural environment in North America in the period before European contact.

The original discovery and settlement of North and South America began at least 10,000 and maybe up to 40,000 years ago. Migrants from Asia might have crossed a land bridge that once connected Siberia and Alaska (land now submerged under the Bering Sea). Over time, people migrated southward from near the Arctic Circle to the southern tip of South America. As they adapted to the varied environments they encountered, they evolved into hundreds of tribes speaking hundreds of languages. By 1491, the population in the Americas was probably between 50 million and 100 million people.

Cultures of Central and South America The native population was concentrated in three highly developed civilizations.

• Between the years 300 and 800, the Mayas built remarkable cities in the rain forests of the Yucatán Peninsula (present-day Guatemala, Belize, and southern Mexico).

• Several centuries after the decline of the Mayas, the Aztecs from central Mexico developed a powerful empire. The Aztec capital, Tenochtitlán, had a population of about 200,000, equivalent in population to the largest cities of Europe.

• While the Aztecs were dominating Mexico and Central America, the Incas based in Peru developed a vast empire in western South America.

All three civilizations developed highly organized societies, carried on an extensive trade, and created calendars that were based on accurate scientific observations. All three cultivated crops that provided a stable food supply, particularly corn (maize) for the Mayas and Aztecs and potatoes for the Incas.

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UNITED STATES HISTORY: AP® EDITION

Cultures of North America The population in the region north of Mexico (present-day United States and Canada) in the 1490s may have been anywhere from under 1 million to more than 10 million.

General Patterns Native societies in this region included fewer people and had less complex social structures than those in Mexico and South America.

One reason for these differences was how slowly the cultivation of corn (maize) spread northward from Mexico. The nutrition provided by corn allowed for larger and more densely settled populations. In turn, this led to more socially diversified societies in which people specialized in their work.

Some of the most populous societies in North America had disappeared by the 15th century for reasons not well understood. By the time of Columbus, most people in the Americas in what is now the United States and Canada lived in semipermanent settlements in groups seldom exceeding 300 people.

In most of these groups, the men made tools and hunted for game, while the women gathered plants and nuts or grew crops such as corn (maize), beans, and tobacco.

Language Differences Beyond these broad similarities, the cultures of American Indians were very diverse. For example, while English, Spanish, and almost all other European languages were part of just one language family (Indo-European), American Indian languages constituted more than 20 language families. Among the largest of these were Algonquian in the northeast, Siouan on the Great Plains, and Athabaskan in the southwest. Together, these 20 families included more than 400 distinct languages.

Southwest Settlements In the dry region that now includes New Mexico and Arizona, groups such as the Hohokam, Anasazi, and Pueblos evolved multifaceted societies. Many people lived in caves, under cliffs, and in multistoried buildings. The spread of maize cultivation into this region from Mexico prompted economic growth and the development of irrigation systems.

The additional wealth allowed for a more complex society to develop, one with greater variations between social and economic classes.

By the time Europeans arrived, extreme drought and other hostile natives had taken their toll on these groups. However, their descendants continue to live in the region, and the arid climate helped preserve some of the older stone and masonry dwellings.

Northwest Settlements Along the Pacific coast from what is today Alaska to northern California, people lived in permanent longhouses or plank houses.

They had a rich diet based on hunting, fishing, and gathering nuts, berries, and roots. To help people remember stories, legends, and myths, they carved large totem poles. However, the high mountain ranges in this region isolated tribes from one another, creating barriers to development.

Great Basin and Great Plains People adapted to the dry climate of the Great Basin region and the grasslands of the Great Plains by developing mobile

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TOPIC 1.2 NATIVE AMERICAN SOCIETIES BEFORE EUROPEAN CONTACT

ways of living. Nomadic tribes survived on hunting, principally the buffalo, which supplied their food as well as decorations, crafting tools, knives, and clothing. People lived in tepees, frames of poles covered in animal skins, which were easily disassembled and transported. Some tribes, though they also hunted buffalo, lived permanently in earthen lodges often along rivers. They raised corn (maize), beans, and squash while actively trading with other tribes.

Not until the 17th century did American Indians acquire horses by trading or stealing them from Spanish settlers. With horses, tribes such as the Lakota Sioux could more easily follow buffalo herds. The plains tribes would at times merge or split apart as conditions changed. Migration also was common. For example, the Apaches gradually migrated southward from Canada to Texas.

NATIVE PEOPLES OF THE AMERICAS, 1491

1,000 kilometers

1,000 miles

Arctic

Subarctic

Northwest Coast

California

Plateau

Great Basin

Southwest

Plains

Northeast

Southeast

Mesoamerica

Caribbean

Native Peoples of the Americas, 1491

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UNITED STATES HISTORY: AP® EDITION

Mississippi River Valley East of the Mississippi River, the Woodland American Indians prospered with a rich food supply. Supported by hunting, fishing, and agriculture, people established permanent settlements in the Mississippi and Ohio River valleys and elsewhere. The Adena-Hopewell culture, centered in what is now Ohio, is famous for its large earthen mounds, some 300 feet long. One of the largest settlements in the Midwest was Cahokia (near present-day East St. Louis, Illinois), with as many as 30,000 inhabitants.

Northeast Settlements Some descendants of the Adena-Hopewell culture spread from the Ohio Valley into New York. Their culture combined hunting and farming. However, their farming techniques exhausted the soil quickly, so people had to move to fresh land frequently. Multiple families related through the mother’s lineage lived together in longhouses that were up to 200 feet long.

Several tribes living near the Great Lakes and in New York—the Seneca, Cayuga, Onondaga, Oneida, Mohawk, and later the Tuscaroras— formed a powerful political union called the Iroquois Confederation, or Haudenosauanee. From the 16th century through the American Revolution, this powerful union battled rival American Indians as well as Europeans.

Atlantic Seaboard Settlements In the area from New Jersey south to Florida lived the people of the Coastal Plains such as the Cherokee and the Lumbee. Many were descendants of the Woodland mound builders and built timber and bark lodgings along rivers. The rivers and the Atlantic Ocean provided a rich source of food

Overall Diversity The tremendous variety of landforms and climate prompted people in North America prior to 1492 to develop widely different cultures. While Europeans often grouped these varied cultures together, each tribe was very conscious of its own distinctive systems and traditions. Not until much later in history did they develop a shared identity as Native Americans.

REFLECT ON THE LEARNING OBJECTIVE

1. Describe the influence of the natural environment on the society and culture that various Native Americans had developed.

KEY TERMS BY THEME

Migration (MIG, ARC) land bridge Hohokam, Anasazi, and Pueblos Adena-Hopewell Woodland mound builders

Identity and Politics

(NAT, POL) Mayas Aztecs Incas corn (maize)

American Indians

(MIG, POL, ARC) Algonquian Siouan longhouses Iroquois Confederation Woodland mound builders

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TOPIC 1.2 NATIVE AMERICAN SOCIETIES BEFORE EUROPEAN CONTACT

MULTIPLE-CHOICE QUESTIONS

Questions 1–2 refer to the following excerpt.

“During the thousands of years preceding European contact, the Native American people developed inventive and creative cultures. They cultivated plants for food, dyes, medicines, and textiles; domesticated animals; established extensive patterns of trade; built cities; produced monumental architecture; developed intricate systems of religious beliefs; and constructed a wide variety of systems of social and political organization. . . . Native Americans not only adapted to diverse and demanding environments, they also reshaped the natural environments to meet their needs. . . . No society had shaped metal into guns, swords, or tools; none had gunpowder, sailing ships, or mounted warriors.”

“Overview of First Americans,” Digital History, 2016

1. According to the excerpt, one contrast between Native Americans and Europeans before contact between the two groups of people was that (A) all Native Americans shared a common political system (B) most Native Americans had little trade with other groups (C) some Native Americans had metal tools they used in farming (D) no Native Americans had certain military technologies that were common in Europe

2. What does the source imply was the cause of the “wide variety of systems of social and political organization”? (A) Variations in the moral code (B) Variations in the natural environment (C) Variations in religious beliefs (D) Variations in styles of architecture

SHORT-ANSWER QUESTION

1. Answer (a), (b), and (c). (a) Briefly describe ONE specific difference between the cultures of the indigenous peoples of North America and those in Central and South America in the period 1491–1607. (b) Briefly describe ONE specific similarity between the cultures of the indigenous peoples of North America and those in Central and South America in the period 1491–1607. (c) Briefly explain ONE specific contrast between language families among Native Americans and Europeans in the period 1491–1607.

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UNITED STATES HISTORY: AP® EDITION

Topic 1.3

European Exploration in the Americas

Thirty-three days after my departure . . . I reached the Indian Sea, where I discovered many islands, thickly peopled, of which I took possession without resistance in the name of our illustrious monarch, by public proclamation and with unfurled banners.

Christopher Columbus, Select Letters, 1493

Learning Objective: Explain the causes of exploration and conquest of the New World by various European nations.

Until the late 1400s, the people of the Americas carried on extensive trade with each other but had no connection to the people of Europe, Africa, and Asia. Similarly, Europeans, Africans, and Asians traded among themselves without knowing of the Americas. However, starting in the 1400s, religious and economic motives prompted Europeans to explore more widely than before. As a result, they brought the two parts of the world into contact with each other.

The European Context for Exploration While Vikings from Scandinavia had visited Greenland and North America around the year 1000, these voyages had no lasting impact. Columbus’s voyages of exploration finally brought people into ongoing contact across the Atlantic.

Several factors made sailing across the ocean and exploring distant regions possible and desirable in the late 15th century.

Changes in Thought and Technology In Europe, a rebirth of classical learning prompted an outburst of artistic and scientific activity in the 15th and 16th centuries known as the Renaissance.

Several of the technological advances during the Renaissance resulted from Europeans making improvements in the inventions of others. For example, Europeans began to use gunpowder (invented by the Chinese) and the sailing compass (adopted from Arab merchants who learned about it from the Chinese). Europeans also made major improvements in shipbuilding and mapmaking. In addition, the invention of the printing press in the 1450s aided the spread of knowledge across Europe.

9 TOPIC 1.3 EUROPEAN ExPLORATION IN THE AMERICAS

Religious Conflict The later years of the Renaissance were a time of intense religious zeal and conflict. The Roman Catholic Church and its leader, known as the pope, had dominated most of Western Europe for centuries. However, in the 15th and 16th centuries, their power was threatened by both Ottoman Turks, who were Muslims, and rebellious Christians who challenged the pope’s authority.

Catholic Victory in Spain In the 8th century, Islamic invaders from North Africa, known as Moors, rapidly conquered most of what is now Spain. Over the next several centuries, Spanish Christians reconquered much of the land and set up several independent kingdoms. Two of the largest of these kingdoms united when Isabella, queen of Castile, and Ferdinand, king of Aragon, married in 1469. In 1492, under the leadership of Isabella and Ferdinand, the Spanish conquered the last Moorish stronghold in Spain, the city of Granada.

In that year, the monarchs also funded Christopher Columbus on his historic first voyage. The uniting of Spain under Isabella and Ferdinand, the conquest of Granada, and the launching of Columbus’s voyage signaled new leadership, hope, and power for Europeans who followed the Roman Catholic faith.

Protestant Revolt in Northern Europe In the early 1500s, certain Christians in Germany, England, France, Holland, and other northern European countries revolted against the authority of the pope in Rome. Their revolt was known as the Protestant Reformation. Conflict between Catholics and Protestants led to a series of religious wars that resulted in many millions of deaths in the 16th and 17th centuries. The conflict also caused the Roman Catholics of Spain and Portugal and the Protestants of England and Holland to want to spread their own versions of Christianity to people in Africa, Asia, and the Americas. Thus, a religious motive for exploration and colonization was added to political and economic motives.

Expanding Trade Economic motives for exploration grew out of a fierce competition among European kingdoms for increased trade with Africa, India, and China. In the past, merchants had traveled from the Italian city-state of Venice and the Byzantine city of Constantinople on a long, slow, expensive overland route all the way to eastern China. This land route to Asia had become blocked in 1453 when the Ottoman Turks seized control of Constantinople.

New Routes So the challenge to finding a new way to the rich Asian trade appeared to be by sailing either south along the West African coast and then east to China, or sailing west across the Atlantic Ocean. The Portuguese realized the route south and east was the shortest path. Voyages of exploration sponsored by Portugal’s Prince Henry the Navigator eventually succeeded in opening up a long sea route around South Africa’s Cape of Good Hope.

In 1498, the Portuguese sea captain Vasco da Gama was the first European to reach India via this route. By this time, Columbus had attempted what he mistakenly believed would be a shorter route to Asia.

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UNITED STATES HISTORY: AP® EDITION

Slave Trading Since ancient times people in Europe, Africa, and Asia had enslaved people captured in wars. In the 15th century, the Portuguese began trading for enslaved people from West Africa. They used the enslaved workers on newly established sugar plantations on the Madeira and Azores islands off the African coast. Producing sugar with enslaved labor was so profitable that when Europeans later established colonies in the Americas, they used a similar system there.

Developing Nation-States Europe was also changing politically in the 15th century.

• Small kingdoms were uniting into larger ones. For example, Castile and Aragon united to form the core of the modern country of Spain.

• Enormous multiethnic empires, such as the sprawling Holy Roman Empire in central Europe, were beginning to break up. For example, most of the small states that united to form the modern country of Germany in 1871 were once part of the Holy Roman Empire.

Replacing the small kingdoms and the multiethnic empires were nation-states, countries in which the majority of people shared both a common culture and common loyalty toward a central government. The monarchs of the emerging nation-states, such as Isabella and Ferdinand of Spain; Prince Henry the Navigator of Portugal; and similar monarchs of France, England, and the Netherlands depended on trade to bring in needed revenues and on the church to justify their right to rule.

Dividing the Americas The Western European monarchs used their power to search for riches abroad and to spread the influence of their version of Christianity to new overseas dominions. This led to competition for control of land in the Americas.

Spanish and Portuguese Claims Spain and Portugal were the first European kingdoms to claim territories in the Americas. Their claims overlapped, leading to disputes. The Catholic monarchs of the two countries turned to the pope to resolve their differences. In 1493, the pope drew a vertical, north-south line on a world map, called the line of demarcation. The pope granted Spain all lands to the west of the line and Portugal all lands to the east.

In 1494, Spain and Portugal moved the pope’s line a few degrees to the west and signed an agreement called the Treaty of Tordesillas. The line passed through what is now the country of Brazil. This treaty, together with Portuguese explorations, established Portugal’s claim to Brazil. Spain claimed the rest of the Americas. However, other European countries soon challenged these claims.

English Claims England’s earliest claims to territory in the Americas rested on the voyages of John Cabot, an Italian sea captain who sailed under contract to England’s King Henry VII. Cabot explored the coast of Newfoundland in 1497.

11 TOPIC 1.3 EUROPEAN ExPLORATION IN THE AMERICAS

EUROPEAN LAND CLAIMS IN NORTH AMERICA IN THE 1600s

G u l f o f M e x i c o

Cape Hatteras

Cape Cod

P A C I F I C

O C E A N

ATLANTIC

OCEAN

H u d s o n B a y

N O R T H

A M E R I C A

N E W

S P A I N

LOUISIANA

FLORIDA

Quebec

Montreal

Santa Fe

Plymouth

Jamestown Roanoke Is.

St. Augustine

New Amsterdam

E

U

R

O

P

E

A

N

S

N

E

W

F

R

A

N

C

E

NEW

MEXICO

B

Y

U

N

C

L

A

I

M

E

D

G

re

at

L

a

ke

s

Spanish

French

English and Dutch

500

500

1,000 Kilometers

1,000 Miles

England, however, did not immediately follow up Cabot’s discoveries with other expeditions of exploration and settlement. Other issues preoccupied England’s monarchy in the 1500s, most importantly the religious conflict that followed Henry VIII’s break with the Roman Catholic Church.

Later in the 16th century, England took more interest in distant affairs. In the 1570s and 1580s, under Queen Elizabeth I, England challenged Spanish shipping in both the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans. Sir Francis Drake, for example, attacked Spanish ships, seized the gold and silver that they carried, and even attacked Spanish settlements on the coast of Peru. Another English adventurer, Sir Walter Raleigh, attempted to establish a colonial settlement at Roanoke Island off the North Carolina coast in 1587, but the venture failed.

French Claims The French monarchy first showed interest in exploration in 1524 when it sponsored a voyage by an Italian navigator, Giovanni da Verrazzano. Hoping to find a northwest passage leading through the Americas to Asia, Verrazzano explored part of North America’s eastern coast, including the New York harbor. French claims to American territory were also based on the voyages of Jacques Cartier (1534–1542), who explored the St. Lawrence River extensively.

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UNITED STATES HISTORY: AP® EDITION

Like the English, the French were slow to develop colonies across the Atlantic. During the 1500s, the French monarchy was preoccupied with European wars as well as with internal religious conflict between Roman Catholics and French Protestants known as Huguenots. Only in the next century did France develop a strong interest in following up its claims to North American land.

REFLECT ON THE LEARNING OBJECTIVE

1. Explain what supported and motivated European exploration and colonization in the New World.

MULTIPLE-CHOICE QUESTIONS

Questions 1–3 refer to the following excerpt.

“I marvel not a little, right worshipful, that since the first discovery of America (which is now full four score and ten years), after so great conquests and plannings of the Spaniards and Portuguese there, that we of England could never have the grace to set fast footing in such fertile and temperate places as are left as yet unpossessed of them. But . . . I conceive great hope that the time approacheth and now is that we of England may share and part stakes . . . in part of America and other regions as yet undiscovered. . . .

Yea, if we would behold with the eye of pity how all our prisons are pestered and filled with able men to serve their country, which for small robberies are daily hanged up in great numbers, . . . we would hasten . . . the deducting [conveying] of some colonies of our superfluous people into these temperate and fertile parts of America, which being within six weeks’ sailing of England, are yet unpossessed by any Christians, and seem to offer themselves unto us, stretching nearer unto Her Majesty’s dominions than to other parts of Europe.”

Richard Hakluyt, Divers Voyages Touching the Discovery of America and the Islands Adjacent, 1582

KEY TERMS BY THEME

Atlantic Trade (WOR) gunpowder sailing compass printing press Isabella and Ferdinand Christopher Columbus

Henry the Navigator Treaty of Tordesillas Roanoke Island

Identity & Politics (NAT, PLC) Protestant Reformation nation-states

13 TOPIC 1.3 EUROPEAN ExPLORATION IN THE AMERICAS

1. Which of the following would best explain the British failure to follow the Spanish and Portuguese in exploring the New World? (A) Lack of British explorers (B) Development of British colonies in Asia (C) Domestic challenges to the crown within England (D) Establishment of the Church of England

2. Which of the following would eventually become a more important motivation for colonists than the ones suggested in the excerpt? (A) The desire for religious freedom (B) The hope of finding gold and silver (C) The loyalty of members of the nobility (D) The success of merchants and traders

3. According to the excerpt, which of the following areas is the most likely region that the British would colonize? (A) North Atlantic coast (B) West Indies (C) Southern Florida (D) Central America

SHORT-ANSWER QUESTION

Use complete sentences; an outline or bulleted list alone is not acceptable.

1. Answer (a), (b), and (c). (a) Briefly explain ONE specific cause that led to European colonization in the Americas during the 15th and 16th centuries. (b) Briefly explain ONE additional cause that led to European colonization in the Americas during the 15th and 16th centuries. (c) Briefly explain ONE specific effect that resulted from European colonization in the Americas during the 15th and 16th centuries.

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UNITED STATES HISTORY: AP® EDITION

Topic 1.4

Columbian Exchange, Spanish Exploration, and Conquest

In 1491, the world was in many of its aspects and characteristics a minimum of two worlds—the New World, of the Americas, and the Old World, consisting of Eurasia and Africa. Columbus brought them together, and almost immediately and continually ever since, we have had an exchange.

Alfred W. Crosby, historian and geographer, 2011

Learning Objective: Explain causes of the Columbian Exchange and its effect on Europe and the Americas during the period after 1492.

Columbus’s purpose in sailing westward in the 1490s was to find a sea route to the lucrative trade with Asia, which had been limited by a long and dangerous land route. The eventual impact of what Columbus found was of far greater importance.

Christopher Columbus As mentioned in the previous topic, 1.3, changing economic, political, and social conditions in Europe combined to support new efforts to expand.

Exploration across the seas was specifically supported by the improvements in shipbuilding and in navigation with better compasses and mapmaking. These factors all helped shape the ambitions of many to explore.

Plans to Reach Asia One of these explorers was from the Italian city of Genoa, Christopher Columbus. He spent eight years seeking financial support for his plan to sail west from Europe to the “Indies.” Finally, in 1492, he succeeded in winning the backing of Isabella and Ferdinand. The two Spanish monarchs were then at the height of their power, having just defeated the Moors in Granada. They agreed to outfit three ships and to make Columbus governor, admiral, and viceroy of all the lands that he would claim for Spain.

After sailing from the Canary Islands on September 6, Columbus landed on an island in the Bahamas on October 12. His success in reaching lands on the other side of the ocean brought him a burst of glory in Spain. But three subsequent voyages across the Atlantic were disappointing—he found little gold, few spices, and no simple path to China and India.

15 TOPIC 1.4 COLUMBIAN ExCHANGE, SPANISH ExPLORATION, AND CONQUEST

The Columbian Exchange Europeans and the original inhabitants of the Americas had developed vastly different cultures over the millennia. The contact between them resulted in the Columbian Exchange, a transfer of plants, animals, and germs from one side of the Atlantic to the other for the first time. These exchanges, biological and cultural, permanently changed the entire world. Never again would people live in isolation from the other hemisphere.

Europeans learned about many new plants and foods, including beans, corn, sweet and white potatoes, tomatoes, and tobacco. These food items transformed the diet of people throughout Eurasia and touched off rapid population growth in regions from Ireland to West Africa to eastern China.

Europeans also contracted a new disease, syphilis.

People in the Americas learned about sugar cane, bluegrasses, pigs, and horses, as well as new technology, such as the wheel, iron implements, and guns. But while the Columbian Exchange led to population growth in Europe, Africa, and Asia, it had the opposite effect in the Americas. Native Americans had no immunity to the germs and the diseases brought by Europeans, such as smallpox and measles. As a result the native population declined rapidly in the first century after contact. In Mexico, the native population declined from around 22 million in 1492 to around 4 million by the mid-16th century.

The Rise of Capitalism In Europe, population growth and access to new resources encouraged trade, which led to economic, political, and social changes. The medieval system of feudalism, a system in which monarchs granted land to nobles in exchange for military service, declined. In its place rose capitalism, an economic system in which control of capital (money and machinery) became more important than control of land. As trade increased, commerce became increasingly important, and political power shifted from large landowners to wealthy merchants.

One reason trade increased was that Europeans were eager to gain access to the riches of the Americas, Africa, and Asia. A single successful trade expedition could make the individual who financed the voyage very wealthy.

However, ocean voyages were expensive and dangerous. One bad storm could destroy all the ships in an expedition. To finance trade voyages more safely, Europeans developed a new type of enterprise, the joint-stock company, a business owned by a large number of investors. If a voyage failed, investors lost only what they had invested. By reducing individual risk, joint-stock companies encouraged investment, thereby promoting economic growth.

HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVES: WAS COLUMBUS A GREAT HERO?

When Columbus died in 1506, he still believed that he had found a western route to Asia. However, many Spaniards realized he had not. Nor had he found gold and spices. They viewed him as a failure. Even the land that he had explored was named for someone else, Amerigo Vespucci.

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Columbus then became more honored. Scholars praised his skills as a navigator and his daring. He traveled where nobody else had ever dared to venture. As early as 1828, Washington Irving wrote a popular biography extolling the explorer’s virtues. The apex of Columbus’s heroic reputation was reached in 1934 when President Franklin Roosevelt declared October 12 a national holiday.

Since the 1990s, however, historians have become more aware of the strength and diversity of indigenous cultures and the devastating impact of contact with Europeans. As a result, several biographies have revised their view of Columbus, taking a more critical look at him.

A Fortunate Navigator Some have argued that Columbus was simply at the right place at the right time. Europeans at the end of the 15th century were eager to find a water route to Asia. If Columbus had not run into the Americas in 1492, some other explorer—perhaps Vespucci or Cabot—would have done so a few years later.

A Conqueror Some revisionists take a harsh view of Columbus, regarding him not as a discoverer but as a conqueror. They portray him as a religious fanatic who sought to convert the American natives to Christianity and kill those who resisted.

Response to the Critics Arthur M. Schlesinger Jr. argued that Columbus’s chief motivation was neither greed nor ambition—it was the challenge of the unknown. Others pointed out that, while Columbus brought deadly diseases to the Americas, the costs of contact were partially offset by positive results such as the development of democracy.

Historians will continue to debate the nature of Columbus’s achievement. As with other historical questions, distinguishing between fact and fiction and separating a writer’s personal biases from objective reality are difficult. One conclusion is inescapable: As a result of Columbus’s voyages, world history took a sharp turn in a new direction. People are still living with the consequences of this interaction.

Support an Argument Explain two perspectives on Columbus’s role in the European expansion in the Americas.

REFLECT ON THE LEARNING OBJECTIVE

1. How did the Columbian Exchange develop, and what was its impact on both sides of the Atlantic Ocean?

KEY TERMS BY THEME

Exchange & Interaction (WXT, GEO) horses diseases

smallpox, measles capitalism joint-stock company

17 TOPIC 1.4 COLUMBIAN ExCHANGE, SPANISH ExPLORATION, AND CONQUEST

MULTIPLE-CHOICE QUESTIONS

Questions 1–2 refer to the following excerpt.

“Apart from his navigational skills, what most set Columbus apart from other Europeans of his day were not the things that he believed, but the intensity with which he believed in them and the determination with which he acted upon those beliefs. . . .

Columbus was, in most respects, merely an especially active and dramatic embodiment of the European—and especially the Mediterranean—mind and soul of his time: a religious fanatic obsessed with the conversion, conquest, or liquidation of all non-Christians; a latter-day Crusader in search of personal wealth and fame, who expected the enormous and mysterious world he had found to be filled with monstrous races inhabiting wild forests, and with golden people living in Eden.”

David E. Stannard, historian, American Holocaust: Columbus and the Conquest of the New World, 1992

1. According to Stannard, which of the following most accurately describes the context in which Columbus lived? (A) Europeans believed they should spread Christianity to people in other parts of the world. (B) Europeans viewed their culture and the cultures of other people as very similar. (C) Europeans were the wealthiest people in the world and considered themselves “golden.” (D) Europeans assumed that a continent existed that they had no contact with.

2. Evidence that would modify or refute the view of Columbus expressed by Stannard in this excerpt would include (A) statements by Spaniards in the late 16th century who believed that they should not try to convert people to Christianity (B) excerpts from letters by Columbus indicating that he hoped his ventures would make him wealthy (C) descriptions of Native Americans by other European explorers that were negative (D) examples of long-term benefits for people in Europe and Asia that resulted from the voyages by Columbus

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SHORT-ANSWER QUESTION

1. “The New World provided soils that were very suitable for the cultivation of a variety of Old World products, like sugar and coffee. The increased supply lowered the prices of these products significantly, making them affordable to the general population for the first time in history. The production of these products also resulted in large inflows of profits back to Europe, which some have argued fueled the Industrial Revolution and the rise of Europe. . . .

The exchange also had some extremely negative impacts. Native American populations were decimated by Old World diseases. This depopulation along with the production of valuable Old World crops . . . fueled the demand for labor that gave rise to the transatlantic slave trade. The result was the forced movement of over twelve million slaves from Africa to the Americas and devastating political, social, and economic consequences for the African continent.”

Nathan Nunn and Nancy Qian, The Columbian Exchange, 2010

“Most dramatically, the Columbian Exchange transformed farming and human diets. This change is often so culturally ingrained that we take it for granted…

Despite the transport of new killer diseases, including the emergence of deadly syphilis in Europe and Asia, which was linked to trade with the Americas, the Columbian Exchange eventually allowed more people to live off the land. These newly available plants and animals led to the single largest improvement in farm productivity since the original agricultural revolution.

The results of different peoples’ efforts in domesticating and refining crops over thousands of years were now available and being adopted worldwide.”

Simon L. Lewis and Mark A. Maslin, Atlantic, August 24, 2018

Using the excerpts above, answer (a), (b), and (c). (a) Briefly describe ONE important difference between Nunn and Qian’s and Lewis and Maslin’s historical interpretations of the Columbian Exchange. (b) Briefly explain how ONE specific historical event, development, or circumstance from the period 1491–1607 that is not specifically mentioned in the excerpts could be used to support Nunn and Qian’s argument. (c) Briefly explain how ONE specific historical event, development, or circumstance from the period 1491–1607 that is not specifically mentioned in the excerpts could be used to support Lewis and Maslin’s argument.

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TOPIC 1.5 LABOR, SLAVERY, AND CASTE IN THE SPANISH COLONIAL SYSTEM

Topic 1.5

Labor, Slavery, and Caste in the Spanish Colonial System

Know ye that I have given permission . . . to take to the Indies, the islands and the mainland of the ocean sea already discovered or to be discovered, four thousand negro slaves both male and female, provided that they be Christians.

Emperor Charles V of Spain, colonial charter, August 18, 1518

Learning Objective: Explain how the growth of the Spanish Empire in North America shaped the development of social and economic structures over time.

Spanish dominance in the Americas was based on more than a papal ruling and a treaty. The new empire began with ambitious and skilled leaders in Ferdinand and Isabella. With its adventurous explorers and conquerors (called conquistadores) and the labor provided by Indians and enslaved Africans, Spain rapidly expanded its wealth and power.

Spanish Exploration and Conquest Feats such as the journey across the Isthmus of Panama to the Pacific Ocean by Vasco Núñez de Balboa, the circumnavigation of the world by one of Ferdinand Magellan’s ships (Magellan died before completing the trip), the conquests of the Aztecs in Mexico by Hernán Cortés, and the conquest of the Incas in Peru by Francisco Pizarro secured Spain’s initial supremacy in the Americas.

The conquistadores sent ships loaded with gold and silver back to Spain from Mexico and Peru. They increased the gold supply in Spain, making it the richest and most powerful kingdom in Europe. Spain’s success encouraged other states to turn to the Americas in search of gold and power.

Indian Labor In Mexico and Peru, the Spanish encountered the well-organized and populous Aztec and Inca empires. Even after diseases killed most natives, millions survived. The Spanish incorporated the surviving Indians into their own empire. To control them, the Spanish used the encomienda system in which Spain’s king granted natives who lived on a tract of land to individual Spaniards. These Indians were forced to farm or work in the mines. The fruits of their labors went to the Spanish, who in turn had to “care” for the Indians.

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Enslaved African Labor On their sugar plantations on islands off the African coast, the Portuguese had already shown that using enslaved Africans to grow crops could be profitable. They provided a model for other Europeans.

The Spanish, to add to their labor force and to replace Indians who died from diseases and brutality, began trading with African partners who could supply enslaved people. The Spanish imported people under the asiento system, which required colonists to pay a tax to the Spanish king on each enslaved person they imported to the Americas.

As other Europeans established American colonies, they also imported enslaved Africans in large numbers. During the colonial era, more Africans than Europeans crossed the Atlantic to the Americas. Before the transatlantic slave trade ended in the late 1800s, slave traders sent between 10 million and

15 million enslaved people from Africa. Between 10 percent and 15 percent died on the voyage across the Atlantic Ocean, called the Middle Passage.

African Resistance Though transported thousands of miles from their homelands and brutally repressed, Africans resisted slavery in multiple ways.

They often ran away, sabotaged work, or revolted. Further, they maintained aspects of African culture, particularly in music, religion, and folkways.

Spanish Caste System The combination of Native Americans, Europeans, and Africans made the Spanish colonies ethnically diverse. In addition, since most Spanish colonists were single men rather than families, many had children with native or African women. The result was that the Spanish colonies included many people with mixed heritage. In response, the Spanish developed a caste system that defined the status of people in the colonies by their heritage:

• At the top were pure-blooded Spaniards.

• In the middle were several levels of people ordered according to their mixture of European, Native American, and African heritage.

• At the bottom were people of pure Indian or Black heritage.

REFLECT ON THE LEARNING OBJECTIVE

1. How was the society and economy of North America affected by the expansion of the Spanish Empire?

KEY TERMS BY THEME

Labor Systems (WXT) encomienda asiento slavery

Identity and Politics (POL) conquistadores Hernán Cortés Francisco Pizarro

Atlantic Trade (WXT) slave trade Middle Passage

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TOPIC 1.5 LABOR, SLAVERY, AND CASTE IN THE SPANISH COLONIAL SYSTEM

MULTIPLE-CHOICE QUESTIONS

Questions 1–3 refer to the following excerpt.

“The province of Quivira is 950 leagues from Mexico. Where I reached it, it is in the fortieth degree [of latitude]. The country itself is the best I have ever seen for producing all the products of Spain. . . . I have treated the natives of this province, and all the others whom I found wherever I went, as well as was possible, agreeably to what Your Majesty had commanded, and they have received no harm in any way from me or from those who went in my company. I remained twenty-five days in this province of Quivira, so as to see and explore the country and also to find out whether there was anything beyond which could be of service to Your Majesty, because the guides who had brought me had given me an account of other provinces beyond this. And what I am sure of is that there is not any gold nor any other metal in all that country.”

Francisco Coronado, Spanish conquistador, Travels in Quivira, c. 1542

1. Which of the following best summarizes Coronado’s goal in exploring Mexico as expressed in this excerpt? (A) To inform the natives about Spain and its culture (B) To learn from the native inhabitants in the region (C) To spread Roman Catholic Christianity in the region (D) To find natural resources that might enrich the king

2. The activities described in this excerpt were similar to those of other Spanish and Portuguese explorers in the Americas in the 16th century because they depended primarily on the support of (A) merchants and fur traders (B) the Catholic Church (C) monarchs (D) impoverished Europeans

3. Based on the excerpt, one difference between Coronado and many European explorers was that he expressed little interest in (A) enriching the king (B) finding gold and silver (C) converting the native people to Christianity (D) increasing the power of his country

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SHORT-ANSWER QUESTIONS

Use complete sentences; an outline or bulleted list alone is not acceptable.

1. “I want the natives to develop a friendly attitude toward us because I know that they are a people who can be made free and converted to our Holy Faith more by love than by force. I therefore gave red caps to some and glass beads to others. They hung the beads around their necks, along with some other things of slight value that I gave them. . . . I warned my men to take nothing from the people without giving something in exchange.” Christopher Columbus, Log, October 12, 1492

Using the excerpt above, answer (a), (b), and (c). (a) Briefly explain ONE expectation about Native Americans that caused Columbus to issue this statement to his men. (b) Briefly explain ONE effect that this statement by Columbus would likely have on a powerful group in Spain, other than the monarchy. (c) Briefly explain ONE effect of contact between Europeans and the first inhabitants of America that is not consistent with the above passage.

2. Answer (a), (b), and (c). (a) Briefly explain ONE specific example of how the Spanish managed their American colonial empire during the 15th and 16th centuries. (b) Briefly explain ONE specific example of how a non-Spanish individual or country influenced Spain’s American colonial empire during the 15th and 16th centuries. (c) Briefly explain ONE specific example of the diversity that developed in Spain’s American colonial empire during the 15th and 16th centuries.

3. Answer (a), (b), and (c). (a) Briefly explain ONE specific example of a benefit that the Native Americans gained from the Spanish settlements during the 15th and 16th centuries. (b) Briefly explain ONE specific example of a negative effect on Native Americans caused by the Spanish settlements during the 15th and 16th centuries. (c) Briefly explain ONE specific factor that influenced the Spanish in their treatment of Native Americans during the 15th and 16th centuries.

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TOPIC 1.6 CULTURAL INTERACTIONS IN THE AMERICAS

Topic 1.6

Cultural Interactions in the Americas

The Spanish have a perfect right to rule these barbarians of the New World and the adjacent islands, who in prudence, skill, virtues, and humanity are as inferior to the Spanish as children to adults, or women to men.

Juan Ginés de Sepúlveda, Spanish theologian, 1547

Learning Objective: Explain how and why European and Native American perspectives of others developed and changed in the period.

History is filled with experiences of contact between diverse people, such as the Romans and Africans in the Classical Era, or the Christians and Muslims in the Middle Ages. Often these conflicts were violent, but they were in small regions and lasted no more than a couple centuries. The contact between Native Americans, Europeans, and Africans in the Americas also featured violence, but the interaction was on a much larger scale for a much longer time.

Europeans and Native Americans held conflicting worldviews. For example, most Europeans believed in a single god, while most Native Americans honored many deities. European women had little role in public life, while Native American women in some tribes held decision-making positions. Europeans used legal documents to establish the right to plow a field or hunt in a forest.

Native Americans relied more on tradition to make land use decisions.

European Treatment of Native Americans The Europeans who colonized North and South America generally viewed Native Americans as inferior people who could be exploited for economic gain, converted to Christianity, and used as military allies. However, Europeans used various approaches for ruling Native Americans and operating colonies.

Spanish Policy The Spanish overwhelmingly subjugated Native Americans. However, Spanish scholars also debated the status of Native Americans and the treatment of them.

Bartolomé de Las Casas One European who dissented from the views of most Europeans toward Native Americans was a Spanish priest named

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Bartolomé de Las Casas. Though he had owned land and slaves in the West Indies and had fought in wars against the Indians, he eventually became an advocate for better treatment for Indians. He persuaded the king to institute the New Laws of 1542. These laws ended Indian slavery, halted forced Indian labor, and began to end the encomienda system that kept the Indians in serfdom.

Conservative Spaniards, eager to keep the encomienda system, responded and successfully pushed the king to repeal parts of the New Laws.

Valladolid Debate The debate over the role for Indians in the Spanish colonies came to a head in a formal debate in 1550–1551 in Valladolid, Spain.

On one side, Las Casas argued that the Indians were completely human and morally equal to Europeans, so enslaving them was not justified. On the other side, another priest, Juan Ginés de Sepúlveda, argued that Indians were less than human. Hence, they benefited from serving the Spaniards in the encomienda system. Neither side clearly persuaded the entire audience.

Though Las Casas was unable to gain equal treatment for Native Americans, he established the basic arguments on behalf of justice for Indians.

English Policy Unlike the Spanish, the English settled in areas with no large native empires that could provide forced labor. Further, when English colonists arrived in the 1600s, European diseases had already dramatically reduced the indigenous population. In addition, many English colonists came in families rather than as single young men, so marriage with natives was less common.

Initially, at least in Massachusetts, the English and the American Indians coexisted, traded, and shared ideas. American Indians taught the settlers how to grow new crops such as corn (maize) and showed them how to hunt in the forests. They traded furs for an array of English manufactured goods, including iron tools and weapons, that they found useful.

But peaceful relations soon gave way to conflict and warfare. Most English showed no respect for American Indian cultures, which they viewed as “savage.” American Indians saw their way of life threatened as the English seized land to support their growing population. The English occupied the land and forced the small, scattered tribes they encountered to move away from the coast to inland territories. They expelled the natives rather than subjugating them.

French Policy The French, looking for furs and converts to Catholicism, viewed American Indians as potential economic and military allies. Compared to the Spaniards and the English, the French maintained good relations with the tribes they encountered. Seeking to control the fur trade, the French built trading posts throughout the St. Lawrence Valley, the Great Lakes region, and along the Mississippi River. At these posts, they exchanged French goods for beaver pelts and other furs collected by American Indians. Because the French had few colonists, farms, or towns, they posed less threat to the native population than

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TOPIC 1.6 CULTURAL INTERACTIONS IN THE AMERICAS

did other Europeans. In addition, French soldiers assisted the Huron people in fighting their traditional enemy, the Iroquois (Haudenosaunee).

Survival Strategies by Native Americans As European settlements expanded, Native Americans responded to protect their cultures. One strategy was to ally with one European power or another.

For example, in Mexico, several tribes allied with the Spanish to help them win their freedom from the Aztecs in the 16th century. Later, in the Ohio River Valley, the Delawares and the Shawnees allied closely with the French against English encroachment on their land.

Other tribes simply migrated west to get away from settlers, though this often led them into conflict with Native Americans already living in a region.

The conflicts reflected the strong tribal loyalty that Native Americans felt.

Since they did not identify as part of a larger group that included all tribes, European settlers pushing westward rarely faced a unified response from Native Americans. Only later would the shared desire to resist European power lead people to identify as Native Americans as well as members of a particular tribe.

Regardless of how they dealt with the European invasion, Native Americans would never be able to return to the life they had known prior to 1492.

The Role of Africans in America Africans contributed a third cultural tradition in the Americas. Their experience growing rice resulted in rice becoming an important crop in the colonies of South Carolina and Louisiana. They brought musical rhythms and styles of singing that shaped the development of music throughout the Americas. They also introduced European settlers to the banjo. By the 19th century, the banjo would be closely associated with the culture of the southeastern United States.

Europeans justified slavery in many ways. Some cited passages from the Bible to support their belief that slavery had always existed and was approved by God. As slavery became exclusively for Africans, Europeans began to argue that Africans were biologically inferior, so enslaving them was acceptable. This was similar to the argument used by de Sepúlveda regarding Native Americans.

REFLECT ON THE LEARNING OBJECTIVE

1. Describe the evolution in the views of the Europeans and Native Americans toward each during the period of European colonization.

KEY TERMS BY THEME

Identity and Politics

(NAT, POL) New Laws of 1542

Values and Attitudes

(SOC) Bartolomé de Las Casas

Valladolid Debate Juan Ginés de Sepúlveda

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MULTIPLE-CHOICE QUESTIONS

Questions 1–2 refer to the following excerpt.

“Concerning the treatment of Native American workers: When they were allowed to go home, they often found it deserted and had no other recourse than to go out into the woods to find food and to die. When they fell ill, which was very frequently because they are a delicate people unaccustomed to such work, the Spaniards did not believe them and pitilessly called them lazy dogs, and kicked and beat them; and when illness was apparent they sent them home as useless, giving them some cassava for the twenty- to eighty-league [about 60 to 240 miles] journey. They would go then, falling into the first stream and dying there in desperation; others would hold on longer, but very few ever made it home. I sometimes came upon dead bodies on my way, and upon others who were gasping and moaning in their death agony.”

Bartolomé de Las Casas, In Defense of the Indian, c. 1550

1. How did Las Casas’s attitudes compare to those of most Europeans? (A) He was more sympathetic toward the suffering of Indians. (B) He was more critical of Indians for causing their own problems. (C) He was more focused on how Indians treated Europeans. (D) He was very typical in his attitudes toward Indians.

2. Las Casas was primarily trying to influence (A) the monarchs of Spain who shaped colonial policies (B) the religious leaders in Europe who were not Roman Catholics (C) the conquistadores in the colonies who were moving into new areas (D) the Native Americans who were reacting to the Spanish colonists

SHORT-ANSWER QUESTION

Use complete sentences; an outline or bulleted list alone is not acceptable.

1. Answer (a), (b), and (c). (a) Briefly explain ONE specific effect of Spain’s policy toward Native Americans during the period 1492–1607. (b) Briefly explain ONE specific effect of a policy of a European country other than Spain toward Native Americans during the period 1492–1607. (c) Briefly explain ONE specific reaction of Native Americans to European policies during the period 1492–1607.

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TOPIC 1.7 CAUSATION IN PERIOD 1

Topic 1.7

Causation in Period 1

Learning Objective: Explain the effects of the development of transatlantic voyages from 1491 to 1607.

The reasoning skill of “causation” is the suggested focus for evaluating the content of this period. As explained in the contextualization introduction to Period 1, there are many factors to consider in the broad topic of European encounters in the Americas in the 15th and 16th centuries. One needs to be able to describe what caused the Native Americans to develop diverse societies across the enormous and varied lands of North America. This appreciation of the status of Native Americans during this period will help to explain the specific developments when the Europeans came to explore what they saw as a “new world.” A number of factors had come together to explain the causes of the European explorations during this particular period. For example, both desires to spread Christianity and desires for economic gain. However, not all causes are equally significant. One task of a historian is to weigh the evidence to decide how much emphasis to place on each of these various causes. Among the most common differences among historians are debates over whether one cause was more important than another.

Note that causation implies that an event or development had an effect. The results of the contact are viewed by some as the Columbian Exchange, which explain both the short- and long-term impact not only on both sides of the Atlantic but on people throughout the world. Given the many factors involved, one can argue as to the historically significant effects on the various peoples involved on both sides of the Atlantic.

QUESTIONS ABOUT CAUSATION

1. Explain the factors that resulted in various Native American groups developing their own unique cultures.

2. Explain a significant development in Europe by the 15th and 16th centuries that caused a surge in exploration.

3. Explain the extent to which the Columbian Exchange had beneficial effects on both the Native Americans and Europeans.

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THINK AS A HISTORIAN: ANALYZING EVIDENCE

Below are models of a step-by-step process for analyzing a primary source and a secondary source. As you study the italicized questions and answers, consider alternate answers based on your own knowledge and skill as a historical thinker.

Analyzing a Primary Source “Being earnestly requested by a dear friend to put down in writing some true relation of our late performed voyage to the north parts of Virginia [Massachusetts] I resolved to satisfy his request. . . . “Coming ashore, we stood awhile like men ravished at the beauty and delicacy of this sweet soil. For besides diverse clear lakes of fresh water . . . meadows very large and full of green grass. . . . “[This climate so agreed with us] that we found our health and strength all the while we remained there so to renew and increase as, notwithstanding our diet and lodging was none of the best, yet not one of our company (God be thanked) felt the least grudging or inclination to any disease or sickness but were much fatter and in better health than when we went out of England.” John Brereton, The Discovery of the North Part of Virginia, 1602

Content

• What is the key point? New England has a healthy environment. • What content is useful? It states one early impression of New England, which can help explain why Europeans wanted to colonize the region.

The Author’s Point of View

• Who was the author? John Brereton, an Englishman • How reliable is the author? Answering this requires additional research. • What was the author’s point of view? New England is a wonderful place. • What other beliefs might the author hold? He believes in God.

The Author’s Purpose

• Why did the author create this document at this time? Others expressed interest in his experiences in land that was new to them. • How does the document’s purpose reflect its reliability? The author could be biased to encourage investment in colonization.

Audience

• Who was this document created for? people in England • How might the audience affect the document’s content? The audience was looking for opportunities for success in the Americas. • How might the audience affect its reliability? It might emphasize positive information.

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TOPIC 1.7 CAUSATION IN PERIOD 1

Historical Context

• When and where was this produced? England in the early 17th century • What concurrent events might have affected the author? the desire of many to encourage and profit from the new colonies

Format/Medium

• What is the format? a first-person narrative

Limitations

• What is one limitation of the excerpt or the author’s view? The document says nothing about the indigenous people living in the region.

Analyzing a Secondary Source “Why did the English found colonies and make them stick? For most the goal was material. . . . For some the goal was spiritual. . . . But all the colonists who suffered perilous voyages and risked early death in America were either hustlers or hustled. That is, they knew the hardships beforehand and were courageous, desperate, or faithful enough to face them, or else they did not know what lay ahead but were taken in by the propaganda of sponsors. . . . In every case colonists left a swarming competitive country that heralded self-improvement but offered limited opportunities for it.” Walter A. McDougall, Freedom Just Around the Corner, 2004

Content and Argument

• What is the main idea of the excerpt? English settlers came to America for diverse reasons. • What information supports this historian? The author gives examples of both the religious Puritans and adventurers as settlers. • What information challenges this historian? Many people were forced to settle in America because they were enslaved or convicts. • What is the interpretation of events argued for in this excerpt? The opportunities for prosperity and religious freedom were far greater in the colonies than those they left behind in Europe.

The Author’s Point of View

• How could the author’s perspective have been shaped by the times in which he wrote? The author was writing in 2004, long after the English colonies had become the United States. The size and power of the United States might have led him to focus on the lack of these traits in the colonies. • Why might another historian view the same events differently? Another historian might emphasize a single factor instead of multiple factors.

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UNIT 1 — Period 1 Review:

1491–1607

WRITE AS A HISTORIAN: CHECKLIST FOR A LONG ESSAY ANSWER

The long essay question will require you to develop an argument, which requires asserting a defensible claim and backing it up with evidence. (For more on arguments, claims, and evidence, see page xxx–xxxi.) The process for developing your argument is described in the checklist below. (See also pages xli–xlvii.) Each stage of the process will be the focus of a writing activity at the end of units 3–8. These activities will help you apply to each stage the historical thinking skills you must demonstrate in your essay.

1. Carefully read and analyze the task. Read the question carefully.

Within your argument, you will be asked to evaluate the extent to which subjects show similarity or difference, continuity or change, or causation. Look for key words defining the task. Note the geographic area(s) and time period(s) framing the task.

2. Gather and organize the evidence you will need to complete the task. Write down everything you know that is directly related to the topic. Include both broad ideas and specific incidents or events. Then review your information looking for patterns and connections. Also determine a way to organize the evidence to fulfill the task.

3. Develop a thesis—a defensible claim—that lays out a line of reasoning. You should be able to defend your claim using the evidence you collected and express your thesis in one or more sentences in the same location in your essay, typically in the introduction.

4. Write an introductory paragraph. Use the introduction to relate your thesis statement to a broader historical context. Explain how it fits into larger or divergent historical trends.

5. Write the supporting paragraphs. Use information you gathered in step 2 to support the argument expressed in your thesis statement with corroboration (support), modification (slight change), or qualification (limitation). Use transitional words to tie ideas together.

6. Write the conclusion. To unify your essay, return to the ideas in your introduction. Instead of restating your thesis statement, however, extend it to draw a nuanced conclusion that follows from your evidence.

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UNIT 1 — PERIOD 1 REVIEW: 1491–1607

7. Reread and evaluate your essay. Become familiar with the scoring rubric. Check your essay to make sure you have included everything needed to earn the maximum number of points.

Application: Follow the steps above as you develop a long essay in response to one of the prompts below.

For current free-response question samples, visit: https//apcentral.collegeboard.org/ courses/ap-united-states-history/exam

LONG ESSAY QUESTIONS

Directions: The suggested writing time for each question is 40 minutes. In your response, you should do the following:

• Respond to the prompt with a historically defensible thesis or claim that establishes a line of reasoning.

• Describe a broader historical context relevant to the prompt.

• Support an argument in response to the prompt using specific and relevant examples of evidence.

• Use historical reasoning (e.g., comparison, causation, continuity or change) to frame or structure an argument that addresses the prompt.

• Use evidence to corroborate, qualify, or modify an argument that addresses the prompt.

1. Evaluate the extent to which the environment fostered variations in Native American societies by the year 1491.

2. Evaluate the extent to which differences in European nations fostered differences in how these nations explored the Western Hemisphere.

3. Evaluate the extent of the similarities in the impact of the Columbian Exchange in the Western Hemisphere and in other areas of the world.

4. Evaluate the extent of the differences in the approaches of various European nations in relations with Native Americans in the period from 1491 to 1607.

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UNITED STATES HISTORY: AP® EDITION

Topic 2.1

Contextualizing Period 2

Learning Objective: Explain the context for the colonization of North America from 1607 to 1754.

The period in the Americas from 1491 to 1607 was a time of European exploration, dominated by the Spanish. In the period from 1607 to 1754, exploration began giving way to expanding colonization. In North America, the Spanish, French, Dutch, and British established colonies, with the British dominating the region from Canada to the Caribbean islands. In particular, the British established 13 colonies along the Atlantic coast. Most of these provided a profitable trade and a home to a diverse group of Native Americans, Europeans, and Africans.

From the establishment of the first permanent English settlement in North America in 1607 to the start of a decisive war for European control of the continent in 1756, the colonies evolved. At first, they struggled for survival.

Over time, they became a society of permanent farms, plantations, towns, and cities. European settlers brought various cultures, economic plans, and ideas for governing to the Americas. In particular, with varying approaches, they all sought to dominate the native inhabitants.

Early Settlements The earliest Europeans in the Americas, the Spanish and Portuguese, settled in Central and South America. The Spanish slowly migrated into North America.

Subsequently, the French, Dutch, and British settled along the Atlantic coast of North America and gradually migrated westward and developed various types of colonial systems and relationships with Native Americans.

The first two successful British colonies along the Atlantic coast of North America were Jamestown and Plymouth. They served as the starting points that would lead to 13 colonies as far south as Georgia. Depending on the environmental conditions and settlement patterns, each colony developed its own economic and cultural system. For many, transatlantic trade was important, with tobacco, timber, and rice being important products. Trade, along with ties of religion and language, created strong bonds between the colonies and Great Britain. However, in the mid-1700s, trade also became a point of conflict. Colonies increasingly resisted British control over their trade.

UNIT 2 — Period 2: 1607–1754

33 TOPIC 2.1 CONTExTUALIzING PERIOD 2

Trade was also the mainstay of early contact between the Europeans and Native Americans. The colonists wanted a dependable food supply and the Native Americans were drawn to the iron tools and guns of the newcomers. But the Europeans generally treated the Native Americans as inferiors to be used or pushed aside. Trade also led to competition for resources among colonists and natives. In particular, the British and the French fought a series of wars for control of land. Native Americans such as the Iroquois and the Huron allied with Europeans or each other to advance their own interests.

Sources of Labor As Europeans seized land from Native Americans, they looked for a source of labor to make the lands profitable. They first tried to enslave Native Americans.

This failed because the Native Americans could escape too easily. Europeans then tried to employ indentured servants, individuals who agreed to work for a master for a set number of years (often seven) in exchange for transportation from Europe to the Americas. Indentured servants became common in the colonies, but they did not provide sufficient labor for people who owned land.

The British, following the example of the Spanish and others, soon began importing enslaved laborers from Africa. Given the steady flow of support and families from Britain, the various 13 colonies gradually developed societies that both mirrored and varied from British society. From 1607 to the 1750s, the growth of these 13 British colonies would lead them to use trade and war to dominate both the Native Americans and the other European colonists.

ANALYZE THE CONTEXT

1. Explain a historical context for understanding the interaction between the Native Americans and the Europeans as colonies were established in North America in the period from 1607 to 1754.

2. Explain a historical context for the development of slavery in the European colonies in North America in the period from 1607 to 1754.

3. Explain a historical context for the development of society and culture in the 13 British colonies in the period from 1607 to 1754.

LANDMARK EVENTS: 1600–1800

French settlers establish their first colony, Quebec.

Jamestown settlers

establish the first elected legislature in the English colonies.

Pilgrims land in Plymouth, founding the first New England colony.

The British capture Dutch New Amsterdam, which becomes New York.

Georgia, the final British colony, is established.

Dutch traders sell the first Africans in Jamestown.

King Philip’s War marks Native Americans' resistance to colonization.

The Seven Years’ War (also called the French and Indian War) begins.

1600

1650

1700

1750

1800

1608

1619

1620

1664

1733

1619

1676

1754

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UNITED STATES HISTORY: AP® EDITION

Topic 2.2

European Colonization in North America

If they desire that Piety and godliness should prosper; accompanied with sobriety, justice and love, let them choose a Country such as this is . . . which may yield sufficiency with hard labour and industry.

Reverend John White, The Planter's Plea, 1630

Learning Objective: Explain how and why various European colonies developed and expanded from 1607 to 1754.

Migration to the Americas during the 17th century and the first half of the 18th century was both influenced by the environment and had a lasting impact on it. The many different peoples that settled in North America from Europe, together with the Native Americans already living on the continent and the enslaved Africans brought there, would ultimately form a society unlike any previously seen.

Exploration in the new world by Europeans was quickly followed by colonization. The primary motivations for settling in the Americas in the 17th century were the desires for wealth, to spread Christianity, and to escape persecution.

Spanish Colonies Spanish settlements developed slowly in North America as a result of limited mineral resources and strong opposition from American Indians. Missionary zeal was an important motivator as Roman Catholic Spain worked to counter the expanding influence of the Reformation and Protestantism. These colonies were largely populated by men, and they would gradually include Native Americans and Africans in their society.

Florida Juan Ponce de Leon claimed these lands for Spain in 1513. After a number of failures and the strong resistance of American Indians in the region, the Spanish established a permanent settlement at St. Augustine in 1565, more than 50 years before the English founded Jamestown. St. Augustine became the oldest city founded by Europeans in what became the mainland of the United States. Only a few small settlements developed as the Spanish found little silver and gold, a declining native population due to wars and disease, and periodic hurricanes.

35 TOPIC 2.2 EUROPEAN COLONIzATION IN NORTH AMERICA

New Mexico and Arizona In a region that had been settled by American Indians for about 700 years, Spanish colonists began arriving in 1598. They established Santa Fe as the capital of New Mexico in 1610.

Texas Between Florida and New Mexico, the Spanish established settlements in Texas. These communities grew in the early 1700s as Spain resisted French efforts to explore the lower Mississippi River.

California With Russians exploring from Alaska, the Spanish started a settlement at San Diego in 1769. By 1784, the Franciscan order and Father Junípero Serra had established missions along the California coast.

French Colonies Similar to the Spanish, the French colonizers were mainly men. However, there were few French. Some came as Christian missionaries. Those who came for economic reasons mostly worked in the lucrative fur trade, traveling throughout the interior of North America purchasing furs gathered by American Indians.

Many traders married American Indian women, who then provided valuable services as guides, translators, and negotiators with other American Indians.

The reliance of the French on trade made rivers particularly important in their colonies.

• Quebec, the first French settlement in America was located on the St.

Lawrence River. It was founded by Samuel de Champlain, the “Father of New France,” in 1608.

• In 1673, Louis Jolliet and Father Jacques Marquette explored the upper Mississippi River. Nine years later, Robert de La Salle explored the Mississippi basin, which he named Louisiana (after the French king, Louis XIV).

• By 1718, the French had moved southward down the Mississippi River and established a permanent settlement, New Orleans, where the river entered the Gulf of Mexico. New Orleans became a prosperous trade center.

Dutch Colonies During the 1600s, the Netherlands sponsored voyages of exploration. The government hired Henry Hudson, an English sailor, to seek westward passage to Asia. In 1609, while searching for a northwest passage, Hudson sailed up a broad river that was later named for him, the Hudson River. This expedition established Dutch claims to the surrounding area, New Amsterdam (and later New York). The Dutch government granted a private company, the Dutch West India Company, the right to control the region for economic gain.

Like the French colonies, the Dutch colonies consisted of small numbers of traders who built strong trade networks among American Indians. However, the Dutch were more likely to settle in trading posts near the coast or along major rivers and less likely to intermarry with American Indians.

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UNITED STATES HISTORY: AP® EDITION

British Colonies In the early 1600s, England was in a position to colonize the lands explored a century earlier by John Cabot. England’s population was growing more rapidly than its economy, so its number of poor and landless families was increasing.

They were attracted to opportunities in the Americas. Using joint-stock companies to finance the risky enterprise of colonization, the English began settling colonies in the Americas.

Compared to other European colonists, those from England included a higher percentage of families and single females, and they were more interested in farming. As a result, English settlers were more likely to claim American Indian land and less likely to intermarry with Indians. In addition, the English colonies attracted a more diverse group of European settlers than did other colonies. Most of these settlers migrated in search of better lives or religious freedom.

REFLECT ON THE LEARNING OBJECTIVE

1. Explain what the motivations and methods were that supported European colonial growth during the period from 1607 to 1754.

KEY TERMS BY THEME

Settlements (ARC) John Cabot Authority (WOR) joint-stock company

MULTIPLE-CHOICE QUESTIONS

Questions 1–2 refer to the following excerpt.

“As touching the quality of this country, three thinges there bee, which in fewe yeares may bring this Colony to perfection; the English plough, Vineyards, & Cattle. . . .

All our riches for the present doe consiste in Tobacco, wherein one man by his owne labour hath in one yeare, raised to himself to the value of 200 sterling; and another by the means of sixe servants hath cleared at one crop a thousand pound english. These be true, yet indeed rare examples, yet possible to be done by others. Our principall wealth (I should haue said) consisteth in servants: but they are chargeable to be furnished with armes, apparel, & bedding, and for their transportation, and casuall both at sea, & for their first yeare commonly at lande also: but if they escape, they proove very hardy, and sound able men.”

John Pory, Secretary of Virginia, Letter to Sir Dudley Carlton, 1619

37 TOPIC 2.2 EUROPEAN COLONIzATION IN NORTH AMERICA

1. The excerpt illustrates which of the following visions for Virginia? (A) A land that would provide agricultural products that would enrich England (B) A settlement designed to reproduce England’s social structure and economy (C) A haven where servants could escape bondage and live as free individuals (D) A colony that would help expand England’s empire and diplomatic power

2. Which of the following developments in the 17th century could best be used as evidence to support or modify the references to servants in the second paragraph? (A) Colonists became more dependent on raids of Native American settlements to obtain workers. (B) Europeans from outside of England became the majority of colonists who settled in Virginia. (C) Large numbers of English citizens emigrated to the colonies as indentured laborers. (D) The king started wars against other European powers to capture their citizens and send them to Virginia.

SHORT-ANSWER QUESTION

Use complete sentences; an outline or a bulleted list alone is not acceptable.

1. “[This colony] was for the most part at first peopled by persons of low circumstances. . . . Nor was it hardly possible it should be otherwise; for ’tis not likely that any man of a plentiful estate should voluntarily abandon a happy certainty to roam after imaginary advantages in a New World.

Besides which uncertainty, must have proposed to himself to encounter the infinite difficulties and dangers that attend a new settlement. These discouragements were sufficient to terrify any man that could live easy in England from going to . . . a strange land.”

Robert Beverly, historian, The History and Present State of Virginia, 1705

Using the excerpt above, answer (a), (b), and (c). (a) Briefly explain Robert Beverly’s perspective in the excerpt. (b) Briefly explain ONE example of historical evidence that supports Beverly’s position. (c) Briefly explain ONE example of historical evidence that challenges Beverly’s position.

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UNITED STATES HISTORY: AP® EDITION

Topic 2.3

The Regions of British Colonies

Liberty of conscience . . . we ask as our undoubted right by the law of God, of nature, and of our own country.

William Penn, “The Great Case of Liberty of Conscience,” 1670

Learning Objective: Explain how and why environmental and other factors shaped the development and expansion of various British colonies that developed and expanded from 1607 to 1754.

The English colonies developed regional or sectional differences based on many influences including topography, natural resources, climate, and the background of their settlers. Starting with Jamestown (Virginia) in 1607 and ending in 1733 in Georgia, 13 distinct colonies developed along the Atlantic coast of North America. Every colony received its authority to operate by a charter granting special privileges from the monarch. Each charter described the relationship between the colony and the crown. Over time, three types of charters—and three types of colonies—developed:

• Corporate colonies, such as Jamestown, were operated by joint-stock companies, at least during these colonies’ early years.

• Royal colonies, such as Virginia after 1624, were to be under the direct authority and rule of the king’s government.

• Proprietary colonies, such as Maryland and Pennsylvania, were under the authority of individuals granted charters of ownership by the king.

The British took pride in free farmers working the land. Unlike the French and Spanish colonists, the English had a tradition of representative government. They were accustomed to elections for representatives speaking for property owners and deciding important measures, such as taxes, proposed by the king’s government. While political and religious conflicts dominated England, feelings for independence grew in the colonies. Eventually, tensions emerged between the king and his colonial subjects.

Early English Settlements The earliest English colonies were founded for very different reasons and hundreds of miles apart in Virginia and Massachusetts.

39

TOPIC 2.3 THE REGIONS OF BRITISH COLONIES

Jamestown England’s King James I chartered the Virginia Company, a joint-stock company that founded the first permanent English colony in America at Jamestown in 1607.

Early Problems The first settlers of Jamestown suffered greatly, mostly from their own mistakes. The settlement’s location in a swampy area along the James River resulted in fatal outbreaks of dysentery and malaria. Many of the settlers were gentlemen unaccustomed to physical work or gold hunters who refused to hunt or farm. A source of goods came from trade with American Indians, but conflicts between settlers and the natives stopped trade and settlers starved.

Through the leadership of Captain John Smith, Jamestown survived its first five years. Through the efforts of John Rolfe and his Indian wife, Pocahontas, the colony developed a variety of tobacco that became popular in Europe and a profitable crop. To recruit White settlers, Virginia provided

50 acres of land, called a headright, to any settler or to anyone who paid for passage for a settler to the colony. While the headright system helped many Europeans move to Virginia, it mostly aided landowners who added to their holdings by sponsoring indentured servants. During the first several decades of colonization, planters mostly used White laborers. However, by the end of the 17th century, landowners relied more on enslaved Africans.

Transition to a Royal Colony Despite tobacco, by 1624 the Virginia colony remained near collapse. More than 5,000 people had settled in it, but death from disease and conflicts with Indians was so high that the population was only 1,300. Further, the Virginia Company was nearly bankrupt. King James I finally revoked the company charter and took direct control. Now known as Virginia, the colony became England’s first royal colony.

Plymouth and Massachusetts Bay About 500 miles to the north of Jamestown, English settlers founded two other colonies, Plymouth and Massachusetts Bay, in the region that became known as New England. While many of the settlers in these colonies came as indentured servants in search of economic opportunity, the distinctive force that set the tone for these colonies was religious motivation, the search for wealth. Both were settled by English Protestants who dissented from the government-supported Church of England, known as the Anglican Church.

The Church of England, lead by the English king, had broken away from the Roman Catholic Church in 1534. However, it had kept most of the Catholic rituals and governing structure. The dissenters, influenced by the teachings of Swiss theologian John Calvin, charged that the Church of England should break completely with Rome. England’s King James I, who reigned from 1603 to 1625, viewed the religious dissenters as a threat to his religious and political authority and ordered them arrested and jailed.

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UNITED STATES HISTORY: AP® EDITION

The Plymouth Colony The radical dissenters, the Separatists, wanted to organize a completely separate church that was independent of royal control.

Several hundred Separatists left England for Holland in search of religious freedom. Because of their travels, they became known as Pilgrims. Economic hardship and cultural differences with the Dutch led many of the Pilgrims to seek another haven for their religion. They chose the new colony in America, then operated by the Virginia Company of London. In 1620, a small group of Pilgrims set sail for Virginia aboard the Mayflower. Fewer than half of the

100 passengers on this ship were Separatists; the rest were people who had economic motives for making the voyage.

After a hard voyage that lasted 65 days, the Mayflower dropped anchor off the Massachusetts coast, 600 miles north of Virginia. Rather than sail to Jamestown as planned, the Pilgrims established a new colony at Plymouth.

After a first winter that saw half the settlers perish, the survivors were helped by local American Indians to adapt to the land. They celebrated a good harvest at a thanksgiving feast (the first Thanksgiving) in 1621. Strong leaders, including Captain Miles Standish and Governor William Bradford, grew Plymouth slowly. Fish, furs, and lumber became the mainstays of the economy.

Massachusetts Bay Colony A group of more moderate dissenters, called Puritans, believed that the Church of England could be reformed, or purified.

The persecution of Puritans increased when a new king, Charles I, took the throne in 1625. Seeking religious freedom, a group of Puritans gained a royal charter for the Massachusetts Bay Company (1629).

In 1630, a thousand Puritans led by John Winthrop sailed for Massachusetts and founded Boston. Religious and political conflict in England in the 1630s drove some 15,000 settlers to the Massachusetts Bay Colony—a movement known as the Great Migration (The same term is used for the movement of African Americans from southern to northern states in the 20th century.) Puritans from Massachusetts Bay founded several settlements in New England. In contrast to the plantations in Virginia, these New England settlements were mixtures of small towns and family farms that relied on a blend of commerce and agriculture.

Religious Issues in Maryland In 1632, King Charles I split off part of Virginia to create a new colony, Maryland.

He granted control of it to George Calvert (Lord Baltimore), a Catholic noble, for his service to the king. Maryland was the first proprietary colony. The king expected proprietors to carry out his wishes faithfully, thus giving him control.

The first Lord Baltimore died and Maryland passed to his son, Cecil Calvert—the second Lord Baltimore. The son set about implementing his father’s plan in 1634 to provide a haven for his fellow Catholics, who faced persecution from Protestants in Britain.

Act of Toleration To avoid persecution in England, several wealthy Catholics emigrated to Maryland and established plantations. However, they

41

TOPIC 2.3 THE REGIONS OF BRITISH COLONIES

were quickly outnumbered by Protestant farmers who held a majority in Maryland’s assembly. In 1649, Calvert persuaded the assembly to adopt the

Act of Toleration, the first colonial statute granting religious freedom to all Christians. However, the statute also called for the death of anyone who denied the divinity of Jesus.

Protestant Revolt In the late 1600s, Protestants angered by a Catholic proprietor ignited a civil war. The Protestants triumphed, and they repealed the

Act of Toleration. Catholics lost the right to vote in elections for the assembly.

In the 18th century, Maryland’s economy and society was like that of Virginia, except that Maryland tolerated more diversity among Protestant sects.

Development of New England Strong religious convictions sustained settlers in their struggle to establish the Plymouth and Massachusetts Bay colonies. However, Puritan leaders showed intolerance of anyone who questioned their religious teachings, often banishing dissidents from the Bay colony. These dissidents formed settlements that became Rhode Island and Connecticut.

NEW ENGLAND AND ATLANTIC COLONIES 1600s

40 kilometers

40 miles

Cape Cod

Long Island

New Amsterdam

ATLANTIC

OCEAN

NEW HAMPSHIRE

CONNECTICUT

PLYMOUTH

RHODE

ISLAND

MASSACHUSETTS BAY

NEW NETHERLAND

MAINE

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UNITED STATES HISTORY: AP® EDITION

Rhode Island One well-respected Puritan minister who moved from England to Boston was Roger Williams, who arrived in 1631. He believed that the individual’s conscience was beyond the control of any civil or church authority. His teachings placed him in conflict with other Puritan leaders, who ordered his banishment. Leaving Boston, Williams fled southward to Narragansett Bay, where he and a few followers founded the community of Providence in 1636, and Williams started one of the first Baptist churches in America. The government allowed Catholics, Quakers, and Jews to worship freely. Further, the new colony was unique in that it recognized the rights of American Indians and paid them for the use of their land.

Another dissident who questioned the doctrines of the Puritan authorities was Anne Hutchinson. She believed in antinomianism—the idea that since individuals receive salvation through their faith alone, they were not required to follow traditional moral laws. Banished from the Bay colony, Hutchinson and her followers founded Portsmouth in 1638. A few years later, Hutchinson migrated to Long Island and was killed in an American Indian uprising.

In 1644, Roger Williams was granted a charter from the Parliament that joined Providence and Portsmouth into a single colony, Rhode Island. Because this colony tolerated diverse beliefs, it served as a refuge for many.

Connecticut To the west of Rhode Island, the Connecticut River Valley attracted others who were unhappy with the Massachusetts authorities. The Reverend Thomas Hooker led a large group of Boston Puritans into the valley and founded Hartford in 1636. The Hartford settlers then drew up the first written constitution in American history, the Fundamental Orders of Connecticut (1639). It established a representative government with a legislature elected by popular vote and a governor chosen by that legislature.

South of Hartford, a second settlement in the Connecticut Valley was started by John Davenport in 1637 and given the name New Haven. In 1665, New Haven joined with Hartford to form Connecticut. The royal charter for Connecticut granted it a limited degree of self-government, including election of the governor.

New Hampshire The last colony to be founded in New England was New Hampshire. Hoping to increase royal control over the colonies, King Charles II separated New Hampshire from the Massachusetts Bay colony in 1679 and made it a royal colony, subject to the authority of an appointed governor.

Halfway Covenant To be a full member of a Puritan congregation, individuals needed to have a confirmed religious experience, a conversion.

However, fewer members of the new native-born generation were having such experiences. To maintain the church’s influence and membership, a halfway covenant was offered by some clergy so that people could become partial members even if they had not felt a conversion. Nevertheless, as the years passed, strict Puritan practices weakened in most New England communities in order to maintain church membership.

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TOPIC 2.3 THE REGIONS OF BRITISH COLONIES

Restoration Colonies New American colonies were founded in the late 17th century during a period known as the Restoration. The name refers to the restoration of the monarchy under King Charles II in 1660 following a brief period of republican rule under a Puritan leader, Oliver Cromwell.

The Carolinas As a reward for helping him gain the throne, Charles II granted a huge tract of land between Virginia and Spanish Florida to eight nobles. In 1663, these nobles became the lord proprietors of the Carolinas. In 1729, two royal colonies, South Carolina and North Carolina, were formed from the original grant.

THE THIRTEEN ENGLISH COLONIES AROUND 1750

NEW

HAMPSHIRE

MASSACHUSETTS

NEW YORK

RHODE ISLAND

CONECTICUT

PENNSYLVANIA NEW

JERSEY

MARYLAND

VIRGINIA

NORTH

CAROLINA

SOUTH

CAROLINA

GEORGIA

SPANISH

FLORIDA

DELAWARE

MAINE

NOVA

SCOTIA

HUDSON’S BAY

COMPANY

A T L A N T I C

O C E A N

G u l f o f M e x i c o

L. Erie

L. Ontario

Q

U

E

B

E C

L

a

k

e

H

u

r

o

n

Corporate Colonies

Proprietary Colonies

Royal Colonies

300 kilometers

300 miles

South Carolina In 1670, a few colonists from England and some planters from the island of Barbados founded Charleston, named for their king, Charles

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UNITED STATES HISTORY: AP® EDITION

II. Initially, the southern economy was based on trading furs and providing food for the West Indies. By the middle of the 18th century, South Carolina’s large rice-growing plantations, worked by enslaved Africans, resembled the economy and culture of the West Indies.

North Carolina Unlike South Carolina, the region that became North Carolina had few good harbors and poor transportation. As a result, it developed few large plantations and little reliance on slavery. It attracted farmers from Virginia and New England who established small, self-sufficient tobacco farms. Some made use of indentured servants and enslaved Africans.

North Carolina in the 18th century earned a reputation for democratic views and autonomy from British control.

The Middle Colonies The four colonies between New England and Virginia—New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and Delaware—are often called the Middle Colonies. They had fertile land that attracted a relatively diverse group of European immigrants, good harbors where cities developed, and tolerant attitudes toward religion.

New York Charles II wished to consolidate holdings along the Atlantic coast and close the gap between the New England and the Chesapeake colonies. This required compelling the Dutch to give up New Amsterdam on Manhattan Island and the Hudson River Valley.

In 1664, the king granted his brother, the Duke of York (the future James II), the lands lying between Connecticut and Delaware Bay. James dispatched a force that easily took control of the Dutch colony from its governor, Peter Stuyvesant. He ordered his agents to rename the colony New York, but to treat the Dutch settlers well by allowing them the freedom to worship as they pleased and to speak their own language.

James also ordered new taxes, duties, and rents without the consent of a representative assembly. He insisted that no assembly should be allowed in his colony. Taxation without representation met strong opposition from the English-speaking settlers. In 1683, James did yield by allowing New York’s governor to grant broad civil and political rights, including a representative assembly.

New Jersey Believing that the territory of New York was too large, James split it in 1664. He gave the section located between the Hudson River and Delaware Bay to Lord John Berkeley and Sir George Carteret. In 1674, one received West New Jersey and the other East New Jersey. To attract settlers, both made generous land offers and allowed religious freedom and an assembly. Eventually, they sold their interests to groups of Quakers. Land titles in the Jerseys changed hands often, and inaccurate property lines added to the general confusion. To settle matters, the crown decided in 1702 to combine the two Jerseys into a single royal colony: New Jersey.

45

TOPIC 2.3 THE REGIONS OF BRITISH COLONIES

Pennsylvania, “The Holy Experiment” To the west of New Jersey lay a broad expanse of forested land that the royal family gave to a military and political leader, William Penn, in payment for a debt. The land became known as Penn’s woods, or Pennsylvania.

When Penn died, he left the land to his son, also named William Penn.

The son had joined a group of Christians who called themselves the Religious Society of Friends. Commonly known as Quakers, they were considered radical by most people in Britain and the colonies. They believed that religious authority was found within each person and not in the Bible nor in any outside source. This led them to support equality among all men and women and to reject violence and resist military service. Because their beliefs challenged authority, the Quakers of England were persecuted and jailed for their beliefs.

Penn hoped his colony would provide a religious refuge for Quakers and other persecuted people as well as generate income and profits for himself.

He put his Quaker beliefs to the test by enacting liberal ideas in government.

He provided a Frame of Government (1682–1683), which guaranteed a representative assembly elected by landowners, and a written constitution, the Charter of Liberties (1701), which guaranteed freedom of worship for all and unrestricted immigration. Unlike other colonial proprietors, who governed from England, Penn crossed the ocean to supervise the founding of Philadelphia on the Delaware River. He brought a plan for a grid pattern of streets, which was later imitated by other cities. He also attempted to treat the American Indians fairly and to not cheat them when purchasing their land.

To attract settlers, Penn hired agents and published notices throughout Europe promising political and religious freedom and generous land terms.

Penn’s lands along the Delaware River had previously been settled by several thousand Dutch and Swedish colonists, who eased the arrival of the newcomers.

Delaware In 1702, Penn granted the lower three counties of Pennsylvania their own assembly. In effect, Delaware became a separate colony, even though its governor was the same as Pennsylvania’s until the American Revolution.

Georgia, The Last Mainland Colony In 1732, Georgia, the thirteenth and final British colony between Canada and the Caribbean, was chartered. It was the only colony to receive direct financial support from the government. The British had two reasons to start a new southern colony:

• They wanted to create a defensive buffer to protect South Carolina plantations from the Spanish Florida.

• They wanted a place to send the thousands of people in England imprisoned for debt. Sending debtors to a colony would both relieve the overcrowded jails and provide a chance for people to start life over.

Given a royal charter for a proprietary colony, a group of philanthropists led by James Oglethorpe founded Savannah in 1733. Oglethorpe, the colony’s first governor, put into effect a plan for making the colony thrive. There were

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UNITED STATES HISTORY: AP® EDITION

strict regulations, including bans on drinking rum and slavery. Nevertheless, partly because of the constant threat of Spanish attack, the colony did not prosper.

By 1752, Oglethorpe’s group gave up. Georgia was taken over by the British government and became a royal colony. Restrictions on rum and slavery were dropped. The colony grew slowly, adopting the plantation system of South Carolina. In 1776, Georgia was the smallest of the 13 colonies that rebelled against the British.

Early Political Institutions Britain had difficulty exerting tight control over the colonies. The distance across the Atlantic was great enough that communication was slow. Further, Britain was often consumed by domestic upheavals and wars with France, so it paid little attention to the colonies. Because of these factors, self-rule began early in the colonies.

A Representative Assembly in Virginia The Virginia Company encouraged settlement by guaranteeing to settlers the same rights as residents of England had, including representation in lawmaking. In 1619, Virginia’s colonists organized the first representative assembly in America, the House of Burgesses. It was dominated by elite planters.

Representative Government in New England Aboard the Mayflower in 1620, the Pilgrims drew up and signed a document in which they pledged to make decisions by the will of the majority. Known as the Mayflower Compact, this was an early form of self-government and a rudimentary written constitution.

Throughout New England, then, communities held town meetings to debate local decisions and to elect members to colonial legislatures. Voting rights were relatively broad for the time. In Massachusetts Bay Colony, all freemen—male members of the Puritan Church—had the right to elect the colony’s governor and a representative assembly.

Limits to Colonial Democracy Despite these steps, most colonists other than male property owners were excluded from the political process. Females and landless males had few rights, indentured servants had practically no rights, and enslaved people had none. Many colonial governors ruled with autocratic or unlimited powers, answering only to the king or to those who provided the colonies’ financial support. Thus, the gradual development of democratic ideas in the colonies coexisted with antidemocratic practices such as slavery and the widespread mistreatment of American Indians.

REFLECT ON THE LEARNING OBJECTIVE

1. Explain the forces, including the environment, that played a role in the growth of the British colonies during the period from 1607 to 1754.

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TOPIC 2.3 THE REGIONS OF BRITISH COLONIES

MULTIPLE-CHOICE QUESTIONS

Questions 1–3 refer to the following excerpt.

“Be it therefore ordered and enacted. . . . That whatsoever person or persons within this Province . . . shall henceforth blaspheme God, that is, curse Him or shall deny our Savior Jesus Christ to be the Son of God, or shall deny the Holy Trinity . . . or the Godhead of any of the said Three persons of the Trinity or the Unity of the Godhead . . . shall be punished with death and confiscation or forfeiture of all his or her lands. . . . And whereas . . . that no person or persons whatsoever within this province, or the islands, ports, harbors, creeks, or havens thereunto belonging, professing to believe in Jesus Christ, shall from henceforth be any way troubled, molested or discountenanced for or in respect of his or her religion nor in free exercise thereof within this province or the islands thereunto belonging nor any way compelled to the belief or exercise of any other Religion against his or her consent.”

The Maryland Act of Toleration, 1649

KEY TERMS BY THEME

Religion (SOC) Cecil Calvert, Lord Baltimore

Act of Toleration Roger Williams Providence Anne Hutchinson antinomianism Rhode Island halfway covenant Quakers William Penn Holy Experiment Charter of Liberties (1701)

Crops (GEO) rice-growing plantations tobacco farms

Settlements (ARC) Jamestown

Captain John Smith John Rolfe Pocahontas Virginia Plymouth Colony Separatists Pilgrims Mayflower Massachusetts Bay Colony Puritans John Winthrop Great Migration Thomas Hooker John Davenport Connecticut New Hampshire the Carolinas New York New Jersey

Pennsylvania Delaware Georgia James Oglethorpe

Self-Rule (PCE) Fundamental Orders of Connecticut (1639) Frame of Government

(1682–1683) Virginia House of Burgesses Mayflower Compact

Authority (WOR) corporate colonies royal colonies proprietary colonies Virginia Company Chesapeake colonies joint-stock company

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UNITED STATES HISTORY: AP® EDITION

1. The authors of the Maryland Act of Toleration were primarily trying to protect which of the following religious groups? (A) Jews who faced antisemitism in Europe and in other colonies (B) Quakers who were being attacked for their support of nonviolence and other beliefs (C) Anglicans who had been persecuted in New England (D) Roman Catholics who felt threatened by the growing number of Protestant settlers

2. Which of the following best summarizes the attitude toward religious beliefs expressed in this document? (A) Individuals should be free to believe or not believe in God as they wish. (B) Religion should be a personal matter that the government should not try to influence. (C) Christians should be able to practice their faith without fear of persecution. (D) The colony should be reserved for the one specific type of Christianity approved by the local government officials.

3. Which of the following colonies practiced greater religious toleration than the excerpt about Maryland calls for? (A) Roger William’s Rhode Island (B) Thomas Hooker’s Connecticut (C) Anne Hutchinson’s Portsmouth (D) John Winthrop’s Massachusetts

SHORT-ANSWER QUESTION

Use complete sentences; an outline or bulleted list alone is not acceptable.

1. Answer (a), (b), and (c). (a) Briefly explain ONE way in which Puritanism influenced the development of New England from 1630 to 1685. (b) Briefly explain another way in which Puritanism influenced the development of New England from 1630 to 1685. (c) Briefly explain how ONE specific new colony in New England developed differently as a result of Puritanism during the period from 1630 to 1685.

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TOPIC 2.4 TRANSATLANTIC TRADE

Topic 2.4

Transatlantic Trade

The sad truth is that without complex business partnerships between African elites and European traders . . . the slave trade to the New World would have been impossible.

Henry Louis Gates Jr., “Ending the Slavery Blame-Game,” New York Times, 2010

Learning Objective: Explain the causes and effects of transatlantic trade over time.

While the colonists had various reasons for settling in the Americas, such as an opportunity to practice their religious faith or an opportunity to search for wealth, the European nations that controlled the colonies looked at them to increase their power. A principal way to become stronger was through transatlantic trade.

Triangular Trade Merchant ships regularly followed a triangular, or three-part, route, that connected North America, Africa, and Europe in various ways. A typical voyage might begin in New England:

• A ship would leave a port in New England carrying rum across the Atlantic to West Africa. There the rum would be traded for hundreds of captive Africans.

• Next, the ship would set out on the horrendous Middle Passage. Those Africans who survived the voyage would be traded in the West Indies for sugarcane.

• Third, completing the last side of the triangle, the ship returned to a New England port where the sugar would be sold to be made into rum.

Variations on the route included stops in England or Spain. Every trade provided the slave-trading entrepreneur a substantial profit.

In the 17th century, English trade in enslaved Africans was first monopolized by the Royal African Company. However, by the late 17th century, the RAC could not supply as many enslaved Africans as demanded by colonial planters. Parliament ended the company’s monopoly on the slave trade, and New England merchants entered the lucrative business.

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UNITED STATES HISTORY: AP® EDITION

Mercantilism and the Empire Most European kingdoms in the 17th century believed in mercantilism, the economic theory that a country’s wealth was determined by how much more it exported than it imported. Hence, governments tried to promote the sales of goods to other countries and to discourage purchases through tariffs. In a mercantilist system, colonies existed for one purpose only: to enrich the parent country. They were to provide raw materials to the parent country to promote that country’s industries. Spanish and French rulers had followed mercantilist policies from the start of colonization. England began applying them after the end of the English Civil War in 1651.

Acts of Trade and Navigation England’s government implemented a mercantilist policy with a series of Navigation Acts between 1650 and 1673, which established three rules for colonial trade:

• Trade to and from the colonies could be carried only by English or colonial-built ships, operated only by English or colonial crews.

• All goods imported into the colonies, except for some perishables, had to pass through ports in England.

COLONIAL TRIANGULAR TRADE ROUTES

1,000 Miles

1,000 Kilometers

Manufactured goods

Flour, fish, furs, meat

Fish, rice, meat

Sugar,

molasses

Rum

Gold, enslaved people

“Middle Passage”

Tobacco, furs, indigo, naval stores

New York Philadelphia Norfolk Charlestown

Boston

NORTH

AMERICA

SOUTH

AMERICA

AFRICA

EUROPE

A T L A N T I C

O C E A N G u l f o f M e x i c o

Hispaniola

WEST INDIES

Cuba Jamaica

ENGLAND

PORTUGAL SPAIN

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TOPIC 2.4 TRANSATLANTIC TRADE

• Specified or “enumerated” goods from the colonies could be exported to England only. Tobacco was the original “enumerated” good, but over the years, the list was greatly expanded.

Impact on the Colonies The Navigation Acts had mixed effects on the colonies. The acts aided New England shipbuilding, provided Chesapeake tobacco a monopoly in England, and provided English military forces to protect the colonies from any attacks by the French and Spanish. The triangular slave trade that connected the colonies and Africa was largely unaffected by increased regulations.

However, the acts also severely limited the development of the colonial economy. Since colonists could not manufacture their own goods, they had to pay high prices for manufactured goods from England. Since Chesapeake farmers could sell their crops only to England, they had to accept low prices for their crops. For example, in the 1660s, low tobacco prices that resulted from high production brought hard times to the Chesapeake colonies, Maryland and Virginia. When Virginia’s House of Burgesses tried to raise tobacco prices, the merchants of London retaliated by raising their prices on goods exported to Virginia.

Besides trading with Great Britain, colonists also continued to trade with American Indians for furs, food, and other goods. This created ongoing contact between settlers and the indigenous population, leading to cultural exchanges, particularly along the western frontier of the colonies. For example, some Indians adopted Christianity and some colonial men married Indian women.

While intermarriage was uncommon, the resulting couple almost always lived in the Indian rather than the settler community. The famous marriage between Pocahontas and John Rolfe in Virginia was a rare exception of an Indian-settler couple who lived in Jamestown.

Enforcement of the Acts While the theory of mercantilism called for strict enforcement of trade regulations, the practice was quite different.

England was normally very lax in enforcing regulations, a policy known as salutary neglect. Several factors made enforcement difficult:

• The Atlantic Ocean separated the British government from the colonies, so exerting any authority from London over its distant possessions was challenging.

• England faced larger problems than regulating trade. Between 1642 and 1763, it was in constant turmoil. It went through the English Civil War, a revolution that replaced the monarch, and four wars with France.

• Britain’s colonial agents were often corrupt. As a result, colonial merchants could evade regulations easily with well-placed bribes to those in charge of enforcing regulations.

In retrospect, regulation might not have been necessary. Because of their close economic and cultural ties, England and its colonies were natural trading partners. The colonies had abundant natural resources that they probably would have sold mostly to the English with or without regulation.

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UNITED STATES HISTORY: AP® EDITION

The Dominion of New England Occasionally, though, the crown would attempt to overcome resistance to its trade laws. In 1684, it revoked the charter of Massachusetts Bay because it had been the center of smuggling activity. Whatever economic advantages this and other efforts brought England were offset by their harm to English-colonial relations. Colonists resented the regulatory laws imposed by the government in London. Especially in New England, colonists defied the acts by smuggling goods from other countries.

A New King A new king, James II, succeeded to the throne in 1685. He was determined to increase royal control over the colonies by combining them into larger administrative units and doing away with representative assemblies.

In 1686, he combined New York, New Jersey, and the various New England colonies into the Dominion of New England. Sir Edmund Andros was sent from England to serve as governor of the dominion. The new governor made himself instantly unpopular by levying taxes, limiting town meetings, and revoking land titles.

Overthrow of the King James II did not remain in power for long as his attempts at asserting his powers led to an uprising. The Glorious Revolution of

1688 succeeded in deposing James and replacing him with William and Mary.

James’s fall from power brought the Dominion of New England to an end, and the colonies again operated under separate charters.

Ongoing Trade Tensions After the Glorious Revolution, mercantilist policies remained in force, but the efforts to enforce them were never sustained enough to be effective. Until 1763, salutary neglect and colonial resistance to regulation continued. Regulation of trade, while not the only source of friction, would remain the fundamental problem between the colonists and England.

REFLECT ON THE LEARNING OBJECTIVE

1. Explain what brought about transatlantic trade and what its long-term impact was.

KEY TERMS BY THEME

Royal Authority (WOR) triangular trade mercantilism Navigation Acts

Dominion of New England Sir Edmund Andros Glorious Revolution

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TOPIC 2.4 TRANSATLANTIC TRADE

MULTIPLE-CHOICE QUESTIONS

Questions 1–2 refer to the following excerpt.

“Whereas the welfare and prosperity of Your Majesty’s sugar colonies in America are of the greatest consequence and importance to trade, navigation, and strength of this Kingdom. . . .

There shall be raised, levied, collected, and paid into and for the use of His Majesty, His Heirs, and Successors upon all rum or spirits of produce or manufacture of any colonies or plantations in America, not in the possession or under the dominion of His Majesty . . . which at any time or times within or during the continuance of this act shall be imported or brought into any of the colonies or plantations in America . . . the sum of 9d [9 pennies].”

Molasses Act of 1733

1. The intentions of the English government in passing the Molasses Act were most similar to the intentions motivating which of the following? (A) Theocratic laws passed by the Puritan leaders of New England (B) Ordinances passed by Virginia’s governors during the 17th century (C) Regulations imposed by the Dominion of New England (D) Actions by colonial customs officials during the period of salutary neglect

2. The immediate response to the action described in the excerpt was most likely an increase in (A) sugar production in France’s colonies in the West Indies (B) rum production in Spain’s colonies in the West Indies (C) smuggling by New England merchants (D) trade between England and its colonies

SHORT-ANSWER QUESTION

1. Answer (a), (b), and (c). (a) Briefly describe ONE specific historical benefit the colonies received under British mercantilism in the period from 1607 to 1754. (b) Briefly describe ONE specific historical disadvantage the colonies had under British mercantilism in the period from 1607 to 1754. (c) Briefly describe ONE specific historical action the colonies took in response to British mercantilism in the period from 1607 to 1754.

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UNITED STATES HISTORY: AP® EDITION

Topic 2.5

Interactions Between American Indians and Europeans

Fifty-six years after the sailing of the Mayflower, the Pilgrims’ children had not only defeated the Pokanokets . . . they had taken conscious, methodical measures to purge the land of its people.

Nathaniel Philbrick, Mayflower: A Story of Courage, Community, and War, 2006

Learning Objective: Explain how and why interactions between various European nations and American Indians changed over time.

From the very beginning Europeans saw each other as rivals for power in the Americas. In general, they viewed American Indians as inferior people who could be used as forced labors or pushed off their land, but also as potential allies in conflicts with other Europeans or other American Indians.

In response, Native Americans who survived the devastation of European diseases defended themselves and their cultures. Sometimes various tribes joined together to resist Europeans. Other times, a particular tribe allied with one group of Europeans to fight another or to fight against a traditional tribal rival. For example, in 1626 in southern New York, the Mahican Indians persuaded Dutch settlers to join in an attack on the Mohawk Indians.

Conflict in New England In the 1640s, the New England colonies faced the constant threat of attack from American Indians, the Dutch, and the French. With England in the midst of a civil war, the colonists expected little assistance.

New England Confederation In 1643, four New England colonies (Plymouth, Massachusetts Bay, Connecticut, and New Haven) organized for their mutual protection. They formed a military alliance known as the New England Confederation. The confederation was directed by a board composed of two representatives from each colony. It had limited powers to act on boundary disputes, the return of runaway servants, and dealings with American Indians.

The confederation lasted until 1684, when colonial rivalries and renewed control by the English monarch brought this first experiment in colonial cooperation to an end. Though it lasted only four decades, it established an important precedent for colonies taking unified action for a common purpose.

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TOPIC 2.5 INTERACTIONS BETWEEN AMERICAN INDIANS AND EUROPEANS

Metacom’s War (King Philip’s War) Only a few years before the confederation’s demise, it helped the New England colonists win a vicious war.

In response to English settlers encroaching on the American Indians’ lands, a chief of the Wampanoag, Metacom, known to the colonists as King Philip, united many tribes in southern New England. Some tribes, such as the Mohegans and the Pequots, supported the colonists because of their long-standing rivalry with the Wampanoag. The resulting conflict was called Metacom’s War (1675– 1676). In it, several villages were burned to the ground, hundreds of people were killed, and thousands of people were injured. Eventually, the colonial forces and their Indian allies prevailed, killing Metacom and ending most American Indian resistance in New England.

Conflict in Virginia Sir William Berkeley, the royal governor of Virginia (1641–1652; 1660– 1677), used dictatorial powers to govern on behalf of the large planters. He antagonized small farmers on Virginia’s western frontier because he failed to protect them from Indian attacks.

Bacon’s Rebellion Nathaniel Bacon, an impoverished gentleman farmer, seized upon the grievances of the western farmers to lead a rebellion against Berkeley’s government. Bacon and others resented the control exercised by a few large planters in the Chesapeake area. He raised an army of volunteers and, in 1676, conducted a series of raids and massacres against American Indian villages on the frontier, including some who had friendly relationships with the colonial government. Berkeley’s government in Jamestown accused Bacon of rebelling against royal authority. Bacon’s army defeated the governor’s forces and burned the Jamestown settlement. Soon afterward, Bacon died of dysentery, and the rebel army collapsed. Governor Berkeley suppressed the remnants of the insurrection, executing 23 rebels.

This drawing of Bacon (center, left) confronting Berkeley (center, right) was created for a history textbook written in 1895.

Source: Susan Pendleton Lee, A School History of the United States (1895). Wikimedia.org.

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UNITED STATES HISTORY: AP® EDITION

KEY TERMS BY THEME

Conflict (MIG) Wampanoag Metacom King Philip’s War

Authority (PCE) Sir William Berkeley Bacon’s Rebellion New England Confederation

Lasting Problems Though it was short-lived, Bacon’s Rebellion, or the Chesapeake Revolution, highlighted long-lasting disputes in Virginia and most of the colonies:

• sharp class differences between the wealthy and landless or poor farmers

• conflict on the frontiers between settlers and American Indians

• colonial resistance to royal control

These problems would continue into the next century, even after conditions in the Chesapeake and other colonies became more stable and prosperous.

Spanish Rule and the Pueblo Revolt Spain’s economic policy for its colonies was based on forcing Native Americans to labor for them through the encomienda system (see Topic 1.5). In religion, Spain’s Roman Catholic missionaries followed an aggressive, sometimes harsh, program to convert Native Americans to Christianity. The pressure of these efforts led to the Pueblo Revolt of 1680. Various tribes of Pueblo Indians, including the Hopi and Zuni, united against the Spanish. Hundreds of people died in the fighting, and the Spanish were driven from the area until

1692. However, after the Spanish regained control in 1692, they made some accommodations to the American Indians in the region. By ruling less harshly, the Spanish found greater stability.

REFLECT ON THE LEARNING OBJECTIVE

1. Explain the nature of the relationship between the Europeans and Native Americans and the reasons it evolved over time.

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TOPIC 2.5 INTERACTIONS BETWEEN AMERICAN INDIANS AND EUROPEANS

MULTIPLE-CHOICE QUESTIONS

Questions 1–3 refer to the following excerpt.

“These at the heads of James and York rivers . . . grew impatient at the many slaughters of their neighbors and rose for own defense, who choosing Mr.

Bacon for their leader, sent oftentimes to the Governor, . . . beseeching a commission to go against the Indians at their own charge; which His Honor as often promised, but did not send. . . .

During these protractions and people often slain, most or all the officers, civil and military, . . . met and concerted together, the danger of going without a commission on the one part and the continual murders of their neighbors on the other part. . . . This day lapsing and no commission come, they marched into the wilderness in quest of these Indians, after whom the Governor sent his proclamation, denouncing all rebels who should not return within a limited day; whereupon those of estates obeyed. But Mr.

Bacon, with fifty-seven men, proceeded. . . . They fired and . . . slew 150 Indians.”

Samuel Kercheval, Virginia lawyer, “On Bacon’s Rebellion in Virginia,” 1833

1. Based on this excerpt, what is Samuel Kercheval’s perspective toward Bacon and his followers? (A) They were dangerous men who threatened colonial stability and prosperity. (B) They were frustrated men who were taking action because the government did not. (C) They were allies of the governor who carried out actions that he supported. (D) They were a primarily political movement that wanted Bacon to become governor.

2. Bacon’s Rebellion was initiated by a group of farmers who felt most directly threatened by (A) an increase in royal taxes (B) the power of large planters (C) conflicts with American Indians (D) the growth of the slave trade

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UNITED STATES HISTORY: AP® EDITION

3. Which of the following groups led the opposition to Bacon’s Rebellion? (A) The British Army (B) The House of Burgesses (C) The governor of Virginia (D) The leaders of the Church of England

SHORT-ANSWER QUESTION

Use complete sentences; an outline or bulleted list alone is not acceptable.

1. “As to the natives of this country, I find them entirely savage and wild, strangers to all decency, yea, uncivil and stupid as garden stakes, proficient in all wickedness and ungodliness, devilish men who serve nobody but the devil. . . . They have so much witchcraft, divination, sorcery, and wicked arts that they can hardly be held in by any bands or locks. They are as thievish and treacherous as they are tall, and in cruelty they are altogether inhuman.”

Jonas Michaelius, pastor, Dutch Reformed Church, Letter to Reverend Andrianus Smoutius, 1628

“I confess I think no great good will be done till they [Indians] be more civilized. But why may not God begin with some few to awaken others by degrees? Nor do I expect any great good will be wrought by the English . . . because God is wont ordinarily to convert nations and peoples by some of their own countrymen who are nearest to them and can best speak, and, most of all, pity their brethren.”

John Eliot, Puritan, “The Day-Breaking of the Gospel with the Indians,” 1646

Using the excerpts above, answer (a), (b), and (c). (a) Briefly describe ONE major difference between Michaelius’s and Eliot’s views of the Native Americans. (b) Briefly describe how ONE historical event or development in the period from 1607 to 1754 that is not explicitly mentioned in the excerpts could be used to support Michaelius’s interpretation. (c) Briefly explain how ONE historical event or development in the period from 1607 to 1754 that is not explicitly mentioned in the excerpts could be used to support Eliot’s interpretation.

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TOPIC 2.6 SLAVERY IN THE BRITISH COLONIES

Topic 2.6

Slavery in the British Colonies

In every human Breast, God has implanted a Principle, which we call Love of Freedom.

Phillis Wheatley, “A Principle Which We Call Love of Freedom,” 1774

Learning Objective 1: Explain the causes and effects of slavery in the various British colonial regions.

Learning Objective 2: Explain how enslaved people responded to slavery.

With the colonial emphasis on agriculture came a demand for labor. Since the Native Americans could escape too easily and the supply of indentured servants was too small, landowners looked for another source of workers. They turned to the labor of enslaved Africans, especially in the southern colonies.

The transatlantic slave trade (see Topic 2.4) was important to the economy, and much of the trade was financed or conducted by people in the northern colonies.

Demand for Labor In Maryland and Virginia, landowners saw great opportunities for profit because of the European demand for tobacco. They could get land by taking it or trading for it from the American Indians. But they could not find enough laborers willing to work for low wages. The high death rate from disease, food shortages, and battles with American Indians meant that the population of colonists grew slowly. Landowners tried several ways to find the workers they wanted.

Indentured Servants The early colonists of the Virginia Company were struggling to survive and too poor to purchase enslaved Africans as the owners of sugar plantations in the West Indies did. Instead, the Virginia Company hoped to meet the desire for labor using indentured servants. Under contract with a master or landowner who paid for their passage, those from the British Isles agreed to work for a specified period—usually four to seven years—in return for room and board. Indentured servants were under the absolute rule of their masters until the end of their work period. At the end of that period, they gained their freedom and could work for wages or obtain land of their own. For landowners, the system provided laborers, but only temporarily.

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UNITED STATES HISTORY: AP® EDITION

Headright System Virginia attempted to attract immigrants through offers of land. It offered 50 acres of land to each immigrant who paid for his own passage and to any plantation owner who paid for an immigrant’s passage.

The Institution of Slavery In 1619, an English ship serving the Dutch government sold an unusual group of about 25 indentured servants to Virginia: the servants were Black Africans.

These first Africans in Virginia were not in life bondage, and children born to them were free. However, this soon changed. By the end of the 1660s, the Virginia House of Burgesses enacted laws that kept Africans and their offspring in permanent bondage. They were enslaved.

By the early 18th century, the number of enslaved people and laws to control them had greatly expanded. All British colonies included at least some enslaved laborers. The fewest were in New England, where small farmers had little demand for additional workers. More were in the Middle Colonies, particularly in the port cities, where African Americans often worked loading and unloading ships and as sailors. Most were in the southern colonies, working on plantations. By 1750, half of Virginia’s population and two-thirds of South Carolina’s population were enslaved.

The British colonies with the highest number of enslaved people were the West Indian sugar islands. During the course of American slavery, about 95 percent of enslaved Africans were delivered to the West Indies or Brazil. Less than 5 percent went to the British colonies in North America.

Increased Demand for Enslaved Africans Several factors explain why slavery became increasingly important, especially in the southern colonies:

• Reduced migration: Increases in wages in England reduced the supply of immigrants to the colonies.

• Dependable workforce: Large plantation owners were disturbed by the political demands of small farmers and indentured servants and by the disorders of Bacon’s Rebellion (see Topic 2.5). They thought that slavery would provide a stable labor force totally under their control.

• Low-cost labor: As tobacco prices fell (see Topic 2.4), rice and indigo became the most profitable crops. To grow such crops required a large land area and many inexpensive, relatively unskilled field hands.

This increased demand also supported the active, profitable, and ruthless triangular trade (see Topic 2.4).

Slave Laws As the number of enslaved workers increased, White colonists adopted laws to ensure that they would be held in bondage for life and that slave status would be inherited. In 1641, Massachusetts became the first colony to recognize the enslavement of “lawful” captives. Virginia in 1661 enacted legislation that children automatically inherited their mother’s enslaved status for life. By 1664, the English law that people baptized as Christians could not be enslaved was being overturned. Maryland declared that baptism did not affect

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TOPIC 2.6 SLAVERY IN THE BRITISH COLONIES

the enslaved person’s status and that White women could not marry African American men. As slavery became common, Whites began to regard all Blacks as inferior. Racism and slavery evolved into integral parts of colonial society.

Resistance to Slavery Although very difficult, many Africans challenged enslavement. They struggled to maintain family ties, even though slaveowners could break up a family by selling off a husband or a wife or a child at any time.

Even as many adopted Christianity, they kept elements of the African religious practices they had brought with them. They used songs and storytelling to maintain traditions and customs. They resisted slavery through direct action such as going on hunger strikes, breaking tools, refusing to work, or fleeing— even if they knew they would likely be caught and punished harshly. The owners’ concern over slave resistance was reflected over the years in the enactment of new laws to control them.

REFLECT ON THE LEARNING OBJECTIVE

1. Explain the reasons for slavery in the various British colonies and its impact on them.

MULTIPLE-CHOICE QUESTIONS

Questions 1–2 refer to the following excerpt.

“These are the reasons we are against the traffic of mens-body. . . . Now, though they are black, we cannot conceive there is more liberty to have them slaves as it is to have other white ones [slaves]. There is a saying that we shall do to all men like as we will be done ourselves, making no difference of what generation, descent, or color they are. And those who steal or rob men, and those who buy or purchase them, are they not alike. . . .

In Europe there are many oppressed for conscience sake; and here there are those oppressed which are of a black color . . . This makes an ill report in all those countries of Europe, where they hear of that the Quakers do here handle men like they handle there the cattle. And for that reason some have no mind or Inclination to come hither.”

Mennonite Community, Germantown, Pennsylvania, 1688

KEY TERMS BY THEME

Labor (WXT) indentured servants headright system slavery Middle Passage

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UNITED STATES HISTORY: AP® EDITION

1. The most direct cause of the practice objected to in the source was that (A) landowners wanted more workers than were arriving from Europe (B) investors thought English settlers were unwilling to work hard (C) settlers wanted Africans to come to Virginia to learn Christianity (D) colonists from European spoke too many different languages

2. Which of the following reasons does the excerpt suggest best explains why the group took the stance it did? (A) They were defending their economic interests. (B) They were opposed to increasing the colony’s population. (C) They felt that the colony should accept only settlers from England. (D) They were motivated by their religion beliefs.

SHORT-ANSWER QUESTION

Use complete sentences; an outline or bulleted list alone is not acceptable.

1.

Using the graph above, answer (a), (b), and (c). (a) Briefly explain ONE specific historical development or circumstance between 1660 and 1780 that led to the changes in the African American population as depicted in the graph. (b) Briefly explain ONE specific effort made by the British authorities during the 17th and early 18th centuries to increase the population levels as depicted in the graph. (c) Briefly explain ONE specific cause for the periodic shortages of labor in the colonies during the period between 1660 and 1780.

Source: U.S. Bureau of the Census.

Historical Statistics of the United States, Colonial Times to 1970

1660

1680

1700

1720

1740

1760

1780

.5

1

1.5

2

2.5

3

Number of People (in millions)

Year

Total Population

African American Population

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TOPIC 2.7 COLONIAL SOCIETY AND CULTURE

Topic 2.7

Colonial Society and Culture

I assert that nothing ever comes to pass without a cause.

Jonathan Edwards, The Freedom of Will, 1754

Learning Objective 1: Explain how and why the movement of a variety of people and ideas across the Atlantic contributed to the development of American culture over time.

Learning Objective 2: Explain how and why the different goals and interests of European leaders and colonists affected how they viewed themselves and their relationship with Britain.

The struggling English colonial villages at the start of the 17th century evolved by the middle of the 18th century to develop a culture distinct from any in Europe. If Americans in the 18th century constituted a new kind of society, what were its characteristics and what forces shaped its “new people”?

Population Growth In 1701, the English colonies on the Atlantic coast consisted of barely 250,000 Europeans and Africans. By 1775, the population was 2,500,000 people. Among African Americans, the increase was more dramatic: from about 28,000 in

1701 to 500,000 in 1775. The spectacular gains in population resulted from two factors: immigration of almost 1 million people and a sharp natural increase, caused by a high birthrate among colonial families. An abundance of fertile land and a dependable food supply attracted thousands of Europeans and supported the raising of large families.

European Immigrants Newcomers to the British colonies came not only from England, Scotland, Wales, and Ireland, but also from western and central Europe. Many immigrants, most of whom were Protestants, came from the kingdom of France and various German-speaking states. Many were fleeing religious persecution and wars, while others were searching for economic opportunity as farmers, artisans, or merchants. Most immigrants settled in the middle colonies (Pennsylvania, New York, New Jersey, Maryland, and Delaware) and on the western frontier

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of the southern colonies (Virginia, the Carolinas, and Georgia). Few headed for New England where land was limited and Puritans dominated.

English Settlers from England continued to come to the American colonies. However, with fewer problems at home, their numbers were relatively small.

Germans This group settled chiefly on the farmlands west of Philadelphia, an area that became known as Pennsylvania Dutch country. They maintained their German language, customs, and religious beliefs as Lutherans, Amish, Brethren, or Mennonites. They obeyed colonial laws but took little interest in English politics. By 1775, people of German stock comprised 6 percent of the colonial population.

Scotch-Irish These English-speaking people were Protestants who came from northern Ireland. Their ancestors had moved to Ireland from Scotland, and they were known as the Scotch-Irish or Scots-Irish. They had little respect for the British, who had pressured them to leave Ireland. Most settled along the frontier in western Pennsylvania, Virginia, the Carolinas, and Georgia. By 1775, they comprised 7 percent of the population.

Other Europeans Other groups included French Protestants (known as Huguenots), the Dutch, and the Swedes. These groups made up 5 percent of the population.

Enslaved Africans The largest single group of people entering the English colonies did not come to America by choice. They were Africans who had been taken captive, forced onto European ships, and sold as enslaved laborers. They worked a range of occupations, such as laborer, bricklayer, or blacksmith, but the most common work was as field laborers on plantations. By 1775, African Americans (enslaved and free) made up 20 percent of the colonial population. Most lived in the southern colonies, and enslaved people formed a majority of the population in South Carolina and Georgia.

A few Africans obtained their freedom. They were either emancipated by their owner or allowed to work for money and to purchase their freedom.

However, every colony passed laws that discriminated against African Americans.

American Indians Colonial population growth created conflicts between settlers and American Indians already living in a region. Some American Indians formed alliances to protect their land, such as the Powhaten Confederation in Virginia and the Iroquois Confederation in the Great Lakes region. Others used European settlers as allies in their conflicts with rival tribes. Among the most peaceful relations between American Indians and settlers were those in Pennsylvania.

William Penn often obtained land through treaties rather than violence.

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This frieze showing William Penn signing a treaty with the Delaware Indians in 1683 appears on a wall in the U.S. Capitol.

Source: Architect of the Capitol.

Wikimedia.org.

The Structure of Colonial Society Each of the 13 British colonies developed distinct patterns of life. However, they all also shared a number of characteristics. For example, most of the population was English in origin, language, and tradition. In all colonies, both Africans and non-English immigrants brought diverse influences that modified the culture of the majority in significant ways.

Liberty and Opportunity The colonies also offered people more self-determination than they found in Europe. This was evident in both religion and the economy.

Religious Toleration All of the colonies permitted the practice of different religions, but with varying degrees of freedom. Massachusetts, the most restrictive, accepted several types of Protestants, but it excluded Roman Catholics and all non-Christians. Rhode Island and Pennsylvania were the most open. Pennsylvania accepted all who believed in God, including Jews.

However, only Christians could participate in government.

No Hereditary Aristocracy The extremes of Europe, with very wealthy nobility and masses of hungry poor, were missing in the colonies. A narrower class system, based on economics, was developing. Wealthy landowners were at the top; craft workers and small farmers made up the majority of people.

Social Mobility In all colonies, White residents had an opportunity to improve their standard of living and status by hard work. Acquiring land was much easier than in Europe.

The Family The family was the center of colonial life. With an expanding economy and ample food supply, people married younger and reared more children than in Europe. More than 90 percent of the people lived on farms. While life was hard, most colonists had a higher standard of living than did most Europeans.

Men Besides working as farmers or artisans, men could own property and participate in politics. The law gave the husband almost unlimited power in the home, including the right to beat his wife.

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Women A colonial woman bore an average of eight children, many of whom would die at birth or in infancy. She performed multiple tasks including cooking, cleaning, making clothes, providing medical care, and educating children. She often worked next to her husband in the shop, on the plantation, or on the farm. Divorce was legal but rare, and women had limited legal and political rights. Yet the shared labors and mutual dependence with their husbands gave most women protection from abuse and an active role in decision making.

The Economy By the 1750s, half of Britain’s world trade was with its American colonies.

The government limited colonial manufacturing, such as making textiles. The rich American land and British mercantilist policy produced colonies almost entirely engaged in agriculture, forestry, and fishing.

As communities grew, more people became ministers, lawyers, doctors, and teachers. The quickest route to wealth was land, although regional geography often provided distinct opportunities for hardworking colonists.

New England Rocky soil and long winters limited most people to subsistence farming, producing just enough for the family. Most farms were small—less than 100 acres—and work was done by family and an occasional hired laborer. The descendants of the Puritans profited from logging, shipbuilding, fishing, trading, and rum-distilling.

Middle Colonies Rich soil produced an abundance of wheat and corn for export to Europe and the West Indies. Farms of up to 200 acres were common.

Often indentured servants and hired laborers worked with the farm families.

A variety of small manufacturing efforts developed, including iron-making.

Trading led to the growth of cities such as Philadelphia and New York. In 1750, Philadelphia was the largest city in the colonies, with a population of about 25,000 people.

Southern Colonies Because of the diverse geography and climate in these colonies, agriculture varied greatly. Most people lived on small subsistence family farms without slaves. A few lived on large plantations of more than 2,000 acres relying on slave labor. Colonial plantations were self-sufficient, growing their own food and using enslaved craftworkers. Products were tobacco in the Chesapeake and North Carolina colonies, timber and naval stores (tar and pitch) in the Carolinas, and rice and indigo in South Carolina and Georgia.

Most plantations were located on rivers so they could ship exports to Europe.

Monetary System One way the British controlled the colonial economy was to limit the use of money. These limits forced colonies to use their limited gold and silver to pay for British imports that exceeded the value of colonial exports. To provide currency for domestic trade, many colonies issued paper money. However, they often issued too much money, causing it to decline in value, a process called inflation. The British government also claimed the right to veto any colonial laws that might harm British merchants.

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Transportation Transporting goods by water was easier than over land on poor roads. Trading centers such as Boston, New York, Philadelphia, and Charleston were located on the sites of good harbors and navigable rivers.

Gradually overland travel by horse and stagecoach became more common in the 18th century. Taverns provided food and lodging for travelers and served as social centers where people exchanged news and discussed politics. By the mid-18th century, the colonies ran a postal system using horses and small ships.

Religion Most colonists were Protestants, but each region had some religious diversity:

• In New England, most people were Congregationalists (Puritans) or Presbyterians.

• In New York, people of Dutch descent often attended the Reformed Church. Most others belonged to the Church of England and were known as Anglicans (and later, Episcopalians).

• In Pennsylvania, Lutherans, Mennonites, and Quakers were common.

• In Virginia and other southern colonies, Anglicans were dominant.

Maryland included many Catholics and some Jews.

Challenges Each religious group, even the Protestants who dominated, faced problems. Jews, Catholics, and Quakers suffered from intense discrimination. Congregationalist ministers were criticized as domineering.

Many people resented the Church of England and saw it as a symbol of English control because it was headed by the king.

Established Churches In the 17th century, most colonial governments taxed the people to support a particular Protestant denomination, an established church. As various immigrants increased the religious diversity, governments gradually reduced their support of churches. However, some direct tax support of some New England churches remained until the 1830s.

The Great Awakening By the early 18th century, sermons in Protestant churches tended to portray God as the creator of a perfect universe. Ministers gave less emphasis than their ancestors to human sinfulness and damnation. In the 1730s and 1740s, however, a dramatic change swept the colonies. This was the Great Awakening, a movement of fervent expressions of religious feeling among the masses.

Jonathan Edwards Among the best-known leaders of the Great Awakening was a Congregational minister from Massachusetts, Reverend Jonathan Edwards. When he first gave his sermon “Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God” to his own congregation, it excited little emotion. However, as he traveled and delivered it elsewhere it generated a fervent response. Invoking the vivid language of the Old Testament, Edwards presented a God that was angry with human sinfulness. Individuals who deeply repented would be saved, but those who ignored God’s commandments would suffer eternal damnation.

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George Whitefield Beginning in 1739, George Whitefield spread the Great Awakening throughout the colonies, attracting audiences of 10,000 people. In barns, tents, and fields, he stressed that God was all-powerful and would save only those who openly professed belief in Jesus Christ. Those who did not would be damned to hell. Whitefield taught that ordinary people with faith and sincerity could understand the gospels without ministers to lead them.

Religious Impact The Great Awakening had a profound effect on religious practice. As sinners confessed their guilt and then joyously exulted in accepting salvation, emotionalism became more common in Protestant services. This caused splits in some denominations, such as the Congregationalists and Presbyterians, between supporters (“New Lights”) and opponents (“Old Lights”) of the new expressiveness of feeling. As people studied the Bible in their homes, ministers lost some authority over them. As a consequence, evangelical sects such as the Baptists and Methodists that often relied on traveling ministers attracted large numbers of new members. As the Great Awakening spread, new denominations challenged the Congregationalists and Anglicans. One result was that people called for stricter separation of church and state.

Political Influence The Great Awakening was one of the first common experiences shared by colonists as Americans. It had a democratizing effect by changing the way people viewed authority. If people made their own religious decisions without the “higher” authority of ministers, then could they also make their own political decisions without deferring to others? This revolutionary idea was not expressed in the 1740s, but 30 years later it would challenge the authority of a king and his royal governors.

Cultural Life In the early 1600s, the chief concern of most colonists was survival. However,

100 years later, the colonial population had grown enough that the arts could flourish, at least among the well-to-do southern planters and northern merchants.

Achievements in the Arts and Sciences In the coastal areas, as fear of American Indians faded, people displayed their prosperity by adopting architectural and decorative styles from England.

Architecture The Georgian style of London was widely imitated in houses, churches, and public buildings. Brick and stucco homes were built in this style along the eastern seaboard. On the frontier, a one-room log cabin was the common shelter.

Painting Many colonial painters were itinerant artists who traveled the country in search of families who wanted their portraits painted. Shortly before the Revolution, two American artists, Benjamin West and John Copley, went to England where they established themselves as prominent artists.

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Literature With only a few printing facilities available, most authors wrote on serious subjects, chiefly religion and politics in the 18th century. These authors included Cotton Mather and Jonathan Edwards on religion. Political writings highlighting the conflict between American rights and English authority came from John Adams, James Otis, John Dickinson, Thomas Paine, and Thomas Jefferson, among others. The most popular writer was Benjamin Franklin. His witty aphorisms and advice were collected in Poor Richard’s Almanack, a best-selling book that was annually revised from 1732 to 1757.

The lack of support for fiction and poetry did not stop everyone. Phillis Wheatley was born in West Africa, enslaved, and living in Boston when she published a collection of her poems in 1773. She was freed soon after this. Her work is noteworthy both for her triumph over slavery and the quality of her verse. Charles Brockden Brown, a Quaker who was born in Philadelphia in 1771, was one of the first novelists to set his stories in North America.

Science Most scientists, such as the botanist John Bartram of Philadelphia, were self-taught. Benjamin Franklin won fame for his work with electricity and his developments of bifocal eyeglasses and the Franklin stove.

Education Basic education was limited and varied among the colonies. Formal efforts were directed to males, since females were trained only for household work.

Elementary Education In New England, the Puritans’ emphasis on reading the Bible led them to create the first tax-supported schools. A Massachusetts law in 1647 required towns to establish primary schools for boys. In the middle colonies, schools were either church-sponsored or private.

In the southern colonies, parents gave their children whatever education they could. On plantations, tutors provided instruction for the owners’ children.

Higher Education The first colonial colleges were sectarian, promoting the doctrines of a particular religious group. The Puritans founded Harvard in

1636 to prepare ministers. The Anglicans opened William and Mary in Virginia in 1694, and the Congregationalists started Yale in Connecticut in 1701.

During this period the only nonsectarian college founded was the College of Philadelphia. Founded in 1765, it later became the University of Pennsylvania.

Benjamin Franklin was among its founders.

Ministry During the 17th century, the Christian ministry was the only profession to enjoy widespread respect among the common people. Ministers were often the only well-educated people in a small community.

Physicians Colonists who fell prey to epidemics of smallpox and diphtheria were often treated by “cures” that only made them worse. A doctor’s training was as an apprentice to an experienced physician. The first medical college was begun in 1765 as part of Franklin’s idea for the College of Philadelphia.

Lawyers During the 1700s, as trade expanded and legal problems became more complex, people felt a need for expert assistance in court. The most able

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lawyers formed a bar (committee or board), which set rules and standards for young lawyers. Lawyers gained respect in the 1760s and 1770s when they argued for colonial rights. John Adams, James Otis, and Patrick Henry were lawyers whose legal arguments would ultimately provide the intellectual underpinnings of the American Revolution.

The Press News spread mainly through a postal system and local printing firms.

Newspapers By 1776, there were more than 40 newspapers issued weekly in the colonies. They provided month-old news from Europe, various ads for goods and services and for the return of runaway indentured servants and enslaved people, and pious essays giving advice for better living.

The Zenger Case Newspaper printers in colonial days ran the risk of being jailed for libel if any article offended the authorities. English common law at the time stated that it was a crime to criticize the governor, no matter whether the criticism was true or false. In 1735, John Peter Zenger, a New York publisher, was tried on a charge of libelously criticizing New York’s royal governor.

Zenger’s lawyer, Andrew Hamilton, argued that his client had printed the truth.

Ignoring the law, the jury acquitted Zenger. While this case did not guarantee freedom of the press, it encouraged newspapers to criticize the government.

The Enlightenment In the 18th century, some educated Americans felt attracted to a European movement in literature and philosophy known as the Enlightenment. The leaders of this movement believed that the recent past was a “dark” era in which people relied too much on tradition and God’s intervention in human life. They believed that the “light” of reason could solve most of humanity’s problems.

A major influence on the Enlightenment and American thinking was John Locke, a 17th-century English philosopher. Locke, in his Two Treatises of Government, reasoned that while the state (the government) is supreme, it is bound to follow “natural laws” based on the rights that people have simply because they are human. He argued that sovereignty ultimately resides with the people rather than with the state. Furthermore, citizens had a right and obligation to revolt against a government that failed to protect their rights.

Other Enlightenment philosophers adopted and expounded on Locke’s ideas. His stress on natural rights would provide a rationale for the American Revolution and the principles of the U.S. Constitution.

The Colonial Relationship with Britain For all their diversity, in some ways, the colonies were becoming more like England. They built on English political traditions to develop self-governing local communities. Most colonists spoke English and could read the books and newspapers in the colonies. Many had commercial ties with England, either exporting tobacco or importing manufactured goods. Most colonists, including Puritans, Quakers, and Anglicans, were connected to England by religion.

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Colonial Identity At the same time, the colonists were developing a distinctly American viewpoint and way of life. Their motivations for leaving Europe, the English political heritage, the diverse mixture of people, the emergence of writers and painters, and the influence of the American natural environment combined to create a culture unlike any in Europe. The colonists —especially White male property owners—exercised the rights of free speech and a free press, became accustomed to electing representatives to colonial assemblies, and tolerated a variety of religions. Observers were beginning to think of Americans as restless, enterprising, practical, and forever seeking to improve their circumstances.

Mistrust of the British Development of a colonial identity reflected diverging interests between the colonies and Great Britain. Colonists were eager to push westward, while the British desired peace on the frontier with American Indians. Colonists were comfortable with salutary neglect, while the British sometimes tried to enforce trade regulations. Colonists took pride in governing themselves according to English traditions of liberty, while the British claimed sovereignty over them as part of the empire. Finally, colonies were more ethnically and religiously diverse than England, which meant that many colonists did not identify from birth with the country that ruled them.

These differences would become stronger after 1763.

Politics and Government By 1750, the colonies had similar systems of government, with a governor as chief executive and a legislature voting to adopt or reject the governor’s proposed laws. In every colony, the legislature consisted of two houses:

• Members of the lower house, or assembly, were elected by White male property owners. It voted for or against new taxes. Colonists thus became accustomed to paying taxes only if their chosen representatives approved.

• Members of the upper house in the two self-governing colonies were also elected. In the other colonies, members were appointed by the king or the proprietor, and were also known as the council.

• Governors were either appointed by the crown, elected by the people (Rhode Island and Connecticut), or appointed by a proprietor (Pennsylvania and Maryland).

Local Government Colonists in New England established towns and villages. In these, the local government was the town meeting in which people would regularly come together to vote directly on public issues. In the southern colonies, where farms and plantations were more widely separated, towns were less common. Local government was carried on by a law-enforcing sheriff and other officials who served a large territory called a county.

Voting If democracy is defined as the participation of all people in the making of government policy, then colonial democracy was limited. Laws barred most people—White women, poor White men, slaves of both sexes,

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and most free Blacks—from voting. Nevertheless, the government was beginning to remove some barriers to voting in the 18th century. In particular, religious restrictions were declining. Property qualifications often remained.

Another variable in the development of democracy was who could serve in the assemblies and councils. In Virginia, the House of Burgesses was restricted to a small group of wealthy landowners. However, in Massachusetts, the legislature was open to small farmers. Even there, the educated, propertied elite held power for generations. The common people everywhere tended to defer to their “betters” and depend upon the privileged few to make decisions.

Political life in the colonies was restricted to landowning White males only. Yet, compared with Europe, the English colonies allowed greater self-government. This made the colonial political system unusual for its time.

HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVES: WAS COLONIAL SOCIETY DEMOCRATIC?

Was colonial America “democratic” or not? The question is important for its own sake and also because it affects one’s perspective on the American Revolution and on the subsequent evolution of democratic politics in the United States.

Democracy in Action Many historians have focused on the politics of colonial Massachusetts. Some have concluded that colonial Massachusetts was indeed democratic, at least for the times. By studying voting records and statistics, they determined that the vast majority of White male citizens could vote and were not restricted by property qualifications. According to these historians, class differences between the elite and the masses of people did not prevent the latter from participating fully in colonial politics.

Consensus over Conflict Other historians question whether broad voting rights by themselves demonstrate the existence of real democracy. The true test of democratic practice, they argue, would be whether different groups in a colonial town felt free to debate political questions in a town meeting. In the records of such meetings, they found little evidence of true political conflict and debate. Instead, they found that the purpose of town meetings in colonial days was to reach a consensus and to avoid conflict and real choices. These historians believe that consensus-forming limited the degree of democracy.

The Maritime Elite A third historical perspective is based on studies of economic change in colonial Boston. According to this view, a fundamental shift from an agrarian to a maritime economy occurred in the 18th century.

In the process, a new elite emerged to dominate Boston’s finances, society, and politics. The power of this elite prevented colonial Massachusetts from being considered a true democracy.

The question remains: To what extent were Massachusetts and the other colonies democratic? The answer depends on the definition of democracy.

Support an Argument Explain two perspectives on the degree of democracy practiced in the British colonies.

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REFLECT ON THE LEARNING OBJECTIVE

1. Explain how the contributions of various migrant groups crossing the Atlantic influenced the growth of an American culture.

KEY TERMS BY THEME

Arts & Science (SOC) Benjamin West John Copley Benjamin Franklin Poor Richard’s Almanack Phillis Wheatley John Bartram ministry physicians lawyers

Religion (SOC) religious toleration established church Great Awakening Jonathan Edwards George Whitefield Cotton Mather sectarian nonsectarian

The Land (GEO) subsistence farming Ethnicity (NAT) Germans Scotch-Irish Huguenots Dutch Swedes Africans

People (MIG) immigrants social mobility

Government (POL) hereditary aristocracy John Peter zenger Andrew Hamilton Enlightenment governor legislature town meetings

MULTIPLE-CHOICE QUESTIONS

Questions 1–3 refer to the following excerpt.

“To understand political power . . . we must consider what estate all men are naturally in, and that it is a state of perfect freedom to order their actions and dispose of their possessions . . . within the bounds of the law of nature, without asking leave, or depending upon the will of any other man. . . .

Whosoever therefore out of a state of nature unite into a community must be understood to give up all the power necessary to the ends for which they unite into society, to the majority of the community . . . And this is done by barely agreeing to unite into one political society. . . . And thus that which begins and actually constitutes any political society is nothing but the consent of any number of freemen capable of a majority to unite. . . . And this is that . . . which did or could give beginning to any lawful government in the world.”

John Locke, Second Treatise of Government, 1690

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1. Increases in which of the following contributed most directly to the ideas expressed in the excerpt? (A) The frequency of floods, droughts, and other problems related to nature (B) The criticism of the idea of absolute monarchy (C) The influence of competing religious groups in politics (D) The support of government for merchants who wanted to import goods

2. Locke’s writings had the most direct influence on the (A) American Revolution through his ideas on government (B) Great Awakening through his ideas on religion (C) Mayflower Compact through his ideas on community (D) Zenger case through his ideas on defining what is true

3. Which of the following groups in the English colonies represented ideas most directly opposed to those expressed in the excerpt? (A) Owners of plantations who kept people enslaved (B) Church leaders who advocated for religious toleration (C) Merchants who wanted more freedom to trade (D) Women who believed that all people were born with certain rights

SHORT-ANSWER QUESTION

Use complete sentences; an outline or bulleted list alone is not acceptable.

1. Answer (a), (b), and (c). (a) Briefly explain how ONE specific ethnic group contributed to the development of culture and society in the colonies during the period from 1607 to 1754. (b) Briefly explain ONE specific cause of religious revivalism in the mid-18th century. (c) Briefly explain ONE specific reason for the difference in economic developments between colonial regions during the period from

1607 to 1754.

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Topic 2.8

Comparisons in Period 2

Learning Objective: Compare the effects of the development of colonial society in the various regions of North America.

The reasoning skill of “comparison” is the suggested focus for evaluating the content of this period. Historians often compare various European colonial systems or various British colonies. As explained in Topic 2.1, there are many factors to consider in the broad topic of the influences on the development of society in the 13 colonies from 1607 to 1754. On the AP exam, a question might be focused on any one factor such as migration, the North American environment, interaction with Native Americans, or British expectations to list but a few of the factors.

In an effort to “Explain the extent to which the British colonies were involved in political, cultural, and economic exchanges with Great Britain,” one could show that from the very beginning the colonialists questioned the British government’s control while asking for their support and mirroring much of their culture.

One could show that, economically, the British policy of mercantilism dictated what the colonies could produce and with whom they could trade.

This is specific evidence of an economic factor that negated colonial use of all their available resources that produced “enumerated” goods. One can take other specific evidence to demonstrate the complexity of the relationship between Britain and the colonies. For example, one could compare the colonial desire for government support to drive away the Native Americans to the colonial view of mercantilism.

Further evidence can support the argument that in the 17th century the colonies had an evolving relationship with Britain. One element that could be compared is religion. How did the influence of the British-led Church of England compare with that of the Puritans, Quakers, and Catholics who played

active roles in starting specific colonies? One might consider several plausible arguments and then decide which one is best supported by the evidence:

• Colonial culture was more tolerant of religious diversity than was British culture.

• People in the colonies carried on the same religious conflicts that existed in Great Britain.

• Colonists held similar ideas about religious toleration as the British did, but circumstances led them to act more tolerantly.

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COMPARING COLONIAL REGIONS

Characteristic New England Middle Atlantic Southern

Colonies • New Hampshire • Massachusetts • Rhode Island • Connecticut

• New York • Pennsylvania • New Jersey • Delaware

• Maryland • Virginia • North Carolina • South Carolina • Georgia

Population Groups • English • English • German • Dutch

• English • Scotch-Irish • African American

Religious Groups • Puritans • Dissenters • Baptists

• Anglicans • Roman Catholics • Quakers • Jews

• Anglicans • Roman Catholics • Baptists

Commercial Centers • Boston • Providence • New York • Philadelphia • Charleston • Savannah

Exports • Fish • Lumber • Ships

• Grain • Tobacco • Rice • Indigo

Education • Tax-supported schools • Private religious schools • Tutors and parents

Environment • Rock soils • Long winters • Rich soil • Moderate climate • Diverse soils • Diverse climate

Representative Government • Town meetings • Colonial assemblies • Virginia House of Burgesses

QUESTIONS ABOUT COMPARISON

1. Explain the extent to which the 13 colonies developed differently during the 17th century. For example, compare the people who settled the specific colonies as well as the available resources and support they had.

2. Explain the influence of British political, cultural, and economic views on the development of the 13 colonies. For example, compare how the British and colonists viewed mercantilism, representative government, and religion among many possible areas of interaction.

3. Explain the extent to which the various conditions in the English colonies led to the development of a unique system of slavery. For example, compare the influence of the colonial economy, geography, and population on the enslaving of Africans.

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THINK AS A HISTORIAN: ARGUMENTATION

Historians do more than repeat facts and quotations. They also develop arguments. Argumentation means using reasons and evidence effectively to make a point. The first part of an argument is making a claim. That means making a statement that can be proved or disproved.

You may have made claims in English class or speech class. For example, maybe you argued “Schools should require students to wear uniforms.” Or perhaps your topic was “The city should ban single-use plastic bottles.” Historians’ claims are more robust and demanding than these. A historian’s claim must be historically defensible. That means there are specific and relevant facts, statistics, records, or accounts that support the claim.

Evaluate this claim: “The original thirteen colonies were based on republican ideals that persist in the United States to this day.” Is this claim historically defensible? To decide, you’ll need to evaluate the evidence. Then you will need to consider whether the claim can be proved or disproved.

On one hand, colonial governments included elections. On the other hand, most people today would not consider any of those colonies to be very inclusive. That’s because the colonies excluded most people from voting— including women, men who did not own property, indentured servants, and enslaved people.

Historians consult secondary sources, including works by other historians, to help them make claims and develop arguments. However, only primary sources provide the actual words of people who were alive at the time.

How could a historian prove the claim that the colonies were based on republican ideals? He or she might quote from documents such as the Fundamental Orders of Connecticut, the first written constitution in American history. To disprove that same claim, a historian might quote from letters by indentured servants or women. Voting records would be valuable sources to historians on either side of the issue. • For each claim listed below, tell whether it is historically defensible and describe sources you would search for to prove or disprove the claim.

1. Native Americans’ escape from enslavement changed not only the colonies’ economies but also world history.

2. Britain’s salutary neglect ended up having negative outcomes for its colonies.

3. Metacom’s War marked the end of most Native American resistance in New England. However, it was not the end of Native American influence on that region.

4. The large numbers of children that colonial women bore affected the wealth and development of colonial economies.

5. In the 13 colonies, owning land was the likeliest way to become wealthy.

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UNIT 2 — Period 2 Review:

1607–1754

WRITE AS A HISTORIAN: HISTORICAL THINKING SKILLS AND

LONG ESSAYS

Writing answers to long essay questions requires using historical thinking skills. Different stages of the process call for using different historical thinking skills. Study the chart below. The page numbers in parentheses indicate places where the skill is practiced in this book.

Application: Find the scoring rubric and sample essays for U.S History on the College Board website. Work in a small group to prepare a presentation explaining how to earn the most possible points on a long essay question. Share your presentation with the rest of the class.

For current free-response question samples, visit: https://apcentral.collegeboard.org/ courses/ap-united-states-history/exam

Stages in the Writing Process Historical Thinking Skills

Analyze the question by identifying the exact task and the geographic and chronological framework.

Identify, describe, and explain a historical concept, development, or process. (See pages xli–xlii.)

Gather and organize the evidence you will need to complete the task.

Identify, describe, and explain patterns or connections among historical concepts, developments, and processes. These patterns and connections provide the key to organizing your evidence. Make sure your organization supports the task in the prompt. (See pages xlii, 28, and 156.)

Develop a thesis that lays out a line of reasoning.

Make a historically defensible claim related directly to the task and your evidence as the basis for your argument. Use historical reasoning (comparison, continuity and change, or causation) to frame your argument. (See pages xliii–xliv and 77.)

Write an introductory paragraph.

Identify and describe a broader historical context for your argument, and explain how the development or process you are examining is situated within that context. (See page 431.)

Write the supporting paragraphs.

Support an argument using specific and relevant evidence, explaining how the evidence ties to the argument. Explain relationships among various pieces of evidence. (See page xliv–xlvi, 254, 340, 685, and 747.)

Write the conclusion.

Reinforce and extend relevant and insightful connections within and across periods as you tie together your complex argument. (See page 573.)

Reread and evaluate your essay.

Be sure it demonstrates a complex understanding of the question and uses historical evidence to corroborate, qualify, or modify an argument. (See pages xlvi–xlvii.)

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LONG ESSAY QUESTIONS

Directions: The suggested writing time for each question is 40 minutes. In your response, you should do the following:

• Respond to the prompt with a historically defensible thesis or claim that establishes a line of reasoning.

• Describe a broader historical context relevant to the prompt.

• Support an argument in response to the prompt using specific and relevant examples of evidence.

• Use historical reasoning (e.g., comparison, causation, and continuity or change) to frame or structure an argument that addresses the prompt.

• Use evidence to corroborate, qualify, or modify an argument that addresses the prompt.

1. Evaluate the extent of the differences in the role of religion in the founding of the Spanish colonies in the 16th century and in the founding of the English colonies in the 17th century.

2. Evaluate the extent to which freedom of religion fostered the founding of the English colonies.

3. Evaluate the extent to which the environment influenced the development of different regions of the English colonies along the Atlantic coast in the 17th and 18th centuries.

4. Evaluate the extent to which the Great Awakening had an influence on the development of a democratic society in the English colonies during the period from 1607 to 1745.

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DOCUMENT-BASED QUESTION

Directions: Question 1 is based on the accompanying documents. The documents have been edited for the purpose of this exercise. You are advised to spend 15 minutes planning and 45 minutes writing your answer. In your response you should do the following:

• Respond to the prompt with a historically defensible thesis or claim that establishes a line of reasoning.

• Describe a broader historical context relevant to the prompt.

• Support an argument in response to the prompt using at least six documents.

• Use at least one additional piece of specific historical evidence (beyond that found in the documents) relevant to an argument about the prompt.

• For at least three documents, explain how or why the document’s point of view, purpose, historical situation, and/or audience is relevant to an argument.

• Use evidence to corroborate, qualify, or modify an argument that addresses the prompt.

1. Evaluate the extent to which different factors fostered unity throughout the English colonies between 1620 and 1754.

Document 1

Source: The Mayflower Compact, 1620

This day before we came to harbor, observing some not well affected to unity and concord, but gave some appearance of faction, it was thought good there should be an association and agreement that we should combine together in one body, and to submit to such government and governors as we should be common consent agree to make and choose, and set out hands to this that follows word for word. . . . [We] do by these present, solemnly and mutually, in the presence of God and one another, covenant and combine ourselves together into a civil body politic, for our better ordering and preservation and furtherance of the ends aforesaid; and by virtue hereof to enact, constitute, and frame such just and equal laws, ordinances,

acts, constitutions, offices from time to time as shall be thought most meet and convenient for the general good of the colony.

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UNIT 2 — PERIOD 2 REVIEW: 1607–1754

Document 2

Source: Fundamental Orders of Connecticut, 1639

As it has pleased the Almighty God . . . we, the inhabitants and residents of Wind-sor, Hartford, and Wethersfield are now cohabiting and dwelling in and upon the river of Conectecotte [Connecticut] and the lands thereunto adjoining; and well knowing where a people are gathered together the Word of God requires that, to maintain the peace and union of such a people, there should be an orderly and decent government established according to God, to order and dispose of the affairs of the people at all seasons as occasion shall require; do therefore associate and conjoin ourselves to be as one public state or commonwealth, and do, for our-selves and our successors and such as shall be adjoined to us at any time hereafter, enter into combination and confederation together, to maintain and preserve the liberty and purity of the Gospel of our Lord Jesus which we now profess.

Document 3

Source: The New England Confederation, 1643

The Articles of Confederation between the Plantations under the Government of the Massachusetts . . . New Plymouth . . . Connecticut and . . . New Haven with the Plantations in Combination therewith. . . .

The said United Colonies . . . hereby enter into a firm and perpetual league of friendship and amity for offence and defence, mutual advice . . . upon all just occasions . . . and for their own mutual safety and welfare. . . .

It is by these Confederates agreed that the charge of all just wars, whether offensive or defensive, upon what part or member of this Confederation soever they fall . . . be borne by all the parts of this Confederation . . .

It is further agreed that if any of these Jurisdictions or any Plantation under or in combination with them, be invaded by any enemy whatsoever, upon notice and request of any three magistrates of that Jurisdiction so invaded, the rest of the Confederates without any further meeting or expostulation shall forthwith send aid to the Confederate in danger.

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Document 4

Source: William Penn, Plan of Union, 1697

A brief and plain scheme how the English colonies in the North parts of Amer-ica… Boston, Connecticut, Rhode Island, New York, New Jerseys, Pennsylvania, Maryland, Virginia, and Carolinas—may be made more useful to the crown and one another’s peace and safety. . . .

1. That the several colonies before mentioned do meet . . . at least once in two years in times of peace . . . to debate and resolve of such measures as are most advisable for their better understanding and the public tranquillity and safety.

2. That, in order to it, two persons . . . be appointed by each province as their representatives or deputies, which in the whole make the congress.

. . .

3. That their business shall be to hear and adjust all matters of complaint or dif-ference between province and province . . . to consider the ways and means to support the union and safety of these provinces against the public enemies.

Document 5

Source: The Albany Plan of Union, 1754

It is proposed that humble application be made for an act of Parliament of Great Britain, by virtue of which one general government may be formed in America, including all the said colonies, within and under which government each colony may retain its present constitution, except in the particulars wherein a change may be directed by the said act, as hereafter follows:

1. That the said general government be administered by a President-General, to be appointed and supported by the crown; and a Grand Council, to be cho-sen by the representatives of the people of the several Colonies met in their respective assemblies. . . .

2. That they raise and pay soldiers and build forts for the defense of any of the colonies. . . .

3. That for these purposes they have power to make laws, and lay and levy such general duties, imposts, or taxes, as to them shall appear most equal and just.

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UNIT 2 — PERIOD 2 REVIEW: 1607–1754

Source: Ben Franklin, “The Problem of Colonial Union,” 1754

[On] the subject of uniting the colonies more intimately with Great Britain by allowing them representatives in Parliament, I have something further considered that matter and am of opinion that such a union would be very acceptable to the colonies, provided they had a reasonable number of representatives allowed them; and that all the old acts Parliament restraining the trade or cramping the manu-facturers of the colonies be at the same time repealed. . . .

I should hope, too, that by such a union the people of Great Britain and the people of the colonies would learn to consider themselves as not belonging to dif-ferent community with different interests but to one community with one interest, which I imagine, would contribute to strengthen the whole and greatly lessen the danger of future separations.

Document 6

Source: Pennsylvania Gazette, 1754. Library of Congress

Document 7

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Topic 3.1

Contextualizing Period 3

Learning Objective: Explain the context in which America gained independence and developed a sense of national identity.

In the 150 years after 1607, the 13 British colonies in North America began to develop an identity distinct from Great Britain. In the following 50 years, these colonies helped fight a war against France, won their own independence, wrote a constitution, and established a democratic republic. The transformation from colonies to a new country resulted from a change in how the British ruled their colonies, the impact of European affairs and ideas on the colonists, and the development of American leaders and people who wanted self-government.

British-French Wars During the colonial period, the British and the French fought a series of wars for control of territory in Europe, the Americas, and South Asia. The last of these, the Seven Years’ War, began in North America in 1756. Because American Indians were heavily involved in defending their interests, and most allied with the French, this event is also known as the French and Indian War. The British victory in 1763 consolidated their control of North America and freed colonists from fear of French attacks. In addition, the contributions by the colonies reflected their political maturity. They became more confident of their ability to stand up for their interests.

Colonial Independence To pay for the war, the British tried to collect more taxes from the colonies they were protecting. In contrast, many American colonists saw themselves as self-sufficient and were emboldened by “enlightened” thinking to call for greater self-governance. These clashing views caused the colonies to found a new nation.

The Articles of Confederation and the Constitution Inspired by the republican ideals of the American Revolution, the new country was initially governed by the Articles of Confederation. However, the national government was so weak that people soon replaced it with a new constitution with a stronger federal government but reserved certain powers for the states. With the addition of the Bill of Rights, it protected basic individual liberties. This Constitution still provides the basis of the U.S. government today.

Conflicting Views of Government Debates over the new constitution continued as policy debates under the first president, George Washington.

UNIT 3 — Period 3: 1754–1800

85 TOPIC 3.1 CONTExTUALIzING PERIOD 3

Truly “Founding Fathers,” the leaders of the new government argued over the economy, individual rights, foreign affairs, relations with Native Americans, and the roles of the federal and state governments.

By the end of Washington’s eight years in office, two political parties had emerged. The Democratic-Republicans argued for stronger state governments.

The Federalists argued for a stronger federal government. After the Democratic-Republicans defeated the Federalists in the election of 1800, the young country faced a test of political stability. When the Federalists peacefully transferred power to their political rivals, the country passed the test. By 1820, the Federalists had disappeared as a party. However, their ideas continued to have influence through judges and later politicians.

Changes in Economics, Politics, and Culture In the new country, immigrants continued to arrive. As people migrated westward in search of land and economic opportunities, they caused conflicts with the Native Americans living on those lands. The British, French, and Spanish who also claimed North American territory provided additional challenges. The United States had to defend its borders on land and its ships at sea in order to protect its economic and diplomatic interests.

As the United States established its place as a new country, people began to form their own cultures. While the United States declared independence in

1776 and ratified the Constitution in 1788, it was not until after 1800 that a national identity could be recognized.

ANALYZE THE CONTEXT

1. Explain a historical context for the changing relationship between the American colonists and the British government following the Seven Years’ War (the French and Indian War).

2. Explain a historical context for the development of new constitutions and declarations of rights by American political leaders after 1776.

3. Explain a historical context for understanding the regional differences over economic, political, social, and foreign issues that continued along with the formation of the new U.S. cultural and political institutions.

LANDMARK EVENTS: 1750–1800

1750

1760

1780

1770

1790

1800

1754 The Seven Years' War (the French and Indian War) begins.

1776

The Declaration of Independence marks separation from Great Britain.

1787

The passage of the Northwest Ordinance expands the new nation.

Britain's Proclamation of 1763 limits colonial westward expansion.

1763

The Treaty of Paris ends the Revolutionary War.

1783

1789 George Washington takes office as the country's first president.

The Constitution is ratified, and a new government begins to form.

1788

The Alien and Sedition Acts makes deporting people easier and restricts the press.

1798

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Topic 3.2

The Seven Years’ War

It is truly a miserable thing that we no sooner leave fighting our neighbors, the French, but we must fall to quarrelling among ourselves.

Reverend Samuel Johnson, minister in Connecticut, 1763

Learning Objective: Explain the causes and effects of the Seven Years’ War (the French and Indian War).

Historic European rivalries, particularly between Great Britain, France, and Spain, had been brought to North America by the earliest immigrants from those nations. While the basis for the conflict between these nations may be found in Europe, disputes between them in their colonies served to intensify their differences. While Britain eventually triumphed in a series of 18th century wars, victory was at a cost that they never could have imagined: the rebellion and the loss of their Atlantic coast colonies.

Empires at War, 1689–1763 Late in the 17th century, a series of wars broke out involving Great Britain, France, and Spain. They were worldwide in scope, with battles in Europe, India, and North America, and they often involved other Europeans and natives of India and North America. The stakes were high for power in Europe and for control of colonies and their lucrative trade. In North America, the most valuable possessions were sugar-producing islands in the Caribbean Sea and the fur-trading network with American Indians in the interior of North America.

The First Three Wars These conflicts occurred between 1689 and 1748 and were named after the British monarch under whose reign they occurred:

• In King William’s War (1689–1697), the British launched expeditions to capture Quebec from the French, but they failed. American Indians supported by the French burned British frontier settlements.

• In Queen Anne’s War (1702–1713), the British had more success. They gained both Nova Scotia from France and trading rights in Spanish America.

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• King George’s War (1744–1748) was named for George II. In Georgia, James Oglethorpe led a colonial army that repulsed Spanish attacks.

New Englanders captured Louisbourg in Canada, a major French fortress on Cape Breton Island that controlled access to the St.

Lawrence River. In the peace treaty ending the war, however, Britain returned Louisbourg to the French in exchange for political and economic gains in India. New Englanders were furious about the loss of a fort that they had fought so hard to win.

The Decisive Conflict In the first three wars, European powers saw little value in committing regular troops to America. They relied on “amateur” colonial forces. Further, most of the fighting was in Europe. However, by 1754, when the fourth and decisive conflict began, conditions had changed. Great Britain and France recognized the great value of their colonies for the raw materials they produced. Only about 60,000 settlers lived in the French colonies, but they worked with Native Americans to carry on a valuable fur trade. The British colonies were more densely populated, with about 1.2 million people. They produced grain, fish, tobacco, lumber and other products that fueled British industry.

The final war in this series was known in Europe as the Seven Years’ War.

The North American phase of this war is often called the French and Indian War. It began in 1754 and ended in 1763.

Beginning of the War From the British point of view, the French provoked the war by building a chain of forts in the Ohio River Valley. One reason the French did so was to halt the westward growth of the British colonies. Hoping to stop the French from completing work on Fort Duquesne (Pittsburgh) and thereby win control of the Ohio River Valley, the governor of Virginia sent a small militia (armed force) under the command of a young colonel named George Washington. After gaining a small initial victory, Washington’s troops surrendered to a superior force of Frenchmen and their American Indian allies on July 3, 1754. With this military encounter in the wilderness, the final war for empire began.

At first the war went badly for the British. In 1755, another expedition from Virginia, led by General Edward Braddock, ended in a disastrous defeat, as more than 2,000 British regulars and colonial troops were routed by a smaller force of both French troops and American Indians near Fort Duquesne. The Algonquin allies of the French ravaged the frontier from western Pennsylvania to North Carolina. The French repulsed a British invasion of French Canada that began in 1756.

The Albany Plan of Union Recognizing the need for coordinating colonial defense, the British government had called for representatives from several colonies to meet in a congress at Albany, New York, in 1754. The delegates from seven colonies adopted an agreement—the Albany Plan of Union—developed by Benjamin Franklin that provided for an intercolonial

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government and a system for recruiting troops and collecting taxes from the various colonies for their common defense. Each colony was too concerned about preserving its own taxation powers to accept the plan, however, and it never took effect. The Albany congress was significant, however, because it set a precedent for later, more revolutionary, congresses in the 1770s.

British Victory The British prime minister, William Pitt, concentrated the government’s military strategy on conquering Canada. This objective was accomplished with the retaking of Louisbourg in 1758, the surrender of Quebec to General James Wolfe in 1759, and the taking of Montreal in 1760. After these British victories, the European powers negotiated a peace treaty (the Peace of Paris) in 1763. Great Britain acquired both French Canada and Spanish Florida. In compensation for Spain’s loss of Florida, France ceded (gave up) to Spain its huge territory west of the Mississippi River known as Louisiana. With this treaty, the British extended their control of North America, and French power on the continent virtually ended.

Immediate Effects of the War Britain’s victory in the Seven Years’ War was a turning point in the military and diplomatic conflict for control of North America among the British, the French, the colonists, and various tribes of American Indians:

• It gave Great Britain unchallenged supremacy among Europeans in North America.

• It challenged the autonomy of many American Indians.

• It established the British as the dominant naval power in the world.

• It meant that the American colonies no longer faced the threat of concerted attacks from the French, the Spanish, and their American Indian allies.

More important to the colonies, though, was a change in how the British and the colonists viewed each other.

The British View of the War The British came away from the war with a low opinion of the colonial military abilities. They held the American militia in contempt as a poorly trained, disorderly rabble. Furthermore, they noted that some of the colonies had refused to contribute either troops or money to the war effort. Most British were convinced that the colonists were both unable and unwilling to defend the new frontiers of the vastly expanded British empire.

The Colonial View of the War The colonists took an opposite view of their military performance. They were proud of their record in all four wars and developed confidence that they could successfully provide for their own defense. They were not impressed with the British troops or leadership, as their methods of warfare seemed badly suited to the densely wooded terrain of eastern America.

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TOPIC 3.2 THE SEVEN YEARS’ WAR

Reorganization of the British Empire More serious than the resentful feelings stirred by the war experience was the British government’s shift in its colonial policies. Previously, Britain had exercised little direct control over the colonies and had not enforced its navigation acts regulating colonial trade. This earlier policy of salutary neglect was abandoned as the British adopted more forceful policies for taking control of their expanded North American dominions.

All four wars—and the last one in particular—had been extremely costly.

In addition, Britain now felt the need to maintain a large British military force to guard its American frontiers. Among British landowners, pressure was building to reduce the heavy taxes that the government had levied to fund the colonial wars. To pay for troops to guard the frontier without increasing taxes at home, King George III and the dominant political party in Parliament (the Whigs) wanted the American colonies to bear more of the cost of maintaining the British empire.

Pontiac’s Rebellion The first major test of the new British imperial policy came in 1763 when Chief Pontiac led an attack against colonial settlements on the western frontier. The American Indians were angered by the growing westward movement of European settlers onto their land and by the British refusal to offer gifts as the French had done. Pontiac’s alliance of American Indians in the Ohio River Valley destroyed forts and settlements from New York to Virginia. Rather than relying on colonial forces to retaliate, the British sent regular British troops to put down the uprising.

Source: Getty Images.

This engraving, made in 1876, portrays Chief Pontiac speaking to other Native American leaders about the need to unite to resist European settlements.

Proclamation of 1763 In an effort to stabilize the western frontier, the British government issued a proclamation that prohibited colonists from settling west of the Appalachian Mountains (see map in Topic 3.3). The British hoped that limiting settlements would prevent future hostilities between colonists and American Indians. But the colonists reacted to the proclamation with anger and defiance. After the British victory in the Seven Years’ War, colonists hoped

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MULTIPLE-CHOICE QUESTIONS

Questions 1–3 refer to the following excerpt.

“We apprehend [believe] that as freemen and English subjects, we have an indisputable title to the same privileges and immunities with His Majesty’s other subjects who reside in the interior counties . . . , and therefore ought not to be excluded from an equal share with them in the very important privilege of legislation. . . . We cannot but observe with sorrow and indignation that some persons in this province are at pains to extenuate [excuse] the barbarous cruelties practiced by these savages on our murdered brethren and relatives . . . by this means the Indians have been taught to despise us as a weak and disunited people, and from this fatal source have arisen many of our calamities. . . . We humbly pray therefore that this grievance may be redressed.”

The Paxton Boys, to the Pennsylvania Assembly, 1764

KEY TERMS BY THEME

Empire (WOR, GEO) Seven Years’ War (French and Indian War) George Washington Edward Braddock Albany Plan of Union (1754)

Peace of Paris (1763) salutary neglect

American Indians (MIG) Pontiac’s Rebellion Proclamation of 1763

to reap benefits in the form of access to western lands. For the British to deny such benefits was infuriating. Defying the proclamation, thousands streamed westward past the imaginary boundary line drawn by the British.

Growing British-Colonial Tensions The divergent views on the war and the changes in British imperial policies provided the context for conflict between Great Britain and its North American colonies. These conflicts would become more intense as the two sides debated issues of taxation and representation.

REFLECT ON THE LEARNING OBJECTIVE

1. Explain the causes and effects of the Seven Years’ War (French and Indian War).

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TOPIC 3.2 THE SEVEN YEARS’ WAR

1. The sentiments exhibited in this excerpt were most directly influenced by which of the following historical developments? (A) The Great Awakening (B) The Albany Plan of Union (C) The Seven Years’ War (D) The Enlightenment

2. The British had earlier attempted to solve the problem expressed in this excerpt most directly by (A) signing the treaty to end the French and Indian War (B) establishing a boundary between Indian lands and lands open for colonial settlement (C) passing a law that required colonists to house British soldiers (D) enforcing regulations on colonial trade after a period of not enforcing them

3. Which of the following individuals led a group that was in the most similar situation to the Paxton Boys? (A) John Smith because his supporters also wanted an equal share of privileges with other colonists (B) Roger Williams because his supporters also relied on prayer to have their problems solved (C) Nathaniel Bacon because his supporters also wanted stronger government action against American Indians (D) Edmund Andros because his supporters also disputed the power of the British monarch

SHORT-ANSWER QUESTION

Use complete sentences; an outline or bulleted list alone is not acceptable.

1. Answer (a), (b), and (c). (a) Briefly explain ONE historical event or development during the Seven Years’ War that demonstrated a fundamental change in the British view of its relationship with its American colonies. (b) Briefly explain ONE historical event or development during the Seven Years’ War that demonstrated a fundamental change in the colonial view of its relationship with its British government. (c) Briefly describe ONE historical event or development resulting from the changing views by either the British or the colonists.

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Topic 3.3

Taxation Without Representation

The people, even to the lowest ranks, have become more attentive to their liberties, more inquisitive about them, and more determined to defend them.

John Adams, 1765

Learning Objective: Explain how British colonial policies regarding North America led to the Revolutionary War.

What caused American colonists in the 1760s to become, as John Adams expressed, “more attentive to their liberties”? The chief reason for their discontent in these years was a dramatic change in Britain’s colonial policy.

Britain began to assert its power in the colonies and to collect taxes and enforce trade laws much more aggressively than in the past. While some colonists accepted these changes, others grew angry in defense of what they viewed as violations of their political rights and their ability to carry on trade and commerce freely. As anger spread, colonists from Massachusetts to Georgia began to unite in protest of British actions.

British Actions and Colonial Reactions The Proclamation of 1763 was the first of a series of acts by the British government that angered colonists. From the British point of view, the acts were justified as a fair, proper method for protecting its colonial empire and making the colonies pay their share for such protection. From the colonists’ view, each act represented an alarming threat to their liberties. Colonists combined a desire to defend long-established practices in Britain of representative government, local self-rule, and individual rights with the influence of the newer ideas of the Enlightenment (see Topic 3.4). One of the core issues dividing the British and the colonists was the idea of representation:

• Colonists pointed out that they could not directly elect representatives to Parliament, so they had no way to consent to or oppose British

actions.

• The British responded that the colonists, like all British citizens, had virtual representation in the government. According to this theory, all members of Parliament represented the interests of the entire empire, not just the small district that chose them.

93 TOPIC 3.3 TAxATION WITHOUT REPRESENTATION

New Revenues and Regulations In the first two years of peace, King George III’s chancellor of the exchequer (treasury) and prime minister, Lord George Grenville, successfully pushed through Parliament three measures that aroused colonial suspicions of a British plot to subvert their liberties.

The Sugar Act (1764) This act (also known as the Revenue Act of 1764) placed duties on foreign sugar and certain luxuries. Its supporters wanted to regulate the sugar trade and to raise revenue. A companion law also provided for stricter enforcement of the Navigation Acts to stop smuggling. Those accused of smuggling were to be tried in admiralty courts by crown-appointed judges without juries.

The Quartering Act (1765) This act required the colonists to provide food and living quarters for British soldiers stationed in the colonies.

The Stamp Act In an effort to raise funds to support British military forces in the colonies, Lord Grenville turned to a tax long in use in Britain. The Stamp

Act, enacted by Parliament in 1765, required that revenue stamps be placed on most printed paper in the colonies, including all legal documents, newspapers, pamphlets, and advertisements. This was the first direct tax—collected from those who used the goods—paid by the people in the colonies, as opposed to the taxes on imported goods, which were paid by merchants.

Reaction to the Stamp Act People in every colony reacted with indignation to news of the Stamp Act. A young Virginia lawyer named Patrick Henry spoke for many when he stood up in the House of Burgesses to demand that the king’s government recognize the rights of all citizens—including the right not to be taxed without representation.

In Massachusetts, James Otis initiated a call for cooperative action among the colonies to protest the Stamp Act. Representatives from nine colonies met in New York in 1765 to form the so-called Stamp Act Congress. They resolved that only their own elected representatives had the legal authority to approve taxes.

The protest against the Stamp Act took a violent turn with the formation of the Sons and Daughters of Liberty, a secret society organized for the purpose of intimidating tax agents. Members of this society sometimes destroyed revenue stamps and tarred and feathered revenue officials.

Economic Pressure Boycotts against British imports were the most effective form of protest. It became fashionable in the colonies in 1765 and 1766 for people not to purchase any article of British origin. For example, instead of buying imported British cloth, colonial women proudly made their own. Faced with a sharp drop in trade, London merchants put pressure on Parliament to repeal the controversial Stamp Act.

Declaratory Act In 1766, Grenville was replaced by another prime minister, and Parliament voted to repeal the Stamp Act. When news of the

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repeal reached the colonies, people rejoiced. Few colonists at the time noted that Parliament had also enacted a face-saving measure known as the Declaratory

Act (1766). This act asserted that Parliament had the right to tax and make laws for the colonies “in all cases whatsoever.” This declaration of policy would soon lead to renewed conflict between the colonists and the British government.

Second Phase of the Crisis, 1767–1773 The British government still needed new revenue. To obtain it, the newly appointed chancellor of the exchequer, Charles Townshend, proposed another tax measure.

The Townshend Acts In 1767, Parliament enacted new duties, known as the Townshend Acts, to be collected on colonial imports of tea, glass, and paper. The revenue would be used to pay crown officials in the colonies, thus making the officials independent of the colonial assemblies that had paid their salaries. The Townshend Acts also provided for the search of private homes for smuggled goods. All that an official needed to conduct such a search would be a writ of assistance (a general license to search anywhere) rather than a judge’s warrant to search a specific property. A related act suspended New York’s assembly for its defiance of the Quartering Act.

At first, most colonists accepted the taxes because they were indirect, meaning they were paid by merchants who then raised their prices to cover the additional costs. They were not direct taxes that consumers paid on their purchases.

However, leaders soon protested the new duties. While they accepted Parliament’s right to regulate trade as legitimate, they rejected taxation without representation as a violation of an essential principle of English law. In 1767 and 1768, John Dickinson made these points in Letters From a Farmer in Pennsylvania. He argued that Parliament could regulate colonial commerce, but if it wanted to tax colonists, it had to have the approval of assemblies that included colonial representatives.

In 1768, James Otis and Samuel Adams jointly wrote the Massachusetts Circular Letter and sent copies to every colonial legislature. It urged the colonies to petition Parliament to repeal the Townshend Acts. British officials in Boston ordered the letter retracted, threatened to dissolve the legislature, and increased the number of British troops. Responding to the circular letter, the colonists again conducted boycotts of British goods. Merchants increased their smuggling to avoid the Townshend duties.

Repeal of the Townshend Acts Meanwhile, in London, there was another change in the king’s ministers. Lord Frederick North became the new prime minister. He urged Parliament to repeal the Townshend Acts because they damaged trade and generated a disappointingly small amount of revenue.

The repeal of the Townshend Acts in 1770 ended the colonial boycott and, except for an incident in Boston (the “massacre” described below), there was a three-year respite from political troubles as the colonies entered into a period

95 TOPIC 3.3 TAxATION WITHOUT REPRESENTATION

of economic prosperity. However, Parliament retained a small tax on tea as a symbol of its right to tax the colonies.

Boston Massacre Most Bostonians resented the British troops quartered in their city to protect customs officials from attacks by the Sons and Daughters of Liberty. On a snowy day in March 1770, a crowd of colonists harassed the guards near the customs house. The guards fired into the crowd, killing five. Among them was Crispus Attucks, a dockworker of mixed African and American Indian heritage, who would later become a symbol for the antislavery movement. At their trial for murder, the six soldiers were defended by colonial lawyer John Adams. They were acquitted of murder, but two were convicted on the less serious charge of manslaughter. Adams’ radical cousin, Samuel Adams, angrily denounced the shooting incident as a “massacre” and used it to inflame anti-British feeling.

Renewal of the Conflict Even during the relatively quiet years of 1770–1772, Samuel Adams and a few other Americans kept alive the view that British officials were undermining colonial liberties. A principal device for spreading this idea was by means of the Committees of Correspondence initiated by Samuel Adams in 1772.

In Boston and other Massachusetts towns, Adams began the practice of organizing committees that would regularly exchange letters about suspicious or potentially threatening British activities. The Virginia House of Burgesses took the concept a step further when it organized intercolonial committees in

1773.

The Gaspee One incident frequently discussed in the committees’ letters was that of the Gaspee, a British customs ship that had caught several smugglers.

In 1772, it ran aground off the shore of Rhode Island. Seizing their opportunity to destroy the hated vessel, a group of colonists disguised as American Indians ordered the British crew ashore and then set fire to the ship. The British ordered a commission to investigate and bring guilty individuals to Britain for trial.

Boston Tea Party The colonists continued their refusal to buy British tea because the British insisted on their right to collect tax on it. Hoping to help the British East India Company out of its financial problems, Parliament passed the Tea Act in 1773, which made the price of the company’s tea—even with the tax included—cheaper than that of smuggled Dutch tea.

Many Americans refused to buy the cheaper tea because to do so would, in effect, recognize Parliament’s right to tax the colonies. A shipment of East India Company tea arrived in Boston harbor but found no buyers. Before the royal governor could bring the tea ashore, a group of Bostonians, mostly artisans and laborers, took action. Disguised as American Indians, they boarded the British ships and dumped 342 chests of tea into the harbor. Colonial reaction to this incident (December 1773) was mixed. While many applauded the Boston Tea Party as a defense of liberty, others thought the destruction of private property too radical.

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Intolerable Acts In Great Britain, news of the Boston Tea Party angered King George III, Lord North, and members of Parliament. In retaliation, the British government enacted a series of punitive acts (the Coercive Acts), together with a separate

act dealing with French Canada (the Quebec Act). The colonists were outraged by these various laws, which were given the epithet “Intolerable Acts.”

The Coercive Acts (1774) There were four Coercive Acts, directed mainly at punishing the people of Boston and Massachusetts and bringing them under control.

• The Port Act closed the port of Boston, prohibiting trade in and out of the harbor until the destroyed tea was paid for.

• The Massachusetts Government Act reduced the power of the Massachusetts legislature while increasing the power of the royal governor.

• The Administration of Justice Act allowed royal officials accused of crimes to be tried in Great Britain instead of in the colonies.

• The Quartering Act was expanded to enable British troops to be quartered in private homes. It applied to all colonies.

Quebec Act (1774) When it passed the Coercive Acts, the British government also passed a law organizing the Canadian lands gained from France. To satsify the French-speaking Canadians, the act established Roman Catholicism as the official religion of Quebec. It also set up a government without a representative assembly and extended Quebec’s boundary to the Ohio River. The plan, accepted by French Canadians, was resented in the 13 colonies.

The colonists viewed the Quebec Act as a direct attack on the American colonies because it took away lands that New York, Pennsylvania, Virginia, Massachusetts, and Connecticut claimed along the Ohio River. They also feared that the British would attempt to enact similar laws in America to take away their representative government. Further, the predominantly Protestant Americans resented the recognition given to the Roman Catholic Church.

The Demand for Independence Britain’s intensifying crackdown on resistance to its policies forced more and more colonists to take sides. Supporters of the British response included many wealthy merchants in New York and Philadelphia and planters in the southern colonies. Opponents, from Virginia to Massachusetts, challenged the British with harsh criticisms. These words were supported by hostile actions towards the British throughout the colonies, but particularly in Boston and New England. As violence increased, enough people were willing to speak out publicly, participate in mass protests, and donate money that the movement for independence grew stronger.

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KEY TERMS BY THEME

Colonial Unrest

(NAT, POL) Patrick Henry Stamp Act Congress Sons and Daughters of Liberty John Dickinson; Letters From . . .

James Otis Samuel Adams Massachusetts Circular Letter

Committees of Correspondence Intolerable Acts

Rulers & Policies (WXT) Parliament George III Whigs Lord Frederick North

Empire (POL, GEO) Sugar Act (1764) Quartering Act (1765)

Stamp Act (1765) Declaratory Act (1766) Townshend Acts (1767) writ of assistance Tea Act (1773) Coercive Acts (1774) —Port Act —Massachusetts Government Act —Administration of Justice

Act Quebec Act (1774)

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REFLECT ON THE LEARNING OBJECTIVE

1. Explain how the changes in British policies toward the colonies led them to rebellion.

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MULTIPLE-CHOICE QUESTIONS

Questions 1–2 refer to the following excerpt.

“The unhappy disputes between Great Britain and her American colonies . . . have proceeded to lengths so dangerous and alarming as to excite just apprehensions in the minds of His Majesty’s faithful subjects of this colony. . . .

It cannot admit of a doubt but that British subjects in America are entitled to the same rights and privileges as their fellow subjects possess in Britain; and therefore, that the power assumed by the British Parliament to bind America by their statutes in all cases whatsoever is unconstitutional, and the source of these unhappy differences. . . .

To obtain a redress of these grievances, without which the people of America can neither be safe, free, nor happy, they are willing to undergo the great inconvenience that will be derived to them from stopping all imports whatsoever from Great Britain.”

Statement by the Virginia Convention, formerly known as the House of Burgesses , 1774

1. Which of the following actions by the colonists is most similar to the one recommended in the excerpt above? (A) The actions taken by the Massachusetts legislature in response to the passing of the Townshend Acts (B) The colonists’ actions in Boston that led to the Boston Massacre (C) The formation of the Committees of Correspondence because it fostered colonial unity against the British (D) The Boston Tea Party because it involved destroying property that was a symbol of British authority

2. The statement that “British subjects in America are entitled to the same rights and privileges as their fellow subjects possess in Britain” indicates that the writers of this document believed that colonists should (A) purchase more goods from British merchants (B) declare independence before the British took any futher actions (C) have representation in setting their own internal economic policies (D) demand that Parliament reduce their overall level of taxes

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SHORT-ANSWER QUESTION

1. “The colonists believed they saw . . . what appeared to be evidence of nothing less than a deliberate assault launched surreptitiously by plotters against liberty both in England and in America. The danger to America, it was believed, was in fact only the small immediately visible part of the greater whole whose ultimate manifestation would be the destruction of the English constitution with all the rights and privileges embedded in it. . . .

It was this—the overwhelming evidence, as they saw it, that they were faced with conspirators against liberty determined at all costs to gain ends which their words dissembled [portrayed falsely]—that was signaled to the colonists after 1763, and it was this above all else that in the end propelled them into Revolution.”

Bernard Bailyn, historian, The Logic of Rebellion, 1967

“The Americans, ‘born the heirs of freedom,’ revolted not to create but to maintain their freedom. American society had developed differently from that of the Old World. . . . While the speculative philosophers of Europe were laboriously searching their minds in an effort to decide the first principles of liberty, the Americans had come to experience vividly that liberty in their everyday lives. . . . The Revolution was thus essentially intellectual and declaratory: it ‘explained the business to the world, and served to confirm what nature and society had before produced.’ ‘All was the result of reason. . . .’ The Revolution had taken place not in a succession of eruptions that had crumbled the existing social structure, but in a succession of new thoughts and new ideas that had vindicated that social structure. . . . The Americans revolted not out of actual suffering but out of reasoned principle.”

Gordon S. Wood, historian, The Idea of America, 2011

Using the excerpts, answer (a), (b), and (c). (a) Briefly explain ONE major difference between Wood’s and Bailyn’s historical interpretations of why the American colonies rebelled against the British. (b) Briefly explain how ONE historical event or development in the period 1754 to 1776 that is not explicitly mentioned in the excerpts could be used to support Bailyn’s interpretation. (c) Briefly explain how ONE historical event or development in the period 1754 to 1776 that is not explicitly mentioned in the excerpts could be used to support Wood’s interpretation.

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Topic 3.4

Philosophical Foundations of the American Revolution

Government even in its best state is but a necessary evil; in its worst state an intolerable one.

Thomas Paine, Common Sense 1776

Learning Objective: Explain how and why colonial attitudes about government and the individual changed in the years leading up to the American Revolution.

For Americans, especially those who were in positions of leadership, there was a long tradition of loyalty to the king and Great Britain. As the differences between the colonists and the leaders of Great Britain increased, many Americans tried to justify the diverging directions. As discussed in Topic 2.7, the Enlightenment, particularly the writings of John Locke, had a profound influence on the colonies.

Enlightenment Ideas The era of the Enlightenment was at its peak in the mid-18th century. These were the very years that future leaders of the American Revolution (Washington, Jefferson, Franklin, and Adams) were coming to maturity, and their ideas reflected the influence of Enlightenment thought.

Deism Many Enlightenment thinkers in Europe and America were Deists. They believed in God, but in one who had established natural laws in creating the universe and then rarely or never intervened directly in human affairs. God set the rules but then allowed people to make choices. This view of God contrasted with the belief held by most Christians of their time that God regularly intervened in everyday life, often to reward or punish individuals or groups for their actions.

Rationalism In general, Enlightenment thinkers trusted human reason to understand the natural world and to respond to the many problems of life and society. While most were Christians, their trust in reason led them to emphasize studying science and human behavior rather than following traditional interpretations of the Bible.

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Social Contract In politics, one important Enlightenment idea was the social contract, the concept of an agreement among people to form a government to promote liberty and equality. This idea represented a sharp break from the prevailing assumption that monarchs ruled by divine right—because God had chosen them.

Under the social contract, power came from “below,” not from “above.” This philosophy, derived from John Locke and others, had been developed further by the French philosopher Jean-Jacques Rousseau. Support for a social contract had a profound influence on educated Americans in the 1760s and 1770s—the decades of revolutionary thought and action that finally culminated in the American Revolution.

Thomas Paine’s Argument for Independence In January 1776, one of the most important pieces of writing by an American colonist was published. The author, Thomas Paine, had been born in England before moving to the colonies. His pamphlet, Common Sense, argued in clear and forceful language that the colonies should become independent states and break all political ties with the British monarchy. Paine argued that it was contrary to common sense for a large continent to be ruled by a small and distant island and for people to pledge allegiance to a king whose government was corrupt and whose laws were unreasonable.

The pamphlet spread rapidly throughout the colonies and ignited public demands for independence. Unlike earlier writers, who focused their anger on Parliament and the ministers, Paine directly attacked King George III and even the ideas of a monarchy. Paine’s success was based largely on his ability to make complicated, abstract ideas understandable for common readers. Common Sense became a key factor in widening the divide between the colonies and Great Britain.

HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVES: WHY DID THE COLONIES REBEL?

Did America’s break with Great Britain in the 18th century signify a true revolution with radical change, or was it simply the culmination of evolutionary changes in American life?

Revolution as a Radical Break For many years, the traditional view of the founding of America was that the American Revolution was based on the ideas of the Enlightenment and had fundamentally altered society. In the early 20th century, Progressive historians believed that the movement to end British dominance had provided an opportunity to radically change American society.

A new nation was formed with a republican government based on a division of powers between a national and state government and an emphasis on equality and the rights of the individual. The revolution was social as well as political.

Revolution Before the War During the second half of the 20th century, some historians argued that American society had been more democratic and changed long before the war with Great Britain. The war reflected these changes. Historian Bernard Bailyn has suggested that the changes that are

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viewed as revolutionary—representative government, expansion of the right to vote, and written constitutions—had all developed earlier during the colonial period. According to this perspective, what was significant about the break from Great Britain was the recognition of an American philosophy based on liberty and democracy that would guide the nation.

Support an Argument Explain two perspectives on how revolutionary the colonial separation from Britain was.

REFLECT ON THE LEARNING OBJECTIVE

1. Explain the new colonial views of the individual and government and the reasons for this in the times leading to the American Revolution.

KEY TERMS BY THEME

Philosophy (NAT, SOC) Enlightenment Deism rationalism

social contract John Locke Jean-Jacques Rousseau Thomas Paine

MULTIPLE-CHOICE QUESTIONS

Questions 1–3 refer to the following excerpt.

“It is inseparably essential to the freedom of a People, and the undoubted Right of Englishmen, that no taxes be imposed on them, but with their own Consent, given personally, or by their representatives. . . . That it is the indispensable duty of these colonies, to the best of sovereigns . . . to procure the repeal of the

act for granting and applying certain stamp duties, of all clauses of any other

acts of Parliament . . . for the restriction of American commerce.”

Resolutions of the Stamp Act Congress, 1765

1. The above excerpt was primarily directed to which person or group? (A) Colonial merchants (B) The king (C) Leaders in Parliament (D) Residents of England

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2. The philosophical basis behind the excerpt was that the writers (A) accepted Parliament’s authority generally but not for direct taxation (B) accepted Parliamentary actions only in specific, limited cases (C) rejected only how Parliament was spending tax revenues (D) rejected Parliament’s entire authority as violating the social contract

3. The Enlightenment idea most clearly reflected in this passage was that (A) God rarely intervened in human affairs directly (B) reason was the best guide to understanding the world (C) governments needed popular consent to rule legitimately (D) kings received their authority to rule from God

SHORT-ANSWER QUESTION

Use complete sentences; an outline or bulleted list alone is not acceptable.

1. “I wish I knew what mighty things were fabricating. If a form of government is to be established here, what one will be assumed? Will it be left to our assemblies to choose one? And will not many men have many minds? And shall we not run into dissensions among ourselves?

I am more and more convinced that man is a dangerous creature; and that power, whether vested in many or a few, is ever grasping. . . .

How shall we be governed so as to retain our liberties? Who shall frame these laws? Who will give them force and energy. . . .

When I consider these things, and the prejudices of people in favor of ancient customs and regulations, I feel anxious for the fate of our monarchy or democracy, or whatever is to take place.”

Abigail Adams, Letter to John Adams, November 27, 1775

Using the excerpt, answer (a), (b), and (c). (a) Briefly explain ONE specific perspective expressed by Abigail Adams in the excerpt above. (b) Briefly explain ONE historical event or development in the period leading up to independence that led to the view expressed here by Abigail Adams. (c) Briefly explain ONE historical event or development in the period leading up to independence that challenged the views expressed here by Abigail Adams.

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Topic 3.5

The American Revolution

What do we mean by the revolution? The war? That was no part of the revolution; it was only an effect and consequence of it. The revolution was in the minds of the people.

John Adams, Letter to Thomas Jefferson, August 24, 1815

Learning Objective: Explain how various factors contributed to the American victory in the Revolution.

Parliament’s passage of the Intolerable Acts in 1774 intensified the conflict between the colonies and Great Britain. In the next two years, many Americans reached the conclusion—unthinkable to most colonists only a few years earlier—that the only solution to their quarrel with the British government was to sever all ties with it. How did events from 1774 to 1776 lead to revolution?

The First Continental Congress The punitive Intolerable Acts drove all the colonies except Georgia to send delegates to a convention in Philadelphia in September 1774. The purpose of the convention—later known as the First Continental Congress—was to respond to what the delegates viewed as Britain’s alarming threats to their liberties. Most Americans had no desire for independence. They simply wanted to protest parliamentary infringements of their rights and restore the relationship with the crown that had existed before the Seven Years’ War.

The Delegates Those attending the congress were outwardly similar: all were wealthy White men. But they held diverse views about the crisis, from radical to conservative. Leading the radicals—those demanding the greatest concessions from Britain—were Patrick Henry of Virginia and Samuel Adams and John Adams of Massachusetts. The moderates included George Washington of Virginia and John Dickinson of Pennsylvania. The conservative delegates—those who favored a mild statement of protest—included John Jay of New York and Joseph Galloway of Pennsylvania. Unrepresented were the Loyalists, the colonists who would not challenge the king’s government in any way.

Actions of the Congress The delegates voted on a series of proposed measures, each of which was intended to change British policy without offending moderate and conservative colonists. Joseph Galloway proposed a plan, similar to the Albany Plan of 1754, that would have reordered relations

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with Parliament and formed a union of the colonies within the British Empire.

By only one vote, Galloway’s plan failed to pass. Instead, the convention adopted these measures:

• It endorsed the Suffolk Resolves, a statement originally issued by Massachusetts. The Resolves called for the immediate repeal of the Intolerable Acts and for colonies to resist them by making military preparations and boycotting British goods.

• It passed the Declaration and Resolves. Backed by moderate delegates, this petition urged the king to redress (make right) colonial grievances and restore colonial rights. In a conciliatory gesture, it recognized Parliament’s authority to regulate commerce.

• It created the Continental Association, a network of committees to enforce the economic sanctions of the Suffolk Resolves.

• It declared that if colonial rights were not recognized, delegates would meet again in May 1775.

Fighting Begins Angrily dismissing the petition of the First Continental Congress, the king’s government declared Massachusetts to be in a state of rebellion and sent additional troops to put down further disorders. The combination of colonial defiance and British determination to suppress it led to violent clashes in Massachusetts—what would be the first battles of the American Revolution.

Lexington and Concord On April 18, 1775, General Thomas Gage, the commander of British troops in Boston, sent a large force to seize colonial military supplies in the town of Concord. Warned of the British march by two riders, Paul Revere and William Dawes, the militia (or Minutemen) of Lexington assembled on the village green to face the British. The Americans were forced to retreat under heavy British fire with eight killed in the brief encounter. Who fired the first shot of this first skirmish of the American Revolution? The evidence is ambiguous, and the answer will probably never be known.

Continuing their march, the British entered Concord and destroyed some military supplies. Marching back to Boston, the long column of British soldiers was attacked by hundreds of militiamen firing from behind stone walls. The British suffered 250 casualties—and also humiliation at being so badly mauled by “amateur” fighters.

Bunker Hill Two months later, on June 17, 1775, a true battle was fought between opposing armies on the outskirts of Boston. A colonial militia of Massachusetts farmers fortified Breed’s Hill, next to Bunker Hill, for which the ensuing battle was wrongly named. A British force attacked the colonists’ position and managed to take the hill, suffering over a thousand casualties.

Americans claimed a victory of sorts, having succeeded in inflicting heavy losses on the attacking British army.

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The Second Continental Congress Soon after the fighting broke out in Massachusetts, delegates to the Second Continental Congress met in Philadelphia in May 1775. The congress was divided. One group of delegates, mainly from New England, thought the colonies should declare their independence. Another group, mainly from the middle colonies, hoped the conflict could be resolved by negotiating a new relationship with Great Britain.

The congress adopted a Declaration of the Causes and Necessities for Taking Up Arms and called on the colonies to provide troops. George Washington was appointed the commander-in-chief of a new colonial army and sent to Boston to lead the Massachusetts militia and volunteer units from other colonies. Congress also authorized a force under Benedict Arnold to raid Quebec in order to draw Canada away from the British empire. An American navy and marine corps were organized in the fall of 1775 for the purpose of attacking British ships.

Peace Efforts At first the congress adopted a contradictory policy of waging war while at the same time seeking a peaceful settlement. Many in the colonies valued their heritage and Britain’s protection, so they did not want independence.

They did, however, want a change in their relationship with Britain. In July 1775, the delegates voted to send an “Olive Branch Petition” to King George III, in which they pledged their loyalty and asked the king to intercede with Parliament to secure peace and the protection of colonial rights.

King George angrily dismissed the congress’s plea and agreed instead to Parliament’s Prohibitory Act (August 1775), which declared the colonies in rebellion. A few months later, Parliament forbade all trade and shipping between Britain and the colonies.

The Declaration of Independence After meeting for more than a year, the congress gradually and somewhat reluctantly began to favor independence rather than reconciliation. On June 7, 1776, Richard Henry Lee of Virginia introduced a resolution declaring the colonies to be independent. Five delegates, including Thomas Jefferson, formed a committee to write a statement in support of Lee’s resolution. The declaration drafted by Jefferson listed specific grievances against George III’s government and also expressed the basic principles that justified revolution: “We hold these truths to be self-evident: That all men are created equal; that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights; that among these are Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness.” The congress adopted Lee’s resolution calling for independence on July 2.

It adopted Jefferson’s work, the Declaration of Independence, on July 4, 1776.

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The Revolutionary War From the first shots fired in Lexington and Concord in 1775 to the final signing of a peace treaty in 1783, the American War for Independence, or Revolutionary War, was a long and bitter struggle. As Americans fought, they also laid the foundations for a new national identity, as the former colonies became a new country, the United States of America.

The Competing Sides About 2.6 million people lived in the 13 colonies in 1775. Maybe 40 percent of them actively joined the struggle against Britain. They called themselves American Patriots. Around 25 percent sided with the British as Loyalists. All others remained neutral, with many paying little attention to the struggle.

British Strength The British entered the war with far greater resources than the colonists. They had three times the population, a wealthy economy that could finance a war, a large and well-trained army, and the most powerful navy in the world. From previous conflicts with French, they had experience fighting overseas in North America, the West Indies, and South Asia.

Patriots The largest number of Patriots were from the New England states and Virginia. Most soldiers were reluctant to travel outside their own region.

They would serve in local militia units for short periods, leave to work their farms, and then return to duty. Thus, even though several hundred thousand people fought on the Patriot side in the war, General Washington never had more than 20,000 regular troops under his command at one time. His army was chronically short of supplies, poorly equipped, and rarely paid. However, many colonists had a strong commitment to independence, so they provided a solid core of people resilient enough to undergo hardships.

African Americans Initially, George Washington rejected the idea of African Americans serving in the Patriot army. However, when the British promised freedom to enslaved people who joined their side, Washington and the congress quickly made the same offer. Approximately 5,000 African Americans fought as Patriots. Most of them were free citizens from the north, who fought in mixed racial forces, although there were some units composed entirely of African Americans. These troops took part in most of the military

actions of the war, and a number, including Peter Salem, were recognized for their bravery.

Tories The Revolutionary War was in some respects a civil war in which anti-British Patriots fought pro-British Loyalists. Those who maintained allegiance to the king were also called Tories (after the majority party in Parliament). Almost 60,000 American Tories fought next to British soldiers, supplied them with arms and food, and joined in raiding parties to pillage Patriot homes and farms. The war divided some families. For example, while Benjamin Franklin was a leading Patriot, his son William joined the Tories and served as the last royal governor of New Jersey.

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How many American Tories were there? They were often strongest in major port cities, except in Boston. In New York, New Jersey, and Georgia, they were probably in the majority. Toward the end of the war, about 80,000 Loyalists emigrated from the states to settle in Canada or Britain rather than face persecution at the hands of the Patriots.

Although Loyalists came from all groups and classes, they tended to be wealthier and more conservative than the Patriots. Most government officials and Anglican clergy in America remained loyal to the crown.

American Indians At first, American Indians tried to stay out of the war.

Eventually, however, attacks by colonists prompted many American Indians to support the British, who promised to limit colonial settlements in the west.

Initial American Losses and Hardships The first three years of the war, 1775 to 1777, went badly for Washington’s poorly trained and equipped revolutionary army. It barely escaped complete disaster in a battle for New York City in 1776, in which Washington’s forces were routed by the British. By the end of 1777, the British occupied both New York and Philadelphia. After losing Philadelphia, Washington’s demoralized troops suffered through the severe winter of 1777–1778 camped at Valley Forge in Pennsylvania.

Economic troubles added to the Patriots’ bleak prospects. British occupation of American ports resulted in a 95 percent decline in trade between 1775 and

1777. Goods were scarce, and inflation was rampant. The paper money issued by Congress, known as continentals, became almost worthless.

Alliance with France The turning point for the American revolutionaries came with a victory at Saratoga in upstate New York in October 1777. British forces under General John Burgoyne had marched from Canada in an effort to join forces marching from the west and south. Their objective was to cut off New England from the rest of the colonies (or states). Burgoyne’s troops were attacked at Saratoga by troops commanded by American generals Horatio Gates and Benedict Arnold.

The British were forced to surrender.

The diplomatic outcome of the Battle of Saratoga was even more important than the military result. News of the surprising American victory persuaded France to join the war against Britain. France’s king, Louis XVI, an absolute monarch, had no interest in aiding a revolutionary movement. But he did see a chance to weaken his country’s traditional foe, Great Britain, by undermining its colonial empire. France had secretly provided money and supplies to the American revolutionaries as early as 1775. After Saratoga, in 1778, France openly allied itself with the Americans. (A year later, Spain and Holland also entered the war against Britain.) The French alliance proved decisive in the American struggle for independence as it widened the war, forcing the British to divert military resources away from America.

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Victory Faced with a larger war, Britain decided to consolidate its forces in America.

British troops were pulled out of Philadelphia, and New York became the base of British operations. In a campaign through 1778–1779, the Patriots, led by George Rogers Clark, captured a series of British forts in the Illinois country to gain control of parts of the vast Ohio territory. In 1780, the British army adopted a southern strategy, concentrating its military campaigns in Virginia and the Carolinas, where Loyalists were especially numerous and active.

Yorktown In 1781, the last major battle of the Revolutionary War was fought near Yorktown, Virginia, on the shores of Chesapeake Bay. Strongly supported by French naval and military forces, Washington’s army forced the surrender of a large British army commanded by General Charles Cornwallis.

Treaty of Paris News of Cornwallis’s defeat at Yorktown was a heavy blow to the Tory Party in Parliament that was conducting the war. The war had become unpopular in Britain, partly because it placed a heavy strain on the economy and the government’s finances. Lord North and other Tory ministers resigned and were replaced by Whig leaders who wanted to end the war.

In Paris, in 1783, the belligerents finally signed a peace treaty. The Treaty of Paris provided for the following: (1) Britain would recognize the existence of the United States as an independent nation. (2) The Mississippi River would be the western boundary of that nation. (3) Americans would have fishing rights off the coast of Canada. (4) Americans would pay debts owed to British merchants and honor Loyalist claims for property confiscated during the war.

REFLECT ON THE LEARNING OBJECTIVE

1. Explain the factors that resulted in the American success against Britian.

KEY TERMS BY THEME

Separation (NAT) Intolerable Acts First Continental Congress Patrick Henry Samuel Adams John Adams George Washington John Dickinson John Jay Joseph Galloway Suffolk Resolves economic sanctions Second Continental Congress (1775)

Declaration of the Causes and Necessities for Taking Up Arms Olive Branch Petition Thomas Jefferson Declaration of Independence

War (POL) Concord Paul Revere William Dawes Lexington Bunker Hill Battle of Saratoga

George Rogers Clark Yorktown

Final Break (WOR) Prohibitory Act (1775) absolute monarch Treaty of Paris (1783)

A New Nation (SOC) Loyalists (Tories) Patriots Minutemen continentals Valley Forge

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MULTIPLE-CHOICE QUESTIONS

Questions 1–2 refer to the following excerpt.

“I have not the least doubt that the Negroes will make very excellent soldiers, with proper management. . . .

I foresee that this project will have to combat much opposition from prejudice and self-interest. The contempt we have been taught to entertain for the black makes us fancy many things that are founded neither in reason nor experience; and an unwillingness to part with property of so valuable a kind will furnish a thousand arguments to show the impracticability or pernicious tendency of a scheme which requires such a sacrifice. But it should be considered that if we do not make use of them in this way, the enemy probably will. . . . An essential part of the plan is to give them their freedom with their muskets.”

Alexander Hamilton, “A Proposal to Arm and Then Free the Negroes,” 1779

1. This excerpt suggests that Hamilton saw the conflict with Great Britain as also a conflict among colonists over (A) whether to trust reason or experience more (B) whether colonists had adequate skills to manage soldiers (C) the views of plantation owners about the enemy (D) the views of White Americans toward enslaved Black Americans

2. The excerpt supports the claim that the use of Black troops during the Revolutionary War was likely motivated by which of the following? (A) Awareness that the French were using Black soldiers in their army (B) Fear that the British would recruit African Americans (C) Concern that state militias were short of troops (D) Belief that the Declaration of Independence called for equality

SHORT-ANSWER QUESTION

1. Answer (a), (b), and (c). (a) Briefly explain ONE specific strength that Patriots had in the American Revolution in the period 1774 to 1783. (b) Briefly explain ONE specific way that France influenced the American Revolution in the period 1774 to 1783. (c) Briefly explain ONE specific role that Native Americans played in the American Revolution in the period 1774 to 1783.

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Topic 3.6

The Influence of Revolutionary Ideals

How is the one exalted, and the other depressed, by the contrary modes of education which are adopted! The one is taught to aspire, and the other is early confined and limited. . . . The sister must be wholly domesticated, while the brother is led by the hand through all the flowery paths of science.

Judith Sargent Murray, “On the Equality of the Sexes” (1779)

Learning Objective 1: Explain the various ways the American Revolution affected society.

Learning Objective 2: Describe the global impact of the American Revolution.

Revolutionary ideas impacted American society before, during, and after the war that brought the colonies freedom from British control. These ideas shaped the new state governments that replaced the colonial ones (see Topic 3.7), and they had particular significance for women, enslaved workers, and Native Americans.

Women in the Revolutionary Era Both prior to and during the war, groups of women such as the Daughters of Liberty organized to oppose British actions. Before the war, they took direct

action by boycotting British goods. During the war, they provided supplies to the fighting forces. Some women followed men into the armed camps and worked as cooks and nurses. In a few instances, women fought in battle, either taking their husband’s place, as Mary McCauley (also known as Molly Pitcher) did at the Battle of Monmouth, or passing as a man and serving as a soldier, as Deborah Sampson did for a year. Similarly, female Loyalists also provided support to colonial and British troops.

Economic Role The most important contribution of women during the war was maintaining the colonial economy. While fathers, husbands, and sons were away fighting, women ran family farms and businesses. They provided much of the food and clothing necessary for the war effort.

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Political Demands The combination of hearing the revolutionary rhetoric and being actively engaged in the struggle influenced how many women viewed their role in society. A new view of their status in society evolved, a change referred to as Republican Motherhood. This new role called for educating women so that in the home they could teach their children the values of the new republic and their roles as citizens. This gave women a more active role in shaping the new nation’s political life. However, it was still a role carried out in the home, not in public, and it did not imply equality with men. Few people, male or female, advocated full equality.

Despite their contributions, women continued in their second-class status.

Unsuccessful were pleas such as those of Abigail Adams to her husband, John Adams: “I desire you would remember the ladies and be more generous and favorable to them than your ancestors.”

The Status of Enslaved African Americans The institution of slavery contradicted the spirit of the Revolution and the idea that “all men are created equal.” For a time, the leaders of the Revolution recognized this and took some corrective steps. The Continental Congress abolished the importation of enslaved people, and most states went along with the prohibition. Several northern states ended slavery, while in the south, some owners voluntarily freed their enslaved laborers. Slavery was in decline.

Many leaders, including slave owners such as James Madison, wanted it to end.

However, he could not envision a society in which White and free Black people lived together. So, he hoped that freed people would simply return to Africa.

However, this changed dramatically with the development of the cotton gin in 1793 (Topic 3.12). By making cotton production more efficient, it quickly increased the demand for low-cost labor. Slave owners came to believe that enslaved labor was essential to their prosperity and that the ideals of the Revolution did not apply to the people they owned. By the 1830s, they developed a rationale for slavery that found religious and political justification for continuing to hold human beings in lifelong bondage.

Native Americans and Independence American Indians generally supported the British in the Revolutionary War, so they did not benefit from the success of the colonies’ independence. Further, colonists’ racism and greed for land caused most of them to view American Indians as obstacles to settlement that should be removed. Very few colonists believed that the ideas of liberty and equality applied to American Indians.

International Impact of the American Revolution Just as the American Revolution was shaped by ideas imported by the European Enlightenment, so it influenced events elsewhere. The ideas that people have a right to govern themselves, that all people are created equal, and that individuals have inalienable rights have had wide appeal. Leaders of the French

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Revolution (1789–1799) that overthrew the monarchy, the United Irishmen who rebelled against British rule (1798), the Haitian Revolution (1791–1804) that ended slavery, and numerous Latin American revolutions against European control in the 19th century all cited the Declaration of Independence as inspiration. In the 20th century, the impact of these ideas appeared in countries as diverse as Zimbabwe in central Africa and Vietnam in southeast Asia.

One of the leaders inspired by the American Revolution was Toussaint L’ouverture of Haiti. He lead the largest successful revolution by enslaved people in history.

Source: Engraving (1802). John Carter Brown Library, Wikipedia.org

HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVES: HOW UNUSUAL WAS THE REVOLUTION?

Was the American Revolution similar to or different from other revolutions in history. Historians have provided different answers to this question.

Similarities with Other Revolutions In Anatomy of a Revolution (1965), historian Crane Brinton was struck by how alike the America Revolution, the French Revolution (1789–1794), and the Russian Revolution (1917–1922) were. According to Brinton, each one passed through similar stages and became increasingly radical.

Other historians have noted similarities between the American Revolution and the colonial rebellions in Africa and Asia after World War II. All were against distant Europe imperial powers. Many featured guerrilla forces (the colonies in the 1770s, Cuba in the 1950s, and Vietnam in the 1960s) and were weaker in the cities but stronger in the surrounding rural territories.

Differences with Europe Other historians have focused on the differences between American and European revolutions. For example, the French and Russians reacted to feudalism and aristocratic privilege that did not exist in the American colonies. In their view, Americans did not revolt against outmoded institutions but merely carried to maturity a liberal, republican movement that had been gaining force for years.

Impact Historians also disagree on whether the American Revolution shaped later revolutions. Using the insights from comparisons has helped historians better understand the American Revolution in its historical context.

Support an Argument: Explain two perspectives on the radical nature of the American Revolution.

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REFLECT ON THE LEARNING OBJECTIVE

1. Explain different ways that the American Revolution affected society and the world.

KEY TERMS BY THEME

A New Nation (SOC) Mary McCauley (Molly Pitcher)

Deborah Sampson Republican Motherhood Abigail Adams

Separation (NAT) Daughters of Liberty

MULTIPLE-CHOICE QUESTIONS

Questions 1–3 refer to the following excerpt.

“A Declaration of Rights made by the representatives of the good people of Virginia . . .

Section 1. That all men are by nature equally free and independent and have certain inherent rights. . . .

Section 2. That all power is vested in and consequently derived from the people. . . .

Section 4. That no man, or set of men, is entitled to exclusive or separate . . . privileges from the community. . . .

Section 5. That the legislative and executive powers of the state should be separate and distinct from the judiciary. . . .

Section 6. That elections of members . . . as representatives of the people, in assembly, ought to be free; and that all men, having sufficient evidence of permanent common interest with and attachment to the community, have the right of suffrage. . . .

Section 12. That freedom of the press is one of the great bulwarks of liberty. . . .

Section 16. All men are equally entitled to the free exercise of religion.”

Virginia Declaration of Rights, 1776

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1. Which of the following sections was the most direct reason for conflicts between Virginia and the British government? (A) Section 1: all people are by nature equal (B) Section 2: legitimate government power comes from the people (C) Section 4: no person deserves special privileges (D) Section 16: people should be able to worship freely

2. Which of the following sections most clearly reflected a belief in the social contract theory of government? (A) Section 2: origins of governmental power (B) Section 5: separation of government powers (C) Section 6: right to vote (D) Section 12: freedom of the press

3. The group most likely to oppose the ideas expressed in this excerpt would have been (A) the Minutemen of Lexington, because they were from New England (B) the Daughters of Liberty, because they were women (C) Tories such as William Franklin, because they supported the British (D) African Americans, because most of them were enslaved

SHORT-ANSWER QUESTION

Use complete sentences; an outline or bulleted list alone is not acceptable.

1. “In the decades following the Revolution, American society was transformed. . . . The Revolution resembled the breaking of a dam, releasing thousands upon thousands of pent-up pressures. . . . It was as if the whole traditional structure, enfeebled and brittle to begin with, broke apart, and the people and their energies were set loose in an unprecedented outburst. “Nothing contributed more to this explosion of energy than did the idea of equality. Equality was in fact the most radical and most powerful ideological force let loose in the Revolution. Its appeal was far more potent than any of the revolutionaries realized. Once invoked, the idea of equality could not be stopped, and it tore through American society and culture with awesome power. . . . Within decades following the Declaration of Independence, the United States became the most egalitarian nation in the history of the world, and it remains so today, regardless of its great disparities of wealth.”

Gordon S. Wood, Radicalism of the American Revolution, 1993

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“Today, ‘equality’ is generally interpreted to include protection for the rights of minorities; during the Revolution, ‘the body of the people’ referred exclusively to the majority. . . .

It is one of the supreme ironies of the American revolution that the assumption of authority by “the body of the people”—probably its most radical feature—served to oppress as well as to liberate. This was a real revolution: the people did seize power, but they exercised that power at the expense of others—loyalists, pacifists, merchants, Indians, slaves—who, although certainly people, were not perceived to be part of the whole. This was, after all, a war. It would not be the last time Americans sacrificed notions of liberty and equality in the name of the general good.

Our Revolutionary heritage works both ways. ‘The body of the people,’ the dominant force during the 1770s, has empowered and deprived.”

Ray Raphael, A People’s History of the American Revolution, 2001

Using the excerpts, answer (a), (b), and (c). (a) Briefly explain ONE major difference between Wood’s and Raphael’s historical interpretations of how radical the American Revolution was. (b) Briefly explain how ONE historical event or development in the period 1774 to 1787 that is not explicitly mentioned in the excerpts could be used to support Wood’s interpretation. (c) Briefly explain how ONE historical event or development in the period 1774 to 1787 that is not explicitly mentioned in the excerpts could be used to support Raphael’s interpretation.

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TOPIC 3.7 THE ARTICLES OF CONFEDERATION

Topic 3.7

The Articles of Confederation

The source of the evil is the nature of the government.

Henry Knox to George Washington, December 17, 1786

Learning Objective: Explain how different forms of government developed and changed as a result of the Revolutionary Period.

Having declared independence, the 13 colonies were faced with the task of fighting for it. To win such a war of independence, the colonists realized that they needed some form of government. The challenge was bringing together

13 distinct colonies united largely by a distrust and fear of a tyrannical British government. This led to an intentionally weak form of central government under a document, the Articles of Confederation, that was written by the Second Continental Congress during the Revolutionary War.

Organization of New Governments While the Revolutionary War was being fought, leaders of the 13 colonies worked to change them into independently governed states, each with its own constitution (written plan of government). At the same time, the revolutionary Congress that originally met in Philadelphia tried to define the powers of a new central government for the nation that was coming into being.

State Governments By 1777, ten of the former colonies had written new constitutions. Most of these documents were both written and adopted by the states’ legislatures. In a few states (Maryland, Pennsylvania, and North Carolina), a proposed constitution was submitted to a vote of the people for ratification (approval).

Each state constitution was the subject of heated debate between conservatives, who stressed the need for law and order, and liberals, who were most concerned about protecting individual rights and preventing future tyrannies. Although the various constitutions differed on specific points, they had the following features in common:

List of Rights Each state constitution began with a “bill” or “declaration” listing basic rights and freedoms. Common provisions identified the right to a jury trial and the freedom of religion. These rights and freedoms belonged to all citizens, and state officials could not infringe (encroach) on them.

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Separation of Powers With a few exceptions, the powers of state government were given to three separate branches: (1) legislative powers to an elected two-house legislature, (2) executive powers to an elected governor, and (3) judicial powers to a system of courts. The principle of separation of powers was intended to be a safeguard against tyranny—especially against the tyranny of a too-powerful executive.

Voting The right to vote was extended to all White males who owned some property. The property requirement, usually for a minimal amount of land or money, was based on the assumption that property owners had a larger stake in government than did the poor and property-less.

Office-holding Those seeking elected office usually had to meet a higher property qualification than the voters.

The Articles of Confederation At Philadelphia in 1776, as Jefferson was writing the Declaration of Independence, John Dickinson drafted the first constitution for the United States as a nation. Congress modified Dickinson’s plan to protect the powers of the individual states. The Articles of Confederation, as the document was called, was adopted by Congress in 1777 and submitted to the states for ratification.

Ratification Approval of the Articles was delayed by a dispute over state claims to the vast American Indian lands west of the Alleghenies. Some states, such as Rhode Island and Maryland, insisted that states give up these claims and the lands be under the jurisdiction of the new central government. When Virginia and New York finally agreed to cede their claims to western lands, the Articles were ratified in March 1781.

Structure of Government The Articles established a central government that consisted of just one body, a congress. In this unicameral (one-house) legislature, each state was given one vote, with at least nine votes out of 13 required to pass important laws. There was no separate executive, nor a separate judiciary (court system). Amending the Articles required a unanimous vote.

A Committee of States, with one representative from each state, could make minor decisions when the full Congress was not in session.

Powers The Articles gave Congress the power to wage war, make treaties, send diplomatic representatives, and borrow money. However, Congress did not have the power to regulate commerce or to collect taxes. To finance any of its decisions, Congress had to rely upon taxes voted by each state. Neither did the government have executive power to enforce its laws.

The United States Under the Articles, 1781–1789 The 13 states intended the central government to be weak—and it was. It consisted of a weak Congress and no executive or judicial branch.

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Accomplishments Despite its weaknesses, Congress under the Articles did have some lasting accomplishments:

• Independence: The U.S. government could claim some credit for the ultimate victory of Washington’s army and for negotiating favorable terms in the treaty of peace with Britain.

• Land Ordinance of 1785: Congress established a policy for surveying and selling the western lands. The policy set aside one square-mile section of land in each 36 square-mile township for public education.

• Northwest Ordinance of 1787: For the large territory lying between the Great Lakes and the Ohio River, Congress passed an ordinance (law) that set the rules for creating new states. The Northwest Ordinance granted limited self-government to the developing territory and prohibited slavery in the region.

THE UNITED STATES IN 1783

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By reserving land for schools and banning slavery, the government made the Northwest Territory attractive to both White and free Black settlers.

However, the government auctioned land by the square mile (640 acres). So, even though the starting price per acre was a low $1 per acre, the benefit of the system went first to those rich enough to spend at least $640 at once. The purchasers, then, sold off the land in smaller parcels to less wealthy Americans.

Weaknesses of the Articles These accomplishments were overshadowed by the difficulties the country faced in addressing certain problems without a strong government.

Foreign Affairs Relations between the new United States and the European powers were troubled. European nations had little respect for a nation that could neither pay its debts nor take united action in a crisis. For example, the country could not enforce the Treaty of Paris that ended the Revolutionary War. The U.S. government was too weak to stop Britain from maintaining military outposts on the western frontier and restricting trade.

It was also too weak to force states to restore property to Loyalists and repay debts to foreigners as the treaty required. Britain and Spain threatened to take advantage of U.S. weakness by expanding their interests in the western lands.

Economic Problems The underlying problem was that Congress had no taxing power and could only request that the states donate money for national needs. It had no dependable source of revenue to repay the money it borrowed to fight the war. Similarly, states had large unpaid debts as well. The unpaid debts resulted in limited credit and reduced foreign trade. The printing of worthless paper money by many states added to the problems. These problems combined to cause an economic depression.

Internal Conflicts The 13 states treated one another as rivals and competed for economic advantage. They placed tariffs and other restrictions on the movement of goods across state lines. A number of states faced boundary disputes with neighbors that increased interstate tension. The national government had no power to settle these disputes.

Shays’s Rebellion In the summer of 1786, Captain Daniel Shays, a Massachusetts farmer and Revolutionary War veteran, led other farmers in an uprising against high state taxes, imprisonment for debt, and lack of paper money. The rebel farmers stopped the collection of taxes and forced the closing of debtors’ courts. In January 1787, when Shays and his followers attempted to seize weapons from the Springfield armory, the state militia of Massachusetts broke Shays’s Rebellion.

REFLECT ON THE LEARNING OBJECTIVE

1. Explain how during the American Revolution different forms of government arose and adjusted to the ideals and demands of the Revolution.

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MULTIPLE-CHOICE QUESTIONS

Questions 1–3 refer to the following excerpt.

“Let us see what will be the consequences of not authorizing the federal government to regulate the trade of the states. Besides the want [lack] of revenue and of power, besides the immediate risk to our independence, the dangers of all the future evils of a precarious Union. . .

There is something noble and magnificent in the perspective of a great federal republic, closely linked in the pursuit of common interest—tranquil and prosperous at home, respectable abroad. But there is something proportionably diminutive and contemptible in the prospect of a number of petty states, with the appearance only of union.”

Alexander Hamilton, “Arguments for Increasing the Power of the Federal Government,” July 1782

1. Hamilton’s comment that “there is something proportionably diminutive and contemptible in the prospect of a number of petty states, with the appearance only of union” is most directly a criticism of (A) the British form of government (B) the ideals of the Enlightenment (C) the Declaration of Independence (D) the Articles of Confederation

2. Hamilton’s comments in the excerpt were similar to his concerns about (A) the rapid expansion by settlers onto the lands of American Indians (B) the slowness of the negotiations over the Treaty of Paris (C) the need to repay state debts after the Revolutionary War (D) the importance of passing the Northwest Ordinance

3. This excerpt provides support for the argument that Hamilton believed that the Articles of Confederation should be (A) kept as they are because they were working well (B) amended to protect the rights of states better (C) discarded so states could act independently (D) replaced with a new constitution

KEY TERMS BY THEME

Expansion (MIG, POL) Land Ordinance of 1785 Northwest Ordinance of 1787

A New Nation (SOC) Articles of Confederation Shays’s Rebellion

Final Break (WOR) Treaty of Paris (1783)

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SHORT-ANSWER QUESTION

Use complete sentences; an outline or bulleted list alone is not acceptable.

1. “The government designed by the Articles of Confederation made it easy for relatively small groups of people—especially individual states or sections of the country—to block any change. There was a requirement for every single state to agree to alter the powers of the Confederation…

From the beginning the Union had been a pretty loose alliance, so people felt relatively free about saying they just didn’t feel like going along with a particular policy… The result was stalemate. I can tell you that the people who wrote the Constitution thought a stalemated government could not survive.”

George William Van Cleve, interview, The Nation, 2017

“The conventional view is that American political history from the Declaration of Independence to the Constitution was dominated by ‘the complete inability of the government set up by the Articles of Confederation to function.’ This view ignores effective exercises of national power that took place during this period and the evolution of institutions extending beyond the text of the articles. Congress and the state judiciaries often read the Articles broadly and expansively in response to the practical needs of the country. The institutions created by Congress exercise wide powers that furthered national unity, and the states acquiesced.”

Eric M. Freedman, “The United States and the Articles of Confederation: Drifting Toward Anarchy or Inching Toward Commonwealth?” Yale Law Journal, November 1978

Using the excerpt, answer (a), (b), and (c). (a) Briefly explain ONE major difference between Van Cleve’s and Freedman’s interpretations of the value of the Articles of Confederation. (b) Briefly explain how ONE historical event or development in the period 1754 to 1800 that is not explicitly mentioned in the excerpts could be used to support Van Cleve’s interpretation. (c) Briefly explain how ONE historical event or development in the period 1754 to 1800 that is not explicitly mentioned in the excerpts could be used to support Freedman’s interpretation.

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TOPIC 3.8 THE CONSTITUTIONAL CONVENTION AND DEBATES OVER RATIFICATION

Topic 3.8

The Constitutional Convention and Debates Over Ratification

Thus I consent, sir, to this Constitution, because I expect no better, and because I am not sure that it is not the best.

Benjamin Franklin, 1787

Learning Objective: Explain the differing ideological positions on the structure and function of the federal government.

With these words, Benjamin Franklin, the oldest delegate at the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia, attempted to overcome the skepticism of other delegates about the document that they had created. Would the new document, the Constitution, establish a central government strong enough to hold 13 states together in a union that could prosper and endure?

Several problems led to a convention that wrote a new constitution, which was followed by intense debates on whether to ratify the new plan of government.

The Annapolis Convention To review what could be done about the country’s inability to overcome critical problems, George Washington hosted a conference at his home in Mount Vernon, Virginia (1785). Representatives from Virginia, Maryland, Delaware, and Pennsylvania agreed that the problems were serious enough to hold further discussions at a later meeting at Annapolis, Maryland, with all the states invited. Only five states sent delegates to the Annapolis Convention in 1786. After discussing ways to improve commercial relations among the states, James Madison and Alexander Hamilton persuaded the others that another convention should be held in Philadelphia for the purpose of revising the Articles of Confederation.

Drafting the Constitution at Philadelphia After a number of states elected delegates to the proposed Philadelphia convention, Congress consented to give its approval to the meeting. It called upon all 13 states to send delegates to Philadelphia “for the sole and express purpose of revising the Articles of Confederation.” Only Rhode Island, not trusting the other states, refused to send delegates.

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The Delegates Of the 55 delegates who went to Philadelphia for the convention in the summer of 1787, all were White, all were male, and most were college-educated. As a group, they were relatively young (averaging in their early forties). With few exceptions, they were far wealthier than the average American of their day.

They were well acquainted with issues of law and politics. A number of them were practicing lawyers, and many had helped to write their state constitutions.

The first order of business was to elect a presiding officer and decide whether or not to communicate with the public at large. The delegates voted to conduct their meetings in secret and say nothing to the public about their discussions until their work was completed. George Washington was unanimously elected chairperson. Benjamin Franklin, the elder statesman at age 81, provided a calming and unifying influence. The work in fashioning specific articles of the Constitution was directed by James Madison (who came to be known, despite his objections, as the Father of the Constitution), Alexander Hamilton, Gouverneur Morris, and John Dickinson. While they represented different states, these convention leaders shared the common goal of wanting to strengthen the young nation.

Several major leaders of the American Revolution were not at the convention. John Jay, Thomas Jefferson, and John Adams were on diplomatic business abroad, and Thomas Paine was also in Europe. Samuel Adams and John Hancock were not chosen as delegates. Patrick Henry, opposing any growth in federal power, refused to take part.

James Madison kept detailed notes on the debates at the convention. Since the convention did not allow outside observers and delegates were prohibited from talking to the press, his notes have shaped how historians interpret what happened during the convention. This engraving was probably made when Madison was in his 60s.

Source: David Edwin, c. Library of Congress.

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Key Issues at the Convention The convention opened with the delegates disagreeing sharply on its fundamental purpose. Some wanted to simply revise the Articles. Strong nationalists, such as Madison and Hamilton, wanted to draft an entirely new document. They argued that the confederate model of government, in which the states were loosely united under a weak central government, was unworkable. They believed in federalism, a system with a strong but limited central government. The nationalists quickly took control of the convention.

Americans in the 1780s generally distrusted government and feared that officials would seize every opportunity to abuse their powers, even if they were popularly elected. Therefore, Madison and other delegates believed in the separation of powers, dividing power among different branches of government. They wanted the new constitution to be based on a system of checks and balances, in which the power of each branch would be limited by the powers of the others. (For more on federalism and separation of powers, see Topic 3.9.)

Representation Especially divisive was the issue of whether the larger states such as Virginia and Pennsylvania should have proportionally more representatives in Congress than the smaller states such as New Jersey and Delaware. Madison’s proposal—the Virginia Plan—favored the larger states.

It was countered by the New Jersey Plan, which favored the smaller states.

The issue was finally resolved by a compromise solution. Roger Sherman of Connecticut proposed the Connecticut Plan or the Great Compromise. It provided for a bicameral (two-house) Congress. In the Senate, states would have equal representation, but in the House of Representatives, each state would be represented according to the size of its population.

Slavery Two contentious issues grew out of slavery. Should enslaved people be counted in the state populations? Southerners argued they should. northerners said that since they did not have the rights of citizens, they should not. The delegates agreed to the Three-Fifths Compromise, which counted each enslaved individual as three-fifths of a person for the purposes of determining a state’s level of taxation and representation. Should the slave trade be allowed? Some delegates wanted to ban it for humanitarian reasons. Others were concerned about maintaining a supply of labor. The delegates decided to guarantee that enslaved people could be imported for at least 20 years longer, until 1808. Congress could vote to abolish the practice after that date if it wished.

Trade The northern states wanted the central government to regulate interstate commerce and foreign trade. The south was afraid that export taxes would be placed on its agricultural products such as tobacco and rice.

The Commercial Compromise allowed Congress to regulate interstate and foreign commerce, including placing tariffs (taxes) on foreign imports, but it prohibited placing taxes on any exports.

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The Presidency The delegates debated over the president’s term of office.

Some argued that the chief executive should hold office for life. The delegates limited the president’s term to four years but with no limit on the number of terms. They also debated the method for electing a president. Rather than having voters elect a president directly, the delegates decided to assign to each state a number of electors equal to the total of that state’s representatives and senators. This Electoral College system was instituted because the delegates feared that too much democracy might lead to mob rule. Finally, the delegates debated what powers to give the president. They finally decided to grant the president considerable power, including the power to veto acts of Congress.

Ratification Procedure On September 17, 1787, after 17 weeks of debate, the Philadelphia convention approved a draft of the Constitution to submit to the states for ratification. Anticipating opposition, the Framers (delegates) specified in Article VII that a favorable vote of only nine states out of 13 was required for ratification. Each state would hold popularly elected conventions to debate and vote on the proposed Constitution.

Federalists and Anti-Federalists Ratification was fiercely debated for almost a year, from September 1787 until June 1788. Supporters of the Constitution and its strong federal government were known as Federalists. Opponents who feared that that new government would be too strong were known as Anti-Federalists. Federalists were most common along the Atlantic Coast and in the large cities, while Anti-Federalists tended to be small farmers and settlers on the western frontier.

DEBATING THE CONSTITUTION

Issue Federalists Anti-Federalists

Position on Constitution as Proposed

• Supported ratification • Opposed ratification

Arguments • A stronger central government was needed to maintain order and preserve the Union

• A stronger central government would destroy the work of the Revolution, limit democracy, and restrict states’ rights

Strategies • Emphasized the weaknesses of the Articles of Confederation • Portrayed Anti-Federalists as merely negative opponents with no solutions

• Argued that the proposed Constitution contained no bill of rights to protect individual freedoms • Claimed the proposed Constitution gave the central government more power than the British ever had

Advantages • Strong leaders • Well-organized • Widespread concern about the problems under the Articles

• Widespread distrust of government power because of experiences as colonists

Disadvantages • The Constitution was new and untried • The original Constitution lacked a bill of rights

• Less united than the Federalists

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The Federalist Papers A key element in the Federalist campaign for the Constitution was a series of highly persuasive essays written for a New York newspaper by James Madison, Alexander Hamilton, and John Jay. The 85 essays, later published in book form as The Federalist Papers, presented cogent reasons for believing in the practicality of each major provision of the Constitution.

The Path to Ratification The Federalists won early victories in the state conventions in Delaware, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania—the first three states to ratify. However, the Federalists were not confident of victory in enough other states for ratification.

Debate on a Bill of Rights One of the main objections expressed by the Anti-Federalists was that the proposed Constitution lacked a list of specific rights that the federal government could not violate. They argued that Americans had fought the Revolutionary War to escape a tyrannical government in Britain.

What was to stop a strong central government under the Constitution from

acting similarly? Only by adding a bill of rights could Americans be protected against such a possibility.

Federalists responded that since members of Congress would be elected by the people, they did not need to be protected against themselves. Furthermore, people should assume that all rights were protected rather than create a limited list of rights that might allow unscrupulous officials to assert that unlisted rights could be violated. However, to win support for the Constitution, the Federalists promised to add to it a bill of rights as the first order of business for a new Congress. (For the language of the Bill of Rights, see Topic 3.9.)

Ratification Achieved With this promise, the Federalists successfully addressed the Anti-Federalists’ most significant objection. With New Hampshire voting yes in June 1788, the Federalists won the necessary nine states to achieve ratification of the Constitution. Even so, the large states of Virginia and New York had not yet acted. If they failed to ratify, any chance for national unity and strength would be in dire jeopardy.

Final States In 1788, Virginia was by far the most populous of the original

13 states. There, the Anti-Federalists rallied behind two strong leaders, George Mason and Patrick Henry, who viewed the Constitution and a strong central government as threats to Americans’ hard-won liberty. Virginia’s Federalists, led by Washington, Madison, and John Marshall, managed to prevail by a close vote only after promising a bill of rights.

News of Virginia’s vote had enough influence on New York’s ratifying convention (combined with Alexander Hamilton’s efforts) to win the day for the Constitution in that state. North Carolina in November 1789 and Rhode Island in May 1790 reversed their earlier rejections and thus became the last two states to ratify the Constitution as the new “supreme law of the land.”

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REFLECT ON THE LEARNING OBJECTIVE

1. Explain the competing philosophical views on the organization and tasks of the new government.

KEY TERMS BY THEME

Founders (NAT, SOC) James Madison Alexander Hamilton Gouverneur Morris John Dickinson Federalists Anti-Federalists The Federalist Papers

A Constitution

(POL, ARC) Constitutional Convention Mount Vernon Conference Annapolis Convention federalism separation of powers checks and balances Congress

Virginia Plan New Jersey Plan Connecticut Plan; Great Compromise Senate House of Representatives Three-Fifths Compromise Commercial Compromise Electoral College system

MULTIPLE-CHOICE QUESTIONS

Questions 1–3 refer to the following excerpt.

“The plan of government now proposed is evidently calculated totally to change, in time, our condition as a people. Instead of being 13 republics under a federal head, it is clearly designed to make us one consolidated government. . . .

The essential parts of a free and good government are a full and equal representation of the people in the legislature. . . .

There are certain rights which we have always held sacred in the United States, and recognized in all our constitution, which, by adoption of the new Constitution in its present form, will be left unsecured. . . . I am fully satisfied that the state conventions ought most seriously to direct their exertions to altering and amending the system proposed before they shall adopt it.”

Richard Henry Lee, On the Rights that Must Be Preserved in the New Constitution, 1787

1. Richard Henry Lee’s concerns expressed in this excerpt would have been supported most by people in which of the following groups? (A) Merchants who wanted stronger support of commerce (B) Slave owners who opposed the three-fifths compromise (C) Quakers who advocated for greater freedom of conscience (D) Politicians who philosophically favored more local autonomy

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2. People who advocated for ratification of the Constitution responded to Lee and others who shared his views by (A) agreeing to add of a bill of rights (B) meeting with Lee at the Mount Vernon Conference (C) renegotiating the Commercial Compromise (D) rejecting the Great Compromise

3. Based on the excerpt, Lee would have most likely advocated for which of the following types of changes? (A) Strengthening the power of the chief executive (B) Replacing the compromise on slavery taxation and representation (C) Protecting the independence of the judiciary (D) Eliminating one house in the two-house legislature

SHORT-ANSWER QUESTION

Use complete sentences; an outline or bulleted list alone is not acceptable.

1. Answer (a), (b), and (c). (a) Briefly explain how ONE compromise passed at the Constitutional Convention altered the development of the United States. (b) Briefly explain ONE specific criticism of a compromise passed at the Constitutional Convention that would have altered the development of the United States. (c) Briefly explain ONE specific criticism brought forth by the Anti-Federalists concerning the power of the new federal government.

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Topic 3.9

The Constitution

The Constitution is the guide which I never will abandon.

George Washington, letter to the Boston city leaders, 1795

Learning Objective: Explain the continuities and changes in the structure and functions of the government with the ratification of the Constitution.

The men who wrote the newly ratified Constitution hoped it would both follow the ideals of the Enlightenment and provide a working system to guide the new republic. They wanted to correct the weaknesses of the Articles of Confederation without creating a government with excessive power. To guard against tyranny, they divided power vertically—between the federal and state levels. The also divided federal power horizontally—among three branches.

As a further step toward keeping government power in check, and to fulfill a promise made during the ratification debates, one of the first tasks of the new Congress was to propose a Bill of Rights.

Federalism The writers of the Constitution (or Framers) divided power between the federal government and state governments. The federal government would handle issues that affected the entire country, such as national defense and foreign affairs, and issues that crossed state boundaries, such interstate commerce and a postal service. States would be in charge of issues that affected only their state, such as schools and local elections.

As changes in transportation, communication, and the economy have increased the interactions among people across state lines, the federal government has become more powerful. Further, constitutional amendments added specific powers to the federal government. For example, the 19th Amendment, ratified in 1920, gave Congress the power to protect the right of women to vote.

By the 21st century, the government accounted for around 40 percent of the gross domestic product of the country. The federal goverment was usually responsible for over half of all public expenditures, paying for programs such as Social Security, Medicare, and the military, and transferring money to state and local governments. However, most public employees worked for state or local governments, with the largest number employed in schools and universities.

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Separation of Powers The Framers also divided powers among three main branches of government:

• legislative: Congress makes laws, passes taxes, and allocates spending

• executive: led by the president, it recommends and carries out laws and federal programs

• judicial: it consists of the Supreme Court and all lower federal courts; it interprets the laws and the Constitution

The Constitution provided each branch of government ways to limit the power or at least influence the other two branches:

• Congress can pass laws, but the president can veto laws and the Supreme Court can rule them unconstitutional.

• The president can make treaties, but they must be ratified by Congress.

• The president can enforce the laws, but the Supreme Court can stop those actions if it finds that they violate the Constitution.

• The Supreme Court interprets the laws, but Congress can write new laws.

• The Supreme Court can order a president to enforce a law, but a president has the power to appoint justices.

The Bill of Rights In 1789, the first Congress acted quickly to approve amendments to defend individual liberty. Drafted largely by James Madison, the ten ratified by the states in 1791 are known as the Bill of Rights. Originally, they protected against abuses by the central (or federal) government. Since the ratification of the 14th Amendment in 1868, most of the protections have been extended to apply to abuses by state governments as well. Below is the text of the Bill of Rights.

First Amendment “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press, or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.”

Second Amendment “A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed.”

Third Amendment “No Soldier shall, in time of peace be quartered in any house, without the consent of the Owner, nor in time of war, but in a manner prescribed by law.”

Fourth Amendment “The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no Warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by Oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized.”

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Fifth Amendment “No person shall be held to answer for a capital, or otherwise infamous crime, unless on a presentment or indictment of a Grand Jury, except in cases arising in the land or naval forces, or in the Militia, when in actual service in time of War or public danger; nor shall any person be subject for the same offence to be twice put in jeopardy of life or limb; nor shall be compelled in any criminal case to be a witness against himself, nor be deprived of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor shall private property be taken for public use without just compensation.”

Sixth Amendment “In all criminal prosecutions, the accused shall enjoy the right to a speedy and public trial, by an impartial jury of the State and district wherein the crime shall have been committed; which district shall have been previously ascertained by law, and to be informed of the nature and cause of the accusation; to be confronted with the witnesses against him; to have compulsory process for obtaining witnesses in his favor, and to have the assistance of counsel for his defense.”

Seventh Amendment “In suits of common law, where the value in controversy shall exceed twenty dollars, the right of trial by jury shall be preserved, and no fact tried by a jury shall be otherwise re-examined in any Court of the United States, than according to the rules of the common law.”

Eighth Amendment “Excessive bail shall not be required, nor excessive fines imposed, nor cruel and unusual punishments inflicted.”

Ninth Amendment “The enumeration in the Constitution of certain rights shall not be construed to deny or disparage others retained by the people.”

Tenth Amendment “The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people.”

REFLECT ON THE LEARNING OBJECTIVE

1. Explain what stayed the same and what changed in the form and the workings of the government under the new Constitution compared to government under the Articles of Confederation.

KEY TERMS BY THEME

Founders (NAT, SOC) federalism separation of powers

amendments Bill of Rights Founders (NAT, SOC) James Madison

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MULTIPLE-CHOICE QUESTIONS

Questions 1–3 refer to the following excerpt.

“It is not denied that there are implied [existing but not clearly stated] as well as express [clearly stated] powers, and that the former are as effectually delegated as the latter.

It is conceded that implied powers are to be considered as delegated equally with express ones. Then it follows, that as a power of erecting a corporation [such as a bank] may as well be implied as any other thing, it may as well be employed as an instrument or means of carrying into execution any of the specified powers. . . . But one may be erected in relation to the trade with foreign countries, or to the trade between the States . . . because it is the province of the federal government to regulate those objects, and because it is incident to a general sovereign or legislative power to regulate a thing, to employ all the means which relate to its regulation to the best and greatest advantage.”

Alexander Hamilton, Letter on the National Bank, 1791

1. Hamilton’s constitutional argument was based on which of the following types of powers? (A) Employed (B) Expressed (C) Implied (D) Regulated

2. Hamilton’s position expressed in the excerpt most clearly reflected his dissatisfaction with which of the following? (A) The Declaration of Independence (B) The Articles of Confederation (C) The Northwest Ordinance (D) The Bill of Rights

3. Which of the following would best serve as the basis for modifying or refuting Hamilton’s position expressed in the excerpt? (A) The ideals of the Enlightenment, such as the emphasis on reason (B) The theory of the separation of powers, which divided power among three branches of government (C) The purpose of the 10th Amendment, which reserves powers to the states (D) The writings of Thomas Paine, which supported revolution

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SHORT-ANSWER QUESTION

1. “The contest over the Constitution was not primarily a war over abstract political ideals, such as states’ rights and centralization, but over concrete economic issues, and the political division which accompanied it was substantially along the lines of the interests affected—the financiers, public creditors, traders, commercial men, manufacturers, and allied groups, centering mainly in the larger seaboard towns, being chief among the advocates of the Constitution, and the farmers, particularly in the inland regions, and the debtors being chief among its opponents. That other considerations, such as the necessity for stronger national defense, entered into the campaign is, of course, admitted, but with all due allowances, it may be truly said that the Constitution was a product of a struggle between capitalistic and agrarian interests.”

Charles A. Beard, historian, Economic Origins of Jeffersonian Democracy, 1915

“It is easy to accept the general proposition that ideas and interests are somehow associated. . . . But there are some dangers in working with any such formula. The first is that ideas—or all those intangible emotional, moral, and intellectual forces that may roughly be combined under the rubric of ideas—will somehow be dissolved and that we will be left only with interests on our hands. . . Then there is the danger that interests will be too narrowly construed: that we will put too much emphasis on the motives and purposes of individuals and groups, not enough on the structural requirements of a social system or on the limitations imposed on men by particular historical situations . . . that the way in which men perceive and define their interests is in some good part a reflex of the ideas they have inherited and the experiences they have undergone. . .

For the generation of the Founding Fathers, the central, formative, shattering, and then reintegrating experience of civic life was the Revolution, which recast the pattern of their interests and galvanized their inherited store of ideas.”

Richard Hofstadter, historian, The Progressive Historians, 1968

Using the excerpts, answer (a), (b), and (c). (a) Briefly explain ONE major difference between Beard’s and Hofstadter’s interpretations of the influences on the Constitution. (b) Briefly explain how ONE historical event or development in the period 1776 to 1789 that is not explicitly mentioned in the excerpts could be used to support Beard’s interpretation. (c) Briefly explain how ONE historical event or development in the period 1776 to 1789 that is not explicitly mentioned in the excerpts could be used to support Hofstadter’s interpretation.

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Topic 3.10

Shaping a New Republic

There is nothing which I dread so much as a division of the republic into two great parties. . . . [It] is to be dreaded as the greatest political evil under our Constitution.

John Adams, letter to Jonathan Jackson, 1780

Learning Objective 1: Explain how and why competition intensified conflict among peoples and nations from 1754 to 1800.

Learning Objective 2: Explain how and why political ideas, institutions, and party systems developed and changed in the new republic.

Having faced the challenges of declaring independence, fighting a Revolutionary War, agreeing on a Constitution, and forming a functioning government, the new nation’s continued existence was not guaranteed. Under the leadership of the first two presidents, George Washington and John Adams, the Republic dealt with a multitude of challenges, both foreign and domestic.

Washington’s Presidency Members of the first Congress under the Constitution were elected in 1788 and began their first session in March 1789 in New York City (then the nation’s temporary capital). People assumed that George Washington would be the electoral college’s unanimous choice for president, and indeed he was.

Organizing the Federal Government Washington took the oath of office as the first U.S. president on April 30, 1789.

From then on, what the Constitution and its system of checks and balances

actually meant in practice would be determined from day to day by the decisions of Congress as the legislative branch, the president as the head of the executive branch, and the Supreme Court as the top federal court in the judicial branch.

Executive Departments As chief executive, Washington’s first task was to organize new departments of the executive (law-enforcing) branch.

The Constitution authorizes the president to appoint chiefs of departments, although they must be confirmed, or approved, by the Senate. Washington appointed four heads of departments: Thomas Jefferson as secretary of state, Alexander Hamilton as secretary of the treasury, Henry Knox as secretary of

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war, and Edmund Randolph as attorney general. These four men formed a cabinet of advisers with whom President Washington met regularly to discuss major policy issues. Today, presidents still meet with their cabinets to obtain advice and information.

Federal Court System The only federal court mentioned in the Constitution is the Supreme Court. Congress, however, was given the power to create other federal courts with lesser powers and to determine the number of justices making up the Supreme Court. One of Congress’ first laws was the Judiciary Act of 1789, which established a Supreme Court with one chief justice and five associate justices. This highest court was empowered to rule on the constitutionality of decisions made by state courts. The act also provided for a system of 13 district courts and three circuit courts of appeals.

Hamilton’s Financial Program One of the most pressing problems faced by Congress under the Articles had been the government’s financial difficulties. Alexander Hamilton, secretary of the treasury, presented to Congress a plan for putting U.S. finances on a stable foundation. Hamilton’s plan included three main actions. (1) Pay off the national debt at face value and have the federal government assume the war debts of the states. (2) Protect the young nation’s “infant” (new and developing) industries and collect adequate revenues at the same time by imposing high tariffs on imported goods. (3) Create a national bank for depositing government funds and printing banknotes that would provide the basis for a stable U.S. currency.

Support for this program came chiefly from northern merchants, who would gain directly from high tariffs and a stabilized currency.

Opponents of Hamilton’s financial plan included the Anti-Federalists, who feared that the states would lose power to the extent that the central government gained it. Thomas Jefferson led a faction of southern Anti-Federalists who viewed Hamilton’s program as benefiting only the rich at the expense of indebted farmers. After political wrangling and bargaining, Congress finally adopted Hamilton’s plan in slightly modified form. For example, the tariffs were not as high as Hamilton wanted.

Debt Jefferson and his supporters agreed to Hamilton’s insistence that the U.S. government pay off the national debt at face value and assume payment of the war debts of the states. In return for Jefferson’s support on this aspect of his plan, Hamilton agreed to Jefferson’s idea for the nation’s capital to be in the south along the Potomac River (an area that, after Washington’s death, would be named Washington, D.C.).

National Bank Jefferson argued that the Constitution did not give Congress the power to create a bank. But Hamilton took a broader view of the Constitution, arguing that the document’s “necessary and proper” clause authorized Congress to do whatever was necessary to carry out its enumerated powers. Washington supported Hamilton on the issue, and the proposed bank was voted into law. Although chartered by the federal government, the Bank

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of the United States was privately owned. As a major shareholder of the bank, the federal government could print paper currency and use federal deposits to stimulate business.

Foreign Affairs Under Washington Washington’s first term as president (1789–1793) coincided with the outbreak of revolution in France, a cataclysmic event that was to touch off a series of wars between the new French Republic and the monarchies of Europe. Washington’s entire eight years as president, as well as the four years of his successor, John Adams, were taken up with the question of whether to give U.S. support to France, France’s enemies, or neither side.

French Revolution Americans generally supported the French people’s aspiration to establish a republic, but many were also horrified by reports of mob hysteria and mass executions. To complicate matters, the U.S.–French alliance remained in effect, although it was an alliance with the French monarchy, not with the revolutionary republic. Jefferson and his supporters sympathized with the revolutionary cause. They also argued that because Britain was seizing American merchant ships bound for French ports, the United States should join France in its defensive war against Britain.

Proclamation of Neutrality (1793) Washington, however, believed that the young nation was not strong enough to engage in a European war. Resisting popular clamor, in 1793 he issued a proclamation of U.S. neutrality in the conflict.

Jefferson resigned from the cabinet in disagreement with Washington’s policy.

“Citizen” Genêt Objecting to Washington’s policy, “Citizen” Edmond Genêt, the French minister to the United States, broke all the rules of diplomacy by appealing directly to the American people to support the French cause. So outrageous was his conduct, even Jefferson approved of Washington’s request to the French government that they remove Genêt. Recalled by his government, Genêt chose to remain in the United States, where he married and became a U.S. citizen.

The Jay Treaty (1794) with Great Britain Washington sent Chief Justice John Jay on a special mission to Britain to talk about two issues. One was Britain’s continued occupation of posts on the U.S. western frontier. The other was Britain’s offensive practice of searching and seizing American ships and impressing seamen into the British navy. After a year of negotiations, Jay brought back a treaty in which Britain agreed to evacuate its posts but included nothing about impressment. Narrowly ratified by the Senate, the unpopular Jay Treaty angered American supporters of France, but it did maintain Washington’s policy of neutrality, which kept the United States at peace.

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The Pinckney Treaty (1795) with Spain Totally unexpected was the effect that the Jay Treaty had on Spain’s policy toward its territories in the Americas. Seeing the treaty as a sign that the United States might be drawing closer to Spain’s longtime foe Britain, Spain decided to consolidate its holdings in North America. The Spanish influence in the Far West had been strengthened by a series of Catholic missions along the California coast, but they were concerned about their colonies in the southeast. Thomas Pinckney, the U.S. minister to Spain, negotiated a treaty with these provisions:

• Spain opened the lower Mississippi River and New Orleans to American trade.

• The right of deposit was granted to Americans so that they could transfer cargoes in New Orleans without paying duties to the Spanish government.

• Spain accepted the U.S. claim that Florida’s northern boundary should be at the 31st parallel (not north of that line, as Spain had formerly insisted).

Domestic Concerns under Washington In addition to coping with foreign challenges, stabilizing the nation’s credit, and organizing the new government, Washington faced a number of domestic problems and crises.

PINKNEY’S TREATY, 1795

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American Indians Through the final decades of the 18th century, settlers crossed the Alleghenies and moved the frontier steadily westward into the Ohio Valley and beyond. In an effort to resist the settlers’ encroachment on their

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lands, a number of the tribes formed the Northwest (or Western) Confederacy.

The Shawnee, Delaware, Iroquois, and other tribes allied under the Miami war chief Little Turtle. Initially, they won a series of bloody victories over the settler militias.

In some cases, the British were supplying the American Indians with arms and encouraging them to attack the settlers. Hearing this incensed the Americans. In 1794, the U.S. army, led by General Anthony Wayne, defeated the Confederacy tribes at the Battle of Fallen Timbers in northwestern Ohio. The next year, the chiefs of the defeated peoples agreed to the Treaty of Greenville, in which they surrendered claims to the Ohio Territory and promised to open it up to settlement.

The Whiskey Rebellion (1794) Hamilton, to make up the revenue lost because tariffs were lower than he wanted, persuaded Congress to pass excise taxes, particularly on the sale of whiskey. In western Pennsylvania, the refusal of a group of farmers to pay the federal tax on whiskey seemed to pose a major challenge to the viability of the U.S. government under the Constitution. The rebelling farmers could ill afford to pay a tax on the whiskey that they distilled from surplus corn. Rather than pay the tax, they defended their “liberties” by attacking the revenue collectors.

Washington responded to this crisis by federalizing 15,000 state militia and placing them under the command of Alexander Hamilton. The show of force had its intended effects. The Whiskey Rebellion collapsed with almost no bloodshed and the federal government solidified its authority. Some Americans applauded Washington’s action, contrasting it with the previous government’s helplessness to do anything about Shays’s Rebellion. Among westerners, however, the military action was widely resented and condemned as an unwarranted use of force against the common people. The government’s chief critic, Thomas Jefferson, gained in popularity as a champion of western farmers.

Western Lands In the 1790s, the Jay Treaty and the victory at the Battle of Fallen Timbers gave the federal government control of vast tracts of land.

Congress encouraged the rapid settlement of these lands by passing the Public Land Act in 1796, which established orderly procedures for dividing and selling federal lands at moderate prices. The process for adding new states to the Union, as set forth in the Constitution, went smoothly. While the first new state was in New England (Vermont in 1791), the next two reflected the country’s push westward: Kentucky in 1792 and Tennessee in 1796.

The First Political Parties Washington’s election by unanimous vote of the Electoral College in 1789 underscored the popular belief that political parties were not needed. The Constitution itself did not mention political parties, and the framers assumed none would arise. They were soon proven wrong. The debates between Federalists and Anti-Federalists in 1787 and 1788 were the first indication that a two-party system would emerge as a core feature of American politics.

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Origins In colonial times, groups of legislators commonly formed temporary factions and voted together either for or against a specific policy. When an issue was settled, the factions would dissolve. The dispute between Federalists and Anti-Federalists over the ratification of the Constitution closely resembled the factional disputes of an earlier period. What was unusual about this conflict was that it was organized—at least by the Federalists—across state lines and in that sense prefigured the national parties that emerged soon afterward.

In the 1790s, sometimes called the Federalist era because it was dominated largely by Federalist policies, political parties began to form around two leading figures, Hamilton and Jefferson. The Federalist Party supported Hamilton and his financial program. In opposition, the Democratic-Republican Party supported Jefferson and tried to elect candidates in different states who opposed Hamilton’s program. The French Revolution further solidified the formation of national political parties. Americans divided sharply over whether to support France. A large number followed Jefferson’s lead in openly challenging President Washington’s neutrality policy.

Differences Between the Parties The Federalists were strongest in the northeastern states and advocated the growth of federal power. The Democratic-Republicans were strongest in the southern states and on the western frontier and argued for states’ rights. By 1796, the two major political parties were taking shape and becoming better organized. In that year, President Washington announced that he intended to retire to private life at the end of his second term.

COMPARISON OF FEDERALIST AND DEMOCRATIC-REPUBLICAN PARTIES

Trait Federalists Democratic-Republicans

Leaders • John Adams • Alexander Hamilton • Thomas Jefferson • James Madison

View of the Constitution • Interpret loosely • Create a strong central government

• Interpret strictly • Create a weak central government

Foreign Policy • Pro-British • Pro-French

Military Policy • Develop a large peacetime army and navy • Develop a small peacetime army and navy

Economic Policy • Aid business • Create a national bank • Support high tariffs

• Favor agriculture • Oppose a national bank • Oppose high tariffs

Chief Supporters • Northern business owners • Large landowners • Skilled workers • Small farmers • Plantation owners

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Washington’s Farewell Address Assisted by Alexander Hamilton, the retiring president wrote a speech known as his Farewell Address for publication in the newspapers in late 1796. This message had enormous influence because of Washington’s prestige. The president spoke against policies and practices that he considered unwise:

• Do not get involved in European affairs.

• Do not make “permanent alliances” in foreign affairs.

• Do not form political parties.

• Do not fall into sectionalism.

For the next century, future presidents would mostly heed Washington’s first two warnings against foreign entanglements. However, in the case of political parties, Washington was already behind the times. By the time he spoke, political parties were well on their way to becoming a vital part of the American political system and sectional differences were growing stronger.

One long-term consequence of Washington’s decision to leave office after two terms was that later presidents followed his example. Presidents elected to two terms (including Jefferson, Madison, Monroe, and Jackson) would voluntarily retire even though the Constitution placed no limit on a president’s tenure in office. The two-term tradition continued unbroken until 1940 when Franklin Roosevelt won election to a third term. Then, the 22nd Amendment, ratified in 1951, made the two-term limit a part of the Constitution.

John Adams’ Presidency Even as Washington was writing his Farewell Address, political parties were working to gain majorities in the two houses of Congress and to line up enough electors from the various states to elect the next president. The vice president, John Adams, was the Federalists’ candidate, while former secretary of state Thomas Jefferson was the choice of the Democratic-Republicans.

Adams won by three electoral votes. Jefferson became vice president, since the original Constitution gave that office to the candidate receiving the second highest number of electoral votes. (Since the ratification of the 12th Amendment in 1804, the president and vice president have run as a team.)

The XYZ Affair Troubles abroad related to the French Revolution presented Adams with the first major challenge of his presidency. Americans were angered that French warships and privateers were seizing U.S. merchant ships. Seeking a peaceful settlement, Adams sent a delegation to Paris to negotiate with the French government. Certain French ministers, known only as X, Y, and Z because their names were never revealed, requested bribes as the basis for entering into negotiations. The American delegates indignantly refused. Newspaper reports of the demands made by X, Y, and Z infuriated many Americans, who now clamored for war against France. “Millions for defense, but not one cent for tribute” became the slogan of the hour. One faction

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of the Federalist Party, led by Alexander Hamilton, hoped that by going to war the United States could gain French and Spanish lands in North America.

President Adams, on the other hand, resisted the popular sentiment for war. Recognizing that the U.S. Army and Navy were not yet strong enough to fight a major power, the president avoided war and sent new ministers to Paris.

The Alien and Sedition Acts Anger against France strengthened the Federalists in the congressional elections of 1798 enough to win a majority in both houses. The Federalists took advantage of their victory by enacting laws to restrict their political opponents, the Democratic-Republicans. For example, since most immigrants voted Democratic-Republican, the Federalists passed the Naturalization Act, which increased from 5 to 14 the years required for immigrants to qualify for U.S. citizenship. They also passed the Alien Acts, which authorized the president to deport aliens considered dangerous and to detain enemy aliens in time of war. Most seriously, they passed the Sedition

Act, which made it illegal for newspaper editors to criticize either the president or Congress and imposed fines or imprisonment for editors who violated the law.

The Kentucky and Virginia Resolutions Democratic-Republicans argued that the Alien and Sedition Acts violated rights guaranteed by the 1st Amendment of the Constitution. In 1799, however, the Supreme Court had not yet established the principle of judicial review, the idea that the court could overturn a law that it found in conflict with the Constitution (see Topic 4.2).

Democratic-Republican leaders challenged the legislation of the Federalist Congress by enacting nullifying laws of their own in the state legislatures. The Kentucky legislature adopted a resolution that had been written by Thomas Jefferson, and the Virginia legislature adopted a resolution introduced by James Madison. Both resolutions declared that the states had entered into a “compact” in forming the national government. Therefore, if any act of the federal government broke the compact, a state could nullify the federal law.

Although only Kentucky and Virginia adopted nullifying resolutions in 1799, they set forth an argument and rationale that would be widely used in the nullification controversy of the 1830s (see Topic 4.8).

The immediate crisis over the Alien and Sedition Acts faded when the Federalists lost control of Congress after the election of 1800, and the Democratic-Republican majority allowed the acts to expire or repealed them.

Further, in 1803, the Supreme Court under Chief Justice John Marshall asserted its power in deciding whether federal laws were constitutional.

REFLECT ON THE LEARNING OBJECTIVE

1. Explain how and why disagreements deepened struggles among peoples and nations from 1754 to 1800.

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KEY TERMS BY THEME

Disputes (WXT) national bank

New Republic (POL) executive departments Henry Knox Edmund Randolph cabinet Supreme Court federal courts Judiciary Act (1789) national debt Federalist era

Federalist Party Democratic-Republican Party political parties two-term tradition John Adams Founders (NAT, SOC) Washington’s Farewell Address “permanent alliances” Alien and Sedition Acts Kentucky and Virginia Resolutions

Expansion (MIG, POL) Battle of Fallen Timbers Treaty of Greenville Public Land Act (1796)

Foreign Affairs (WOR) French Revolution Proclamation of Neutrality

(1793) “Citizen” Genêt Jay Treaty (1794) Pinckney Treaty (1795) right of deposit xYz Affair

MULTIPLE-CHOICE QUESTIONS

Questions 1-3 refer to the following excerpt.

“Friends and Fellow Citizens: I should now apprise you of the resolution I have formed to decline being considered among the number of those out of whom a choice is to be made. . . .

I have already intimated to you the danger of parties . . . with particular reference to . . . geographical discriminations. . . .

Let it simply be asked—where is the security for property, for reputation, for life, if the sense of religious obligation desert the oaths. . . .

As a very important source of strength and security, cherish public credit . . . avoiding likewise the accumulation of debt . . . which unavoidable wars may have occasioned . . . in mind that toward the payment of debt there must be . . . taxes. . . .

By interweaving our destiny with that of any part of Europe, [we] entangle our peace and prosperity in the toils of European ambition, rivalship, interest, humor, or caprice. . . . It is our true policy to steer clear of permanent alliances with any portion of the foreign world.”

George Washington, Farewell Address, 1796

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1. One of the primary reasons Washington and others warned against political parties was concern about (A) damage to the national reputation (B) divisive sectionalism (C) rights of property owners (D) unavoidable wars

2. One of the outcomes of the Farewell Address was (A) the two-party system (B) the precedent of a two-term limit (C) the first presidential library (D) the beginning of greater U.S. involvement overseas

3. Which of the following developments during Washington’s presidency most likely had a direct impact on the views he expressed in the excerpt? (A) The status of American Indians (B) The creation of a federal court system (C) The Proclamation of Neutrality (D) The National Bank

SHORT-ANSWER QUESTION

Use complete sentences; an outline or bulleted list alone is not acceptable.

1. Answer (a), (b), and (c). (a) Briefly explain ONE historical event or development in the period

1789 to 1800 that is an example of the American foreign policy of avoiding war. (b) Briefly explain ONE positive or negative result in the period 1789 to

1800 of the American foreign policy of avoiding war. (c) Briefly explain how ONE person or group in the U.S. in the period

1789 to 1800 challenged the United States government’s foreign policy.

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TOPIC 3.11 DEVELOPING AN AMERICAN IDENTITY

Topic 3.11

Developing an American Identity

The American is a new man, who acts upon new principles; he must therefore entertain new ideas, and form new opinions.

J. Hector St. John Crèvecoeur, Letters from an American Farmer, 1782

Learning Objective: Explain the continuities and changes in American culture from 1754 to 1800.

A truly unique American identity would take at least a generation, if not more, to became clearly established and recognized. Admiration of the influence of the “founding fathers,” the leaders who declared independence, fought a war to achieve it, and created a new system of government, became the core of an American identity which continues today. A clear example of this influence is demonstrated by the actions of George Washington. His Farewell Address (Topic

3.10) and two-term tradition as president retain their relevancy in varying degrees today. That people still debate the meaning of the founding fathers’ words and ideas reflects their importance in understanding the United States and its people, then and now. In the process of forging an identity, Americans retained much of their ancestors’ culture and traditions. The evolving identity would be built on the foundation of the people and culture of the 13 colonies (Topic 2.7), formed by the thought and experience of the Revolution (Topics 3.4 and 3.6), and enlarged by regional differences (Topic 2.3) and the ongoing additions of immigrants.

Social Change In addition to revolutionizing the politics of the 13 states, the War for Independence also profoundly changed American society. Some changes occurred immediately before the war ended, while others evolved gradually as the ideas of the Revolution began to filter into the attitudes of the common people. Together, these changes fostered growing awareness of how the United States was different from Great Britain and the rest of Europe.

Abolition of Aristocratic Titles State constitutions and laws abolished old institutions that had originated in medieval Europe. No legislature could grant titles of nobility, nor could any court recognize the feudal practice of primogeniture (the first-born son’s right to inherit his family’s property).

Whatever aristocracy existed in colonial America was further weakened by the confiscation of large estates owned by Loyalists. Many such estates were subdivided and sold to raise money for the war.

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Separation of Church and State Most states adopted the principle of separation of church and state. In other words, they refused to give financial support to any religious group. The Anglican Church (which became known as the Episcopal Church in the United States) formerly had been closely tied to the king’s government. However, it was disestablished (lost state support) in the south. Only in three New England states—New Hampshire, Connecticut, and Massachusetts—did the Congregational Church continue to receive state support in the form of a religious tax. This practice was finally discontinued in New England early in the 1830s.

Regional Variations As the example of church-state separation shows, all of the states did not change at the same time. The regional differences that emerged in the colonial period continued to shape how the states evolved.

The term “southerner” had entered common usage in the 1780s. The biggest difference was in slavery. While slavery continued to decline in northern states, it became stronger than ever in southern states.

Visitors also noticed differences in how people acted. In 1785, Jefferson wrote to a friend in France that an observant visitor could determine the line of latitude simply by paying attention to the character of the people in the area. In general, said Jefferson, northerners were more serious and persevering in their work, while southerners were more generous and forthright in their speech.

Political Change The development of political parties (Topic 3.10) both added to and reflected the American identity. The distinctions between the two initial parties, the Federalist and Democratic-Republican, had their origins in the debate between Federalists and Anti-Federalists over the ratification of the Constitution. These distinctions matured largely based on regional differences and distinct views of the roles, functions, and powers of the federal government. The evolution of political parties continues today, as does the distinctiveness of an American identity.

The Great Seal includes symbols that represent the United States. For example, the stars represent the 13 original states, the olive branch represents a desire for peace, and the arrows represent a readiness to go to war. The white stripes represent purity, the red stripes represent courage, and the blue field represents vigilance.

Source: U.S. Government. Wikipedia.org.

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TOPIC 3.11 DEVELOPING AN AMERICAN IDENTITY

Cultural Change While much of the nation’s culture reflected its British origins, gradually a distinctive national identity evolved. This change was facilitated by the expansion of newspapers in the late 1700s as a means of communication and a source for political discussion. Writer Charles Brockden Brown explored the meaning of an American identity through novels. In Philadelphia, Charles Wilson Peale opened what is recognized as the first art gallery. In the 1790s, Pierre-Charles L’Enfant developed the design for Washington, D.C., Gilbert Stuart painted the nation’s leaders, and the American Academy of Fine Arts held its first exhibition. Later, developments such as the first dictionary for American English and a book on American geography would continue the process of creating a distinctive culture.

REFLECT ON THE LEARNING OBJECTIVE

1. Explain what stayed the same and what was altered in American culture in the period from 1754 to 1800.

KEY TERMS BY THEME

Culture (ARC) Charles Wilson Peale Pierre-Charles L’Enfant Gilbert Stuart

MULTIPLE-CHOICE QUESTIONS

Questions 1-2 refer to the following excerpt.

“Friends, what then is the American, this new man? He is either a European, or the descendant of a European, hence that strange mixture of blood, which you will find in no other country. I could point out to you a family whose grandfather was an Englishman, whose wife was Dutch, whose son married a Frenchwoman, and whose present four sons have now four wives of different nations.

He is an American, who leaving behind him all his ancient prejudices and manners, receives new ones from the new mode of life he has embraced, the new government he obeys, and the new rank he holds. He becomes an American by being received in the broad lap of our great alma mater. Here individuals of all nations are melted into a new race of men, whose labors and posterity will one day cause great changes in the world. . . .

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The American is a new man, who acts upon new principles; he must therefore entertain new ideas and form new opinions. From involuntary idleness, servile dependence, penury [poverty], and useless labor he has passed to toils of a very different nature, rewarded by ample subsistence— this is an American.”

J. Hector St. John Crèvecoeur, Letters from an American Farmer, 1782

1. The clearest way to modify or refute the answer given in the excerpt to the question, “What then is the American, this new man?” would be to point out the important role of (A) the enslaved African Americans who worked on plantations (B) the leaders who wrote the Constitution (C) the development of political parties (D) the ideas in Washington’s Farewell Address

2. Which of the following groups best represents the change described in the last sentence of the excerpt? (A) American Indians who lived in the region before Europeans arrived (B) Puritans who settled in Massachusetts Bay in the 17th century (C) Indentured servants who became free after working for a master for several years (D) Elected leaders who served in legislative bodies during the colonial period

SHORT-ANSWER QUESTION

Use complete sentences; an outline or bulleted list alone is not acceptable.

1. Answer (a), (b), and (c). (a) Briefly explain ONE specific historical difference between the cultural life in the American colonies under British rule and life in the newly independent United States. (b) Briefly explain ONE specific historical similarity between the cultural life in the American colonies under British rule and life in the newly independent United States. (c) Briefly explain how ONE legal change impacted the cultural life of the colonies and the United States in the period 1754 to 1800.

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TOPIC 3.12 MOVEMENT IN THE EARLY REPUBLIC

Topic 3.12

Movement in the Early Republic

I have long since given up the expectation of any early provision for getting in the extinguishment of slavery among us.

Thomas Jefferson letter to William Burwell, 1805

Learning Objective 1: Explain how and why migration and immigration to and within North America caused competition and conflict over time.

Learning Objective 2: Explain the continuities and changes in regional attitudes about slavery as it expanded from 1754 to 1800.

The founding of the Republic increased the movement of people, mainly westward. The uncertainties of rebellion and war had ended. With peace and the removal of British control came a re-ordering of government and life. At the same time, however, hostile forces remained on the borders of the new nation. The British to the north and west, and the Spanish to the south and west, both threatened the young country’s existence. In addition, both within and on the borders lived Native Americans who resented the expansion of European settlers onto their lands.

Migration and Settlement The people who moved west, whether they were born in America or came as free immigrants or indentured servants or enslaved Africans, faced a range of forces, both friendly and hostile. This movement was recognized and accepted from the very beginning of the nation. The Northwest Ordinance (Topic

3.7), enacted under the Articles of Confederation, provided a mechanism for migration and settlement. It planned for the sale of government land, an orderly adoption of western territory into new states, public education, and outlawed slavery in the territory. While the government had foreseen migration, it still could not eliminate the disputes and conflicts that developed.

American Indians By the end of the 18th century, Native Americans found themselves losing conflicts with settlers. As a result, they were increasingly either living on reservations or forced to migrate west.

Laws In 1790, the Indian Intercourse Act was one of the first laws passed by the new nation. The act placed the federal government in control of all legal

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actions with Native Americans. Only the federal government, not the states, could purchase their land and regulate any trade and traveling over their lands.

These laws were largely ignored by the traders and settlers migrating westward.

Resistance While the settlers ignored laws and treaties intended to maintain peace with the American Indians, the government usually supported the settlers when disputes turned violent. For example, in the Northwest Territory in the 1790s, a confederation of Shawnee and other American Indians twice successfully defeated government troops. In response, a larger government force defeated the confederation at the Battle of Fallen Timbers in what is today northwestern Ohio (Topic 3.10). The American Indian position was further weakened in this area as the British, who had supported them, gradually closed the trading forts that they had maintained there in the years immediately following the Revolution.

West of the Mississippi Migration was a survivable option for many tribes.

They faced overwhelming force, fatal foreign diseases, and the destruction of their hunting grounds depriving them of food and furs to trade. Some did remain where their ancestors had settled. They were unwilling to leave their traditional lands despite being surrounded by hostile settlers. The Iroquois stayed on reservations or moved north to Canada. Many, including the Shawnee in the north and Cherokees further south (Topic 4.8), moved across the Mississippi River. These journeys were perilous as those tribes native to the west resisted these incursions into their traditional lands.

The Southern Frontier Further south, near New Orleans and in Florida, the Spanish were primarily concerned with stopping the incursion of settlers from the United States. As a result, they allowed Native Americans more freedom.

NEW STATES IN THE UNION, 1791 TO 1803

200 kilometers

200 miles

OHIO

(1803)

VERMONT

(1791)

KENTUCKY

(1792)

TENNESSEE

(1796)

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O C E A N

L. Erie

L. Ontario

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TOPIC 3.12 MOVEMENT IN THE EARLY REPUBLIC

Population Change The population increased for several reasons.

• Europeans continued to immigrate to the United States, but in small numbers. The flow increased or decreased in reaction to political and economic upheavals in Europe.

• Enslaved Africans continued to be brought into the country. Slaveowners recognized that the Constitution allowed this trade to end after 1808.

• The largest population gain was natural, as births exceeded deaths.

The high birth rate was tied to a plentiful food supply and the desire of families to have children who could help on the farms.

The westward movement was aided by scouts and early settlers who blazed trails through the wilderness for others to follow. Men such as the legendary Daniel Boone led the way across the Appalachian Mountains and established the early White settlements in the old northwest.

Slavery By the late 18th century, some people openly opposed slavery. Many of these were Quakers, Mennonites, or other people motivated by their Christian faith.

Some were influenced by the Enlightenment ideals about equality and liberty.

They saw no place for slavery in a democratic republic. In addition, many people, including slaveowners such as James Madison, disliked slavery, hoping it would fade away as it had in Europe and was beginning to do in parts of Latin America. They believed that increasing immigration would provide low-cost free labor to replace enslaved workers.

Cotton Slavery, though, grew rather than declined beginning in 1793. In that year, Eli Whitney invented the cotton gin, a device for separating cotton fiber from the seeds. This turned a slow, costly process into a quick, inexpensive one. The change transformed the agriculture of the south. Suddenly, growing cotton became immensely profitable and the demand for enslaved African Americans increased dramatically.

Mechanization of the textile industry also increased the value of cotton. The British were the first to mechanize. To protect their advantage, they passed laws against taking knowledge of their factory designs outside the country. However, a young apprentice named Samuel Slater broke the British law. He memorized a factory design, moved to the United States, and built his own factory. This launched the a new, more efficient textile industry in the United States.

The combination of the cotton gin and mechanization of the textile industry made cotton cloth less expensive and more plentiful than ever before.

The production of cotton goods became a potent global industry.

Conflict Over Expansion of Slavery Within the United States, plantation owners eager to increase cotton production based on enslave labor looked westward for more land. After 1800, they quickly settled in Alabama and

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Mississippi, which each had excellent climate and geography for growing cotton. However, their desire for lands farther west and north would soon face resistance. The growing number of northerners who opposed slavery or who hoped to settle these land themselves without competition from enslaved workers reflected an increasing regional conflict over slavery.

The Movements of Enslaved African Americans Some enslaved people were able to escape bondage. They might find liberty by reaching a free state in the north, although the Constitution included a clause that required states to return fugitives to their owners. Some went to Canada. More settled in land controlled by Indians or in Florida, which belonged to Spain until 1821.

Most enslaved people who moved did so because of their owners’ search for greater profits. By the 1790s, the Chesapeake area planters had more enslaved people than they wanted. A decline in the uncertain tobacco market combined with a growing enslaved population through natural increases and expanded importation created a surplus of enslaved people. Efforts to train enslaved people in skilled trades or lease them as servants in the growing cities did not meet the owners’ financial desires. In addition, moving enslaved people from the fields to towns, where they could more easily board boats and carriages, added to the risk of people escaping to freedom in the north.

The growing demand for workers in cotton fields provided Chesapeake planters a new opportunity. They could sell their enslaved African Americans to cotton planters in newly settled lands farther south and west, such as Alabama and Mississippi. This interregional slave trade became very large, with between 500,000 and 1 million people transported before the Civil War began in 1861.

This trade was particularly cruel because it often broke families apart. Many of the enslaved people who were sold never saw their parents, children, or other relatives again.

STATES WITH AT LEAST 20 PERCENT OF PEOPLE ENSLAVED, 1790

State White Free Nonwhite Enslaved Percent Enslaved

Maryland

208,649

8,043

103,036 32

Virginia

442,117

12,866

292,627 39

North Carolina

140,178

4,975

100,572 25

South Carolina

140,178

1,801

107,094 43

Georgia

52,886 398

29,264 35

Source: U.S. Census, 1790

REFLECT ON THE LEARNING OBJECTIVE

1. Explain the reasons and ways the movement to and within North America caused rivalries and clashes during this period.

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TOPIC 3.12 MOVEMENT IN THE EARLY REPUBLIC

KEY TERMS BY THEME

Expansion (MIG, POL) Northwest Ordinance Indian Intercourse Act

Battle of Fallen Timbers Daniel Boone Slave industry (MIG,

WXT) Eli Whitney cotton gin

MULTIPLE-CHOICE QUESTIONS

Questions 1–3 refer to the following excerpt.

“ARTICLE I. No person demeaning himself in a peaceable and orderly manner shall ever be molested on account of his mode of worship or religious sentiments…

ARTICLE II. The inhabitants of said territory shall always be entitled to the benefits of the writs of habeas corpus and the trial by jury…

ARTICLE III. Religion, morality, and knowledge being necessary to good government and the happiness of mankind, schools and the means of education shall forever be encouraged. The utmost good faith shall always be observed toward the Indians; their lands and property shall never be taken from them without their consent…

ARTICLE IV. The said Territory, and the states which may be formed therein, shall forever remain a part of this Confederacy of the United States of America…

ARTICLE VI. There shall be neither slavery nor involuntary servitude in the said territory.

Northwest Ordinance, July 13, 1787

1. Which of the following processes provided the best model for how the principles expressed in Article III could work? (A) The treatment of the Aztecs by the Spanish in the 16th century (B) The negotiations between American Indians and colonists in Pennsylvania in the 17th century (C) The relationship between American Indians and settlers in New England in the 17th century (D) The reaction by colonists to the line created by the British in the Proclamation of 1763

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2. Articles I and II most closely reflected ideas expressed in which of the following documents? (A) Declaration of Independence (B) Articles of Confederation (C) Constitution as ratified (D) Bill of Rights

3. The Northwest Ordinance established both an immediate and long-lasting process for which of the following? (A) Methods for reaching agreements among states (B) Policies toward American Indians (C) Formation of new states (D) Procedures to end slavery

SHORT-ANSWER QUESTION

Use complete sentences; an outline or bulleted list alone is not acceptable.

1. “Sir, suffer me to recall to your mind that time, in which the arms and tyranny of the British crown were exerted. . . .

This, Sir, was a time when you clearly saw into the injustice of a State of slavery . . . that you publicly held forth this true and invaluable doctrine. . . . ‘We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal; that they are endowed by their Creator with certain inalienable rights. . . .’

But, Sir, how pitiable is it to reflect, that although you were so fully convinced of the benevolence of the Father of Mankind, and of his equal and impartial distribution of these rights and privileges, which he hath conferred upon them, that you should at the same time counteract his mercies, in detaining by fraud and violence so numerous a part of my brethren, under groaning captivity, and cruel oppression.”

Benjamin Banneker, African American scientist and surveyor, letter to Secretary of State Thomas Jefferson, 1792

Using the excerpt, answer (a), (b), and (c). (a) Briefly explain ONE specific reason for Banneker’s letter to Jefferson. (b) Briefly explain ONE critic’s response to Banneker’s position. (c) Briefly explain ONE specific way Thomas Jefferson might have responded to Banneker’s questions about slavery.

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TOPIC 3.13 CONTINUITY AND CHANGE IN PERIOD 3

Topic 3.13

Continuity and Change in Period 3

Learning Objective: Explain how the American independence movement affected society from 1754 to 1800.

The reasoning skill of “Continuity and Change” is the suggested focus for evaluating this period. As explained in the contextualization for Period 3, there are many factors to consider in the topic of the American independence movement’s effects on society and the national identity. A reasonable argument to explain the effects of independence on society requires one to examine the relevant historical evidence.

On the AP exam, a question may be focused on any one factor such as the impact of the ideas that stimulated independence on new values dealing with politics, religion, and society. In response, one would have to present specific historical evidence of a change in values, such as the expansion of rights to include recognition of a new role for women including Republican Motherhood. At the same time, evidence also supports a continuity of values in that a woman’s status was still considered inferior to men.

This period includes many examples of continuity and change in religion, commerce, foreign policy, politics, civil liberties, and relations between White Americans and Native Americans. After the United States won independence, state support for churches declined but religious fervor remained strong. One could also cite historical evidence to argue that the independence movement did not always bring change. The generally hostile attitudes of the settlers toward Native Americans continued and government legal efforts to maintain peace failed, just as they had under British rule.

QUESTIONS ABOUT CONTINUITY AND CHANGE

Use the questions below to make a historically defensible claim.

1. Explain the extent to which the ideas that inspired the revolution changed society while maintaining much of British culture. For example, people examined women’s role in society more closely while they continued to follow traditional British religious practices.

2. Explain how the independence efforts supported efforts to protect individual freedoms while still continuing to limit some rights. For example, view how the Bill of Rights protected individuals while at the same time the government continued to limit the right to vote.

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THINK AS A HISTORIAN: DEVELOPMENTS AND PROCESSES

To analyze historical evidence, you must be able to identify historical ideas and then explain them. Identifying a historical idea is fairly simple. You just say what it is.

The idea you identify may fall into one of three categories. • Historical concept: This is the broadest category. A concept can be an idea or a general understanding of something. Colonization, religious toleration, and salutary neglect are examples of concepts.

• Historical development: A development is a change or occurrence. For instance, you have learned about the development of an economic and cultural system within each colony. Also, you have learned about the development of the slave trade and the development of a U.S. national identity.

• Historical process: A process is a series of actions or events that lead to an end. You have already learned about the political process. You have also learned about the processes of adding new states to the Union and the process of harvesting cotton.

Historians do much more than identify concepts, developments, and processes.

They also explain them. This means describing what it is and how it works, and perhaps providing one or more examples.

An AP® exam might include multiple-choice questions that require you to identify the best example of a historical concept, development, or processes.

The short-answer and long-answer questions will also require explanations of historical ideas. Improving your skills at identifying and explaining will help you on the AP® exams, as well as in other courses. Beyond school, they are two of the most basic, commonly used skills in work and everyday life. • For each text section below, identify a concept, development, or process in that section. Then explain it.

1. “Conflicting Views of Government,” pages 84–85: development

2. “The First Three Wars,” pages 86–87: development

3. “British Actions and Colonial Reactions,” page 92: concept

4. “New Revenues and Regulations,” pages 93–94: process

5. “Enlightenment Ideas,” pages 100–101: concept

6. “Political Demands,” page 112: concept

7. “The Path to Ratification,” page 127: process

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UNIT 3 — PERIOD 3 REVIEW: 1754–1800

UNIT 3 — Period 3 Review:

1754–1800

WRITE AS A HISTORIAN: ANALYZE THE QUESTION

As you have read, the first stage in writing a long essay is to carefully read and analyze the question so you know exactly what the framework is for your response. (See pages xli–xlii.) In addition to surface-level analysis of the terms of the question, you also apply the thinking skill of analyzing historical developments and processes for a deeper understanding of the question.

Suppose, for example, you choose to answer the following long essay question: “Evaluate the extent to which economic factors in the period from 1763–1776 were the primary cause of the American Revolution.” For a surface level analysis, you could complete a chart like the one below.

For a deeper analysis of the question, use the thinking skill of analyzing historical developments and processes. Ask questions such as the following to arrive at a deeper understanding of the question.

In the next stage of writing, these questions will help you focus the evidence you gather to answer the question.

Application: Suppose you choose to answer the following long essay question: “Evaluate the extent to which economic factors in the period from 1763–1787 were the primary cause of the writing of the U.S. Constitution.” Complete a Key Terms and Framework chart for the question to understand the basic requirements of the task. Then create a Questions for Deeper Analysis chart to help you develop a more complex understanding of the question.

For current free-response question samples, visit: https://apcentral.collegeboard.org/ courses/ap-united-states-history/exam

Key Terms and Framework

Key Terms Evaluate, extent, economic factors, cause, American Revolution

Framework Geographic Areas: the 13 colonies Time Period: 1763–1776

Reasoning Process Causation

Questions for Deeper Analysis

• What were the elements of the economy in the 13 colonies? • How did regions of colonies develop different economic patterns? • What was the economic role of the colonies in the British Empire? • How British economic policies change after 1763? • Why did colonists and British leaders view the Seven Years’ War differently? • What non-economic factors contributed to the American Revolution?

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LONG ESSAY QUESTIONS

Directions: The suggested writing time for each question is 40 minutes. In your response you should do the following:

• Respond to the prompt with a historically defensible thesis or claim that establishes a line of reasoning.

• Describe a broader historical context relevant to the prompt.

• Support an argument in response to the prompt using specific and relevant examples of evidence.

• Use historical reasoning (e.g., comparison, causation, continuity or change) to frame or structure an argument that addresses the prompt.

• Use evidence to corroborate, qualify, or modify an argument that addresses the prompt.

1. Evaluate the extent to which economic factors in the period from 1763–

1776 were the primary cause of the American Revolution.

2. Evaluate the extent to which economic factors in the period from 1763–

1787 were the primary cause of the writing of the U.S. Constitution.

3. Evaluate the extent to which the leadership provided by the founding fathers during the period from 1763–1776 was the key to winning the Revolutionary War.

4. Evaluate the extent to which the leadership provided by the founding fathers during the period from 1763–1787 was the key to the successful ratification of the Constitution.

5. Evaluate the extent to which African Americans influenced the course of independence in the period from 1763–1781.

6. Evaluate the extent to which African Americans influenced the writing of the Constitution in the period from 1763–1787.

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UNIT 3 — PERIOD 3 REVIEW: 1754–1800

DOCUMENT-BASED QUESTION

Directions: Question 1 is based on the accompanying documents. The documents have been edited for the purpose of this exercise. You are advised to spend 15 minutes plan-ning and 45 minutes writing your answer. In your response you should do the following:

• Respond to the prompt with a historically defensible thesis or claim that establishes a line of reasoning.

• Describe a broader historical context relevant to the prompt.

• Support an argument in response to the prompt using at least six documents.

• Use at least one additional piece of specific historical evidence (beyond that found in the documents) relevant to an argument about the prompt.

• For at least three documents, explain how or why the document’s point of view, purpose, historical situation, and/or audience is relevant to an argument.

• Use evidence to corroborate, qualify, or modify an argument that addresses the prompt.

1. Evaluate the extent to which the opposition to taxation without representation was the primary force motivating the American revolutionary movement during the period 1763–1776.

Document 1

Source: Resolution of the Virginia House of Burgesses, 1764

Resolved, That a most humble and dutiful Address be presented to his Majesty, imploring his Royal Protection of his faithful Subjects, the People of this Colony, in the Enjoyment of all their natural and civil Rights, as Men, and as Descendants of Britons; which rights must be violated, if Laws respecting the internal Govern-ment, and Taxation of themselves, are imposed upon them by any other Power than that derived from their own Consent, by and with the Approbation of their Sovereign, or his Substitute.

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Document 2

Source: Resolutions of the Stamp Act Congress, 1765

Section 4. That the people of these colonies are not, and from their local circum-stances cannot be, represented in the House of Commons in Great-Britain.

Section 5. That the only representatives of the people of these colonies, are persons chosen therein by themselves, and that no taxes ever have been, or can be consti-tutionally imposed on them, but by their respective legislatures.

Document 3

Source: Daniel Dulany, Maryland lawyer, “Considerations on the Propriety of Imposing Taxes in the British Colonies,” 1765

A right to impose an internal tax on the colonies, without their consent for the single purpose of revenue, is denied, a right to regulate their trade without their consent is admitted.

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UNIT 3 — PERIOD 3 REVIEW: 1754–1800

UNIT 3 — PERIOD 3 REVIEW: 1754–1800

Document 4

Source: The Bostonians Paying the Excise (tax) Man, 1774

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Document 5

Source: Second Continental Congress, Declaration of the Causes and Necessity of Taking Up Arms, July 6, 1775

They [Parliament] have undertaken to give and grant our money without our consent, though we have ever exercised an exclusive right to dispose of our own property; statutes have been passed for extending the jurisdiction of courts of Admiralty and Vice-Admiralty beyond their ancient limits; for depriving us of the accustomed and inestimable privilege of trial by jury, in cases affecting both life and property; for suspending the legislature of one of the colonies; for interdicting all commerce to the capital of another; and for altering fundamentally the form of government established by charter, and secured by acts of its own legislature solemnly confirmed by the crown; for exempting the “murderers” of colonists from legal trial.

Document 6

Source: Thomas Paine, Common Sense, 1776

Small islands not capable of protecting themselves are the proper objects for king-doms to take under their care; but there is something very absurd in supposing a continent to be perpetually governed by an island. In no instance hath nature made the satellite larger than its primary planet; and as England and America, with respect to each other, reverse the common order of nature, it is evident that they belong to different systems. England to Europe: America to itself.

Document 7

Source: Petition of Seven Free Negroes to the Massachusetts Legislature in Protest of Taxation Without the Right to Vote, February 10, 1780

Petitioners farther sheweth that we apprehand ourselves to be Aggreeved, in that while we are not allowed the Privilage of freemen of the State having no vote or influence in the Election of those that Tax us yet many of our Colour (as is well known) have cheerfully Entered the field of Battle in the defence of the Common Cause and that (as we conceive) against a similar Exertion of Power (in Regard to taxation).

163 TOPIC 4.1 CONTExTUALIzING PERIOD 4

Topic 4.1

Contextualizing Period 4

Learning Objective: Explain the context in which the republic developed from 1800 to 1848.

In the first half of the 19th century, the young nation expanded economically, politically, and culturally. Economically this meant taking advantage of new lands, new forms of transportation, and new industries. Politically it meant allowing more people to participate directly in their democracy. Culturally it meant developing distinctively American expressions of literature and art. In 1826, in the midst of the years covered in this period, the young nation of the United States celebrated its 50th birthday with great optimism. The founders of the country were passing on, and a new generation was taking over leadership.

In this period, the leaders dealt with the challenges that accompanied the development of the young nation.

Independence had been declared, a Revolutionary War won, a Constitution written and ratified, and a new government established. Between 1800 and 1848, the United States went through rapid demographic, economic, and territorial growth as the new republic worked to define itself. In 1800, the country extended from the Atlantic Ocean to the Mississippi River. By 1848, it controlled territory all the way to the Pacific Ocean.

Reforms, Revivals, and Identity In response to this growth, the country reformed several institutions and practices. It expanded participation in political parties. By dropping property ownership as a requirement to vote, nearly all adult White males could cast ballots. By using nominating conventions, more people could help choose party candidates. More public school laws were enacted to educate the children. Reforms were made to prisons and asylums to make them more humane. A religious revival, an awakening, spread across the country. Much of this development of rights and reforms still excluded American Indians, African Americans, and all women.

The country developed its own art, literature, and philosophy to reflect a sense of itself as independent from Europe. In this sense, the country developed a national culture. However, different sections of the country also continued to grow more distinctive. Slavery shaped a distinctively southern way of life, while the northeastern states became more focused on commerce and the Midwest region on agriculture.

UNIT 4 — Period 4: 1800–1848

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UNITED STATES HISTORY: AP® EDITION

Markets, Farming, and Manufacturing These changes took place as a market economy emerged. People became less dependent on what they raised or made for themselves and more involved in buying and selling goods. The country benefited from the addition of fertile land farther west and advances in industry and transportation everywhere. Agriculture and manufacturing grew together, with the help of local, state, and federal governments to build roads, canals, and harbors. New technology made both farming and manufacturing more productive. The greater reliance on markets meant that more men worked away from home and women had greater control over homelife.

National Strength and Signs of Division In this period, the country grew stronger and larger. Politically, President Andrew Jackson, elected in 1828 and 1832, led efforts to solidify the power of the federal government over states.

In general, the United States promoted foreign trade (particularly the export of cotton) but avoided entanglement in European diplomatic affairs and wars.

Efforts to improve life succeeded for many but not those enslaved. Landmarks in the institution of slavery came earlier, with the development of the cotton gin in 1793 and the end of the importation of enslaved Africans in 1808. With the territorial and economic growth, conflict with American Indians continued while rising concerns over slavery focused on whether it should be allowed in the newly acquired lands.

As this period ended, most people had a positive view of a prosperous country. However, some recognized that the growing regional differences and the question of whether to allow slavery to expand into new states and territories needed to be resolved.

ANALYZE THE CONTEXT

1. Explain a historical context for the development of a reform movement during this period.

2. Explain a historical context for the forces that brought about the market revolution that affected all of the people of the young nation.

LANDMARK EVENTS: 1800-1848

1810

1820

1830

1840

1850

1803 The purchase of Louisiana from France doubles the country's size.

1808

Congress prohibits the importation of enslaved people.

1820

Congress prohibits the expansion of slavery into the Louisiana Territory.

In Marbury v.

Madison, the Supreme Court first rules a law unconstitutional.

1803

After a heated election, the Federalists hand over power peacefully.

1800

1831

A slave revolt led by Nat Turner is crushed, but it scares slaveowners.

1848

Advocates of women’s rights gather in Seneca Falls, New York.

The United States wins respect but little else in a war with Great Britain.

1812

President Monroe warns Europeans to stay out of Western Hemisphere affairs.

1823

The government forces American Indians to move west on the Trail of Tears.

1838

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TOPIC 4.2 THE RISE OF POLITICAL PARTIES AND THE ERA OF JEFFERSON

Topic 4.2

The Rise of Political Parties and the Era of Jefferson

But every difference of opinion is not a difference of principle. We have called by different names brethren of the same principle. We are all Republicans, we are all Federalists.

Thomas Jefferson, First Inaugural Address, 1801

Learning Objective: Explain the causes and effects of policy debates in the early republic.

Despite President Washington’s warning against forming political parties, two groups quickly emerged in the new republic. The Federalists, following the visions of Alexander Hamilton, and the Democratic-Republicans, espousing Thomas Jefferson’s views, competed for public approval and control of the government.

The Election of 1800 During Adams’s presidency, the Federalists rapidly lost popularity. People disliked the Alien and Sedition Acts. Further, they complained about the new taxes imposed to pay for a possible war against France. Though Adams avoided war, he had persuaded Congress that building up the U.S. Navy was necessary for the nation’s defense.

Establishment of Political Parties The presidential election of 1800 provided the first election with a clear choice between political parties.

The Federalist Party stood for a stronger national government and leaned toward Great Britain in European affairs. The Democratic-Republican Party emphasized the powers reserved to states and leaned toward the French.

Both parties supported tariffs on imports as a way to raise revenue.

Throughout the 19th century, tariffs would be the largest single source of revenue for the federal government. The debate on tariffs broke down on regional lines. Northern industrialists wanted higher tariffs to protect their companies from foreign competition. Southerners relied on exports of cotton and other crops. They pushed for lower tariffs in order to encourage trade.

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Election Results Determining the winner of the 1800 presidential election was complicated. According to the original Constitution, each member of the Electoral College cast two votes for president. The winner became president, and the second-place finisher became vice president. In 1800, a majority of the presidential electors cast their ballots for two Democratic-Republicans: one for Thomas Jefferson and one for Aaron Burr. The two tied for the presidency.

As the Constitution required, the House of Representatives voted to choose the winner, with each state allowed one vote. They debated and voted for days before they finally gave a majority to Jefferson. (Alexander Hamilton had urged his followers to support Jefferson, whom he considered less dangerous and of higher character than Burr.) Democratic-Republican lawmakers elected in 1800 also took control of both the House and the Senate in the elections. So the Federalists had been swept from power in both the executive and legislative branches of the U.S. government.

A Peaceful Revolution The passing of power in 1801 from one political party to another was accomplished without violence. This was a rare event for the times and a major indication that the U.S. constitutional system would endure the various strains that were placed upon it. The Federalists quietly accepted their defeat in the election of 1800 and peacefully relinquished control of the federal government to Jefferson’s party, the Democratic-Republicans.

The change from Federalist to Democratic-Republican control is known as the Revolution of 1800.

Jefferson’s Presidency During his first term, Jefferson attempted to win the allegiance and trust of Federalist opponents by maintaining the national bank and debt-repayment plan of Hamilton. In foreign policy, he carried on the neutrality policies of Washington and Adams. At the same time, Jefferson retained the loyalty of Democratic-Republican supporters by adhering to his party’s guiding principle of limited central government. He reduced the size of the military, eliminated a number of federal jobs, repealed the excise taxes—including those on whiskey— and lowered the national debt. However, hoping to avoid internal divisions that distracted Washington, he appointed only Democratic-Republicans to his cabinet. Compared to Adams’s troubled administration, Jefferson’s first four years in office were relatively free of discord.

The Louisiana Purchase The single most important achievement of Jefferson’s first administration was the acquisition by purchase of vast western lands known as the Louisiana Territory. This region encompassed a large tract of western land through which the Mississippi and Missouri rivers flowed, land little explored by Europeans.

At the mouth of the Mississippi lay the territory’s most valuable property in terms of commerce—the port of New Orleans.

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TOPIC 4.2 THE RISE OF POLITICAL PARTIES AND THE ERA OF JEFFERSON

The Louisiana Territory had once been claimed by France, which then lost its claim to Spain. But in 1800, the French military and political leader Napoleon Bonaparte secretly forced Spain to give the Louisiana Territory back to France. Napoleon hoped to restore the French empire in the Americas. By 1803, however, Napoleon had lost interest in this plan for two reasons:

• He wanted to concentrate French resources on fighting Great Britain

• A rebellion led by Toussaint Louverture against French rule on the island of Santo Domingo had resulted in heavy French losses.

U.S. Interest in the Mississippi River During Jefferson’s presidency, the western frontier extended beyond Ohio and Kentucky into the Indiana Territory. Settlers in this region depended for their economic existence on transporting goods on rivers that flowed westward into the Mississippi and southward as far as New Orleans. They were greatly alarmed therefore when, in 1802, Spanish officials, who were still in charge of New Orleans, closed the port to Americans. They revoked the right of deposit granted in the Pinckney Treaty of 1795, which had allowed American farmers tax-free use of the port.

People on the frontier clamored for government action. In addition to being concerned about the economic impact of the closing of New Orleans, President Jefferson was troubled by its consequences on foreign policy. He feared that so long as a foreign power controlled the river at New Orleans, the United States risked entanglement in European affairs.

Negotiations Jefferson sent ministers to France with instructions to offer up to $10 million for both New Orleans and a strip of land extending from that port eastward to Florida. If the American ministers failed in their negotiations with the French, they were instructed to begin discussions with Britain for a U.S.-Britain alliance. Napoleon’s ministers, seeking funds for a war against Britain, offered to sell not only New Orleans but also the entire Louisiana Territory for $15 million. The opportunity to purchase so much land surprised American ministers. They quickly went beyond their instructions and accepted the French offer.

Constitutional Predicament Jefferson and most Americans strongly approved of the Louisiana Purchase. Nevertheless, a constitutional problem troubled the president. Jefferson was committed to a strict interpretation of the Constitution and rejected Hamilton’s argument that certain powers were implied. No clause in the Constitution explicitly stated that a president could purchase foreign land.

In this case, Jefferson determined to set aside his idealism for the country’s good. He submitted the purchase agreement to the Senate, arguing that lands could be added to the United States as an application of the president’s power to make treaties. Federalist senators criticized the treaty. However, casting aside the Federalist attacks, the Democratic-Republican majority in the Senate quickly ratified the purchase.

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THE LOUISIANA PURCHASE, 1803

Explorers: United States

Louisiana Purchase

Land Claimed by the U.S.

500 kilometers

500 miles

Lewis and Clark

Return Routes

Pike

G u l f o f M e x i c o

P A C I F I C

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COUNTRY

UNITED

CLAI ME D B Y U.S.

( 1803–1819)

STATES

L O U I S I A N A

P U R C H A S E

MISSISSIPPI

TERRITORY

SPANISH

FLORIDA New Orleans

Santa Fe

St. Louis

Albuquerque

MICHIGAN

TERRITORY

(1805–1816)

INDIANA

TERRITORY

(1805–1809)

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Consequences The Louisiana Purchase more than doubled the size of the United States, removed a European presence from the nation’s borders, and extended the western frontier to lands beyond the Mississippi. Furthermore, the acquisition of millions of acres of land strengthened Jefferson’s hopes that his country’s future would be based on an agrarian society of independent farmers rather than Hamilton’s vision of an urban and industrial society.

In political terms, the Louisiana Purchase increased Jefferson’s popularity and showed the Federalists to be a weak, sectionalist (New England-based) party that could do little more than complain about Democratic-Republican policies.

Lewis and Clark Expedition Even before Louisiana was purchased, Jefferson had persuaded Congress to fund a scientific exploration of the trans-Mississippi West to be led by Captain Meriwether Lewis and Lieutenant William Clark. The Louisiana Purchase greatly increased the importance of the expedition. Lewis and Clark set out from St. Louis in 1804, crossed the Rockies, reached the Oregon coast on the Pacific Ocean, and then turned back and completed the return journey in 1806. The benefits of the expedition were many: greater geographic and scientific knowledge of the region, stronger U.S.

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TOPIC 4.2 THE RISE OF POLITICAL PARTIES AND THE ERA OF JEFFERSON

claims to the Oregon Territory, better relations with American Indians, and more accurate maps and land routes for fur trappers and future settlers.

Judicial Impeachments Jefferson tried various methods for overturning past Federalist measures and appointments. Soon after entering office, he suspended the Alien and Sedition

Acts and released those jailed under them. The Federalist appointments to the courts previously made by Washington and Adams were not subject to recall or removal except by impeachment. Federalist judges therefore continued in office, much to the annoyance of the Democratic-Republican president, Jefferson. Hoping to remove partisan Federalist judges, Jefferson supported a campaign of impeachment. The judge of one federal district was found to be mentally unbalanced. The House voted for his impeachment, and the Senate then voted to remove him. The House also impeached a Supreme Court justice, Samuel Chase, but the Senate acquitted him after finding no evidence of “high crimes.” Except for these two cases, the impeachment campaign was largely a failure, as almost all the Federalist judges remained in office. Even so, the threat of impeachment caused the judges to be more cautious and less partisan in their decisions.

Jefferson’s Reelection In 1804, Jefferson won reelection by an overwhelming margin, receiving all but 14 of the 176 electoral votes. His second term was marked by growing difficulties. He faced a plot by his former vice president, Aaron Burr. The Democratic-Republican Party split, with a faction (the “Quids”) accusing him of abandoning the party’s principles. Foreign troubles came from the Napoleonic wars in Europe.

Aaron Burr A Democratic-Republican caucus (a closed meeting) in 1804 decided not to nominate Aaron Burr for a second term as vice president. Burr then embarked on a series of ventures, one of which threatened to break up the Union and another of which resulted in the death of Alexander Hamilton.

Federalist Conspiracy Secretly forming a political pact with some radical New England Federalists, Burr planned to win the governorship of New York in 1804, unite that state with the New England states, and then lead this group of states to secede from the nation. Most Federalists followed Alexander Hamilton in opposing Burr, who was defeated in the New York election. The conspiracy then disintegrated.

Duel with Hamilton Angered by an insulting remark attributed to Hamilton, Burr challenged the Federalist leader to a duel and fatally shot him.

Hamilton’s death in 1804 deprived the Federalists of their last great leader and earned Burr the enmity of many.

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UNITED STATES HISTORY: AP® EDITION

Trial for Treason By 1806, Burr’s intrigues had turned westward with a plan to take Mexico from Spain and possibly unite it with Louisiana under his rule. Learning of the conspiracy, Jefferson ordered Burr’s arrest and trial for treason. Presiding at the trial was Chief Justice of the Supreme Court John Marshall, a long-time adversary of Jefferson. A jury acquitted Burr, basing its decision on Marshall’s narrow definition of treason and the lack of witnesses to any “overt act” by Burr.

John Marshall’s Supreme Court and Federal Power One Federalist official continued to have major influence throughout the years of Democratic-Republican ascendancy: John Marshall. His decisions consistently favored the central government and the rights of property against the advocates of states’ rights.

John Marshall Ironically, the Federalist judge who caused Jefferson the most grief was one of his own cousins from Virginia, John Marshall. Marshall had been appointed chief justice of the Supreme Court during the final months of the presidency of John Adams. He held his post for 34 years, during which time he exerted as strong an influence on the Supreme Court as Washington had exerted on the presidency. Even when justices appointed by Democratic-Republican presidents formed a majority on the Court, they often sided with Marshall because they were persuaded that the U.S. Constitution had created a federal government with strong and flexible powers.

Source: Getty Images In 1955, John Marshall became one of the first Supreme Court justices to appear on a postage stamp. It came at a time when the Supreme Court was asserting the power of the federal courts to protect individual liberties, particularly against racial discrimination and unconstitutional criminal proceedings (see Topics 8.6 and 8.11).

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TOPIC 4.2 THE RISE OF POLITICAL PARTIES AND THE ERA OF JEFFERSON

Influential Cases Several of Marshall’s decisions became landmarks that defined the relationship between the central government and the states. First and foremost of these was Marbury v. Madison (1803), which established the principle of judicial review.

Marbury v. Madison (1803) The first major case decided by Marshall put him in direct conflict with President Jefferson. Just before leaving office, President John Adams made several “midnight appointments” of Federalists as judges. However, their commissions were not formally delivered before Jefferson took office. Jefferson wanted to block these appointments, so he ordered the new secretary of state, James Madison, not to deliver the commissions. One of the Adams appointees, William Marbury, sued for his commission. The case of Marbury v. Madison went to the Supreme Court in 1803. Marshall ruled that Marbury had a right to his commission according to the Judiciary Act passed by Congress in 1789. However, Marshall said the Judiciary Act of 1789 had given to the Court greater power than the Constitution allowed. Therefore, the law was unconstitutional and Marbury would not receive his commission.

In effect, Marshall sacrificed what would have been a small Federalist gain (the appointment of Marbury) for a much larger, long-term judicial victory.

By ruling a law of Congress to be unconstitutional, Marshall established the doctrine of judicial review. From this point on, the Supreme Court would exercise the power to decide whether an act of Congress or of the president was allowed by the Constitution. The Supreme Court could now overrule actions of the other two branches of the federal government.

Fletcher v. Peck (1810) In a case involving land fraud in Georgia, Marshall concluded that a state could not pass legislation invalidating a contract.

This was the first time that the Supreme Court declared a state law to be unconstitutional and invalid. (In Marbury v. Madison, the Court ruled a federal law unconstitutional.)

Martin v. Hunter’s Lease (1816) The Supreme Court established that it had jurisdiction over state courts in cases involving constitutional rights.

Dartmouth College v. Woodward (1819) This case involved a law of New Hampshire that changed Dartmouth College from a privately chartered college into a public institution. The Marshall Court struck down the state law as unconstitutional, arguing that a contract for a private corporation could not be altered by the state.

McCulloch v. Maryland (1819) Maryland attempted to tax the Second Bank of the United States, which was located in Maryland. Marshall ruled that a state could not tax a federal institution because “the power to tax is the power to destroy” and federal laws are supreme over state laws. In addition, Marshall settled the long-running debate over constitutionality of the national bank.

Using a loose interpretation of the Constitution, Marshall ruled that, even though no clause in the Constitution specifically mentions a national bank, the Constitution gave the federal government the implied power to create one.

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Cohens v. Virginia (1821) A pair of brothers named Cohen were convicted in Virginia of illegally selling tickets for a lottery authorized by Congress for Washington, D.C. While Marshall and the Court upheld the conviction, they established the principle that the Supreme Court could review a state court’s decision involving any of the powers of the federal government.

Gibbons v. Ogden (1821) Could the state of New York grant a monopoly to a steamboat company if that action conflicted with a charter authorized by Congress? In ruling that the New York monopoly was unconstitutional, Marshall established the federal government’s broad control of interstate commerce.

Madison’s Presidency Jefferson believed strongly in the precedent set by Washington of voluntarily retiring from the presidency after a second term. For his party’s nomination for president, he supported his close friend, Secretary of State James Madison.

The Election of 1808 Ever since leading the effort to write and ratify the Constitution, Madison was widely viewed as a brilliant thinker. He had worked tirelessly with Jefferson in developing the Democratic-Republican Party. On the other hand, he was a weak public speaker, possessed a stubborn temperament, and lacked Jefferson’s political skills. With Jefferson’s backing, Madison was nominated for president by a caucus of congressional Democratic-Republicans. Other factions of the Democratic-Republican Party nominated two other candidates. Even so, Madison was able to win a majority of electoral votes and to defeat both his Democratic-Republican opponents and the Federalist candidate, Charles Pinckney.

REFLECT ON THE LEARNING OBJECTIVE

1. Explain what caused the major political disputes and the consequences of them during the early years of the new nation.

KEY TERMS BY THEME

Decisions (NAT, POL) Thomas Jefferson Louisiana Purchase Aaron Burr

Exploration (GEO) Lewis and Clark

Supreme Court (PCE) strict interpretation John Marshall judicial review Marbury v. Madison Fletcher v. Peck

McCulloch v. Maryland Dartmouth College v.

Woodward Gibbons v. Ogden implied powers

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TOPIC 4.2 THE RISE OF POLITICAL PARTIES AND THE ERA OF JEFFERSON

MULTIPLE-CHOICE QUESTIONS

Questions 1–3 refer to the following excerpt.

“All, too, will bear in mind this sacred principle, that though the will of the majority is in all cases to prevail, that will to be rightful must be reasonable; that the minority possess their equal rights, which equal law must protect, and to violate would be oppression. . . . We have called by different names brethren of the same principle. We are all Republicans, we are all Federalists. If there be any among us who would wish to dissolve this Union or to change its republican form, let them stand undisturbed as monuments of the safety with which error of opinion may be tolerated where reason is left free to combat it. . . .

Equal and exact justice to all men, of whatever state or persuasion, religious or political; peace, commerce, and honest friendship with all nations, entangling alliances with none.”

Thomas Jefferson, First Inaugural Address, 1801

1. Which of the following describes a policy of Jefferson’s that reflects the attitude toward Federalists expressed in this speech? (A) He adopted a Federalist plan for increasing the size of the military. (B) He appealed to Federalists by increasing taxes to pay for new roads. (C) He attempted to gain the trust of Federalists by continuing the national bank. (D) He showed that party was unimportant by appointing some Federalists to his cabinet.

2. Jefferson’s statement that “we are all Republicans, we are all Federalists” is most directly refuted by his actions to (A) continue the neutrality policies of Adams (B) keep economic institutions established by Hamilton (C) attempt to impeach federal judges (D) purchase the Louisiana Territory

3. Jefferson’s call to avoid entangling alliances is similar to advice found in (A) the Declaration of Independence (B) The Federalist Papers (C) the Kentucky Resolutions (D) Washington’s Farewell Address

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SHORT-ANSWER QUESTION

Use complete sentences; an outline or bulleted list alone is not acceptable.

1. “The issue, then, is not whether Jefferson’s policies toward Louisiana were right or wrong but rather how he managed to implement decisions that defied in so many ways his long-standing commitment to limitations on executive power and the near-sacred character of republican principles. . . .

Jefferson was not simply seized by power-hungry impulses once he assumed the presidency, since in a broad range of other policy areas he exhibited considerable discipline over the executive branch and habitual deference to the Congress; . . . he did not suddenly discover a pragmatic streak in his political philosophy, . . . he clung tenaciously to Jeffersonian principles despite massive evidence that they were at odds with reality. . . . The answer would seem to be the special, indeed almost mystical place the West had in his thinking. . . . For Jefferson more than any other major figure in the revolutionary generation, the West was America’s future.”

Joseph J. Ellis, historian, American Sphinx, 1997

“The story of the Louisiana Purchase is one of strength, of Jefferson’s adaptability and, most important, his determination to secure the territory from France, . . . A slower or less courageous politician might have bungled the acquisition; an overly idealistic one might have lost it by insisting on strict constitutional scruples. . . . The philosophical Jefferson had believed an amendment necessary. The political Jefferson, however, was not going to allow theory to get in the way of reality. . . . [He] expanded the powers of the executive in ways that would have likely driven Jefferson to distraction had another man been president. Much of his political life, though, had been devoted to the study and the wise exercise of power. He did what had to be done to preserve the possibility of republicanism and progress.

Things were neat only in theory. And despite his love of ideas and image of himself, Thomas Jefferson was as much a man of action as he was of theory.”

Jon Meacham, historian, Thomas Jefferson: The Art of Power, 2012

Using the excerpts, answer (a), (b), and (c). (a) Briefly explain ONE major difference between Ellis’s and Meacham’s historical interpretations of how Thomas Jefferson came to approve the Louisiana Purchase. (b) Briefly explain how ONE historical event or development in the period 1787 to 1803 that is not explicitly mentioned in the excerpts could be used to support Ellis’s interpretation. (c) Briefly explain how ONE historical event or development in the period 1787 to 1803 that is not explicitly mentioned in the excerpts could be used to support Meacham’s interpretation.

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TOPIC 4.3 POLITICS AND REGIONAL INTERESTS

Topic 4.3

Politics and Regional Interests

But this momentous question [the Missouri Compromise], like a firebell in the night awakened and filled me with terror.

I considered it the knell of the Union.

Thomas Jefferson, April 1820

Learning Objective: Explain how different regional interests affected debates about the role of the federal government in the early republic.

The election of James Monroe as president in 1816 (less than two years after the last battle of the War of 1812) inaugurated what one newspaper editorial characterized as an “Era of Good Feelings.” The term gained wide currency and was later adopted by historians to describe Monroe’s two terms in office. A closer examination of this period shows a more complicated picture.

The Era of Good Feelings The period’s nickname suggests the Monroe years were marked by a spirit of nationalism, optimism, and goodwill. In some ways, they were. One party, the Federalists, faded into oblivion, and Monroe’s party, the Democratic-Republicans, adopted some of their policies and dominated politics.

This perception of unity and harmony, however, can be misleading and oversimplified. Throughout the era, people had heated debates over tariffs, the national bank, internal improvements, and public land sales. Sectionalist tensions over slavery were increasing. Moreover, even a sense of party unity was illusory since antagonistic factions among Democratic-Republicans would soon split it in two. The actual period of “good feelings” may have lasted only from the election of 1816 to the Panic of 1819.

James Monroe As a young man, James Monroe had fought in the Revolutionary War and suffered through the Valley Forge winter. He had become prominent in Virginia politics and had served as Jefferson’s minister to Great Britain and as Madison’s secretary of state. He continued the Virginia dynasty: of the first five presidents, four were from Virginia. The other, John Adams, was from Massachusetts.

In the election of 1816, Monroe defeated the Federalist, Rufus King, overwhelmingly—183 electoral votes to 34. By 1820, the Federalist Party had practically vanished, and Monroe received every electoral vote except one. With

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no organized political opposition, Monroe represented the growing nationalism of the American people. Under Monroe, the country acquired Florida, agreed on the Missouri Compromise, and adopted the Monroe Doctrine.

Economic Nationalism One outgrowth of the War of 1812 was a political movement to support the growth of the nation’s economy. Subsidizing internal improvements (the building of roads and canals) was one aspect of the movement. Protecting budding U.S. industries from European competition was a second aspect.

Often opinions on these economic issues were based on what appeared best for one’s section or region.

Tariff of 1816 Before the War of 1812, Congress had levied low tariffs on imports as a method for raising government revenue. Then, during the war, manufacturers erected many factories to supply goods that previously had been imported from Britain. Now in peacetime, these American manufacturers feared that British goods would be dumped on American markets and take away much of their business. Congress raised tariffs for the express purpose of protecting U.S. manufacturers from competition rather than to simply raise revenue. This was the first protective tariff in U.S. history—the first of many to come.

New England, which had little manufacturing at the time, was the only section to oppose the higher tariffs. Even the South and West, which had opposed tariffs in the past and would oppose them in the future, generally supported the 1816 tariff, believing that it was needed for national prosperity.

Henry Clay’s American System Henry Clay of Kentucky, a leader in the House of Representatives, proposed a comprehensive method for advancing the nation’s economic growth. His plan, which he called the American System, consisted of three parts: (1) protective tariffs, (2) a national bank, and (3) internal improvements. Clay argued that protective tariffs would promote American manufacturing and also raise revenue with which to build a national transportation system of federally constructed roads and canals. A national bank would keep the system running smoothly by providing a national currency. The tariffs would chiefly benefit the East, internal improvements would promote growth in the West and the South, and the bank would aid the economies of all sections.

Two parts of Clay’s system were already in place in 1816, the last year of James Madison’s presidency. Congress in that year adopted a protective tariff and also chartered the Second Bank of the United States. (The charter of the First Bank—Hamilton’s brainchild—had been allowed to expire in 1811.) On the matter of internal improvements, however, both Madison and Monroe objected that the Constitution did not explicitly provide for the spending of federal money on roads and canals. Throughout his presidency, Monroe consistently vetoed acts of Congress providing funds for road-building and canal-building projects. Thus, the individual states were left to make internal improvements on their own.

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TOPIC 4.3 POLITICS AND REGIONAL INTERESTS

CANAL BUILDING, 1820 TO 1840

$0.5

Values in millions of $

$1.2

$0.3

$1.0

$4.7

$1.1

1820

$7.5

1830

$14.3

1840

$0.8

$6.0

$8.4

South West Northeast

Source: Bureau of the Census, Historical Statistics of the United States, Colonial Times to 1970

The Panic of 1819 The first major financial panic since the Constitution had been ratified shook the nation in 1819. The economic disaster occurred after the Second Bank of the United States tightened credit in an effort to control inflation. Many state banks closed, and unemployment, bankruptcies, and imprisonment for debt increased sharply. The depression hit the West hardest, where many people were in debt because they had speculated on land during the euphoria after the War of 1812. In 1819, the Bank of the United States foreclosed on large amounts of western farmland. As a result of the bank panic and depression, nationalistic beliefs were shaken. In the West, the economic crisis changed many voters’ political outlook. Westerners began calling for land reform and expressing strong opposition to both the national bank and debtors’ prisons.

Political Changes The Federalist Party declined rapidly because it failed to adapt as the nation grew. After opposing the War of 1812 (see Topic 4.4) and leading a secessionist convention at Hartford, the party seemed out of step with the nationalistic temper of the times. After its crushing defeat in the election of 1816, it ceased to be a national party and failed to nominate a presidential candidate in 1820.

Changes in the Democratic-Republican Party Meanwhile, the Democratic-Republican Party, the only remaining national party, faced serious internal strains as it adjusted to changing times. Members such as John Randolph clung to the old party ideals of limited government and a strict interpretation of the Constitution. Most members, however, adopted what had once been Federalist ideas, such as maintaining a large army and navy and supporting a national bank. Some members reversed their views from one decade to the next. For example, Daniel Webster of Massachusetts strongly opposed both the tariffs of 1816 and 1824, but then supported even higher tariff rates in 1828.

John C. Calhoun of South Carolina was another Democratic-Republican leader who reversed positions. An outspoken war hawk and nationalist in 1812, Calhoun championed states’ rights after 1828.

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UNITED STATES HISTORY: AP® EDITION

Political factions and sectional differences became more intense during Monroe’s second term. When Monroe, honoring the two-term tradition, declined to be a candidate again, four other Democratic-Republicans sought election as president in 1824. How this election split the party and led to the emergence of two rival parties is explained in Topic 4.8.

Western Settlement and the Missouri Compromise In the ten years after the start of the War of 1812, the population of settlers west of the Appalachian Mountains had doubled. Most went to the region between the Appalachians and the Mississippi River. Some, though, were beginning to settle in the Louisiana Territory purchased in 1803. Much of the nationalistic and economic interest in the country was centered on the West, which presented both opportunities and new questions.

Reasons for Westward Movement Several factors combined to stimulate rapid growth along the western frontier during the presidencies of Madison and Monroe.

Acquisition of Lands Military victories under Generals William Henry Harrison in the Indiana Territory and Andrew Jackson in Florida and the South over American Indians opened vast new territories for White settlers.

Economic Pressures The economic difficulties in the Northeast from the embargo and the war caused people from this region to seek a new future across the Appalachians. In the South, tobacco planters needed new land to replace the soil exhausted by years of poor farming methods. They found good land for planting cotton in Alabama, Mississippi, and Arkansas.

Improved Transportation Pioneers had an easier time reaching the frontier as a result of the building of roads and canals, steamboats, and railroads.

Immigrants More Europeans were being attracted to America by speculators offering cheap land in the Great Lakes region and in the valleys of the Ohio, Cumberland, and Mississippi rivers.

New Questions and Issues Despite their rapid growth, the new states of the West were small relative to those of the other two sections. To enhance their limited political influence in Congress, western representatives bargained with politicians from other sections. The primary concerns of the western states were as follows: (1) “cheap money” (easy credit) from state banks rather than from the Bank of the United States, (2) low prices for land sold by the federal government, and (3) improved transportation.

However, on the critical issue of slavery, westerners disagreed over permitting it. Those settling territory to the south wanted slavery for economic reasons (labor for the cotton fields), while those settling to the north had no use for slavery. In 1819, when the Missouri Territory applied to Congress for statehood, the slavery issue became a subject of angry debate.

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TOPIC 4.3 POLITICS AND REGIONAL INTERESTS

The Missouri Compromise Ever since 1791–1792, when Vermont entered the Union as a free state and Kentucky entered as a slave state, politicians in Congress had attempted to preserve a sectional balance between the North and the South. Keeping a balance in the House of Representatives was difficult because the population in the North was growing more rapidly than in the South. By 1818, the northern states held a majority of 105 to 81 in the House. However, in the Senate, the votes remained divided evenly: 11 slave states and 11 free states. As long as this balance was preserved, southern senators could block legislation that they believed threatened the interests of their section.

Missouri’s bid for statehood alarmed the North because slavery was well established there. If Missouri came in as a slave state, it would tip the political balance in the South’s favor. Furthermore, Missouri was the first part of the Louisiana Purchase to apply for statehood. Southerners and northerners alike worried about the future status of other new territories applying for statehood from the rest of the vast Louisiana Purchase.

Tallmadge Amendment Representative James Tallmadge from New York ignited the debate about the Missouri question by proposing an amendment to the bill for Missouri’s admission. The amendment called for (1) prohibiting the further introduction of slaves into Missouri and (2) requiring the children of Missouri slaves to be emancipated at the age of 25. If adopted, the Tallmadge Amendment would have led to the gradual elimination of slavery in Missouri.

The amendment was defeated in the Senate as enraged southerners saw it as the first step in a northern effort to abolish slavery in all states.

THE MISSOURI COMPROMISE

36° 30'

U N I T E D S T A T E S

M E X I C O (independent 1821)

ARKANSAS

TERRITORY

UNORGANIZED

TERRITORY

OREGON

COUNTRY

TERRITORY

MISSOURI

(1821)

SLAVE

MAINE

(1820)

FREE

FLORIDA TERRITORY (ceded by Spain 1819)

B R I T I S H P O S S E S S I O N S

MICHIGAN

G u l f o f M e x i c o

ATLANTIC

OCEAN

Closed to slavery

Open to slavery

500 Miles

500 Kilometers

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UNITED STATES HISTORY: AP® EDITION

MULTIPLE-CHOICE QUESTIONS

Questions 1–3 refer to the following excerpt.

“It is hushed indeed for the moment. but this [Missouri Compromise] is a reprieve only, not a final sentence. a geographical line, coinciding with a marked principle, moral and political, once conceived and held up to the angry passions of men, will never be obliterated; and every new irritation will mark it deeper and deeper. I can say with conscious truth that there is not a man on earth who would sacrifice more than I would, to relieve us

Clay’s Proposals After months of heated debate in Congress and throughout the nation, Henry Clay won majority support for three bills that, taken together, represented a compromise:

1. admit Missouri as a slave-holding state

2. admit Maine as a free state

3. prohibit slavery in the rest of the Louisiana Territory north of latitude

36° 30΄

Both houses passed the bills, and President Monroe added his signature in March 1820 to what became known as the Missouri Compromise.

Aftermath Sectional feelings on the slavery issue subsided after 1820. The Missouri Compromise preserved sectional balance for more than 30 years and provided time for the nation to mature. Nevertheless, if an era of good feelings existed, it was badly damaged by the storm of sectional controversy over Missouri. After this political crisis, Americans were torn between feelings of nationalism (loyalty to the Union) on the one hand and feelings of sectionalism (loyalty to one’s own region) on the other.

REFLECT ON THE LEARNING OBJECTIVE

1. Explain how the viewpoints from the different sections of the new republic impacted the discussion of the role of the Federal government.

KEY TERMS BY THEME

Public Confidence (NAT) Era of Good Feelings James Monroe economic nationalism sectionalism

Industry (WXT) Tariff of 1816 protective tariff Henry Clay American System

Second Bank of the United States Panic of 1819

Making the Law (POL) Tallmadge Amendment Missouri Compromise (1820)

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TOPIC 4.3 POLITICS AND REGIONAL INTERESTS

from this heavy reproach, in any practicable way. . . . to regulate the condition of the different descriptions of men composing a state. This certainly is the exclusive right of every state, which nothing in the constitution has taken from them and given to the general government.”

Thomas Jefferson, letter to John Holmes, April 22, 1820

1. Which of the following provided a precedent on the issue described by Jefferson that was reflected in the Missouri Compromise? (A) The Declaration of Independence, which declared all men equal (B) The Articles of Confederation, which did not allow the national government to tax individuals (C) The Northwest Ordinance, which limited the expansion of slavery (D) The Louisiana Purchase, which showed how the federal government could expand its power

2. Which of the following was most necessary for the passage of the Missouri Compromise? (A) Admission of Maine as a free state (B) Support from John Quincy Adams (C) Adding the Tallmadge Amendment (D) A unified Democratic-Republican Party

3. Which of the following groups would most strongly agree with Jefferson’s views about the future impact of the Missouri Compromise? (A) Federalists calling for a stronger national government (B) Abolitionists demanding an immediate end to slavery (C) Democratic-Republicans recognizing the need for more compromises (D) Settlers in the Louisiana Territory seeking more land

SHORT-ANSWER QUESTION

Use complete sentences; an outline or bulleted list alone is not acceptable.

1. Answer (a), (b), and (c). (a) Briefly explain ONE specific part of Henry Clay's proposed American System. (b) Briefly explain why ONE region favored the American System during the period from 1800 to 1848. (c) Briefly explain why ONE region opposed the American System during the period from 1800 to 1848.

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UNITED STATES HISTORY: AP® EDITION

Topic 4.4

America on the World Stage

The war has renewed and reinstated the national feelings and character which the Revolution had given, and which were daily lessened. . . .

I hope the permanency of the Union is thereby better secured.

Secretary of the Treasury Albert Gallatin, 1816

Learning Objective: Explain how and why American foreign policy developed over time.

From their founding as colonies to their fight for independence, the United States was strongly influenced by the actions of other nations. Even President Washington had to deal with foreign “entanglements” (see Topic 3.10) likely leading to his warning against “permanent alliances” in foreign affairs.

Jefferson’s Foreign Policy President Jefferson brought considerable experience in dealing with foreign affairs. He had served as a foreign minister in Europe and secretary of state prior to his election in 1800. This experience led to success with the Louisiana Purchase but would be challenged by numerous other foreign affairs questions.

Difficulties Abroad As a matter of policy and principle, Jefferson tried to avoid war. Rejecting permanent alliances, he sought to maintain U.S. neutrality despite increasing provocations from both France and Britain during the Napoleonic wars.

Barbary Pirates The first major challenge to Jefferson’s foreign policy came not from a major European power but from the piracy practiced by the Barbary states on the North African coast. To protect U.S. merchant ships from being seized by Barbary pirates, Presidents Washington and Adams had reluctantly agreed to pay tribute to the Barbary governments. The ruler of Tripoli demanded a higher sum in tribute from Jefferson. Refusing to pay, Jefferson sent a small fleet of the U.S. Navy to the Mediterranean. Sporadic fighting with Tripoli lasted for four years (1801–1805). Although the American navy did not achieve a decisive victory, it did gain some respect and offered a measure of protection to U.S. vessels trading in Mediterranean waters.

Challenges to U.S. Neutrality Meanwhile, the Napoleonic wars continued to dominate the politics of Europe—and to shape the commercial economy of

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TOPIC 4.4 AMERICA ON THE WORLD STAGE

the United States. The two principal belligerents, France and Britain, attempted naval blockades of enemy ports. They regularly seized the ships of neutral nations and confiscated their cargoes. The chief offender from the U.S. point of view was Britain, since its navy dominated the Atlantic. Most infuriating was the British practice of capturing U.S. sailors who it claimed were British citizens and impressing (forcing) them to serve in the British navy.

Chesapeake-Leopard Affair One incident at sea especially aroused American anger and almost led to war. In 1807, only a few miles off the coast of Virginia, the British warship Leopard fired on the U.S. warship Chesapeake.

Three Americans were killed, and four others were taken captive and impressed into the British navy. Anti-British feeling ran high, and many Americans demanded war. Jefferson, however, resorted to diplomacy and economic pressure as his response to the crisis.

Embargo Act (1807) As an alternative to war, Jefferson persuaded the Democratic-Republican majority in Congress to pass the Embargo Act in 1807.

This measure prohibited American merchant ships from sailing to any foreign port. Since the United States was Britain’s largest trading partner, Jefferson hoped that the British would stop violating the rights of neutral nations rather than lose U.S. trade. The embargo, however, backfired and brought greater economic hardship to the United States than to Britain. The British were determined to control the seas at all costs, and they had little difficulty substituting supplies from South America for U.S. goods.

The embargo’s effect on the U.S. economy, however, was devastating, especially for the merchant marine and shipbuilders of New England. So bad was the depression that a movement developed in the New England states to secede from the Union.

Recognizing that the Embargo Act had failed, Jefferson called for its repeal in 1809 during the final days of his presidency. Even after repeal, however, U.S. ships could trade legally with all nations except Britain and France.

President Madison’s Foreign Policy Madison’s presidency was dominated by the same European problems that had plagued Jefferson’s second term.

Commercial Warfare Like Jefferson, Madison attempted a combination of diplomacy and economic pressure to deal with the Napoleonic wars. Unlike Jefferson, he finally consented to take the United States to war.

Nonintercourse Act of 1809 After the repeal of Jefferson’s disastrous embargo act, Madison hoped to end economic hardship while maintaining his country’s rights as a neutral nation. The Nonintercourse Act of 1809 provided that Americans could now trade with all nations except Britain and France.

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FOREIGN TRADE, 1805 TO 1817

Value in millions of dollars

1805 1806 1807

Imports Exports

Year

1808 1809 1810 1811 1812 1813 1814 1815 1816 1817

25

50

75

100

125

150

175

200

Source: U.S. Bureau of the Census, Historical Statistics of the United States, Colonial Times to 1970

Macon’s Bill No. 2 (1810) Economic hardships continued into 1810.

Nathaniel Macon, a member of Congress, introduced a bill that restored U.S. trade with Britain and France. Macon’s Bill No. 2 provided, however, that if either Britain or France formally agreed to respect U.S. neutral rights at sea, then the United States would prohibit trade with that nation’s foe.

Napoleon’s Deception Upon hearing of Congress’s action, Napoleon announced his intention of revoking the decrees that had violated U.S. neutral rights. Taking Napoleon at his word, Madison carried out the terms of Macon’s Bill No. 2 by embargoing U.S. trade with Britain in 1811. However, he soon realized that Napoleon had no intention of fulfilling his promise. The French continued to seize American merchant ships.

The War of 1812 Neither Britain nor the United States wanted their dispute to end in war. And yet war between them did break out in 1812.

Causes of the War From the U.S. point of view, the pressures leading to war came from two directions: the continued violation of U.S. neutral rights at sea and troubles with the British on the western frontier.

Free Seas and Trade As a trading nation, the United States depended upon the free flow of shipping across the Atlantic. Yet the chief belligerents in Europe, Britain, and France had no interest in respecting neutral rights so long as they were locked in a life-and-death struggle with one another. They well remembered that Britain had seemed a cruel enemy during the American Revolution and the French had supported the colonists. In addition, Jeffersonian Democratic-Republicans applauded the French for having overthrown their monarchy in their own revolution. Moreover, even though both the French and the British violated U.S. neutral rights, the British violations were worse because of the British navy’s practice of impressing American sailors.

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TOPIC 4.4 AMERICA ON THE WORLD STAGE

Frontier Pressures Added to long-standing grievances over British actions at sea were the ambitions of western Americans for more land. Americans on the frontier longed for the lands of British Canada and Spanish Florida.

Standing in the way were the British and their Indian and Spanish allies.

Conflict with the American Indians was a perennial problem for the restless westerners. For decades, settlers had been gradually pushing the American Indians farther and farther westward. In an effort to defend their lands from further encroachment, Shawnee brothers—a warrior named Tecumseh and a religious leader known as the Prophet—attempted to unite all of the tribes east of the Mississippi River. White settlers became suspicious of Tecumseh and persuaded the governor of the Indiana Territory, General William Henry Harrison, to take aggressive action. In the Battle of Tippecanoe, in 1811, Harrison destroyed the Shawnee headquarters, which ended Tecumseh’s efforts to form an Indian confederacy. The British had provided only a little aid to Tecumseh. Nevertheless, Americans on the frontier blamed the British for instigating the rebellion.

War Hawks A congressional election in 1810 had brought a group of new, young Democratic-Republicans to Congress, many of them from frontier states (Kentucky, Tennessee, and Ohio). Known as war hawks because of their eagerness for war with Britain, they quickly gained significant influence in the House of Representatives. Led by Henry Clay of Kentucky and John C. Calhoun of South Carolina, the war hawk members of Congress argued that war with Britain would be the only way to defend American honor, gain Canada, and destroy American Indian resistance on the frontier.

Declaration of War British delays in meeting U.S. demands over neutral rights combined with political pressures from the war hawks finally persuaded Madison to seek a declaration of war against Britain. Ironically, the British government had by this time (June 1812) agreed to suspend its naval blockade.

News of its decision reached the White House after Congress had declared war.

A Divided Nation Neither Congress nor the American people were united in support of the war.

In Congress, Pennsylvania and Vermont joined the southern and western states to provide a slight majority for the war declaration. Voting against the war were most representatives from New York, New Jersey, and New England.

Election of 1812 A similar division of opinion was seen in the presidential election of 1812, in which Democratic-Republican strength in the South and West overcame Federalist and antiwar Democratic-Republican opposition to war in the North. Madison won reelection, defeating De Witt Clinton of New York, the candidate of the Federalists and antiwar Democratic-Republicans.

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UNITED STATES HISTORY: AP® EDITION

Opposition to the War Americans who opposed the war viewed it as “Mr.

Madison’s War” and the work of the war hawks in Congress. Most outspoken in their criticism of the war were New England merchants, Federalist politicians, and “Quids,” or “Old” Democratic-Republicans. New England merchants were opposed because, after the repeal of the Embargo Act, they were making sizable profits from the European war and viewed impressment as merely a minor inconvenience. Both commercial interests and religious ties to Protestantism made them more sympathetic to the Protestant British than to the Catholic French. Federalist politicians viewed the war as a Democratic-Republican scheme to conquer Canada and Florida, with the ultimate aim of increasing Democratic-Republican voting strength. For their part, the “Quids” criticized the war because it violated the classic Democratic-Republican commitment to limited federal power and to the maintenance of peace.

Military Defeats and Naval Victories Facing Britain’s overwhelming naval power, Madison’s military strategists based their hope for victory on (1) Napoleon’s continued success in Europe and (2) a U.S. land campaign against Canada.

Invasion of Canada A poorly equipped American army initiated military

action in 1812 by launching a three-part invasion of Canada, one force starting out from Detroit, another from Niagara, and a third from Lake Champlain.

These and later forays into Canada were easily repulsed by the British defenders.

An American raid and burning of government buildings in York (Toronto) in

1813 only served to encourage retaliation by the British.

VOTE ON DECLARING WAR IN 1812

Yes

No

Not voting or unsettled

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TOPIC 4.4 AMERICA ON THE WORLD STAGE

Naval Battles The U.S. navy achieved some notable victories due largely to superior shipbuilding and the valorous deeds of American sailors, including many free African Americans. In late 1812, the U.S. warship Constitution (nicknamed “Old Ironsides”) raised American morale by defeating and sinking a British ship off the coast of Nova Scotia. American privateers, motivated by both patriotism and profit, captured numerous British merchant ships. Offsetting these gains was the success of the British navy in establishing a blockade of the U.S. coast, which crippled trading and fishing.

Probably the most important naval battle of the war was in 1813 on Lake Erie with American Captain Oliver Hazard Perry, declaring victory with, “We have met the enemy and they are ours.” This led the way for General William Henry Harrison’s victory at the Battle of the Thames (near Detroit), in which Tecumseh was killed. The next year, 1814, ships commanded by Thomas Macdonough defeated a British fleet on Lake Champlain. As a result, the British had to retreat and abandon their plan to invade New York and New England.

Chesapeake Campaign By the spring of 1814, the defeat of Napoleon in Europe enabled the British to increase their forces in North America. In the summer of that year, a British army marched through the nation’s capital, Washington, D.C., and set fire to the White House, the Capitol, and other government buildings. The British also attempted to take Baltimore, but Fort McHenry held out after a night’s bombardment—an event immortalized by Francis Scott Key in the words of “The Star-Spangled Banner.”

Southern Campaign Meanwhile, U.S. troops in the South were ably commanded by General Andrew Jackson. In March 1814, at the Battle of Horseshoe Bend in present-day Alabama, Jackson ended the power of an important British ally, the Creek nation. The victory eliminated the Indians and opened new lands to White settlers. A British effort to control the Mississippi River was halted at New Orleans by Jackson leading a force of frontier soldiers, free African Americans, and Creoles. The victory was impressive—but also meaningless. The Battle of New Orleans was fought on January 8, 1815, two weeks after a treaty ending the war had been signed in Ghent, Belgium, but before news of the treaty had reached the military forces.

The Treaty of Ghent By 1814, the British were weary of war. Having fought Napoleon for more than a decade, they now faced the prospect of maintaining the peace in Europe. At the same time, Madison’s government recognized that the Americans would be unable to win a decisive victory. American peace commissioners traveled to Ghent, Belgium, to discuss terms of peace with British diplomats. On Christmas Eve 1814, an agreement was reached. The terms halted fighting, returned all conquered territory to the prewar claimant, and recognized the prewar boundary between Canada and the United States.

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UNITED STATES HISTORY: AP® EDITION

The Treaty of Ghent, promptly ratified by the Senate in 1815, said nothing at all about the grievances that led to war. Britain made no concessions concerning impressment, blockades, or other maritime differences. Thus, the war ended in stalemate with no gain for either side.

The Hartford Convention Just before the war ended, the New England states threatened to secede from the Union. Bitterly opposed to both the war and the Democratic-Republican government in Washington, radical Federalists in New England urged that the Constitution be amended and that, as a last resort, secession be voted upon. To consider these matters, a special convention was held at Hartford, Connecticut, in December 1814. Delegates from the New England states rejected the radical calls for secession. But to limit the growing power of the Democratic-Republicans in the South and West, they adopted a number of proposals. One of them called for a two-thirds vote of both houses for any future declaration of war.

Shortly after the convention dissolved, news came of both Jackson’s victory at New Orleans and the Treaty of Ghent. These events ended criticism of the war and further weakened the Federalists by stamping them as unpatriotic.

The War’s Legacy From Madison’s point of view, the war achieved none of its original aims.

Nevertheless, it had a number of important consequences for the future development of the American republic, including the following:

1. Having survived two wars with Britain, the United States gained the respect of other nations.

2. The United States accepted Canada as a part of the British Empire.

3. Denounced for its talk of secession, the Federalist Party came to an end as a national force and declined even in New England.

4. Talk of nullification and secession in New England set a precedent that would later be used by the South.

5. Abandoned by the British, American Indians were forced to surrender land to White settlement.

6. With the British naval blockade limiting European goods, U.S. factories were built and Americans moved toward industrial self-sufficiency.

7. War heroes such as Andrew Jackson and William Henry Harrison would soon be in the forefront of a new generation of political leaders.

8. The feeling of nationalism grew stronger as did a belief that the future for the United States lay in the West and away from Europe.

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TOPIC 4.4 AMERICA ON THE WORLD STAGE

Monroe and Foreign Affairs Following the War of 1812, the United States adopted a more aggressive, nationalistic approach in its relations with other nations. During Madison’s presidency, when problems with the Barbary pirates again developed, a fleet under Stephen Decatur was sent in 1815 to force the rulers of North Africa to allow American shipping the free use of the Mediterranean. President Monroe and Secretary of State John Quincy Adams continued to follow a nationalistic policy that actively advanced American interests while maintaining peace.

Canada Although the Treaty of Ghent of 1814 had ended the war between Britain and the United States, it left unresolved most of their diplomatic differences, including many involving Canada.

Rush-Bagot Agreement (1817) During Monroe’s first year as president, British and American negotiators agreed to a major disarmament pact. The Rush-Bagot Agreement strictly limited naval armament on the Great Lakes.

In time, the agreement was extended to place limits on border fortifications as well. Ultimately, the border between the United States and Canada was to become the longest unfortified border in the world.

Treaty of 1818 Improved relations between the United States and Britain continued in a treaty that provided for (1) shared fishing rights off the coast of Newfoundland; (2) joint occupation of the Oregon Territory for ten years; and (3) the setting of the northern limits of the Louisiana Territory at the 49th parallel, thus establishing the western U.S.-Canada boundary line.

Florida During the War of 1812, U.S. troops had occupied western Florida, a strip of land on the Gulf of Mexico extending all the way to the Mississippi Delta.

Previously, this land had been held by Spain, Britain’s ally. After the war, Spain had difficulty governing the rest of Florida (the peninsula itself) because its troops had been removed from Florida to battle revolts in the South American colonies. The chaotic conditions permitted groups of Seminoles, runaway slaves, and White outlaws to conduct raids into U.S. territory and retreat to safety across the Florida border. These disorders gave Monroe and General Andrew Jackson an opportunity to take military action in Spanish Florida, a territory long coveted by American expansionists.

Jackson’s Military Campaign In late 1817, the president commissioned General Jackson to stop the raiders and, if necessary, pursue them across the border into Spanish west Florida. Jackson carried out his orders with a vengeance and probably went beyond his instructions. In 1818, he led a force of militia into Florida, destroyed Seminole villages, and hanged two Seminole chiefs. Capturing Pensacola, Jackson drove out the Spanish governor and hanged two British traders accused of aiding the Seminoles.

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UNITED STATES HISTORY: AP® EDITION

Many members of Congress feared that Jackson’s overzealousness would precipitate a war with both Spain and Britain. However, Secretary of State John Quincy Adams persuaded Monroe to support Jackson, and the British decided not to intervene.

Florida Purchase Treaty (1819) Spain, worried that the United States would seize Florida and preoccupied with troubles in Latin America, decided to get the best possible terms for Florida. By treaty in 1819, Spain turned over all of its possessions in Florida and its own claims in the Oregon Territory to the United States. In exchange, the United States agreed to assume $5 million in claims against Spain and give up any U.S. territorial claims to the Spanish province of Texas. The agreement is also called the Adams-Onís Treaty.

The Monroe Doctrine Although focused on its own growth, the United States did not ignore the ambitions of Europe in the Western Hemisphere. The restoration of a number of monarchies in Europe after the fall of Napoleon in 1815 produced a backlash against republican movements. Restored monarchies in France, Austria, and Prussia, together with Russia, worked together to suppress liberal elements in Italy and Spain. They also considered helping Spain to return to power in South America, where a number of republics had recently declared their independence.

In addition, Russia’s presence in Alaska worried both Britain and the United States. Using their trading posts in Alaska as a base, Russian seal hunters had spread southward and established a trading post at San Francisco Bay. British and U.S. leaders decided they had a common interest in protecting North and South America from possible aggression by a European power.

British Initiative British naval power deterred the Spanish from attempting a comeback in Latin America. But to maintain British trade with the Latin American republics required diplomacy. British Foreign Secretary George Canning proposed to Richard Rush, the U.S. minister in London, a joint Anglo-American warning to the European powers not to intervene in South America.

American Response Monroe and most of his advisers thought Canning’s idea of a joint declaration made sense. However, Secretary of State John Quincy Adams disagreed. He believed that joint action with Britain would restrict U.S. opportunities for further expansion in the hemisphere. Adams reasoned as follows: (1) If the United States acted alone, Britain could be counted upon to stand behind the U.S. policy; (2) No European power would risk going to war in South America, and if it did, the British navy would surely defeat the aggressor.

President Monroe decided to act as Adams advised—to issue a statement to the world that did not have Britain as a coauthor.

The Doctrine On December 2, 1823, President Monroe inserted into his annual message to Congress a declaration of U.S. policy toward Europe and Latin America. The Monroe Doctrine, as it came to be called, asserted “as a

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TOPIC 4.4 AMERICA ON THE WORLD STAGE

principle in which the rights and interests of the United States are involved, that the American continents, by the free and independent condition which they have assumed and maintain, are henceforth not to be considered as subjects for future colonization by any European powers.” Monroe declared further that the United States opposed attempts by a European power to interfere in the affairs of any republic in the Western Hemisphere.

Impact Monroe’s bold words of nationalistic purpose were applauded by the American public but were soon forgotten, as most citizens were more concerned with domestic issues. In Britain, Canning was annoyed by the doctrine because he recognized that it applied not just to the other European powers but to his country as well. The British, too, were warned not to intervene and not to seek new territory in the Western Hemisphere. The European monarchs reacted angrily to Monroe’s message. Still, they recognized that their purposes were thwarted not by his words but by the might of the British navy.

The Monroe Doctrine had less significance at the time than in later decades, when it would be hailed by politicians and citizens alike as the cornerstone of U.S. foreign policy toward Latin America. In the 1840s, President James Polk was the first of many presidents to justify his foreign policy by referring to Monroe’s warning words.

REFLECT ON THE LEARNING OBJECTIVE

1. Explain the reasons and ways that American foreign policy changed during this period.

KEY TERMS BY THEME

Support (NAT, POL) war hawks Henry Clay John C. Calhoun

Opposition (POL) “Quids” Hartford Convention (1814)

The West (MIG, ARC) Tecumseh Prophet William Henry Harrison Battle of Tippecanoe

War (WOR) Napoleon Bonaparte Barbary pirates

neutrality impressment Chesapeake-Leopard affair Embargo Act (1807) James Madison Nonintercourse Act (1809) Macon’s Bill No. 2 (1810) War of 1812 “Old Ironsides” Battle of Lake Erie Oliver Hazard Perry Battle of the Thames Thomas Macdonough Battle of Lake Champlain Andrew Jackson Battle of Horseshoe Bend

Creek nation Battle of New Orleans Treaty of Ghent (1814)

Foreign Affairs (WOR) Stephen Decatur Rush-Bagot Agreement

(1817) Treaty of 1818 Andrew Jackson Florida Purchase Treaty

(1819) Monroe Doctrine (1823)

The Anthem (SOC) Francis Scott Key “The Star-Spangled Banner”

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UNITED STATES HISTORY: AP® EDITION

MULTIPLE-CHOICE QUESTIONS

Questions 1–3 refer to the following excerpt.

“I am ready to allow, Mr. President, that both Great Britain and France have given us abundant cause for war . . . . My plan would be, and my first wish is, to prepare for it—to put the country in complete armor—in the attitude imperiously demanded in a crisis of war, and to which it must be brought before any war can be effective . . . . I must call on every member of this Senate to pause before he leaps into or crosses the Rubicon [Roman leader Julius Caesar touched off a war in 49 BCE when he and his troops crossed the Rubicon River]—declaring war is passing the Rubicon in reality.”

Senator Obadiah German of New York, speech in the Senate, June 1812

1. Support for the War of 1812 was the strongest among (A) frontier settlers who wanted more land from American Indians (B) New England merchants who feared impressment (C) Protestants who had religious sympathies with Great Britain (D) the Democratic-Republicans who most emphasized states’ rights

2. Who would be most likely to agree with German’s Rubicon reference? (A) John Calhoun and other politicians from the South (B) Henry Clay and other politicians from the West (C) Officials from the executive branch (D) Merchants from New England

3. Which of the following is the best support for German’s claim that the United States had “abundant cause for war”? (A) The impressment of U.S. sailors (B) The controversy over the Louisiana Purchase (C) The actions by the Barbary pirates (D) The findings of the Lewis and Clark expedition

SHORT-ANSWER QUESTION

1. Answer (a), (b), and (c). (a) Briefly explain how ONE specific event or historical development was used by supporters of going to war against Britain in 1812. (b) Briefly explain how ONE specific event or historical development was used by opponents of going to war against Britain in 1812. (c) Briefly explain how ONE reason for or against the War of 1812 played a major role in U.S. politics and policies after the war.

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Topic 4.5

Market Revolution

I never thought my cotton gin would change history.

Eli Whitney (1765–1825)

Learning Objective: Explain the causes and effects of the innovations in technology, agriculture, and commerce over time.

In the early 1800s, the Jeffersonian dream of a nation of independent farmers remained strong in rural areas. Innovations and new technology in the 19th century would steadily decrease the demand for people working in agriculture and increase the demand for people working in commerce. Ironically, Jefferson, a father of a political revolution, would see his ideal nation of small farmers overwhelmed by an economic revolution based on new knowledge.

As the 19th century progressed, an increasing percentage of the American people were swept up in the dynamic economic changes of the Industrial Revolution. Political conflicts over tariffs, internal improvements, and the Bank of the United States (see Topics 4.3 and 4.8) reflected the importance to people’s lives of a national economy that was rapidly growing.

Development of the Northwest The Old Northwest consisted of six states that joined the Union before 1860: Ohio (1803), Indiana (1816), Illinois (1818), Michigan (1837), Wisconsin (1848), and Minnesota (1858). These states came from territories formed out of land ceded to the national government in the 1780s by one of the original

13 states. The procedure for turning these territories into states was part of the Northwest Ordinance passed by Congress in 1787 (see Topics 3.7 and 3.12).

In the early years of the 19th century, much of the Old Northwest was unsettled frontier and the part of it that was settled relied upon the Mississippi to transport grain to southern markets and the port of New Orleans. By mid-century, however, this region became closely tied to the other northern states by two factors: (1) military campaigns by federal troops that drove American Indians from the land and (2) the building of canals and railroads that established common markets between the Great Lakes and the East Coast.

Agriculture In the Old Northwest, corn and wheat were very profitable and fed people in growing urban areas. Using the newly invented steel plow (by John Deere) and mechanical reaper (by Cyrus McCormick), a farm family was more efficient and could plant more acres, needing to supplement its labor

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only with a few hired workers at harvest time. Part of the crop was used to feed cattle and hogs and also to supply distillers and brewers with grain for making whiskey and beer. Farmers shipped grain quickly to cities to avoid spoilage.

Transportation Vital to the development of both a national and an industrial economy was an efficient network of interconnecting roads and canals for moving people, raw materials, and manufactured goods.

Roads Pennsylvania’s Lancaster Turnpike, built in the 1790s, connected Philadelphia with the rich farmlands around Lancaster. Its success stimulated the construction of other privately built and relatively short toll roads that, by the mid-1820s, connected most of the country’s major cities.

Despite the need for interstate roads, states’ rights advocates blocked the spending of federal funds on internal improvements. Construction of highways that crossed state lines was therefore unusual. One notable exception was the National, or Cumberland Road, a paved highway and major route to the west extending more than a thousand miles from Maryland to Illinois. It was begun in 1811 and completed in the 1850s, using both federal and state money, with the different states receiving ownership of segments of the highway.

Canals The completion of the Erie Canal in New York State in 1825 was a major event in linking the economies of western farms and eastern cities.

The success of this canal in stimulating economic growth touched off a frenzy of canal building in other states. In little more than a decade, canals joined together all of the major lakes and rivers east of the Mississippi. Improved transportation meant lower food prices in the East, more immigrants settling in the West, and stronger economic ties between the two sections.

Steam Engines and Steamboats The development of steam-powered engines in the 18th century revolutionized the location of factories. When factories ran on the power of moving water, they had to be located on a stream.

However, a steam engine could be set up anywhere—in mills, mines, and factories. They first became widely used in Great Britain, but they spread to the United States in the 19th century.

The age of mechanized, steam-powered travel began in 1807 with the successful voyage up the Hudson River of the Clermont, a steamboat developed by Robert Fulton. Early steamboats could travel upriver at speeds of almost five miles per hour. Commercially operated steamboat lines soon made round-trip shipping on the nation’s great rivers both faster and cheaper. Hauling freight from Cincinnati to New York took more than seven weeks before the days of steamboats and canals. After, it took less than three weeks.

Railroads Even more rapid and reliable links between cities became possible with the building of the first U.S. railroad lines in the late 1820s. The early railroads were hampered at first by safety problems, but by the 1830s, they were competing directly with canals as an alternative method for carrying passengers and freight. The combination of railroads with the other major

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improvements in transportation rapidly changed small western towns such as Cleveland, Cincinnati, Detroit, and Chicago into booming commercial centers of the expanding national economy. These improvements in transportation linked the regions of the North and the Midwest, as people in growing cities in Massachusetts and New York purchased much-needed wheat and corn raised in Ohio, Illinois, and states farther west. However, railroads were less common in the South, which continued to rely on rivers more than rails.

Communication Changes in transportation brought the country closer together. But it could travel only as fast as ships could sail and horses could run. In 1844, inventor Samuel F. B. Morse demonstrated a successful telegraph, which transmitted messages along wires almost instantaneously. As wires were strung around the country, often along railroad tracks and later under oceans, for the first time in human history, people were able to communicate as fast as electricity could travel. Suddenly, managers in New York City, government officials in Washington, D.C., and military leaders in headquarters could direct people dozens, hundreds, or thousands of miles away more easily than ever before.

Source: Getty Images Telegraphs used a system of short and long signals (dots and dashes) to send messages. The chart above provided a visual way to learn the code for each letter, asserting that people who studied it could learn the code in one hour or less.

Growth of Industry At the start of the 19th century, a manufacturing economy had barely begun in the United States. By mid-century, however, U.S. manufacturing surpassed agriculture in value, and by century’s end, it was the world’s leader. This rapid industrial growth was the result of a unique combination of factors.

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Mechanical Inventions Protected by patent laws, inventors looked forward to handsome rewards if their ideas for new tools or machines proved practical. Eli Whitney, who had developed the cotton gin in 1793 (see Topic

3.12), was only the most famous of hundreds of Americans whose long hours of tinkering in their workshops resulted in improved technology. During the War of 1812, he developed a system for making rifles using interchangeable parts, identical components that can be assembled to make a final product.

Before this, the parts of a rifle were not standardized enough that one could be replaced for another. Under Eli’s system, each part could be mass produced and then the parts could be put together to make a gun. This vastly increased the efficiency of making guns and other items. Interchangeable parts then became the basis for mass production methods in the new northern factories.

Corporations for Raising Capital In 1811, New York passed a law that made it easier for a business to incorporate and raise capital (money) by selling shares of stock. Other states soon followed New York’s lead. Owners of a corporation risked only the amount of money that they invested in a venture.

They were not personally responsible for losses incurred by the corporation.

Changes in state corporation laws facilitated the raising of the large sums of capital necessary for building factories, canals, and railroads.

Factory System When Samuel Slater emigrated from Britain, taking information about factory designs out of the country was illegal. However, he had memorized the system and technology used in British cotton mills, and he applied these secrets to help establish the first U.S. textile factory in 1791. Early in the next century, the embargo and the War of 1812 stimulated domestic manufacturing and the protective tariffs enacted by Congress helped the new factories prosper.

In the 1820s, New England emerged as the country’s leading manufacturing center as a result of the region’s abundant waterpower for driving the new machinery and excellent seaports for shipping goods. Also, the decline of New England’s maritime industry made capital available for manufacturing, while the decline of farming in the region yielded a ready labor supply. Other northern states with similar resources and problems—New York, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania—followed New England’s lead. As the factory system expanded, it encouraged the growth of financial businesses such as banking and insurance.

Labor At first, factory owners had difficulty finding workers for their mills. Factory life could not compete with the lure of cheap land in the West.

In response to this difficulty, textile mills in Lowell, Massachusetts, recruited young farm women and housed them in company dormitories. In the 1830s, other factories imitated the Lowell System. Many factories also made extensive use of child labor. Children as young as seven left home to work in the new factories. Toward the middle of the century, northern manufacturers began to employ immigrants in large numbers.

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Unions Trade (or craft) unions were organized in major cities as early as the 1790s and increased in number as the factory system took hold. Many skilled workers (shoemakers and weavers, for example) had to seek employment in factories because their own small shops (the crafts system) produced items that could no longer compete with lower-priced, mass-produced goods. Long hours, low pay, and poor working conditions led to widespread discontent among factory workers. A prime goal of the early unions was to reduce the workday to ten hours. The obstacles to union success, however, were many: (1) immigrant replacement workers, (2) state laws outlawing unions, and (3) frequent economic depressions with high unemployment.

Commercial Agriculture In the early 1800s, farming became more of a commercial enterprise and less of a means of providing subsistence for the family. Several factors promoted this switch to cash crops:

• Large areas of western land were made available at low prices by the federal government.

• State banks made acquiring land easier by providing farmers with loans at low interest rates.

• Initially, western farmers were limited to sending their products down the Ohio and Mississippi rivers to southern markets. The development of canals and railroads opened new markets in the growing factory cities in the East.

Cotton and the South Throughout the 19th century, the principal cash crop in the South was cotton.

Eli Whitney’s invention of the cotton gin in 1793 (see Topic 3.12) transformed the agriculture of an entire region. Now that they could easily separate the cotton fiber from the seeds, southern planters found cotton more profitable than tobacco and indigo, the leading crops of the colonial period. They invested their capital in the purchase of enslaved African Americans and new land in Alabama and Mississippi (see Topic 4.13).

The cotton industry connected the South with a global economy. Mills in New England and Europe depended on cotton grown by enslaved workers in the South.

Shipping firms, banks, and insurance companies based in the North, particularly New York City, prospered through their roles in the transport of cotton. Further, in order to devote all of their land to growing cotton, many plantation owners purchased pork, corn, and other food from states in the Midwest.

REFLECT ON THE LEARNING OBJECTIVE

1. Explain the motivation and results from the new developments in technology, farming, and business during this period.

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KEY TERMS BY THEME

Industry (WXT) Lancaster Turnpike National (Cumberland) Road John Deere Cyrus McCormick Erie Canal

Robert Fulton; steamboats railroads telegraph Eli Whitney; interchangeable parts corporations Samuel Slater

factory system Lowell System; textile mills unions cotton gin market revolution

Identities (ARC) Old Northwest

MULTIPLE-CHOICE QUESTIONS

Questions 1–3 refer to the following excerpt.

“At home the people are the sovereign power. . . .

The industrial classes are the true sovereigns. Idleness is a condition so unrecognized and unrespected with us, that the few professing it find themselves immediately thrown out of the great machine of active life which constitutes American society.

“The CULTIVATORS OF THE SOIL constitute the great industrial class in this country. . . for, at this moment they do not only feed all other classes but also no insignificant portion of needy Europe, furnish the raw material for manufactures, and raise the great staples which figure so largely in the accounts of the merchant, the ship owner and manufacturer, in every village, town, and seaport in the Union. . . .

“The system of railroads and cheap transportation already begins to supply the seaboard cities with some fair and beautiful fruits of the fertile West.”

A. J. Downing, editor, The Horticulturalist, 1848

1. The crop that best fits Downing’s description as one of the “great staples which figure so largely in the accounts of the merchant, the ship owner and manufacturer" was (A) corn, because it was the most important food crop in the Ohio River Valley (B) tobacco, because it was the crop that first fostered the growth of slavery in Virginia (C) sugar, because it was the most profitable crop in the British and French colonies in the Americas (D) cotton, because it was the dominant export crop in the United States

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2. The development of commercial farming in the Old Northwest contributed to increases in (A) the develoment of interchangeable parts (B) the number of enslaved people becoming fugitives (C) the territory where slavery was allowed (D) the number and size of towns and cities

3. The description in the third paragraph of the excerpt most clearly expresses which of the following visions of the United States? (A) Alexander Hamilton’s plan for a new nation (B) Crèvecoeur's description of the American "New Man" (C) Henry Clay’s plan for economic growth (D) Andrew Jackson’s “politics of the Common Man”

SHORT-ANSWER QUESTION

Use complete sentences; an outline or bulleted list alone is not acceptable.

1. Answer (a), (b), and (c). (a) Briefly explain ONE historical event or development in the period

1820 to 1860 that influenced the westward movement from the states along the Atlantic coast. (b) Briefly explain ONE specific factor in the period 1820 to 1860 that resulted in the rapid population growth of cities on the Atlantic coast. (c) Briefly explain how ONE specific group in the period 1820 to 1860 did not benefit from the westward movement.

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Topic 4.6

Effects of the Market Revolution on Society and Culture

A high and honorable feeling generally prevails, and the people begin to assume, more and more, a national character . . . .

Hezekiah Niles, Niles’ Weekly Register, 1815

Learning Objective: Explain how and why innovation in technology, agriculture, and commerce affected various segments of American society over time.

The wide impact of the market revolution that resulted from the innovations in technology, agriculture, and commerce affected all groups of people in the growing nation. They resulted in the development of a distinctively American culture, an increase in religious fervor, and support for various reform movements.

Specialization on the farm, the growth of cities, industrialization, and the development of modern capitalism meant the end of self-sufficient households and a growing interdependence among people. These changes combined to bring about a revolution in the marketplace. Farmers provided food to feed workers in cities, who in turn provided an array of mass-produced goods to farm families. For most Americans, the standard of living increased. At the same time, however, adapting to an impersonal, fast-changing economy presented challenges and problems.

Women As American society became more urban and industrialized, the nature of work and family life changed for women, many of whom no longer worked next to their husbands on family farms. Women seeking employment in a city were usually limited to two choices: domestic service or teaching. Factory jobs, as in the Lowell System, were not common. The overwhelming majority of working women were single. If they married, they left their jobs and took up duties in the home.

In both urban and rural settings, women were gaining relatively more control over their lives. As more men worked away from home, women took on new responsibilities as moral leaders within the home, a development known as the cult of domesticity (see Topic 4.11). Marriages arranged by one’s

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parents became less common, and some women elected to have fewer children.

Nevertheless, legal restrictions on women remained. For example, they could not vote.

Economic and Social Mobility Real wages improved for most urban workers in the early 1800s, but the gap between the very wealthy and the very poor increased. Social mobility (moving upward in income level and social status) did occur from one generation to the next, and economic opportunities in the United States were greater than in Europe. Extreme examples of poor, hard-working people becoming millionaires, however, were rare.

Population Growth and Change Population growth provided both the laborers and the consumers required for industrial development. Between 1800 and 1825, the U.S. population doubled; in the following 25 years, it doubled again. A high birthrate accounted for most of this growth, but it was strongly supplemented after 1830 by immigrants arriving from Europe, particularly from Great Britain and Germany. The nonwhite population—African Americans and American Indians—also grew in total number. However, as a percentage of the total population, nonwhites declined from almost 20 percent in 1790 to 15 percent in the 1850s. The enslaved population increased steadily despite the ban on the importation of enslaved Africans after 1808. In no other country in the Americas did the enslaved population generally increase after the slave trade ended.

By the 1830s, almost one-third of the population lived west of the Alleghenies.

At the same time, both old and new urban areas were growing rapidly.

Immigration In 1820, about 8,000 immigrants arrived from Europe, but beginning in 1832, there was a sudden increase. After 1832, the number of new arrivals never fell below 50,000 a year and in one year, 1854, climbed as high as 428,000. From the 1830s through the 1850s, nearly 4 million people from northern Europe crossed the Atlantic to seek a new life in the United States.

The surge in immigration between 1830 and 1860 was chiefly the result of the following: (1) the development of inexpensive and relatively rapid ocean transportation, (2) famines and revolutions in Europe that drove people from their homelands, and (3) the growing reputation of the United States as a country offering economic opportunities and political freedom.

Arriving by ship in the northern seacoast cities of Boston, New York, and Philadelphia, many immigrants remained where they landed while others traveled to farms and cities of the Old Northwest. Few journeyed to the South, where the plantation economy and slavery limited the opportunities for free labor. The immigrants strengthened the U.S. economy by providing both a steady stream of inexpensive labor and an increased demand for mass-produced consumer goods.

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Urban Life The North’s urban population grew from approximately

5 percent of the population in 1800 to 15 percent by 1850. As a result of such rapid growth in cities from Boston to Baltimore, slums also expanded. Crowded housing, poor sanitation, infectious diseases, and high rates of crime soon became characteristic of large working-class neighborhoods. Nevertheless, the new opportunities in cities offered by the Industrial Revolution continued to attract people from farming communities, including both native-born Americans and immigrants from Europe.

New Cities At key transportation points, small towns grew into thriving cities after 1820: Buffalo, Cleveland, Detroit, and Chicago on the Great Lakes, Cincinnati on the Ohio River, and St. Louis on the Mississippi River. The cities served as transfer points, processing farm products for shipment to the East and distributing manufactured goods from the East to their region.

U.S. MANUFACTURING BY REGION, 1860

Region Number of Establishments Number of Employees Value of Product

North Atlantic

69,831

900,107

$1,213,897,518

Old Northwest

33,335

188,651

$346,675,290

South

27,779

166,803

$248,090,580

West

8,777

50,204

$71,229,989

Source: U.S. Bureau of the Census. Manufactures of the United States in 1860

Organized Labor As manufacturing became increasingly important in the economy, goods became less expensive. For those who could afford them, the standard of living improved. The shift in the economy also created a small class of people, including some factory owners and bankers, who were very wealthy and a growing middle class of people.

Industrial development meant that a large number of people who had once earned their living as independent farmers and artisans became dependent on wages earned in a factory. With the common problems of low pay, long hours, and unsafe working conditions, urban workers in different cities organized both unions and local political parties to protect their interests. The first U.S. labor party, founded in Philadelphia in 1828, succeeded in electing a few members of the city council. For a brief period in the 1830s, an increasing number of urban workers joined unions and participated in strikes.

Organized labor achieved one notable victory in 1842 when the Massachusetts Supreme Court ruled in Commonwealth v. Hunt that “peaceful unions” had the right to negotiate labor contracts with employers. During the 1840s, some state legislatures in the North passed laws establishing a ten-hour workday for industrial workers. Improvement for workers, however, continued to be limited by (1) periodic depressions, (2) employers and courts that were hostile to unions, and (3) an abundant supply of low-wage immigrant labor.

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MULTIPLE-CHOICE QUESTIONS

Questions 1–3 refer to the following excerpt.

“We, the Journeyman Mechanics of the City and County of Philadelphia . . . are desirous of forming an association which shall avert as much as possible those evils which poverty and incessant toil have already inflicted . . . .

“If the mass of the people were enabled by their labor to procure for themselves and families a full and abundant supply of the comforts and conveniences of life, the consumption . . . would amount to at least twice the quantity it does at present, and of course the demand, by which alone employers are enabled either to subsist or accumulate, would likewise be increased in an equal proportion.

“The real object, therefore, of this association is to avert, if possible, the desolating evils which must inevitably arise from a depreciation of the intrinsic value of human labor; to raise the mechanical and productive classes to that condition of true independence and equality.”

Philadelphia Mechanics’ Union of Trade Associations, 1828

1. This excerpt supports the argument that the primary reason to form a union during the 1820s was to (A) improve working conditions so people would have better lives (B) lengthen the typical workday so people would earn more (C) stop immigration so workers would have less competition for jobs (D) form an alliance between White and Black laborers so workers would have more strength

REFLECT ON THE LEARNING OBJECTIVE

1. Explain the reasons and ways advances in technology, agriculture, and commerce influenced different groups in American society during this period.

KEY TERMS BY THEME

Urban Growth (MIG) urban life new cities

Industry & Problems

(WXT) Industrial Revolution unions

Commonwealth v. Hunt ten-hour workday

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2. Craftworkers and artisans in the 1820s were most negatively affected by (A) transportation improvements (B) ethnic rivalries (C) federal laws (D) technological changes

3. Urban workers attempted to improve their conditions through organizing labor unions and (A) joining religious institutions (B) forming political parties (C) creating ethnic societies (D) moving to working-class neighborhoods

SHORT-ANSWER QUESTIONS

Use complete sentences; an outline or bulleted list alone is not acceptable.

1. Answer (a), (b), and (c). (a) Briefly describe ONE historical event or development in the period

1830 to 1860 that resulted in the rapid increase in immigration. (b) Briefly describe how ONE specific effect that the immigrants who settled in the United States in the period 1830 to 1860 had on the development of the country. (c) Briefly explain ONE reason immigrants had for settling in ONE specific region of the country in the period 1830 to 1860.

2. Answer (a), (b), and (c). (a) Briefly explain ONE specific way the market revolution caused women’s role in society to change. (b) Briefly explain ONE specific way the market revolution caused the population to increase. (c) Briefly explain ONE specific way the market revolution caused changes in the urban areas.

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Topic 4.7

Expanding Democracy

“The political activity which pervades the United States must be seen in order to be understood. No sooner do you set foot upon American soil than you are stunned by a kind of tumult.

Alexis de Tocqueville, Democracy in America, 1835

Learning Objective: Explain the causes and effects of the expansion of participatory democracy from 1800 to 1848.

The changing politics of the period from 1800 to 1848 paralleled complex social and economic changes.

Greater Equality Visitors to the United States in the 1830s such as Alexis de Tocqueville, a young French aristocrat, were amazed by the informal manners and democratic attitudes of Americans. In hotels, men and women from all classes ate together at common tables. On stagecoaches, steamboats, and later in railroad cars, there was also only one class for passengers, so rich and poor alike sat together in the same compartments. European visitors could not distinguish between classes in the United States. Men of all backgrounds wore simple dark trousers and jackets, while less well-to-do women emulated the fanciful and confining styles illustrated in wide-circulation women’s magazines like Godey’s Lady’s Book. Equality was becoming the governing principle of American society.

The Rise of a Democratic Society Among the White majority in American society, people shared a belief in the principle of equality—more precisely, equality of opportunity for White males. These beliefs ignored the enslavement of most African Americans and discrimination against everyone who was not White. Equality of opportunity would, at least in theory, allow a young man of humble origins to rise as far as his natural talent and industry would take him. The hero of the age was the “self-made man.” There was no equivalent belief in the “self-made woman.” Restrictions, both legal and cultural, limited what women could do. But by the end of the 1840s, feminists would take up the theme of equal rights and insist that it should be applied to both women and men (see Topic 4.11).

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Politics of the Common Man Between 1824 and 1840, politics moved out of the fine homes of rich southern planters and northern merchants who had dominated government in past eras and into middle- and lower-class homes. Several factors contributed to the spread of democracy, including new suffrage laws, changes in political parties and campaigns, improved education, and increases in newspaper circulation.

Universal White Male Suffrage Western states newly admitted to the Union—Indiana (1816), Illinois (1818), and Missouri (1821)—adopted state constitutions that allowed all White males to vote and hold office. These newer constitutions omitted any religious or property qualifications for voting. Most eastern states soon followed suit, eliminating such restrictions. As a result, throughout the country, all White males could vote regardless of their social class or religion. Voting for president rose from about 350,000 in 1824 to more than 2.4 million in 1840, a nearly sevenfold increase in just 16 years, mostly as a result of changes in voting laws. In addition, political offices could be held by people in the lower and middle ranks of society.

Changes to Parties and Campaigns Though not mentioned in the Constitution, political parties quickly became important. They channeled the energies of people into choosing leaders.

Party Nominating Conventions In the past, candidates for office had commonly been nominated either by state legislatures or by “King Caucus”—a closed-door meeting of a political party’s leaders in Congress. Common citizens had no opportunity to participate. In the 1830s, however, caucuses were replaced by nominating conventions. Party politicians and voters would gather in a large meeting hall to nominate the party’s candidates. The Anti-Masonic Party was the first to hold such a nominating convention. This method was more open to popular participation, hence more democratic.

Popular Election of the Electors In the presidential election of 1832, only South Carolina used the old system in which the state legislature chose the electors for president. All other states had adopted the more democratic method of allowing the voters to choose a state’s slate of presidential electors.

Two-Party System The popular election of presidential electors—and, indirectly, the president—had important consequences for the two-party system. Campaigns for president now had to be conducted on a national scale.

To organize these campaigns, candidates needed large political parties.

Rise of Third Parties While only the large national parties (the Democrats and the Whigs in the 1830s) could hope to win the presidency, other political parties also emerged. The Anti-Masonic Party and the Workingmen’s Party, for example, reached out to groups of people who previously had shown little interest in politics. The Anti-Masons attacked the secret societies of Masons and accused them of belonging to an antidemocratic elite. The Workingmen’s Party tried to unite artisans and skilled laborers into a political organization.

207 TOPIC 4.7 ExPANDING DEMOCRACY

More Elected Offices During the Jacksonian era, a larger proportion of state and local officials were elected to office instead of being appointed as they had been in the past. This change gave the voters more voice in their government and also tended to increase their interest in participating in elections.

Popular Campaigning Candidates for office directed their campaigns to the interests and prejudices of the common people. Politics also became a form of local entertainment. Campaigns of the 1830s and 1840s featured parades of floats and marching bands and large rallies in which voters were treated to free food and drink. The negative side to the new campaign techniques was that in appealing to the masses, candidates would often resort to personal attacks and ignore the issues. A politician, for example, might attack an opponent’s “aristocratic airs” and make him seem unfriendly to “the common man.”

Spoils System and Rotation of Officeholders Winning government jobs became the lifeblood of party organizations. At the national level, President Jackson believed in appointing people to federal jobs (as postmasters, for example) strictly according to whether they had actively campaigned for the Democratic Party. Any previous holder of the office who was not a Democrat was fired and replaced with a loyal Democrat. This practice of dispensing government jobs in return for party loyalty was called the spoils system because of a comment that, in a war, victors seize the spoils, or wealth, of the defeated.

In addition, Jackson believed in a system of rotation in office. By limiting a person to one term in office, he could then appoint some other deserving Democrat in his place. Jackson defended the replacement and rotation of officeholders as a democratic reform. “No man,” he said, “has any more intrinsic claim to office than another.” Both the spoils system and the rotation of officeholders affirmed the democratic ideal that one man was as good as another and that ordinary Americans were capable of holding any government office. These beliefs also helped build a strong two-party system.

HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVES: THE JACKSONIANS AND EXPANDING

DEMOCRACY

Historians debate whether the election of Jackson in 1828 marked a revolutionary and democratic turn in American politics. The traditional view is that Jackson’s election began the era of the common man, when the masses of newly enfranchised voters drove out the entrenched ruling class and elected one of their own. The Revolution of 1828 was a victory of the democratic West against the aristocratic East. On the other hand, 19th-century Whig historians viewed Jackson as a despot whose appeal to the uneducated masses and “corrupt” spoils system threatened the republic.

Urban Workers In the 1940s, the historian Arthur M. Schlesinger Jr. argued that Jacksonian democracy relied as much on the support of eastern urban workers as on western farmers. Jackson’s coalition of farmers and workers foreshadowed a similar coalition that elected another Democratic president, Franklin D. Roosevelt, in the 1930s.

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MULTIPLE-CHOICE QUESTIONS

Questions 1–3 refer to the following excerpt.

“Our citizens who have not yet voted, have one more day in which they may exercise the privilege of determining whom they will have for their rulers. The old party lines are nearly obliterated, but there has sprung up a new interest which is formidable, both for the number of its adherents, and the disorganizing purposes by which they are actuated. By throwing open the polls to every man that walks, we have placed the power in the hands of those who have neither property, talents, nor influence in other circumstances; and who require in their public offices no higher qualifications than they possess themselves.”

New York Journal of Commerce, November 7, 1829

Cultural Influence Contemporary historians have used quantitative analysis of voting returns to show that increased voter participation was evident in local elections years before 1828 and did not reach a peak until the election of 1840, an election that the Whig Party won. Some historians argue that religion and ethnicity were more important than economic class in shaping votes. For example, Catholic immigrants objected to the imposition of the Puritan moral code (e.g., temperance) by the native-born Protestants.

Economic Clash Recent historians see Jackson’s popularity in the 1830s as a reaction of subsistence farmers and urban workers against threatening forces of economic change. A capitalist, or market, economy was taking shape in the early years of the 19th century. This market revolution divided the electorate.

Some, including many Whigs, wanted a greater role for business owners.

Jackson’s veto of the bank captured popular fears about the rise of capitalism.

Support an Argument Explain two perspectives on the factors that caused the expansion of democracy in the early 19th century.

REFLECT ON THE LEARNING OBJECTIVE

1. Explain what brought about changes in democracy during this period, and identify the changes.

KEY TERMS BY THEME

Common Man (NAT, POL) common man universal White male suffrage party nominating convention “King Caucus” popular election of president

Politics (POL) Anti-Masonic Party Workingmen’s Party popular campaigning spoils system rotation in office

209 TOPIC 4.7 ExPANDING DEMOCRACY

1. The remarks in the excerpt were most likely made in response to which of the following? (A) Popular campaigning (B) Universal White male suffrage (C) Expanding caucus system (D) Return of a two-party system

2. Which of the following developments most directly supports the claim in the excerpt that “the old party lines are nearly obliterated”? (A) The rise of the Federalist Party, particularly in New England (B) The increased use of the spoils system to fill government jobs (C) The idea of rotation in office as advocated by Andrew Jackson (D) The rise of new parties such as the Workingmen’s Party

3. Which of the following statements about the period 1824 to 1840 could be used to modify or refute the claim in the last sentence of the excerpt? (A) More states used popular elections to choose members of the Electoral College. (B) Political parties began to use conventions to nominate candidates. (C) The number of votes in presidential elections increased sevenfold. (D) The opportunities for women and African Americans to participate in politics remained unchanged.

SHORT-ANSWER QUESTION

Use complete sentences; an outline or bulleted list alone is not acceptable.

1. Answer (a), (b), and (c). (a) Briefly explain ONE historical event or development in the period

1824 to 1840 that demonstrated the spread of democracy and the “politics of the common man.” (b) Briefly explain how ONE specific group in the period 1824 to 1840 did not share in the spread of democracy and the “politics of the common man.” (c) Briefly explain ONE historical event or development in the period

1824 to 1840 that demonstrated the growth of political parties.

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Topic 4.8

Jackson and Federal Power

It is to be regretted that the rich and powerful too often bend the acts of government to their own selfish purposes.

Andrew Jackson, on his veto of the national bank bill, July 10, 1832

Learning Objective: Explain the causes and effects of continuing policy debates about the role of the federal government from 1800 to 1848.

The era marked by the emergence of popular politics in the 1820s and the presidency of Andrew Jackson (1829–1837) is often called the Age of the Common Man or the Era of Jacksonian Democracy. Historians debate whether Jackson was a major molder of events, a political opportunist exploiting the democratic ferment of the times, or merely a symbol of the era. Nevertheless, the era and Jackson’s name are strongly linked.

Jackson Versus Adams Political change in the Jacksonian era began several years before Jackson moved into the White House as president. In the controversial election in 1824, Jackson won more popular and electoral votes than any other candidate but he ended up losing the election.

The Election of 1824 Recall the brief Era of Good Feelings that characterized U.S. politics during the two-term presidency of James Monroe. The era ended in political bad feelings in 1824, the year of a bitterly contested and divisive presidential election. By then, the old congressional caucus system for choosing presidential candidates had broken down. As a result, four candidates from the Democratic-Republican Party of Jefferson campaigned for the presidency: John Quincy Adams, Henry Clay, William Crawford, and Andrew Jackson.

Among voters in states that counted popular votes (six did not), Jackson won. But because the vote was split four ways, he lacked a majority in the Electoral College as required by the Constitution. Therefore, the House of Representatives had to choose a president from among the top three candidates.

Henry Clay used his influence in the House to provide John Quincy Adams of Massachusetts with enough votes to win the election. When President Adams appointed Clay his secretary of state, Jackson and his followers charged that the decision of the voters had been foiled by secret political maneuvers. Angry Jackson supporters accused Adams and Clay of making a “corrupt bargain.”

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THE ELECTION OF 1824

Popular Vote Electoral Vote House of Representatives

152,933

115,696

47,136

46,979

99

84

37

41 7

13

4

Andrew Jackson John Quincy Adams Henry Clay William Crawford

Source: Jeffrey B. Morris and Richard B. Morris, editors. Encyclopedia of American History

President John Quincy Adams Adams further alienated the followers of Jackson when he asked Congress for money for internal improvements, aid to manufacturing, and even a national university and an astronomical observatory. Jacksonians viewed all these measures as a waste of money and a violation of the Constitution.

Most significantly, in 1828, Congress patched together a new tariff law, which generally satisfied northern manufacturers but alienated southern planters.

Southerners denounced it as a “tariff of abominations.”

The Revolution of 1828 Adams sought reelection in 1828. But the Jacksonians were now ready to use the discontent of southerners and westerners and the new campaign tactics of party organization to sweep “Old Hickory” (Jackson) into office. Going beyond parades and barbecues, Jackson’s party resorted to smearing the president and accusing Adams’s wife of being born out of wedlock. Supporters of Adams retaliated in kind, accusing Jackson’s wife of adultery. The mudslinging campaign attracted a lot of interest, and voter turnout soared.

Jackson won handily, carrying every state west of the Appalachians. His reputation as a war hero and man of the western frontier accounted for his victory more than the positions he took on issues of the day.

The Presidency of Andrew Jackson Jackson was a different kind of president from any of his predecessors. A strong leader, he not only dominated politics for eight years but also became a symbol of the emerging working class and middle class (the so-called common man).

Born in a frontier cabin, Jackson gained fame as an Indian fighter and as hero of the Battle of New Orleans and came to live in a fine mansion in Tennessee as a wealthy planter and slaveowner. But he never lost the rough manners of the frontier. He chewed tobacco, fought several duels, and displayed a violent temper. Jackson was the first president since Washington to be without a college

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education. In a phrase, he could be described as an extraordinary ordinary man. This self-made man and living legend drew support from every social group and every section of the country.

Presidential Power Jackson presented himself as the representative of all the people and the protector of the common man against abuses of power by the rich and the privileged. He was a frugal Jeffersonian, who opposed increasing federal spending and the national debt. Jackson interpreted the powers of Congress narrowly and, therefore, vetoed more bills—12—than all six preceding presidents combined. For example, he vetoed the use of federal money to construct the Maysville Road because it was wholly within one state, Kentucky, the home state of Jackson’s rival, Henry Clay.

Jackson’s closest advisers were a group known as his “kitchen cabinet” who did not belong to his official cabinet. Because of them, the appointed cabinet had less influence on policy than under earlier presidents.

Peggy Eaton Affair The champion of the common man also went to the aid of the common woman, at least in the case of Peggy O’Neale Eaton. The wife of Jackson’s secretary of war, she was the target of malicious gossip by other cabinet wives, much as Jackson’s recently deceased wife had been in the

1828 campaign. When Jackson tried to force the cabinet wives to accept Peggy Eaton socially, most of the cabinet resigned. This controversy contributed to the resignation of Jackson’s vice president, John C. Calhoun, a year later. For remaining loyal during this crisis, Martin Van Buren of New York was chosen as vice president for Jackson’s second term.

Indian Removal Act (1830) Jackson’s concept of democracy did not extend to American Indians. Jackson sympathized with land-hungry citizens who were impatient to take over lands held by American Indians. Jackson thought the most humane solution was to compel the American Indians to leave their traditional homelands and resettle west of the Mississippi. In 1830, he signed into law the Indian Removal Act, which forced the resettlement of many thousands of American Indians.

By 1835, most eastern tribes had reluctantly complied and moved west.

The Bureau of Indian Affairs was created in 1836 to assist the resettled tribes.

Most politicians supported a policy of Indian removal. Georgia and other states passed laws requiring the Cherokees to migrate to the West. When the Cherokees challenged Georgia in the courts, the Supreme Court ruled in Cherokee Nation v. Georgia (1831) that Cherokees were not a foreign nation with the right to sue in a federal court. But in a second case, Worcester v.

Georgia (1832), the high court ruled that the laws of Georgia had no force within Cherokee territory. In this clash between a state’s laws and the federal courts, Jackson sided with the states. The Court was powerless to enforce its decision without the President’s support.

Trail of Tears Most Cherokees repudiated the settlement of 1835, which provided land in the Indian territory. In 1838, after Jackson had left office, the U.S. Army forced 15,000 Cherokees to leave Georgia. The hardships on the Trail of Tears westward caused the deaths of 4,000 Cherokees.

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TOPIC 4.8 JACKSON AND FEDERAL POWER

INDIAN REMOVAL IN THE 1830s

Indian Tribes’ Home Territories

Indian Territory

300 Kilometers

300 Miles

G u l f o f M e x i c o

FLORIDA

NEBRASKA

TERRITORY

KANSAS

TERRITORY

MISSOURI

VIRGINIA

GEORGIA

ALABAMA

TENNESSEE

KENTUCKY

ARKANSAS

MISSISSIPPI

LOUISIANA

NORTH

CAROLINA

SOUTH

CAROLINA

IOWA TERRITORY Sauk Fox

1832

Chickasaw

1832

Cherokee

1835

Creek

1832

Seminole

1832

Chocktaw

1830

“T

ra

il

o

f

T

e

a

r

s

”

Nullification Crisis Jackson favored states’ rights—but not disunion.

In 1828, the South Carolina legislature declared the increased tariff of 1828, the so-called Tariff of Abominations, to be unconstitutional. In doing so, it affirmed a theory advanced by Jackson’s first vice president, John C. Calhoun.

According to this nullification theory, each state had the right to decide whether to obey a federal law or to declare it null and void (of no effect).

In 1830, the conflicting views of the nature of the federal Union under the Constitution led to a dramatic exchange of speeches between Senators Daniel Webster of Massachusetts and Robert Hayne of South Carolina. Hayne argued for the rights of states. In response, Webster attacked the idea that any state could defy or leave the Union.

Following this famous Webster-Hayne debate, President Jackson declared his own position in a toast he presented at a political dinner. “Our federal Union,” he declared, “it must be preserved.” Calhoun responded immediately with another toast: “The Union, next to our liberties, most dear!” In 1832, Calhoun’s South Carolina increased tensions by holding a special convention to nullify both the hated 1828 tariff and a new tariff of 1832. The convention passed a resolution forbidding collection of tariffs within the state.

Jackson reacted decisively. He told the secretary of war to prepare the military.

He persuaded Congress to pass the Force Bill, which gave him authority to act against South Carolina. Jackson also issued a Proclamation to the People of South Carolina, stating that nullification and disunion were treason.

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But federal troops did not march in this crisis. Jackson opened the door for compromise by suggesting that Congress lower the tariff. South Carolina postponed nullification and later formally rescinded it after Congress enacted a new tariff along the lines suggested by the president, along with some adjustments that appealed to Northern industrialists.

Opposition to Antislavery Efforts Jackson’s strong defense of federal authority forced the militant advocates of states’ rights to retreat. On another issue, however, militant southerners had Jackson’s support. The president shared southerners’ alarm about the growing antislavery movement in the North. He used his executive power to stop antislavery literature from being sent through the U.S. mail. Southern Jacksonians trusted that Jackson would not extend democracy to African Americans.

Bank Veto Another major issue of Jackson’s presidency concerned the rechartering of the Bank of the United States. This bank and its branches, although privately owned, received federal deposits and attempted to serve a public purpose by cushioning the ups and downs of the national economy.

The bank’s president, Nicholas Biddle, managed it effectively. Biddle’s arrogance, however, contributed to popular suspicion that the bank abused its powers and served the interests of only the wealthy. Jackson shared this suspicion. In addition, Jackson believed that the Bank of the United States was unconstitutional.

Henry Clay, Jackson’s chief political opponent, favored the bank. In 1832, an election year, Clay challenged Jackson by persuading a majority in Congress to pass a bank recharter bill. Jackson promptly vetoed it, denouncing the bank as a private monopoly that enriched the wealthy and foreigners at the expense of the common people and a “hydra of corruption.” The voters backed Jackson, who won reelection with more than three-fourths of the electoral vote.

The Two-Party System The brief one-party system that had characterized Monroe’s presidency (the Era of Good Feelings) had given way to a two-party system under Jackson.

Supporters of Jackson were now known as Democrats, while supporters of his leading rival, Henry Clay, were called Whigs. The Democratic Party harked back to the old Democratic-Republican Party of Jefferson, and the Whig Party resembled the defunct Federalist Party of Hamilton. Just as the Federalists had supported a national bank and a national road in order to promote economic growth, the Whigs supported spending federal money for internal improvements, such as roads, canals, and harbors.

At the same time, the new parties reflected the changed conditions of the Jacksonian era. Democrats and Whigs alike were challenged to respond to the relentless westward expansion of the nation and the emergence of an industrial economy.

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Jackson’s Second Term After winning reelection in 1832, Jackson moved to destroy the Bank of the United States.

Pet Banks Jackson attacked the bank by withdrawing all federal funds.

Aided by Secretary of the Treasury Roger Taney, he transferred the funds to various state banks, which Jackson’s critics called “pet banks.”

Specie Circular As a result of both Jackson’s financial policies and the feverish purchase of western lands by many speculators, prices for land and various goods became greatly inflated. Jackson hoped to check the inflationary trend by issuing a presidential order known as the Specie Circular. It required that all future purchases of federal lands be made in specie (gold and silver) rather than in paper banknotes. Soon afterward, banknotes lost their value and land sales plummeted. Right after Jackson left office, a financial crisis—the Panic of 1837—plunged the nation’s economy into a depression.

The Election of 1836 Following the two-term tradition set by his predecessors, Jackson did not seek a third term. To make sure his policies were carried out even in his retirement, Jackson persuaded the Democratic Party to nominate his loyal vice president, Martin Van Buren, who was a master of practical politics.

Fearing defeat, the Whig Party adopted the unusual strategy of nominating three candidates from three different regions. In doing so, the Whigs hoped to throw the election into the House of Representatives, where each state had one vote in the selection of the president. The Whig strategy failed, however, as Van Buren took 58 percent of the electoral vote.

DEMOCRATS AND WHIGS IN THE AGE OF JACKSON

Democrats Whigs

Issues • Opposed a national bank • Opposed protective tariffs • Opposed federal spending for internal improvements • Concerned about high land prices in the West • Concerned about business monopolies

• Supported a national bank • Supported protective tariffs • Support federal spending for internal improvements • Concerned about crime associated with immigrants

Base of Voter Support • The South and West • Urban workers • New England and the Mid-Atlantic states • Urban professionals

President Van Buren and the Panic of 1837 Just as Van Buren took office, the country suffered a financial panic as one bank after another closed its doors. Jackson’s opposition to the rechartering of the Bank of the United States was only one of many causes of the panic and resulting economic depression. But the Whigs were quick to blame the

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Democrats for their laissez-faire economics, which advocated for little federal involvement in the economy.

The “Log Cabin and Hard Cider” Campaign of 1840 In the election of 1840, the Whigs were in a strong position to defeat Van Buren and the Jacksonian Democrats. Voters were unhappy with the bad state of the economy. In addition, the Whigs were better organized than the Democrats and had a popular war hero, William Henry “Tippecanoe” Harrison, as their presidential candidate. The Whigs took campaign hoopla to new heights. To symbolize Harrison’s humble origins, they put log cabins on wheels and paraded them down the streets of cities and towns. They also passed out hard cider for voters to drink and buttons and hats to wear.

Name-calling as a propaganda device also marked the 1840 campaign. The Whigs attacked “Martin Van Ruin” as an aristocrat with a taste for foreign wines.

A remarkable 78 percent of eligible voters (White males) cast their ballots.

Old “Tippecanoe” and John Tyler of Virginia, a former states’ rights Democrat who joined the Whigs, took 53 percent of the popular vote and most of the electoral votes in all three sections: North, South, and West. This election established the Whigs as a national party.

However, Harrison died of pneumonia less than a month after taking office, and “His Accidency,” John Tyler, became the first vice president to succeed to the presidency. President Tyler was not much of a Whig. He vetoed the Whigs’ national bank bills and other legislation and favored southern and expansionist Democrats during the balance of his term

(1841–1845).

The Western Frontier Jackson’s view of Native Americans and the Trail of Tears both reflect a common opinion and approach in the 19th century. If as the United States expanded westward, the definition of the “West” kept changing, attitudes towards the land and the American Indians remained constant. In the 1600s, the West referred to all the lands not along the Atlantic coast. In the 1700s, the West meant lands on the other side of the Appalachian Mountains. By the mid-1800s, the West lay beyond the Mississippi River and reached to California and the Oregon Territory on the Pacific coast.

American Indians The original settlers of the West—and the entire North American continent— were various groups of American Indians. However, from the time of Columbus, American Indians were cajoled, pushed, or driven westward as White settlers encroached on their original homelands.

Exodus By 1850, the vast majority of American Indians were living west of the Mississippi River. Those to the east had either been killed by disease, died

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TOPIC 4.8 JACKSON AND FEDERAL POWER

in battles, emigrated reluctantly, or had been forced to leave their land by treaty or military action. The Great Plains, however, would provide only a temporary respite from conflict with White settlers.

Life on the Plains Horses brought to America by the Spanish in the 1500s revolutionized life for American Indians on the Great Plains. Some tribes continued to live in villages and farm, but the horse allowed tribes such as the Cheyenne and the Sioux to become nomadic hunters following the buffalo.

Those living a nomadic way of life could more easily move away from advancing settlers or oppose their encroachments by force.

The Frontier Although the location of the western frontier constantly shifted, the concept of the frontier remained the same from generation to generation. The same forces that had brought the original colonists to the Americas motivated their descendants and new immigrants to move westward. In the public imagination, the West represented the possibility of a fresh start for those willing to venture there. If not in fact, at least in theory and myth, the West beckoned as a place promising greater freedom for all ethnic groups: American Indians, African Americans, European Americans, and eventually Asian Americans as well.

Mountain Men From the point of view of White Americans, the Rocky Mountains in the 1820s were a far-distant frontier—a total wilderness except for American Indian villages. The earliest White people in the area had followed Lewis and Clark and explored American Indian trails as they trapped for furs.

These mountain men, as they were called, served as the guides and pathfinders for settlers crossing the mountains into California and Oregon in the 1840s.

White Settlers on the Western Frontier Whether the frontier lay in Minnesota or Oregon or California in the 1830s and 1840s, daily life for White settlers was similar to that of the early colonists.

They worked hard from sunrise to sunset and lived in log cabins, sod huts, or other shelters built from locally available resources. Disease and malnutrition were far greater dangers than attacks by American Indians.

Women Often living many miles from the nearest neighbor, pioneer women performed myriad daily tasks, including those of doctor, teacher, seamstress, and cook—as well as chief assistant in the fields to their farmer husbands. The isolation, endless work, and rigors of childbirth resulted in a short lifespan for frontier women.

Environmental Damage Settlers had little understanding of the fragile nature of land and wildlife. As settlers moved into an area, they would clear entire forests and after only two generations, exhaust the soil with poor farming methods. At the same time, trappers and hunters brought the beaver and the buffalo to the brink of extinction.

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IMPACT OF EUROPEAN SETTLEMENT ON FORESTED LAND

State Forested Land before European Settlement

Forested Land after Extensive European Settlement

Pennsylvania 90% to 95% 35%

Illinois 40% 12%

Wisconsin 63% to 86% 50%

Iowa 19% 8%

Sources: Pennsylvania Bureau of Forestry, University of Illinois Extension, University of Wisconsin—Stevens Point, Iowa State Forest Resource Assessment

REFLECT ON THE LEARNING OBJECTIVE

1. Explain the reasons for and results from the ongoing arguments over the powers of the federal government.

KEY TERMS BY THEME

Migration (NAT, MIG) Indian Removal Act (1830) Cherokee Nation v. Georgia Worcester v. Georgia Trail of Tears Great Plains White settlers

Economics (WXT) Bank of the United States Nicholas Biddle Roger Taney “pet banks” Specie Circular Panic of 1837 Martin Van Buren

Jacksonian Politics (POL) John Quincy Adams Henry Clay “corrupt bargain” Tariff of 1828; Tariff of Abominations

Revolution of 1828 Andrew Jackson role of the president Peggy Eaton affair states’ rights nullification crisis Webster-Hayne debate John C. Calhoun Proclamation to the People of South Carolina two-party system Democrats Whigs “log cabin and hard cider” campaign

Identities & Conflict (ARC) the West the frontier

Ignorance (GEO) environmental damage extinction

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TOPIC 4.8 JACKSON AND FEDERAL POWER

MULTIPLE-CHOICE QUESTIONS

Questions 1–3 refer to the following excerpt.

“It is to be regretted that the rich and powerful too often bend the acts of government to their selfish purposes. Distinctions in society will always exist under every just government. . . . In the full enjoyment of the gifts of Heaven and the fruits of superior industry, economy, and virtue, every man is equally entitled to protection by law; but when the laws undertake to add to these natural and just advantages artificial distinctions . . . to make the rich richer . . . the humble members of society—the farmers, mechanics, and laborers . . . have a right to complain of the injustices of their government. There are no necessary evils in government. . . . If it would confine itself to equal protection . . . the rich and the poor, it would be an unqualified blessing. In the act before me there seems to be a wide and unnecessary departure from these just principles.”

President Andrew Jackson, message vetoing the Bank of the United States, July 10, 1832

1. As expressed in this excerpt, President Jackson’s guiding principle to check “the injustices of government” was (A) limited government (B) the two-party system (C) the principle of nullification (D) the civil service system

2. Jackson’s action on the bank bill supported his views in this excerpt because he saw the bank as a symbol of (A) the natural distinctions that exist in a society (B) the results of the superior industry by some people (C) the role of the government to provide equal protection (D) the government helping the rich more than the poor

3. President Jackson’s veto of the bank bill contributed most significantly to (A) lower interest rates (B) a financial panic (C) increased land sales (D) more political support for Henry Clay

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SHORT-ANSWER QUESTIONS

Use complete sentences; an outline or bulleted list alone is not acceptable.

1. “He [Jackson] believed that removal was the Indians’ only salvation against certain extinction. . . .

Not that the President was motivated by concerns for the Indians . . . .

Andrew Jackson was motivated principally by two considerations: first . . . military safety . . . that Indians must not occupy areas that might jeopardize the defense of this nation; and second, . . . the principle that all persons residing within states are subject to the jurisdiction and laws of those states. . . .

Would it have been worse had the Indians remained in the East? Jackson thought so. He said that they would ‘disappear and be forgotten.’ One thing does seem certain: the Indians would have been forced to yield to state laws and white society. Indian Nations per se would have been obliterated.”

Robert V. Remini, historian, Andrew Jackson: The Course of American Freedom, 1822–1832, 1998

“The Georgia legislature passed a law extending the state’s jurisdiction . . . over the Cherokees living within the state.

Georgia’s action forced the President’s hand. He must see to it that a removal policy long covertly pursued by the White House would now be enacted into law by Congress. . . .

Jackson as usual spoke publicly in a tone of friendship and concern for Indian welfare. . . . He, as President, could be their friend only if they removed beyond the Mississippi, where they should have a ‘land of their own, which they shall possess as long as Grass grows or water runs . . . .’

A harsh policy was nevertheless quickly put in place.

It is abundantly clear that Jackson and his administration were determined to permit the extension of state sovereignty because it would result in the harassment of Indians, powerless to resist, by speculators and intruders hungry for Indian land.”

Anthony F. C. Wallace, historian, The Long, Bitter Trail: Andrew Jackson and the Indians, 1993

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TOPIC 4.8 JACKSON AND FEDERAL POWER

Using the excerpts, answer (a), (b), and (c). (a) Briefly describe ONE major difference between Remini’s and Wallace’s historical interpretations of Jackson’s Indian removal policies. (b) Briefly explain how ONE specific historical event or development in the period 1824 to 1844 that is not explicitly mentioned in the excerpts could be used to support Remini’s interpretation. (c) Briefly explain how ONE specific historical event or development in the period 1824 to 1844 that is not explicitly mentioned in the excerpts could be used to support Wallace’s interpretation.

2. Answer (a), (b), and (c). (a) Briefly explain ONE historical event or development in the period

1824 to 1840 that demonstrated the efforts of President Andrew Jackson to increase the powers of the federal government. (b) Briefly explain ONE historical event or development in the period

1824 to 1840 that challenged the efforts of President Andrew Jackson to increase the powers of the federal government? (c) Briefly explain ONE historical event or development in the period

1824 to 1840 that demonstrated President Andrew Jackson’s view of the role of nonwhite people in America.

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Topic 4.9

The Development of an American Culture

He is the true artist whose life is his material; every stroke of the chisel must enter his own flesh and bone and not grate dully on marble.

Henry David Thoreau, Journal, June 1840

Learning Objective: Explain how and why a new national culture developed from 1800 to 1848.

Much of America’s early culture reflected that of Britain and the other European countries from which settlers had come. With their independence assured by the early 19th century, Americans increasingly developed a culture of their own, often one with a strong nationalistic tone. However, Americans continued to be influenced by their European heritage and to look to Europe for new ideas. Furthermore, the growing national culture emerged at the same time regional variations of it became increasingly evident.

Cultural Nationalism The generation of Americans that became adults in the first decades of the 19th century had concerns that differed from those of the nation’s founders. The young were excited about the prospects of the new nation expanding westward and had little interest in European politics now that the Napoleonic wars (as well as the War of 1812) were in the past. As fervent nationalists, they believed their young country was entering an era of unlimited prosperity. Patriotic themes infused every aspect of American society, from art to schoolbooks.

Heroes of the Revolution were enshrined in the paintings by Gilbert Stuart, Charles Willson Peale, and John Trumbull. A fictionalized biography extolling the virtues of George Washington, written by Parson Mason Weems, was widely read. The expanding public schools embraced Noah Webster’s blue-backed speller, which promoted patriotism long before his famous dictionary was published. The basic ideas and ideals of nationalism and patriotism would dominate most of the 19th century.

A Changing Culture: Ideas, the Arts, and Literature In Europe, during the early years of the 19th century, artists and writers shifted away from the Enlightenment emphasis on reason, order, and balance and

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TOPIC 4.9 THE DEVELOPMENT OF AN AMERICAN CULTURE

toward intuition, feelings, individual acts of heroism, and the study of nature.

This new movement, known as romanticism, was most clearly expressed in the United States by the transcendentalists, a small group of New England thinkers.

The Transcendentalists Writers such as Ralph Waldo Emerson and Henry David Thoreau questioned the doctrines of established churches and the business practices of the merchant class. They argued for a mystical and intuitive way of thinking as a means for discovering one’s inner self and looking for the essence of God in nature. Their views challenged the materialism of American society by suggesting that artistic expression was more important than the pursuit of wealth. Although the transcendentalists valued individualism highly and downplayed the importance of organized institutions, they supported a variety of reforms, especially the antislavery movement.

Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803–1882) The best-known transcendentalist, Ralph Waldo Emerson, was a very popular American writer and speaker.

His essays and lectures expressed the individualistic and nationalistic spirit of Americans by urging them not to imitate European culture but to create a distinctive American culture. He argued for self-reliance, independent thinking, and the primacy of spiritual matters over material ones. A northerner who lived in Concord, Massachusetts, Emerson became a leading critic of slavery in the 1850s and then an ardent supporter of the Union during the Civil War.

Henry David Thoreau (1817–1862) Also living in Concord and a close friend of Emerson was Henry David Thoreau. To test his transcendentalist philosophy, Thoreau conducted a two-year experiment of living simply in a cabin in the woods outside town. He used observations of nature to help him search for essential truths about life and the universe. Thoreau’s writings from these years were published in the book for which he is best known, Walden (1854). Because of this book, Thoreau is remembered today as a pioneer ecologist and conservationist.

Though often detached from politics, Thoreau felt strongly that the U.S. war against Mexico (1846–1848) was immoral. To express his opposition, he refused to pay a tax that would support the war. For breaking the tax law, Thoreau was arrested and jailed. He stayed only one night—an unknown person paid his tax for him. Thoreau’s reflections on the necessity for disobeying unjust laws and accepting the penalty in his essay known as “On Civil Disobedience” added to his lasting fame. In the 20th century, Thoreau’s ideas and actions would inspire the nonviolent movements of both Mohandas Gandhi in India and Martin Luther King Jr. in the United States.

Brook Farm Could a community of people live out the transcendentalist ideal? In 1841, George Ripley, a Protestant minister, launched a communal experiment at Brook Farm in Massachusetts. His goal was to achieve “a more natural union between intellectual and manual labor.” Living at Brook Farm at times were some of the leading intellectuals of the period. Emerson went, as

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did Margaret Fuller, a feminist (advocate of women’s rights) writer and editor; Theodore Parker, a theologian and radical reformer; and Nathaniel Hawthorne, a novelist. A bad fire and heavy debts forced the end of the experiment in 1849. But Brook Farm was remembered for its atmosphere of artistic creativity, its innovative school, and its appeal to New England’s intellectual elite and their children.

Other Communal Experiments Brook Farm was just one attempt to set up an intentionally organized society. The idea of withdrawing from conventional society to create an ideal community, or utopia, in a fresh setting was not a new idea. But never before were social experiments so numerous as during the antebellum years. The open lands of the United States proved fertile ground for more than a hundred experimental communities. The early members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints undertook one type of a religious communal effort (see Topic 4.10).

Brook Farm was an example of a humanistic, or secular, experiment. Although many of the communities were short-lived, these “backwoods utopias” reflect the diversity of the reform ideas of the time.

Shakers One of the earliest religious communal movements, the Shakers had about 6,000 members in various communities by the 1840s. Shakers held property in common and kept women and men strictly separate (forbidding marriage and sexual relations). For lack of new recruits, the Shaker communities virtually died out by the mid-1900s.

The Amana Colonies The settlers of the Amana Colonies in Iowa were Germans who belonged to the religious reform movement known as Pietism.

Like the Shakers, they emphasized simple, communal living. However, they allowed for marriage. Their communities continue to prosper, although they no longer practice their communal ways of living.

New Harmony The secular (nonreligious) experiment in New Harmony, Indiana, was the work of the Welsh industrialist and reformer Robert Owen.

Owen hoped his utopian socialist community would provide an answer to the problems of inequity and alienation caused by the Industrial Revolution.

The experiment failed, however, as a result of both financial problems and disagreements among members of the community.

Oneida Community After undergoing a religious conversion, John Humphrey Noyes started a cooperative community in Oneida, New York, in

1848. Dedicated to an ideal of perfect social and economic equality, community members shared property and, later, marriage partners. Critics attacked the Oneida system of planned reproduction and communal child-rearing as a sinful experiment in “free love.” Despite the controversy, the community managed to prosper economically by producing and selling silverware of excellent quality.

Fourier Phalanxes In the 1840s, the theories of the French socialist Charles Fourier attracted the interest of many Americans. In response to the problems

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of a fiercely competitive society, Fourier advocated that people share work and housing in communities known as Fourier Phalanxes. This movement died out quickly as Americans proved too individualistic to live communally.

Arts and Literature The democratic and reforming impulses of the Age of Jackson expressed themselves in painting, architecture, and literature.

Painting Genre painting—portraying the everyday life of ordinary people doing ordinary things such as riding riverboats and voting on election day— became popular among artists in the 1830s. For example, George Caleb Bingham depicted common people in various settings and carrying out domestic chores.

William S. Mount won popularity for his lively rural compositions. Thomas Cole and Frederick Church emphasized the heroic beauty of American landscapes, especially in dramatic scenes along the Hudson River in New York state and the western frontier wilderness. The Hudson River School, as it was called, expressed the Romantic Age’s fascination with the natural world.

Architecture Inspired by the democracy of classical Athens, American architects adapted Greek styles to glorify the democratic spirit of the republic.

Columned facades like those of ancient Greek temples graced the entryways to public buildings, banks, hotels, and even some private homes.

Literature In addition to the transcendentalist authors (notably Emerson and Thoreau), other writers helped to create a literature that was both Romantic and yet distinctively American. Partly as a result of the War of 1812, the American people became more nationalistic and eager to read works about American themes by American writers. Most prominent writers came from New England or the Mid-Atlantic states:

• Washington Irving wrote fiction, such as “Rip Van Winkle” and “The Legend of Sleepy Hollow,” using American settings.

• James Fenimore Cooper’s Leatherstocking Tales were a series of novels written from 1824 to 1841 that glorified the nobility of scouts and settlers on the American frontier.

• Nathaniel Hawthorne questioned the intolerance and conformity in American life in short stories and novels, including The Scarlet Letter

(1850).

• Herman Melville’s innovative novel Moby-Dick (1855) reflected the theological and cultural conflicts of the era as it told the story of Captain Ahab’s pursuit of a white whale.

• Edgar Allan Poe, like many Romantic writers, focused on irrational aspects of human behavior. His poems such as “The Raven” and short stories such as “The Tell-Tale Heart” portrayed mysterious or even horrifying events.

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Source: Fur Traders Descending the Missouri by George Caleb Bingham, 1845. Wikimedia Commons/The Yorck Project/ Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York City

REFLECT ON THE LEARNING OBJECTIVE

1. Explain why a new American culture developed during the period from

1800 to 1848 and what characterized it.

KEY TERMS BY THEME

Public Confidence

(NAT) cultural nationalism

Alternative Groups

(NAT) utopia Shakers Amana Colonies Robert Owen New Harmony John Henry Noyes Oneida Community Charles Fourier Fourier Phalanxes

New Ideas (SOC) antebellum romanticism

transcendentalists Ralph Waldo Emerson Henry David Thoreau; Walden; “On Civil Disobedience” Brook Farm George Ripley feminists Margaret Fuller Theodore Parker George Caleb Bingham William S. Mount Thomas Cole Frederick Church Hudson River School Washington Irving James Fenimore Cooper Nathaniel Hawthorne

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MULTIPLE-CHOICE QUESTIONS

Questions 1–3 refer to the following excerpt.

“Unlike those who call themselves no-government men, I ask for, not . . . no government, but . . . a better government. . . .

It is not desirable to cultivate a respect for the law, so much as for the right.

The only obligation which I have a right to assume is to do at any time what I think right. . . .

There are thousands who are in opinion opposed to slavery and to the war [with Mexico], who yet in effect do nothing to put an end to them . . . .

Under a government which imprisons any unjustly, the true place for a just man is also a prison. . . . If the alternative is to keep all just men in prison, or give up war and slavery, the State will not hesitate which to choose. If a thousand men were not to pay their tax-bills this year, that would not be a violent and bloody measure . . . . This is . . . the definition of a peaceable revolution.”

Henry David Thoreau, author, “Resistance to Civil Government,” (also known as “Civil Disobedience”), 1849

1. Thoreau’s ideology about the individual and society was most similar to (A) Anne Hutchinson’s beliefs about her duty to follow Puritan religious leaders (B) Sam Adams’s ideas about the tactics colonists should use to win independence (C) John Calhoun’s conclusions about the role of enslaved people in South Carolina (D) Andrew Jackson’s treatment of American Indians who dissented from federal land policies

2. Which of the following best explains why Thoreau stated that “under a government which imprisons any unjustly, the true place for a just man is also a prison”? (A) Thinkers such as Ralph Waldo Emerson were questioning business practices of the merchant class. (B) Communal experiments were providing places where people could live in what they hoped would be an ideal community. (C) People were expressing democratic impulses in painting, architecture, and literature. (D) The United States was at war with Mexico, which some people supported as an effort to extend slavery.

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3. Which of the following groups held views about how an individual should act that were most similar to those expressed in this excerpt? (A) People who attended revivals because they were influenced by participating in large meetings (B) People known as transcendentalists because they emphasized

acting on what they felt was right more than on what the law said (C) People who joined phalanxes because their actions were shaped by one type of socialist ideas (D) People who followed millennialism and made decisions based on their belief that the world would end soon

SHORT-ANSWER QUESTION

Use complete sentences; an outline or bulleted list alone is not acceptable.

1. “America is beginning to assert herself to the senses and to the imagination of her children, and Europe is receding in the same degree. . . .

Prudent men have begun to see that every American should be educated with a view to the values of land. . . .

The land is the appointed remedy for whatever is false . . . in our culture. . . .

Gentlemen, the development of our American internal resources, the extension to the utmost of the commercial system, and the appearance of new moral causes which are to modify the State, are giving an aspect of greatness to the Future, which the imagination fears to open.”

Ralph Waldo Emerson, writer, “The Young American,” 1844

Using the excerpt, answer (a), (b), and (c). (a) Briefly explain ONE perspective expressed by Emerson on the reform movements in the mid-19th century. (b) Briefly explain ONE specific way in which developments in the mid-19th century supported Emerson’s point of view. (c) Briefly explain ONE specific way in which developments in the mid-19th century challenged Emerson’s point of view.

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Topic 4.10

The Second Great Awakening

A revival is nothing else than a new beginning of obedience to God.

Reverend Charles Grandison Finney, “What a Revival of Religion Is,” 1835

Learning Objective: Explain the causes of the Second Great Awakening.

Religious revivals swept through the United States starting in the late 18th century and through the first half of the 19th century. Some of these, known as the Second Great Awakening, marked a reassertion of the traditional Calvinist (Puritan) teachings of original sin and predestination. Others represented new developments in Christianity in the United States.

Causes of Religious Reform Several factors fostered the conditions for the religious reforms of the late 18th and first half of the 19th century known as the Second Great Awakening:

• The growing emphasis on democracy and the individual that influenced politics and the arts also affected how people viewed religion. Worshippers were attracted to services that were more participatory and less formal.

• The rational approach to religion favored by the Deists and Unitarians prompted a reaction toward more emotional expressions of beliefs in worship services.

• The market revolution caused people to fear that growing industrialization and commercialization were leading to increased greed and sin.

• The disruptions caused by the market revolution and the mobility of people led them to look for worship settings that were outside formal churches based in urban areas.

Revivals The Second Great Awakening began among highly educated people such as Reverend Timothy Dwight, president of Yale College in Connecticut. Dwight and others saw themselves as traditional Calvinists leading a counterattack against the liberal views that emerged in the 1790s. His campus revivals

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motivated a generation of young men to become evangelical preachers. In the revivals of the early 1800s, successful preachers were audience-centered and easily understood by the uneducated. They spoke about the opportunity for salvation for all, a message attuned to the democratization of American society.

They attracted thousands to existing churches and led the establishment of new religious organizations.

Revivalism on the Frontier In 1823, Presbyterian minister Charles Grandison Finney started a series of revivals in upstate New York, where many New Englanders had settled. Instead of delivering sermons based on rational argument, Finney appealed to people’s emotions and fear of damnation. He prompted thousands to publicly declare their revived faith. He preached that every individual could be saved through faith and hard work—ideas that strongly appealed to the rising middle class. Because of Finney’s influence, western New York became known as the “burned-over district” for its frequent “hell-and-brimstone” revivals.

Baptists and Methodists In the South and on the western frontier, Baptist and Methodist circuit preachers, such as Peter Cartwright, would travel from one location to another and attract thousands to hear their dramatic preaching at outdoor revivals, or camp meetings. These preachers activated the faith of many who had never belonged to a church. By 1850, the Baptists and the Methodists were the largest Protestant denominations in the country.

Source: Getty Images Camp meetings featured a preacher speaking to a crowd of people who often traveled from miles around to attend. The tents in the background provided places for people to stay if they could not return home at night.

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New Denominations Besides energizing existing denominations, the religious fervor of the time fostered the growth of new ones. Two were particularly influential.

Millennialism Much of the religious enthusiasm of the time was based on the widespread belief that the world was about to end with the second coming of Jesus. One preacher, William Miller, gained tens of thousands of followers by predicting a specific date (October 21, 1844) for the second coming. Nothing happened on the appointed day, but the Millerites continued as a new Christian denomination, the Seventh-Day Adventists.

Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, formerly called the Mormon Church, was founded by Joseph Smith in 1830 in New York. Smith based his beliefs on a book of Scripture— The Book of Mormon—that traced a connection between American Indians and the lost tribes of Israel. Smith and his followers, facing persecution, moved to Ohio, then Missouri, and then Illinois. There, Smith was murdered by a local mob.

To survive, Church members, led by Brigham Young, migrated to the western frontier. They settled on the banks of the Great Salt Lake in Utah and named their community New Zion. Their cooperative social organization helped them prosper in the wilderness.

However, the Church faced strong opposition because Smith had approved the practice of polygamy, allowing a man to have more than one wife. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints officially prohibited polygamy in

1890. It is no longer affiliated with any group that allows it.

Reforms Backed by Religion The Second Great Awakening, like the first in the 18th century, caused divisions between the newer evangelical sects and the older Protestant churches throughout the country. But it also touched off several social reform movements, including efforts to reduce drinking, end slavery, and provide better treatment for people with mental illness. Activist religious groups provided both the leadership and the well-organized voluntary societies that drove many reform movements during the antebellum era.

REFLECT ON THE LEARNING OBJECTIVE

1. What caused the Second Great Awakening?

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MULTIPLE-CHOICE QUESTIONS

Questions 1–2 refer to the following excerpt.

“In a revival of religion, there are involved both the glory of God, so far as it respects the government of this world, and the salvation of men . . . .

The Church must take right ground in regard to politics. Do not suppose that I am going to preach a political sermon, or that I wish to have you join in getting up a Christian party in politics. . . .

Christians have been exceedingly guilty in this matter. But the time has come when they must act differently. As on the subjects of Slavery and Temperance, so on this subject the Church must act rightly or the country will be ruined. . . .

The Churches must take right ground on the subject of Slavery. . . .

Christians can no more take neutral ground on this subject, since it has come up for discussion, than they can take neutral ground on the subject of the sanctification of the Sabbath. It [slavery] is a great national sin.”

Charles Grandison Finney, Revival Lectures, XV, 1825–1835

1. Finney’s views in the excerpt on slavery would find the greatest support from whom among the following? (A) Thomas Jefferson and others who owned enslaved people (B) Andrew Jackson and others who did not focus on the slavery issue (C) John C. Calhoun and others who advocated for slavery (D) John Quincy Adams and others who supported steps to end slavery

2. Finney’s assertions were most closely related to those of (A) supporters of a spiritual awakening during the 18th century (B) Enlightenment thinkers from the late 18th century (C) revolutionaries during the fight for colonial independence (D) warhawks during the War of 1812

KEY TERMS BY THEME

Thoughts on Religion (SOC) Second Great Awakening Timothy Dwight revivalism; revivals; camp meetings Charles Grandison Finney

millennialism Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (Mormons) Joseph Smith Brigham Young New zion

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SHORT-ANSWER QUESTION

Use complete sentences; an outline or bulleted list alone is not acceptable.

1. “The transformation of American theology in the first quarter of the nineteenth century released the very forces of romantic perfectionism that conservatives most feared. . . . As it spread, perfectionism swept across denominational barriers and penetrated even secular thought. . . .

As the sum of individual sins, social wrong would disappear when enough people had been converted and rededicated to right conduct. Deep and lasting reform, therefore, meant an educational crusade based on the assumption that when a sufficient number of individual Americans had seen the light, they would automatically solve the country’s social problems.

Thus formulated, perfectionist reform offered a program of mass conversion achieved through educational rather than political means. In the opinion of the romantic reformers the regeneration of American society began, not in legislative enactments or political manipulation, but in [an] . . . appeal to the American urge for individual self-improvement.”

John L. Thomas, historian, Romantic Reform in America, 1815–1865, 1965

“In the United States, the public sphere formed itself in a void, growing lush from the fertilization of religious and political controversies as its signature forms spread rapidly from city to town and town to village. In the ensuing decades, the public realm became an arena of initiatives and experiments, religiously-inspired reform movements and heated political contests. . . .

In creating vast pools of proselytizers . . . and designating the entire society a missionary field, the evangelical Protestants, particularly in the North, encouraged social activism. . . .

The society as a whole had to be redeemed . . . . Once converted, men and women found ways to express their new-found spiritual awakening by getting government policy, public morals, and private lives to conform to biblical prescriptions.”

Joyce Appleby, historian, Inheriting the Revolution, 2000

Using the excerpts, answer (a), (b), and (c). (a) Briefly explain ONE major difference between Thomas’s and Appleby’s historical interpretations of influences on the Constitution. (b) Briefly explain how ONE historical event or development in the period 1820 to 1860 that is not explicitly mentioned in the excerpts could be used to support Thomas’s interpretation. (c) Briefly explain how ONE historical event or development in the period 1820 to 1860 that is not explicitly mentioned in the excerpts could be used to support Appleby’s interpretation.

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Topic 4.11

An Age of Reform

We would have every path laid open to Woman as freely as to Man . . . .

As the friend of the Negro assumes that one man cannot by right hold another in bondage, so should the friend of Woman assume that Man cannot by right lay even well-meant restrictions on Woman.

Margaret Fuller, reformer and activist, 1845

Learning Objective: Explain how and why various reform movements developed and expanded from 1800 to 1848.

Several historic reform movements began during the Jacksonian era and in the following decades. This period before the Civil War started in 1861 is known as the antebellum period. During it, a diverse mix of reformers dedicated themselves to such causes as establishing free (tax-supported) public schools, improving the treatment of the mentally ill, controlling or ending the sale of alcohol, winning equal rights for women, and abolishing slavery. The enthusiasm for reform had many historic sources: the Puritan sense of mission; the Enlightenment belief in human goodness; the Jacksonian emphasis on democracy; and the changes in relationships among men and women, social classes, and ethnic groups. Religious beliefs were an important source.

Improving Society Reform movements evolved during the antebellum era. At first, the leaders of reform hoped to improve people’s behavior through moral persuasion, appealing to individuals’ sense of right and wrong. However, after they tried sermons and pamphlets, reformers often moved on to political action and to ideas for creating new institutions to replace the old.

Temperance The high rate of alcohol consumption (five gallons of hard liquor per person in 1820) prompted reformers to target alcohol as a cause of crime, poverty, abuse of women, and other social ills. Temperance became the most popular of the reform movements.

The temperance movement began by using moral exhortation. In 1826, Protestant ministers and others concerned with drinking and its effects founded the American Temperance Society. The society tried to persuade drinkers to take a pledge of total abstinence. In 1840, a group of recovering alcoholics

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formed the Washingtonians and argued that alcoholism was a disease that needed practical, helpful treatment. By the 1840s, various temperance societies together had more than a million members.

German and Irish immigrants were largely opposed to the temperance campaign. But they lacked the political power to prevent state and city governments from passing reforms. Factory owners and politicians joined with the reformers when it became clear that temperance measures could increase workers’ output on the job. In 1851, the state of Maine went beyond simply placing taxes on the sale of liquor and became the first state to prohibit the manufacture and sale of intoxicating liquors. Twelve states followed within a decade. However, in the 1850s, the issue of slavery came to overshadow the temperance movement. The movement would gain strength again in the late 1870s, with strong support from the Woman’s Christian Temperance Union.

It would achieve national success with the passage of the 18th Amendment in 1919, which banned the sale of intoxicating liquors.

Movement for Public Asylums Humanitarian reformers of the 1820s and 1830s called attention to the increasing numbers of criminals, emotionally disturbed persons, and paupers.

Often these people were forced to live in wretched conditions and were regularly either abused or neglected by their caretakers. To alleviate the suffering of these individuals, reformers proposed setting up new public institutions— state-supported prisons, mental hospitals, and poorhouses. Reformers hoped that inmates would be cured as a result of being withdrawn from squalid surroundings and treated to a disciplined pattern of life in some rural setting.

Mental Hospitals Dorothea Dix, a former schoolteacher from Massachusetts, was horrified to find mentally ill persons locked up with convicted criminals in unsanitary cells. She launched a cross-country crusade, publicizing the awful treatment she had witnessed. In the 1840s, one state legislature after another built new mental hospitals or improved existing institutions and mental patients began receiving professional treatment.

Schools for Blind and Deaf Persons Two other reformers founded special institutions to help people with physical disabilities. Thomas Gallaudet opened a school for the deaf, and Dr. Samuel Gridley Howe started a school for the blind. By the 1850s, special schools modeled after the work of these reformers had been established in many states of the Union.

Prisons Pennsylvania took the lead in prison reform, building new prisons called penitentiaries to take the place of crude jails. Reformers placed prisoners in solitary confinement to force them to reflect on their sins and repent. The experiment was dropped because of the high rate of prisoner suicides. These prison reforms reflected a major doctrine of the asylum movement: structure and discipline would bring about moral reform. A similar penal experiment, the Auburn system in New York, enforced rigid rules of discipline while also providing moral instruction and work programs.

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Public Education Another reform movement started in the Jacksonian era focused on the need for establishing free public schools for children of all classes. Middle-class reformers were motivated in part by their fears for the future of the republic posed by growing numbers of the uneducated poor—both immigrant and native-born. Workers’ groups in the cities generally supported the reformers’ campaign for free (tax-supported) schools.

Free Common Schools Horace Mann was the leading advocate of the common (public) school movement. As secretary of the newly founded Massachusetts Board of Education, Mann worked for compulsory attendance for all children, a longer school year, and increased teacher preparation. In the 1840s, the movement for public schools spread rapidly to other states.

Moral Education Mann and other educational reformers wanted children to learn not only basic literacy, but also moral principles. Toward this end, William Holmes McGuffey, a Pennsylvania teacher, created a series of elementary textbooks that became widely used to teach reading and morality.

The McGuffey readers extolled the virtues of hard work, punctuality, and sobriety—the kind of behaviors needed in an emerging industrial society.

Many public schools reflected the Protestant beliefs of the majority of community residents. In response, Roman Catholics founded private schools for the instruction of Catholic children.

Higher Education The religious enthusiasm of the Second Great Awakening helped fuel the growth of private colleges. Beginning in the 1830s, various Protestant denominations founded small denominational colleges, especially in the newer western states (Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, and Iowa).

Several new colleges, including Mount Holyoke College in Massachusetts (founded by Mary Lyon in 1837) and Oberlin College in Ohio, began to admit women. Adult education was furthered by lyceum lecture societies, which brought speakers such as Ralph Waldo Emerson to small-town audiences.

Changes in Families and Roles for Women American society was still overwhelmingly rural in the mid-19th century. But in the growing cities, the impact of the Industrial Revolution was redefining the family. Industrialization reduced the economic value of children. In middle-class families, birth control was used to reduce average family size, which declined from 7.04 family members in 1800 to 5.42 in 1830. Affluent women now had the leisure time to devote to organizations based on religion or moral uplift. The New York Female Moral Reform Society, for example, helped impoverished young women avoid being forced into lives of prostitution.

Cult of Domesticity Industrialization also changed roles within families.

In traditional farm families, men were the moral leaders. However, when men took jobs outside the home to work for salaries or wages in an office or a factory, they were absent most of the time. As a result, the women in these households who remained at home took charge of the household and children.

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The idealized view of women as moral leaders in the home is called the cult of domesticity.

Women’s Rights Women reformers, especially those involved in the antislavery movement, resented the way men relegated them to secondary roles in the movement. For example, men prevented women from taking part fully in policy discussions. Among the women who spoke out against discrimination was Sarah Grimké in Letters on the Equality of the Sexes, and the Condition of Women (1838). Sarah and her sister, Angelina Grimké, were among the leaders opposing slavery. Another pair of reformers, Lucretia Mott and Elizabeth Cady Stanton, began campaigning for women’s rights after they had been barred from speaking at an antislavery convention.

Seneca Falls Convention (1848) The leading feminists met at Seneca Falls, New York, in 1848. At the conclusion of their convention—the first women’s rights convention in American history—they issued a document closely modeled after the Declaration of Independence. Their “Declaration of Sentiments” declared that “all men and women are created equal” and listed women’s grievances against laws and customs that discriminated against them.

Following the Seneca Falls Convention, Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Susan B. Anthony led the campaign for equal voting, legal, and property rights for women. In the 1850s, however, the issue of women’s rights was overshadowed by the crisis over slavery.

Antislavery Movement Opponents of slavery ranged from moderates who proposed gradual abolition to radicals who demanded immediate abolition without compensating their owners. The Second Great Awakening led many Christians to view slavery as a sin. This moral view made compromise with defenders of slavery difficult.

American Colonization Society The idea of transporting those people freed from slavery to an African colony was first tried in 1817 with the founding of the American Colonization Society. This appealed to some opponents of slavery. It also appealed to many White Americans who wanted to remove all free Black Americans from U.S. society. In 1822, the American Colonization Society established an African American settlement in Monrovia, Liberia.

Colonization never proved practical. For the most part, free African Americans did not want to leave the land where they and their ancestors had been born.

Between 1820 and 1860, only about 12,000 African Americans moved to Africa, while the enslaved population grew by 2.5 million.

American Antislavery Society In 1831, William Lloyd Garrison began publication of an abolitionist newspaper, The Liberator, an event that marks the beginning of the radical abolitionist movement. The uncompromising Garrison advocated immediate abolition of slavery in every state and territory without compensating the slaveowners. In 1833, Garrison and other abolitionists founded the American Antislavery Society. Garrison stepped up his attacks by condemning and burning the Constitution as a proslavery document. He

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argued for “no Union with slaveholders” until they repented for their sins by freeing their slaves.

Liberty Party Garrison’s radicalism soon led to a split in the abolitionist movement. Believing that political action was a more practical route to reform than Garrison’s moral crusade, a group of northerners formed the Liberty Party in 1840. They ran James Birney as their candidate for president in 1840 and 1844. The party’s one campaign pledge was to bring about the end of slavery by political and legal means.

Black Abolitionists Individuals who had escaped enslavement and free African Americans were among the most outspoken and convincing critics of slavery. One who was formerly enslaved, such as Frederick Douglass, could speak about the brutality and degradation of slavery from firsthand experience.

An early follower of Garrison, Douglass later advocated both political and direct action to end slavery and racial prejudice. In 1847, he started the antislavery journal The North Star. Other African American leaders, such as Harriet Tubman, David Ruggles, Sojourner Truth, and William Still, helped organize the effort to assist fugitive slaves escape to free territory in the North or to Canada, where slavery was prohibited.

Violent Abolitionism David Walker and Henry Highland Garnet were two northern African Americans who advocated the most radical solution to the slavery question. They argued that those enslaved should take action themselves by rising up in revolt against their owners. In 1831, an enslaved Virginian, Nat Turner, led a revolt in which 55 Whites were killed. In retaliation, Whites killed hundreds of African Americans in brutal fashion and put down the revolt. Before this event, there had been some antislavery sentiment and discussion in the South. After the revolt, fear of future uprisings as well as Garrison’s inflamed rhetoric put an end to antislavery talk in the South.

Other Reforms Efforts to reform individuals and society during the antebellum era also included several smaller movements besides those calling for temperance and abolition:

• The American Peace Society, founded in 1828, had the objective of abolishing war. It actively protested the war with Mexico in 1846.

• Some reformers fought for laws to protect sailors from being flogged.

• Advocates of dietary reforms, such as eating whole wheat bread or Sylvester Graham’s crackers, wanted to promote good digestion.

• Several women called for dress reform for women so they could move about more easily. For example, Amelia Bloomer called for women to wear pantalettes instead of long skirts.

• One unusual reform was phrenology, a pseudoscience that studied the bumps on a person’s skull to assess the person’s character and ability.

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REFLECT ON THE LEARNING OBJECTIVE

1. Explain reasons different reform efforts started and how the efforts developed differently from 1800 to 1848.

MULTIPLE-CHOICE QUESTIONS

Questions 1–3 refer to the following excerpt.

“If, then education be of admitted importance to the people, under all forms of Governments, and of unquestioned necessity when they govern themselves, it follows of course that its cultivation and diffusion is a matter of public concern and a duty which every government owes to its people. . . .

“Many complain of this tax, not so much on account of its amount, as because it is for the benefit of others and not themselves. This is a mistake; it is for their own benefit, inasmuch as it perpetuates the Government . . . .

He who would oppose it, either through inability to comprehend the advantages of general education, or from unwillingness to bestow them on all his fellow citizens, even to the lowest and the poorest, or from dread of popular vengeance, seems to me to want [lack] either the head of the philosopher, the heart of the philanthropist, or the nerve of the hero.”

Representative Thaddeus Stevens, speech to the Pennsylvania Legislature, 1835

KEY TERMS BY THEME

Reforming Society (POL) temperance American Temperance Society Washingtonians Woman’s Christian Temperance Union asylum movement Dorothea Dix Thomas Gallaudet Dr. Samuel Gridley Howe penitentiaries Auburn system Horace Mann common (public) school movement McGuffey readers

Seneca Falls Convention

(1848) Susan B. Anthony American Peace Society

Abolition Efforts (POL) American Colonization Society American Antislavery Society abolition William Lloyd Garrison; The Liberator Liberty Party Frederick Douglass; The North Star Harriet Tubman David Ruggles

Sojourner Truth William Still David Walker Henry Highland Garnet Nat Turner

Women’s Rights (SOC) antebellum period women’s rights cult of domesticity Sarah Grimké Angelina Grimké Letters on the Equality of the Sexes, and the Condition of Woman Lucretia Mott Elizabeth Cady Stanton Susan B. Anthony

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1. Which of the following statements best describes the issues causing the sentiments expressed in the excerpt? (A) People inspired by Henry David Thoreau were refusing to pay taxes. (B) Reformers in many states were advocating for publicly funded education. (C) Pennsylvania was slower than most states in passing social reforms. (D) Debates on most issues were based on the growing division over slavery.

2. The views of Stevens on education were most similar to those of which of the following groups during the colonial era? (A) Small farmers in rural regions (B) Merchants based in large cities (C) Puritans in New England (D) Plantation owners in southern colonies

3. Stevens said, “Many complain of this tax, not so much on account of its amount, as because it is for the benefit of others and not themselves.

This is a mistake.” This statement supported which of the following positions? (A) Free public education would help everyone in a society. (B) High taxes benefit only the poorest people in a society. (C) Society works best when people act in what they see as their self-interest. (D) Society suffers when citizens allow government to expand its role.

SHORT-ANSWER QUESTION

Use complete sentences; an outline or bulleted list alone is not acceptable.

1. Answer (a), (b), and (c). (a) Briefly explain ONE specific development in the opposition to slavery in the period 1820 to 1860. (b) Briefly explain ONE historical event or development related to women’s rights in the period 1820 to 1860. (c) Briefly explain ONE specific government response to the reform movements in the period 1820 to 1860.

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TOPIC 4.12 AFRICAN AMERICANS IN THE EARLY REPUBLIC

Topic 4.12

African Americans in the Early Republic

Now I’ve been free, I know what a dreadful condition slavery is.

I have seen hundreds of escaped slaves, but I never saw one who was willing to go back and be a slave.

Harriet Tubman, 1856

Learning Objective: Explain the continuities and changes in the experience of African Americans from 1800 to 1848.

At the outset of the 19th century, many people throughout the nation believed and hoped that slavery would gradually disappear. They thought that the exhaustion of soil in the coastal lands of Virginia and the Carolinas and the constitutional ban on the importation and enslaving of Africans after 1808 would make slavery economically unfeasible. However, the rapid growth of the cotton industry and the expansion of slavery into new states such as Alabama and Mississippi ended hopes for a quiet end to slavery. As the arguments over the Missouri Compromise suggested, the slavery issue defied easy answers.

UNITED STATES LABOR FORCE, 1800–1860 (IN MILLIONS)

Year Free Enslaved Total

1800

1.4

0.5

1.9

1810

1.6

0.7

2.3

1820

2.1

1.0

3.1

1830

3.0

1.2

4.2

1840

4.2

1.5

5.7

1850

6.3

2.0

8.3

1860

8.8

2.3

11.1

Source: U.S. Bureau of the Census. Historical Statistics of the United States, Colonial Times to 1970

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Free African Americans By 1860, there were approximately 500,000 free African Americans living throughout the United States.

In the North The 250,000 African Americans who lived in the North in

1860 constituted only 1 percent of northerners. However, they represented

50 percent of all free African Americans in the country. Freedom enabled them to maintain a family and, in some instances, own land. In response to discrimination in White-dominated churches, many free African Americans formed their own Christian congregations. Some of these congregations joined together as the African Methodist Episcopal Church.

However, freedom did not mean economic or political equality for African Americans, since strong racial prejudices kept them from voting and holding jobs in most skilled professions and crafts. In the mid-1800s, immigrants displaced them from occupations and jobs that they had held since the time of the Revolution. Denied membership in unions, African Americans were often hired as strikebreakers—and often dismissed after the strike ended.

In the South As many as 250,000 African Americans in the South were not enslaved. They were free citizens (even though, as in the North, racial prejudice restricted their liberties). A number of those enslaved had been emancipated during the American Revolution. Some were mulatto children whose White fathers had decided to liberate them. Others achieved freedom on their own, when permitted, through self-purchase—if they were fortunate enough to have been paid wages for extra work, usually as skilled craftspeople.

Most free southern Blacks lived in cities where they could own property.

By state law, they were not equal with Whites, were not permitted to vote, and were barred from entering certain occupations. Constantly in danger of being kidnapped by slave traders, they had to show legal papers proving their free status. They remained in the South for various reasons. Some wanted to be near family members who were still in bondage. Others thought of the South as their home and believed the North offered no greater opportunities.

Resistance by the Enslaved Conditions of slavery varied from one plantation to the next, but all suffered from being deprived of their freedom. Families could be separated at any time by an owner’s decision to sell a wife, a husband, or a child. Women were vulnerable to sexual exploitation. Despite the hard, nearly hopeless circumstances of their lives, enslaved African Americans maintained a strong sense of family and of religious faith.

Those enslaved contested their status through a range of actions, including restrained resistance, running away, or open rebellion. The search for freedom was continuous and took many forms.

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Restrained Actions On a daily basis, an untold number of those enslaved engaged in work slowdowns and equipment sabotage. What Whites called “laziness” in those enslaved was in reality a subtle defiance against their situation.

Runaways For an individual, escape from enslavement was a challenging goal. It was even more difficult for women who were caring for their children or pregnant. All escaping faced organized militia patrols and hunters who were paid a bounty for those they captured. Those returned to their owners were normally severely physically mistreated. The growth of the “Underground Railroad” and increasing demands of Southerners for stricter fugitive slave laws (see Topics 4.11, 5.4, 5.5) demonstrate the increasing number of slaves willing to attempt running away despite the risks.

Source: Library of Congress When Robert Jackson and two other enslaved men from Virginia attempted to escape, they were caught in a barn in Maryland. After a violent struggle, they were captured and returned to slavery.

Rebellions While there were few large uprisings instigated by those enslaved, their impact on both other enslaved people and on White Southerners was considerable. In particularly, the successful slave revolt and the establishment of an independent nation in Haiti in the early 1800s caused consternation among slaveholders in the South. For years Southerners resisted political recognition or any diplomatic interaction with Haiti.

One of the earliest reported organized efforts to rebel was on a plantation near Richmond, Virginia, in 1800. Gabriel Prosser is reputed to have engaged approximately a thousand others enslaved to rise up against their oppressors.

Betrayed before they could take action, Gabriel and a number of his followers were executed.

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Another notable conspiracy for freedom was organized by Denmark Vesey, a free African American, in 1822, near Charleston, South Carolina.

Vesey and other fellow congregants of a large African Methodist Church that included many slaves were reputedly inspired by their readings from the Bible and possibly discussions of the recent Missouri Compromise limiting the spread of slavery. They forged a plan to seize ships in the harbor and sail away to freedom, possibly to Haiti. These efforts were ended by informers before Vesey could act, and he along with over thirty conspirators were hanged.

There is one instance of an uprising by those enslaved that was well known.

Nat Turner, enslaved in Southampton County, Virginia, in 1831, and considered a religious zealot by some, organized an attack on his surrounding community.

In a single day, over 50 White men, women, and children were killed. Reaction was swift, and the militia killed not only Turner and his followers but also many innocent African Americans in reprisal for the rebellion.

While any efforts at organized rebellions were quickly and violently suppressed, they had a lasting influence. They gave hope to enslaved African Americans, drove southern states to tighten already strict slave codes with growing fear, and demonstrated to many the evils of slavery. Revolts polarized the country by making slaveholders more defensive about slavery and nonslaveholders more critical of the institution.

POPULATION OF ENSLAVED AFRICAN AMERICANS

1800

1830

1860

New York

20,613 75

Maryland

106,635

102,994

87,189

Virginia

346,671

469,767

490,865

Georgia

59,699

217,531

462,198

Alabama —

117,549

435,080

Mississippi —

65,659

436,631

Arkansas —

4,576

111,115

All States

893,605

2,009,043

3,953,760

Source: State-level data from Historical Census Browser from the University of Virginia, Geospatial and Statistical Data Center. Data drawn from the U.S. Census.

REFLECT ON THE LEARNING OBJECTIVE

1. Explain what stayed the same and what became different for African Americans during the period from 1800 to 1848.

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KEY TERMS BY THEME

Identities & Conflict (ARC) free African Americans The Slave Industry (MIG, WXT) Denmark Vesey Nat Turner slave codes

MULTIPLE-CHOICE QUESTIONS

Questions 1–2 refer to the following excerpt.

“I think that ’twixt the negroes of the South and the women at the North, all talking about rights, the white men will be in a fix pretty soon. But what’s all this here talk about?

That man over there says that women need to be helped . . . . Nobody ever helps me. . .! And ain’t I a woman?

Then they talk about this thing in the head . . . [audience member whispers “intellect”] . . . What’s that got to do with women’s rights or negro’s rights?

If my cup won’t hold but a pint, and yours holds a quart, wouldn’t you be mean not to let me have my little half measure full?

Then that little man in black there, he says women can’t have as much rights as men, ’cause Christ wasn’t a woman! Where did your Christ come from? . . . From God and a woman! Man had nothing to do with Him.”

Sojourner Truth, abolitionist and former slave, speech to a Women’s Convention in Ohio, 1851

1. Sojourner Truth most clearly rejects criticisms of women that are based on which of the following? (A) The ideas of transcendentalism (B) The principles of the Enlightenment (C) The teachings of religion (D) The working status of women

2. Sojourner Truth saw connections between the women’s rights movement and (A) the Second Great Awakening (B) the antislavery movement (C) the cult of domesticity (D) the Constitution

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SHORT-ANSWER QUESTION

1. “Slaves apparently thought of the South’s peculiar institution chiefly as a system of labor extortion. Of course they felt its impact in other ways—in their social status, their legal status, and their private lives—but they felt it most acutely in their lack of control of their own time and labor. . . .

In Africa the Negroes had been accustomed to a strictly regulated family life and a rigidly enforced moral code. But in America the disintegration of their social organization removed the traditional sanctions which had encouraged them to respect their old customs. . . .

Here, as at so many other points, the slaves had lost their native culture without being able to find a workable substitute and therefore lived in a kind of cultural chaos. . . . Marriage, insisted Frederick Douglass, had no existence among slaves. . . . His consolation was that at least some slaves ‘maintained their honor, where all around was corrupt.’ ”

Kenneth M. Stampp, historian, The Peculiar Institution, 1956

“We have made a great error in the way in which we have viewed slave life, and this error has been perpetuated by both whites and blacks, racists and antiracists. . . .

What the sources show . . . is that the average plantation slave lived in a family setting, developed strong family ties, and held the nuclear family as the proper social norm. . . . We do not know just how many slaves lived as a family or were willing and able to maintain a stable family life during slavery. But the number was certainly great, whatever the percentage, and as a result, the social norm that black people carried from slavery to freedom was that of the nuclear family. . . . There are moments in the history of every people—in which they cannot do more than succeed in keeping themselves together and maintaining themselves as human beings with a sense of individual dignity and collective identity. Slavery was such a moment for black people in America.”

Eugene Genovese, historian, American Slaves and Their History, 1971

Using the excerpts, answer (a), (b), and (c). (a) Briefly explain ONE major difference between Stampp’s and Genovese’s historical interpretations of the nature of slavery. (b) Briefly explain how ONE historical event or development in the period 1820 to 1860 that is not explicitly mentioned in the excerpts could be used to support Stampp’s interpretation. (c) Briefly explain how ONE historical event or development in the period 1820 to 1860 that is not explicitly mentioned in the excerpts could be used to support Genovese’s interpretation.

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TOPIC 4.13 SOUTHERN SOCIETY IN THE EARLY REPUBLIC

Topic 4.13

Southern Society in the Early Republic

I never use the word “nation” in speaking of the United States.

I always use the word “Union” or “Confederacy.” We are not a nation but a union, a confederacy of equal and sovereign States.

Senator John C. Calhoun, South Carolina, 1849

Learning Objective: Explain how geographic and environmental factors shaped the development of the South from 1800 to 1848.

Initially the English colonies had developed as parts of distinct regions: New England, Middle, and Southern. A combination of geography and cultural differences among immigrants, compounded by limited contact because of poor transportation, shaped the differences among the regions. As the colonies became states and as transportation improved in the 19th century, the regional distinctions remained, based on a combination of geography and economics.

The states where slavery was widely practiced formed a distinctive region, the South. By 1861, the region included 15 states, all but four of which (Delaware, Maryland, Kentucky, and Missouri) seceded and joined the Confederacy.

Agriculture and King Cotton Agriculture was the foundation of the South’s economy, even though by the 1850s, small factories in the region were producing approximately 15 percent of the nation’s manufactured goods. Tobacco, rice, and sugarcane were important cash crops, but these were far exceeded by the South’s chief economic activity: the production and sale of cotton.

The development of mechanized textile mills in England, coupled with Eli Whitney’s cotton gin, made cotton cloth affordable, not just in Europe and the United States, but throughout the world. Before 1860, the world depended chiefly on Britain’s mills for its supply of cloth, and Britain, in turn, depended chiefly on the American South for its supply of cotton fiber.

Originally, the cotton was grown almost entirely in two states, South Carolina and Georgia, but as demand and profits increased, planters moved westward into Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana, and Texas. New land was constantly in demand because the high cotton yields desired for profits quickly depleted the soil. By the 1850s, cotton provided two-thirds of all U.S. exports and

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linked the South and Great Britain. “Cotton is king,” said one southerner of his region’s greatest asset.

AGRICULTURE, MINING AND MANUFACTURING BEFORE THE CIVIL WAR

300 Miles

300 Kilometers

300 Miles

300 Kilometers

Flour and meal

Mining Lumber Iron and steelworks

Textiles

Cotton

Corn and wheat farming Tobacco Rice and sugarcane Range and ranch cattle Dairy cattle

Orchards

Slavery, the “Peculiar Institution” Wealth in the South was measured in terms of land and enslaved people. The latter were treated as a form of property, subject to being bought and sold.

However, some Whites were sensitive about how they treated the other humans, so they referred to slavery as “that peculiar institution.” In colonial times, people justified slavery as an economic necessity, but in the 19th century, apologists for slavery mustered historical and religious arguments to support their claim that it was good for both the enslaved and the master.

Population The cotton boom was largely responsible for a fourfold increase in the number of people held in slavery, from 1 million in 1800 to nearly 4 million in 1860. Most of the increase came from natural growth, although thousands of Africans were also smuggled into the South in violation of the 1808 law against importing enslaved people. In parts of the Deep

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TOPIC 4.13 SOUTHERN SOCIETY IN THE EARLY REPUBLIC

South, enslaved African Americans made up as much as 75 percent of the total population. Fearing slave revolts, southern legislatures added increased restrictions on movement and education to their slave codes.

Economics Enslaved workers were employed doing whatever their owners demanded of them. Most labored in the fields, but many learned skilled crafts or worked as house servants, in factories, or on construction gangs. Because of the greater profits to be made on the new cotton plantations in the West, many owners in the Upper South sold their enslaved workers to owners in the cotton-rich Deep South of the lower Mississippi Valley. By 1860, the value of an enslaved field hand had risen to almost $2,000 at a time when a typical wage for a laborer was $1 a day. One result of the heavy capital investment in slavery was that the South had much less capital than the North to undertake industrialization.

White Society Southern Whites observed a rigid hierarchy among themselves. Aristocratic planters lived comfortably at the top of society, while poor farmers and mountain people struggled at the bottom.

Aristocracy Members of the South’s small elite of wealthy planters owned at least 100 enslaved people and at least 1,000 acres. The planter aristocracy maintained its power by dominating the state legislatures of the South and enacting laws that favored the large landholders’ economic interests.

Farmers The vast majority of slaveholders held fewer than 20 people in bondage and worked only several hundred acres. Southern White farmers produced the bulk of the cotton crop, worked in the fields alongside enslaved African Americans, and lived as modestly as farmers of the North.

Poor Whites Three-fourths of the White households in the South owned no enslaved people. They could not afford the rich river-bottom farmland controlled by the planters, and many lived in the hills as subsistence farmers.

These “hillbillies” or “poor White trash,” as planters derisively called them, defended the system, hoping that some day they, too, could own enslaved people. Further, the slave system meant that White farmers, no matter how poor, still felt superior on the social scale to Black people.

Mountain People A number of small farmers lived in frontier conditions along the slopes and valleys of the Appalachian and Ozark mountains. They were somewhat isolated from the rest of the South. The mountain people disliked the planters and slavery. During the Civil War, many (including a future president, Andrew Johnson of Tennessee) remained loyal to the Union.

Cities The South was an agricultural region with few large commercial cities. The largest city in the region was New Orleans, with a population of about 170,000. It was the fifth-largest city in the country, after New York, Philadelphia, Baltimore, and Boston. Only three other southern cities—St.

Louis, Louisville, and Charleston—had populations greater than 40,000 people.

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The South developed a unique culture and outlook on life. As cotton became the basis of its economy, slavery became the focus of its political thought.

White southerners felt increasingly isolated and defensive about slavery as northerners grew hostile toward it, and as Great Britain, France, Mexico, and other European and Latin America states outlawed it altogether.

Code of Chivalry Dominated by the aristocratic planter class, the agricultural South was in some ways a feudal society. Southern gentlemen ascribed to a code of chivalrous conduct, which included a strong sense of personal honor, the defense of womanhood, and paternalistic attitudes toward all who were deemed inferior, especially slaves.

Education The upper class valued a college education for their children.

Acceptable professions for gentlemen were limited to farming, law, the ministry, and the military. For the lower classes, schooling beyond the early elementary grades was generally not available. To reduce the risk of slave revolts, the law strictly prohibited teaching enslaved people to read or write.

Religion The slavery question affected churches. Partly because they preached biblical support for slavery, both Methodist and Baptist denominations gained members in the South. However, both groups split into northern and southern branches in the 1840s. The Unitarians, who challenged slavery, faced declining membership and hostility. Even Catholics and Episcopalians, who took a neutral stand on slavery, saw their numbers decline in the South.

Social Reform The antebellum reform movement of the first half of the 19th century was largely found in the northern and western states, with little impact in the South. While “modernizers” worked to perfect society in the North, southerners were more committed to tradition and slower to support public education and humanitarian reforms. They were alarmed to see northern reformers join forces to support the antislavery movement. Increasingly, they viewed social reform as a northern threat against the southern way of life.

REFLECT ON THE LEARNING OBJECTIVE

1. Explain the influences of geography and the environment on the growth of the South in the period from 1800 to 1848.

HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVES: WHAT WAS THE NATURE OF SLAVERY?

During the two decades following the end of World War II, Black Americans led a vigorous fight against racial discrimination. In the context of this civil rights movement, historians began to revaluate slavery.

Features of Slavery Before 1945, scholarship on slavery followed Ulrich B. Phillips’s American Negro Slavery (1918). He portrayed slavery as failing economically but maintained by paternalistic White owners who gave civilization to enslaved but contented Black Americans. Most of his views have been entirely discredited. For example, historians demonstrated that owners

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TOPIC 4.13 SOUTHERN SOCIETY IN THE EARLY REPUBLIC

KEY TERMS BY THEME

Identities & Conflict (ARC) planters code of chivalry poor Whites hillbillies mountain people

Migration (NAT, MIG) Deep South The Slave Industry

(MIG, WXT) King Cotton Eli Whitney peculiar institution slave codes

MULTIPLE-CHOICE QUESTIONS

Questions 1–2 refer to the following excerpt.

“That we have cultivated cotton, cotton, cotton and bought everything else, has long enough been our opprobrium [disgrace]. It is time we should be roused by some means or other to see, that such a course of conduct will inevitably terminate in our ultimate poverty and ruin. Let us manufacture, because it is our best policy. Let us go more on provision crops and less on cotton, because we have had every thing about us poor and impoverished long enough— . . . If we have followed a ruinous policy and bought all the articles of subsistence instead of raising them, who is to blame? . . . Let us change our policy . . . . We have good land, unlimited water-powers, capital in plenty, and a patriotism which is running over in some places.”

Georgia Courier, June 21, 1827

and enslaved people were in continual conflict. Kenneth Stampp summarized this view in The Peculiar Institution: Slavery in the Ante-Bellum South (1956).

Two years later, Alfred Conrad and John Meyers published an influential article that provided evidence that slavery was profitable, adding to the argument that the institution would not fade away as it had in most of Latin America.

Slavery's Impact on Black Culture Historians have bitterly disagreed over the legacy of slavery on the culture of African Americans. Stanley Elkins, in Slavery: A Problem in American Institutional Life (1959), argued that slavery was so oppressive that no distinctive Black culture could develop. In contrast, Eugene Genovese’s Roll, Jordan, Roll: The World the Slaves Made (1974) argued that enslaved African Americans did develop and maintain a culture based on family life, tradition, and religion.

Recent scholars have expanded on how enslaved people not only created their own culture but found creative ways to resist their condition. Tera W.

Hunter's Bound in Wedlock: Slave and Free Black Marriage in the Nineteenth Century (2017) highlighted how enslaved people developed long-term relationships, despite obstacles to traditional marriage created by their owners.

Support an Argument Explain two perspectives on the nature of slavery.

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1. The remarks in the excerpt were directed most clearly toward which of the following groups? (A) Bankers who did not want to invest money outside their own region (B) Manufacturers who failed to market their products effectively (C) Farmers who grew crops and raised livestock mostly for their own consumption (D) Plantation owners who profited from producing crops they could sell overseas

2. At the time this excerpt was written, in which of the following was the largest amount of Southern capital invested? (A) Railroads and other transportation systems to connect urban areas (B) Enslaved people who mostly performed agricultural labor (C) Land that was purchased for use or sale at a later time (D) Small factories that produced a variety of goods for export

SHORT-ANSWER QUESTION

1. “That a country should become eminently prosperous in agriculture, without a high state of perfection in the mechanic arts, is a thing next to impossible . . . that we shall follow the footsteps of our forefathers, and still further exhaust our soil by the exclusive cultivation of cotton?

Unless we betake ourselves to some more profitable employment than the planting of cotton, what is to prevent our most enterprising planters from moving, with their negro capital, to the Southwest?

Cotton . . . has produced us such an abundant supply of all the luxuries and elegancies of life, with so little exertion on our part, that we have become . . . unfitted for other more laborious pursuits, and unprepared to meet the state of things, which sooner or later must come about.”

William Gregg, manufacturer in South Carolina, “Essays on Domestic Industry,” 1845

Using the excerpt, answer (a), (b), and (c). (a) Briefly explain ONE specific factor that contributed to the lack of manufacturing in the South during the first half of the 19th century. (b) Briefly explain ONE specific advantage, if any, the North had over the South in developing manufacturing during the first half of the 19th century. (c) Briefly explain ONE specific long-term effect on the Southern economy as a result of its lack of a large manufacturing base.

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TOPIC 4.14 CAUSATION IN PERIOD 4

Topic 4.14

Causation in Period 4

Learning Objective: Explain the extent to which politics, economics, and foreign policy promoted the development of American identity from

1800 to 1848.

You can use the reasoning skill “causation” with the content of Period 4 to consider the extent to which politics, economics, and foreign policy influenced the development of American identity between 1800 and 1848. By examining the relationships among the pieces of historical evidence, one can develop an argument to explain how the rise of one political party, Democratic-Republicans, was connected to the fall of another, the Federalists. These developments caused people to use political parties to express their American identity.

In economics, the development of new means of transportation led to the market revolution. The shift toward a market economy caused people to change how they thought of themselves. They identified as producers of goods to sell others and as workers for others, and they took pride in being industrious. The market revolution also influenced foreign policy. People looked to territorial expansion such as the Louisiana Purchase to provide new opportunities. They focused on the west and away from foreign involvements.

While the historical evidence relates to the coalescence of a stronger American identity, this same evidence shows a people with growing differences resulting from new religious and cultural ideas. These differences were particularly sharp over the place of slavery in the growing nation.

QUESTIONS ABOUT CAUSATION

Use the questions below to make a historically defensible claim.

1. Explain the factors that caused the expansion of participation in politics, including the right to vote. For example, as new states were formed on the western frontier, they embraced the ideal of equality for all White males and adopted universal male suffrage as well as nominating conventions to limit the power of any elite group.

2. Explain the developments in technology, agriculture, and commerce that caused the market revolution during the period from 1800 to 1848.

For example, technological innovations that produced a canal system, steamboats, and railroads tied together the cities and farms and thus enabled the development of the market system.

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THINK AS A HISTORIAN: CLAIMS AND EVIDENCE IN SOURCES

When analyzing sources, you need to identify the author’s argument. Then you need to weigh the evidence used to support it. To a historian, an effective argument is a historically defensible claim backed up with reasons and evidence that are logical and relevant. Breaking the tasks down into steps makes it easier: • Identify the argument. What claim is the source making? What position is the source taking about a person, event, or issue?

• Identify the evidence. What information does the source use to support the argument? Are there facts, statistics, quotations, details, or images?

Consider whether this information directly relates to the argument.

• Compare arguments. Historians and witnesses to history often have conflicting opinions about any individual, event, or issue. Which arguments have more evidence? Which arguments have higher-quality evidence?

The AP® exam includes long essay questions and a document-based question that ask you to develop an argument. Some short-answer items and some multiple-choice items also relate to claims and evidence in sources.

Read the two sources about the Missouri Compromise. Then answer the questions.

Source 1 “This momentous question, like a fire bell in the night, awakened and filled me with terror. I considered it at once as the knell [approaching end] of the Union.

It is hushed, indeed, for the moment. But this is a reprieve only, not a final sentence. A geographical line, coinciding with a marked principle, moral and political, once conceived and held up to the angry passions of men, will never be obliterated; and every new irritation will mark it deeper and deeper.” Thomas Jefferson, personal letter, April 22, 1820

Source 2 “The discussion on the Missouri question has undoubtedly contributed to weaken in some degree the attachment of our southern and western people to the Union; but the agitators of that question have, in my opinion, not only completely failed; but have destroyed to a great extent their capacity for future mischief. Should Missouri be admitted at the next session, as I think she will without difficulty, the evil effects of the discussion must gradually subside.” Secretary of War John C. Calhoun, letter to Andrew Jackson, June 1, 1820

1. Describe the argument Jefferson makes in Source 1.

2. Describe the argument Calhoun makes in Source 2.

3. Describe evidence that would support Jefferson’s argument.

4. Describe evidence that would support Calhoun’s argument.

5. Based on the sources and what you know about the historical period, explain which argument you think is more defensible.

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UNIT 4 — PERIOD 4 REVIEW:1800–1848

UNIT 4 — Period 4 Review:

1800–1848

WRITE AS A HISTORIAN: GATHER AND ORGANIZE THE EVIDENCE

After analyzing the task and developing questions you need to answer to complete it (see page 157), the next step in writing a long essay is to gather and organize your evidence. Gathering evidence relies on recall—how much you remember from your reading and other studies. Organizing evidence requires the skills of seeing patterns and connections and using historical reasoning.

Suppose you are answering this long essay question: “Evaluate the extent to which the American Revolution was primarily an effort to maintain basic British rights. Make a list of questions for deeper analysis (see page 157), and answer them. In doing so, you should list the information you will use in your essay to answer the question. Your essay might include the following: • British rights included beliefs about taxation, such as the difference between direct and indirect taxation.

• Colonists believed that as British citizens, they had certain individual liberty and restraints on government.

• Colonists felt that the British had ignored or violated these rights.

• Colonists often traded goods with non-British colonies and countries in violation of British laws. The right to smuggle was not a basic British right, but it was a custom that colonists wanted to defend.

• Colonists had gone further than the British in recognizing press freedom (the Zenger case) and religious toleration.

After writing everything you can remember, organize your evidence. Review your notes, looking for patterns related to the task. Which pieces of evidence represent a continuity, a way to preserve British rights? Which represent a change from how British rights were traditionally interpreted? Make a simple chart to place the evidence in the correct category. Then evaluate the extent to which change outweighed continuity or vice versa.

Application: On a separate sheet of paper, expand on the evidence you recall about colonial attitudes regarding basic British rights by adding notes to the above list. Then make a chart like the one below. Place each piece of evidence in the appropriate column.

For current free-response question samples, visit: https://apcentral.collegeboard.org/ courses/ap-united-states-history/exam.

Continuities Changes

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LONG ESSAY QUESTIONS

Directions: The suggested writing time for each question is 40 minutes. In your response, you should do the following:

• Respond to the prompt with a historically defensible thesis or claim that establishes a line of reasoning.

• Describe a broader historical context relevant to the prompt.

• Support an argument in response to the prompt using specific and relevant examples of evidence.

• Use historical reasoning (e.g., comparison, causation, continuity, or change) to frame or structure an argument that addresses the prompt.

• Use evidence to corroborate, qualify, or modify an argument that addresses the prompt.

1. Evaluate the extent to which economic factors contributed to the development of regional rivalries during the period of 1800–1848.

2. Evaluate the extent of the influence of the Monroe Doctrine on the formation of United States foreign policy in the early 19th century.

3. Evaluate the extent of the similarities between the policies of President George Washington and those of President Thomas Jefferson.

4. Evaluate the extent to which the decisions of the Supreme Court under Chief Justice John Marshall defined the relationship between the central government and the states.

5. Evaluate the extent to which Andrew Jackson’s economic views affected the economy during the 1830s.

6. Evaluate the extent to which the election of Andrew Jackson fostered a change in politics during the period of 1800–1848.

7. Evaluate the extent to which the United States developed its own culture distinct from Europe during the period of 1800–1848.

8. Evaluate the extent of the similarities among the reform movements during the period of 1800–1848.

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UNIT 4 — PERIOD 4 REVIEW:1800–1848

DOCUMENT-BASED QUESTION

Directions: Question 1 is based on the accompanying documents. The documents have been edited for the purpose of this exercise. You are advised to spend 15 minutes planning and 45 minutes writing your answer. In your response you should do the following:

• Respond to the prompt with a historically defensible thesis or claim that establishes a line of reasoning.

• Describe a broader historical context relevant to the prompt.

• Support an argument in response to the prompt using at least six documents.

• Use at least one additional piece of specific historical evidence (beyond that found in the documents) relevant to an argument about the prompt.

• For at least three documents, explain how or why the document’s point of view, purpose, historical situation, and/or audience is relevant to an argument.

• Use evidence to corroborate, qualify, or modify an argument that addresses the prompt.

1. Evaluate the extent to which sectionalism overcame nationalism in U.S. politics during the years from 1800 to 1848.

Document 1

Source: Stephen Decatur, naval officer, toast given at Norfolk, Virginia, 1816

Our Country! In her intercourse with foreign nations may she always be in the right; but our country, right or wrong!

Document 2

Source: Joseph Rodman Drake, poet, “The American Flag,” 1819

Flag of the free heart’s hope and home, By angel hands to valor given, Thy stars have lit the welkin dome, And all thy hues were born in heaven!

Forever float that standard sheet Where breathes the foe but falls before us, With Freedom’s soil beneath our feet, And Freedom’s banner streaming o’er us!

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Document 3

Source: Emma Hart Willard, educator and feminist, address to the New York Legislature, 1819

But where is that wise and heroic country which has considered that our rights [as women] are sacred . . . ? History shows not that country. . . . Yet though history lifts not her finger to such a one, anticipation does. She points to a nation which, having thrown off the shackles of authority and precedent, shrinks not from schemes of improvement because other nations have never attempted them; but which, in its pride of independence, would rather lead than follow in the march of human improvement: a nation, wise and magnanimous to plan, enterprising to undertake, and rich in resources to execute. Does not every American exult that this country is his own?

Document 4

Source: Henry Clay, Speech in Congress, March 31, 1824

Are we doomed to behold our industry languish and decay yet more and more?

But there is a remedy, and that remedy consists in modifying our foreign policy, and in adopting a genuine American System. We must naturalize the arts in our country; and we must naturalize them by the only means which the wisdom of nations has yet discovered to be effectual—by adequate protection against the otherwise overwhelming influence of foreigners. This is only to be accomplished by the establishment of a tariff, to the consideration of which I am now brought. . . . The sole object of the tariff is to tax the produce of foreign industry with the view of promoting American industry . . . . The tax is exclusively leveled at foreign industry.

Document 5

Source: John Quincy Adams, Diary, March 3, 1820

I have favored this Missouri Compromise, believing it to be all that could be effected under the present Constitution, and from extreme unwillingness to put the Union at hazard. But perhaps it would have been a wiser as well as a bolder course to have persisted in the restriction upon Missouri, till it should have ter-minated in a convention of the States to revise and amend the Constitution. This would have produced a new Union of thirteen or fourteen States, unpolluted with slavery, with a great and glorious object to effect, namely, that of rallying to their standard the other States by the universal emancipation of their slaves. If the Union must be dissolved, slavery is precisely the question upon which it ought to break. For the present, however, this contest is laid asleep.

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Document 6

Source: Thomas Jefferson, Letter to Congressman John Holmes of Massachusetts, April 22, 1820

I thank you, dear sir, for the copy you have been so kind to send me of the letter to your constituents on the Missouri question. It is perfect justification to them.

I had for a long time ceased to read newspapers, or pay any attention to public affairs, confident they were in good hands . . . . But this momentous question, like a firebell in the night, awakened and filled me with terror. I considered it at once as the knell of the union. It is hushed, indeed, for the moment. But this is a reprieve only, not a final sentence. A geographical line, coinciding with a marked principle, moral and political, once conceived and held up to the angry passions of men, will never be obliterated; and every new irritation will mark it deeper and deeper.

Document 7

Source: Congressional Record, 1816

VOTE ON THE TARIFF OF 1816 IN THE U.S. HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

Region For Against

New England 17 10

Middle States 44 10

South 23 34

Total 88 54

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UNIT 5 — Period 5: 1844–1877

Topic 5.1

Contextualizing Period 5

Learning Objective: Explain the context in which sectional conflict emerged from 1844 to 1877.

Between 1844 and 1877, the United States expanded its territory to the Pacific Ocean and suffered from rising sectionalism over the issue of expanding slavery into this new territory. In 1861, tensions exploded into the Civil War that permanently expanded the power of the federal government. After four years of fighting and the death of 750,000 people, the country emerged with a “new birth of freedom” as a result of the end of slavery. But racism remained.

The first half of the 19th century included many advances in the young nation. Political, demographic, economic, and territorial development changed the country. The right to vote expanded political participation. New technology and transportation combined to support a market revolution that altered the relationships between peoples in the different regions. Reforms in education and other areas improved life. New expressions in art and literature signified an emergent American culture. Yet these advancements were not shared by all, and challenges, particularly over foreign affairs and slavery, remained.

Growth in Land and Population Between 1844 and 1877, the United States expanded westward, with many citizens believing it had a destiny to control all the land to the Pacific Ocean. The country added land through negotiations, purchase, and war. The largest acquisition came from the Mexican War, through which the United States established its southern border and claimed ports on the Pacific.

This rapid expansion attracted new immigrants, who left Europe because of famine, poverty, and political turmoil. In response to immigration, particularly of people from Ireland and China, some native-born Americans argued against citizenship for new residents. This resulted in the forming of political organizations to restrict immigration and citizenship.

Political Conflicts over Slavery Expansion and sectionalism also intensified differences over politics, economics, and, most seriously, slavery.

Slaveowners became more insistent on their right to own enslaved people and argued for strong federal laws to return enslaved people who escaped bondage.

Abolitionists became more insistent on ending slavery. Free-Soilers argued that the institution should not be allowed into the territories. Opponents of

261 TOPIC 5.1 CONTExTUALIzING PERIOD 5

slavery organized an “underground railroad” to help fugitives escape from slavery. Congress passed a series of compromises attempting to settle the issue of whether slavery could expand into new territories.

The Civil War and Reconstruction Then, in 1860, the Republicans nominated Abraham Lincoln for president. Though opposed to slavery, he also opposed immediate abolition. Still, his election frightened slaveholders. They feared that, despite his pledge to allow slavery to continue where it existed, his opposition to the expansion of slavery would lead to its eventual end. Eleven states left the Union, and a four-year civil war ravaged the country.

The Union victory ended slavery and shifted power to the federal government from the states. The 12 years after the war, known as Reconstruction, were marked by conflict. It was a period of fierce confrontations between the executive and legislative branches and between the federal and state governments. These confrontations reshaped how people thought about federalism and the separation of powers among the branches of government.

Racism and Discrimination Further, the country suffered from tremendous racial conflict. As the freed African Americans worked to established new lives, White-dominated legislatures passed Black Codes that restricted the basic rights of Black citizens. In place of slavery, a new labor system known as sharecropping emerged that kept Black farmers in conditions almost as subservient to White landowners as slavery had. Finally, White Americans attempting to maintain racial supremacy killed thousands of Black citizens.

While the Civil War preserved the Union, historians vigorously debate the successes and failures of Reconstruction. In the future, the nation that survived a civil war would continue to grow, expand, and industrialize. Further, it would continue to struggle over achieving equal treatment for all of its people.

ANALYZE THE CONTEXT

1. Explain the historical context for the debate over slavery in the 1850s.

2. Explain the historical context for the varied results of Reconstruction.

LANDMARK EVENTS: 1844–1877

1840

1870

1846

The Mexican-American War begins.

1852

Publication of the novel Uncle Tom’s Cabin ignites wide criticism of slavery.

1857

The Dred Scott decision opens all

territories to slavery.

1859

John Brown raids Harper’s Ferry, Virginia, hoping to inspire slave uprisings.

The United States annexes Texas.

1844

Lincoln is elected president, frightening slaveowners.

1860

The Kansas-Nebraska Act allows some territories to opt for slavery.

1854

Lincoln issues the Emancipation Proclamation, which frees some enslaved people.

1863

1865

Ratification of the 13th Amendment ends slavery.

1869

Ratification of the 15th Amendment bans racial discrimination in voting.

Ratification of the 14th Amendment extends citizenship to everyone born in the United States.

1866

Congress agrees to controversial compromises on slavery.

1850

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Topic 5.2

The Idea of Manifest Destiny

Away, away with all these cobweb issues of the rights of discovery, exploration, settlement, contiguity [nearness], etc. . . . [The American] claim is by the right of our manifest destiny to overspread and to possess the whole of the continent which Providence has given us for the development of the great experiment of liberty.

John L. O’Sullivan, “The True Title,” New York Morning News, 1845

Learning Objective: Explain the causes and effects of westward expansion from 1844 to 1877.

While European settlers began assuming a right to territorial conquest during the colonial era, writers such as John O’Sullivan promoted that idea across the land in the 1840s and 1850s. Expansionists wanted the United States to extend westward to the Pacific and southward into Mexico, Cuba, and Central America. By the 1890s, expansionists fixed their sights on acquiring islands in the Pacific and the Caribbean.

The phrase Manifest Destiny expressed the popular belief that the United States had a divine mission to extend its power and civilization across the breadth of North America. (For a map showing the territorial expansion of the United States, see the multiple-choice questions in Topic 5.3.) Enthusiasm for expansion reached a fever pitch in the 1840s. It was driven by a number of forces: nationalism, population increase, rapid economic development, technological advances, and reform ideals. But not all Americans united behind expansionism. Critics argued vehemently that at the root of the expansionist drive was the ambition to spread slavery into western lands.

Conflicts Over Texas, Maine, and Oregon U.S. interest in pushing its borders south into Texas (a Mexican province) and west into the Oregon Territory (claimed by Britain) largely resulted from American pioneers migrating into these lands during the 1820s and 1830s.

Texas In 1823, after having won its national independence from Spain, Mexico hoped to attract settlers—including Anglo settlers—to farm its sparsely populated northern frontier province of Texas. Moses Austin, a Missouri banker, had obtained a large land grant in Texas but died before he could recruit American

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TOPIC 5.2 THE IDEA OF MANIFEST DESTINY

settlers for the land. His son, Stephen Austin, succeeded in bringing 300 families into Texas and thereby beginning a steady migration of American settlers into the vast frontier territory. By 1830, Americans (both White farmers and enslaved Black people) outnumbered Mexicans in Texas by three to one.

Friction between the Americans and the Mexicans worsened in 1829 when Mexico outlawed slavery and required all immigrants to convert to Roman Catholicism. Many settlers refused to obey these laws. In reaction, Mexico closed Texas to additional American immigrants. Land-hungry Americans from the Southern states ignored the Mexican prohibition and streamed into Texas by the thousands.

Revolt and Independence A change in Mexico’s government intensified the conflict. In 1834, General Antonio López de Santa Anna made himself dictator of Mexico and abolished that nation’s federal system of government.

When Santa Anna attempted to enforce Mexico’s laws in Texas, a group of American settlers led by Sam Houston revolted and declared Texas an independent republic in March 1836. In its new constitution, Texas made slavery legal again.

A Mexican army led by Santa Anna captured the town of Goliad and attacked the Alamo in San Antonio, killing every one of its American defenders. Shortly afterward, however, at the Battle of the San Jacinto River, an army under Sam Houston caught the Mexicans by surprise and captured their general, Santa Anna. Under the threat of death, the Mexican leader was forced to sign a treaty that recognized independence for Texas and granted the new republic all territory north of the Rio Grande. However, when the news of San Jacinto reached Mexico City, the Mexican legislature rejected the treaty and insisted that Texas was still part of Mexico.

Annexation Denied As the first president of the Republic of Texas (or Lone Star Republic), Houston applied to the U.S. government for his country to be annexed, or added to, the United States as a new state. However, presidents Jackson and Van Buren both put off the request for annexation primarily because of political opposition among Northerners to the expansion of slavery.

If annexed, Texas might be divided into five new states, which could mean ten additional proslavery members of the U.S. Senate. The threat of a costly war with Mexico also dampened expansionist zeal. The next president, William Henry Harrison, died after a month in office. His successor, John Tyler (1841– 1845), was a Southern Whig who was worried about the growing influence of the British in Texas. He worked to annex Texas, but the U.S. Senate rejected his treaty of annexation in 1844.

Boundary Dispute in Maine Another diplomatic issue arose in the 1840s over the ill-defined boundary between Maine and the Canadian province of New Brunswick. At this time, Canada was still under British rule and many Americans regarded Britain as their country’s most significant enemy—an attitude carried over from the

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Revolution and the War of 1812. A conflict between rival groups of lumber workers on the Maine-Canadian border erupted into open fighting. Known as the Aroostook War, or “battle of the maps,” the conflict was soon resolved in a treaty negotiated by U.S. Secretary of State Daniel Webster and the British ambassador, Lord Alexander Ashburton. In the Webster-Ashburton Treaty of 1842, the disputed territory was split between Maine and British Canada.

The treaty also settled the boundary of the Minnesota territory, leaving what proved to be the iron-rich Mesabi Range on the U.S. side of the border.

Boundary Dispute in Oregon A far more serious British-American dispute involved Oregon, a vast territory on the Pacific Coast that originally stretched as far north as the Alaskan border.

At one time, this territory was claimed by four different nations: Spain, Russia, Great Britain, and the United States. Spain gave up its claim to Oregon in a treaty with the United States (the Adams-Onís Treaty of 1819).

Britain based its claim to Oregon on the Hudson’s Bay Company’s profitable fur trade with the American Indians of the Pacific Northwest. However, by 1846, fewer than a thousand British settlers lived north of the Columbia River.

The United States based its claim on (1) the exploration of the Columbia River by Captain Robert Gray in 1792; (2) the overland expedition to the Pacific Coast by Meriwether Lewis and William Clark in 1805; and (3) the fur trading post and fort in Astoria, Oregon, established by John Jacob Astor in

1811. Protestant missionaries and farmers from the United States settled in the Willamette Valley in the 1840s. Their success in farming this fertile valley caused 5,000 Americans to catch “Oregon fever” and travel 2,000 miles over the Oregon Trail to settle in the area south of the Columbia River.

By the 1844 election, many Americans believed that taking undisputed possession of all of Oregon and annexing the Republic of Texas was their country’s Manifest Destiny. In addition, expansionists hoped to persuade Mexico to give up its province on the West Coast—the huge land of California.

By 1845, Mexican California had a small Spanish-Mexican population of some 7,000 along with a much larger number of American Indians, but American emigrants were arriving in sufficient numbers “to play the Texas game.”

The Election of 1844 The possibility of annexing Texas and allowing the expansion of slavery split the Democratic Party in 1844. The party’s Northern wing opposed immediate annexation and wanted to nominate former president Martin Van Buren to run again. Southern Whigs who were proslavery and proannexation rallied behind former vice president John C. Calhoun of South Carolina as a candidate.

The Van Buren-Calhoun dispute deadlocked the Democratic convention.

After hours of wrangling, the Democrats finally nominated a dark horse (lesser-known candidate). They chose James K. Polk of Tennessee, a protegé of Andrew Jackson, who was firmly committed to Manifest Destiny. Polk favored

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TOPIC 5.2 THE IDEA OF MANIFEST DESTINY

the annexation of Texas, the acquisition of California, and the “reoccupation” of Oregon Territory all the way to the border with Russian Alaska at latitude 54° 40´. The Democratic slogan of “Fifty-Four Forty or Fight!” appealed strongly to American Westerners and Southerners who were in an expansionist mood.

Henry Clay of Kentucky, the Whig nominee, attempted to straddle the controversial issue of Texas annexation, opposing it and then supporting it.

This strategy alienated a group of voters in New York State, who abandoned the Whig Party to support the antislavery Liberty Party (see Topic 4. 11). In a close election, the Whigs’ loss of New York’s electoral votes proved decisive and Polk, the Democratic dark horse, was the victor. The Democrats interpreted the election as a mandate to add Texas to the Union.

Annexing Texas and Dividing Oregon Outgoing president John Tyler took the election of Polk as a signal to push the annexation of Texas through Congress. Instead of seeking Senate approval of a treaty that would have required a two-thirds vote, Tyler persuaded both houses of Congress to pass a joint resolution for annexation. This procedure required only a simple majority of each house. Tyler left Polk with the problem of dealing with Mexico’s reaction to annexation.

On the Oregon question, Polk decided to back down from his party’s bellicose campaign slogan. Instead of fighting for 54° 40´, he signed an agreement with the British to divide the Oregon territory at the 49th parallel (the parallel that had been established as the northern border in 1818 for the Louisiana Territory). Final settlement of the issue was delayed until the United States agreed to grant Vancouver Island and the right to navigate the Columbia River to Britain. In June 1846, the treaty was submitted to the Senate for ratification. Some Northerners viewed the treaty as a sellout to Southern interests because it removed British Columbia as a source of potential free states. Nevertheless, by this time war had broken out between the United States and Mexico. Not wanting to fight both Britain and Mexico, Senate opponents of the treaty reluctantly voted for the compromise settlement.

Settlement of the Western Territories Following the peaceful acquisition of Oregon and the more violent acquisition of California (see Topic 5.3), the migration of Americans into these lands increased. The arid region between the Mississippi Valley and the Pacific Coast was popularly known in the 1850s and 1860s as the Great American Desert.

Emigrants passed quickly over this vast area to reach the more inviting lands on the West Coast. Therefore, California and Oregon were settled several decades before people attempted to farm the Great Plains.

Fur Traders’ Frontier Fur traders known as mountain men were the earliest nonnative individuals to open the Far West. In the 1820s, they held yearly rendezvous in the Rockies with

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UNITED STATES HISTORY: AP® EDITION

American Indians to trade for animal skins. James Beckwourth, Jim Bridger, Kit Carson, and Jedediah Smith were among the hardy band of explorers and trappers who provided much of the early information about trails and frontier conditions to later settlers.

Overland Trails After the mountain men, a much larger group of pioneers made the hazardous journey west in hopes of clearing the forests and farming the fertile valleys of California and Oregon. By 1860, hundreds of thousands had reached their westward goal by following the Oregon, California, Santa Fe, and Mormon trails. The long and arduous trek usually began in St. Joseph or Independence, Missouri, or in Council Bluffs, Iowa, and followed the river valleys through the Great Plains. Inching along at only 15 miles a day, a wagon train needed months to finally reach the foothills of the Rockies or face the hardships of the southwestern deserts. The final life-or-death challenge was to get through the mountain passes of the Sierras and Cascades before the first heavy snow. While pioneers feared attacks by American Indians, the most common and serious dangers were disease and depression from the harsh everyday conditions on the trail.

WESTWARD EXPANSION AND PIONEER TRAILS, 1840s

St. Louis

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Oregon City

Salt Lake City

Santa Fe

Sacramento

South Pass

Independence

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TERRITORY

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TERRITORY

KANSAS TERRITORY

NEBRASKA

TERRITORY

OREGON

TERRITORY

CALIFORNIA

(1850)

WASHINGTON

TERRITORY

MINNESOTA

TERRITORY

WISCONSIN

TERRITORY

INDIAN

TERRITORY

(UNORGANIZED)

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B R I T I S H

P O S S E S S I O N S

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(1853)

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TOPIC 5.2 THE IDEA OF MANIFEST DESTINY

Mining Frontier The discovery of gold in California in 1848 set off the first of many migrations to mineral-rich mountains of the West in the 1800s. Gold or silver rushes occurred in Colorado, Nevada, the Black Hills of the Dakotas, and other western territories. The mining boom brought tens of thousands of men and some women into the western mountains. Mining camps and towns—many of them short-lived—sprang up wherever a strike (discovery) was reported.

Largely as a result of the gold rush, California’s population soared from a mere 14,000 in 1848 to 380,000 by 1860. Booms attracted miners from around the world. By the 1860s, almost one-third of the miners in the West were Chinese.

Farming Frontier Most pioneer families moved west to start homesteads and begin farming.

Congress’s Preemption Acts of the 1830s and 1840s gave squatters the right to settle public lands and purchase them for low prices once the government put them up for sale. In addition, the government made it easier for settlers by offering parcels of land as small as 40 acres for sale.

However, moving west was not for the poor. At a time when a typical laborer made about $1.00 per day, a family needed at least $200 to $300 to make the overland trip. The trek to California and Oregon was largely a middle-class movement.

The isolation of the frontier made life for pioneers especially difficult during the first years, but rural communities soon developed. The institutions that the people established (schools, churches, clubs, and political parties) were modeled after those that they had known in the East or, for immigrants from abroad, in their native lands.

Urban Frontier Western cities that arose as a result of railroads, mineral wealth, and farming attracted a number of professionals and business owners. For example, San Francisco and Denver became instant cities created by the gold and silver rushes. Salt Lake City grew because it offered fresh supplies to travelers on overland trails for the balance of their westward journey.

Foreign Commerce The growth in manufactured goods as well as in agricultural products (both Western grains and Southern cotton) caused a large growth of exports and imports. Other factors also played a role in the expansion of U.S. trade in the mid-1800s:

1. Shipping firms encouraged trade and travel across the Atlantic by establishing a regular schedule for departures instead of the 18th-century policy of waiting to sail until a ship was full.

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2. The demand for whale oil to light the homes of middle-class Americans caused a whaling boom between 1830 and 1860. New England merchants took the lead in this industry.

3. Improvements in ship design came just in time to speed gold seekers on their journey to the California gold fields. The development of the American clipper ship cut the six-month trip from New York around the Horn of South America to San Francisco to as little as 89 days.

4. Steamships took the place of clipper ships in the mid-1850s because they had greater storage capacity, could be maintained at lower cost, and followed a schedule more reliably.

5. The United States expanded trade to Asia. New England merchants conducted profitable trade with China for tea, silk, and porcelain. The government sent Commodore Matthew C. Perry and a small fleet of naval ships to Japan, which had been closed to most foreigners for over two centuries. In 1854, Perry pressured Japan’s government to sign the Kanagawa Treaty, which allowed U.S. vessels to enter two Japanese ports to take on coal. This treaty soon led to a trade agreement.

Expansion After the Civil War From 1855 until 1870, the issues of union, slavery, civil war, and postwar reconstruction would overshadow the drive to acquire new territory. Even so, Manifest Destiny continued to be an important force for shaping U.S. policy. In 1867, for example, Secretary of State William Seward succeeded in purchasing Alaska at a time when the nation was just recovering from the Civil War.

REFLECT ON THE LEARNING OBJECTIVE

1. Explain the reasons for and results of westward expansion from 1844 to

1877.

KEY TERMS BY THEME

Belief (NAT) Manifest Destiny

Westward (MIG, GEO,

ARC) Great American Desert mountain men Far West overland trails mining frontier gold rush silver rush

farming frontier urban frontier

Expansion Politics (POL) John Tyler Oregon Territory “Fifty-Four Forty or Fight!” James K. Polk

Military & Diplomatic Expansion (WOR) Texas Stephen Austin

Antonio López de Santa Anna Sam Houston Alamo Webster-Ashburton Treaty foreign commerce exports and imports Matthew C. Perry Kanagawa Treaty

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TOPIC 5.2 THE IDEA OF MANIFEST DESTINY

MULTIPLE-CHOICE QUESTIONS

Questions 1–2 refer to the following excerpt.

“Where, where was the heroic determination of the Executive to vindicate our title to the whole of Oregon—yes, sir, ‘the whole or none’. . . .

It has been openly avowed . . . that Oregon and Texas were born and cradled together in the Baltimore convention; that they were the twin offspring of that political conclave [meeting]; and in that avowal may be found the whole explanation of the difficulties and dangers with which the question is now attended. . . .

I maintain—

1. That this question . . . is . . . one for negotiations, compromise, and amicable adjustment.

2. That satisfactory evidence has not yet been afforded that no compromise which the United States ought to accept can be effected.

3. That, if no other mode of amicable settlement remains, arbitration ought to be resorted to.”

Representative Robert C. Winthrop (Whig), speech to the House of Representatives, January 3, 1846

1. Winthrop’s position about territory in Oregon was based primarily on his desire to (A) end all British power in North America (B) obtain more land for settlers (C) show his readiness to use military force (D) oppose Southern desires to expand slavery

2. Which historical development illustrates the fulfillment of Winthrop’s argument? (A) Polk negotiated a compromise with the British over Oregon. (B) Polk went to war to obtain the whole of Oregon from Great Britain. (C) Polk called a meeting in Baltimore to discuss annexation of Oregon. (D) Polk asked foreign countries to arbitrate the Oregon dispute.

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UNITED STATES HISTORY: AP® EDITION

SHORT-ANSWER QUESTION

Use complete sentences; an outline or bulleted list alone is not acceptable.

1. “The Manifest Destiny impulse fed off a mixture of crassness, truculence [hostility], and high idealism. Without question, there were those who proclaimed America’s providential mission to expand as a eulogistic [honorary] cover for speculation in land and paper. But those were hardly the motives of John L. O’Sullivan, the writer who coined the term . . . .

For O’Sullivan and his allies, the expansionist imperative was essentially democratic . . . in a supercharged moral sense, stressing America’s duties to spread democratic values and institutions to a world still dominated by monarchs and deformed superstitions.’”

Sean Wilentz, The Rise of American Democracy, 2005

“O’Sullivan and Young America provided a . . . set of aspirations that could be embraced by expansionists with less lofty ambitions . . . . The ‘young American’ who would transport ‘democracy’ into new territories was recognizably white, male, probably Protestant, and of martial [confrontational] demeanor— . . . facing, as he saw it, a world beset by economic backwardness, political lethargy, ignorance, superstition, Catholicism, effeminacy, and racial mixing. Expansionism would defeat the institutions that bred these maladies [illnesses] and offer the benefits of ‘civilization’ for those who wished to seize them.”

Steven Hahn, A Nation Without Borders, 2016

Using the excerpts, answer (a), (b), and (c).

(a) Briefly explain ONE major difference between Wilentz’s and Hahn’s historical interpretations of Manifest Destiny. (b) Briefly explain how ONE historical event or development in the period 1830 to 1860 that is not explicitly mentioned in the excerpts could be used to support Wilentz’s interpretation. (c) Briefly explain how ONE historical event or development in the period 1830 to 1860 that is not explicitly mentioned in the excerpts could be used to support Hahn’s interpretation.

271 TOPIC 5.3 MANIFEST DESTINY AND THE MExICAN–AMERICAN WAR

Topic 5.3

Manifest Destiny and the Mexican–American War

The Southern rebellion was largely the outgrowth of the Mexican war.

Ulysses S. Grant, Personal Memoirs of General U.S. Grant, 1885

Learning Objective: Explain the causes and effects of the Mexican– American War.

The U.S. annexation of Texas quickly led to diplomatic trouble with Mexico.

The Mexicans’ anger over the annexation and the newly elected President Polk’s desire to expand the nation to the Pacific Ocean combined to bring both sides to the edge of war.

Conflict with Mexico Upon taking office in 1845, President Polk dispatched John Slidell as his special envoy to the government in Mexico City. Polk wanted Slidell to (1) persuade Mexico to sell the California and New Mexico territories to the United States and (2) settle the disputed Mexico-Texas border. Slidell’s mission failed on both counts. The Mexican government refused to sell California and insisted that Texas’s southern border was on the Nueces River. Polk and Slidell asserted that the border lay farther to the south, along the Rio Grande.

Immediate Causes of the War While Slidell waited for Mexico’s response to the U.S. offer, Polk ordered General Zachary Taylor to move his army toward the Rio Grande, across territory claimed by Mexico. On April 24, 1846, a Mexican army crossed the Rio Grande and captured an American army patrol, killing 11. Polk used the incident to justify sending his prepared war message to Congress. Northern Whigs opposed going to war over the incident and doubted Polk’s claim that American blood had been shed on American soil. Whig protests were in vain.

A large majority in both houses approved the war resolution.

Military Campaigns Most of the war was fought in Mexican territory by small armies of Americans.

Leading a force that never exceeded 1,500, General Stephen Kearney succeeded in taking the New Mexico territory and southern California. Backed by only

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several dozen soldiers, a few navy officers, and American civilians who had recently settled in northern California, John C. Frémont quickly overthrew Mexican rule in the region in June 1846. He proclaimed California to be an independent republic. Because the new republic’s flag included a California grizzly bear, it became known as the Bear Flag Republic.

Meanwhile, Zachary Taylor’s force of 6,000 men drove the Mexican army from Texas, crossed the Rio Grande into northern Mexico, and won a major victory at Buena Vista (February 1847). President Polk then selected General Winfield Scott to invade central Mexico. The army of 14,000 under Scott’s command succeeded in taking the coastal city of Vera Cruz and then captured Mexico City in September 1847.

Consequences of the War For Mexico, the war was a military disaster from the start, but the Mexican government was unwilling to sue for peace and concede the loss of its northern lands. Finally, after the fall of Mexico City, the government had little choice but to agree to U.S. terms.

Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo (1848) The treaty negotiated by diplomat Nicholas Trist with Mexico consisted of terms favorable to the United States:

• Mexico recognized the Rio Grande as the southern border of Texas.

• The United States took possession of the former Mexican provinces of California and New Mexico—the Mexican Cession. For these territories, the United States paid $15 million and assumed responsibility for any claims of American citizens against Mexico.

In the Senate, some Whigs opposed the treaty because they saw the war as an immoral effort to expand slavery. A few Southern Democrats disliked the treaty for opposite reasons. As expansionists, they wanted the United States to take all of Mexico. Since this land was south of the line established in the Missouri Compromise dividing slave and free territory, it was a region where slavery could expand into. Nevertheless, the treaty was finally ratified in the Senate.

Wilmot Proviso The issue of slavery made the U.S. entry into a war with Mexico controversial from start to finish. In 1846, Pennsylvania Congressman David Wilmot proposed that an appropriations bill be amended to forbid slavery in any territory acquired from Mexico. This prohibition appealed to many voters and lawmakers who wanted to preserve the land for White settlers and protect them from having to compete with enslaved labor. The Wilmot Proviso, as it was called, passed the House, where the populous Northern states had greater power, twice. Both times, it was defeated in the Senate, where Southern states had greater influence.

Prelude to Civil War? By increasing tensions between the North and the South, did the war to acquire territories from Mexico lead inevitably to the American Civil War? Without question, the acquisition of vast western lands

273 TOPIC 5.3 MANIFEST DESTINY AND THE MExICAN–AMERICAN WAR

did renew the sectional debate over the extension of slavery. Many Northerners viewed the war with Mexico as part of a Southern plot to extend the “slave power.” Southerners realized they could not count on Northerners to accept the expansion of slavery. The Wilmot Proviso was the first round in an escalating political conflict that led ultimately, though not inevitably, to civil war.

HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVES: WHY WAS MANIFEST DESTINY

SIGNIFICANT?

Traditional historians stressed the accomplishments of westward expansion in bringing civilization and democratic institutions to a wilderness area. The heroic efforts of mountain men and pioneering families to overcome a hostile environment have long been celebrated by historians and the popular media.

Attitudes about Race As a result of the civil rights movement of the 1950s and 1960s and the continuing diversification of American society, historians became more sensitive than their predecessors to racist language and beliefs.

They recognized the racial undercurrents in the political speeches of the 1840s that argued for expansion into American Indian, Mexican, and Central American territories.

Some historians argue that racist motives prompted the decision to withdraw U.S. troops from Mexico instead of occupying it. They point out that Americans who opposed the idea of keeping Mexico had asserted that it was undesirable to incorporate large non-Anglo populations into the republic.

Diverse Contributions Recent historians have broadened their research into westward movement. Rather than concentrating on the achievements of Anglo pioneers, they have focused more on these topics: (1) the impact on American Indians whose lands were taken, (2) the influence of Mexican culture on U.S. culture, (3) the contributions of African American and Asian American pioneers, and (4) the role of women in the development of western family and community life.

The Impact on Mexico Some Mexican historians point out that the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo took half of Mexico’s territory. They argue that the war of

1846 gave rise to a number of long-standing economic and political problems that have impeded Mexico’s development as a modern nation.

Economics over Race Some historians argue that the war with Mexico, especially the taking of California, was motivated by imperialism rather than by racism. They argue that the United States had commercial ambitions in the Pacific and wanted California as a base for trade with China and Japan. U.S. policy makers were afraid that California would fall into the hands of Great Britain or another European power if the United States did not move in first.

Support an Argument Explain two perspectives on either causes or effects of the belief in Manifest Destiny important during the 19th century.

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KEY TERMS BY THEME

Military & Diplomatic Expansion (WOR) Mexican-American War California Nueces River

Rio Grande zachary Taylor Stephen Kearney John C. Frémont Bear Flag Republic

Winfield Scott Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo Mexican Cession Wilmot Proviso mountain men

MULTIPLE-CHOICE QUESTIONS

Questions 1–3 refer to the map below.

LAND AQUISITIONS BY THE UNITED STATES, 1776-1853

TEXAS

ANNEXATION

1845

NORTHERN BORDER by treaties with Great Britain in 1818 and 1842

GADSDEN PURCHASE from Mexico, 1853

MEXICAN CESSION Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo,

1848

OREGON COUNTRY treaty with Great Britain,

1846

MINNESOTA AND MAINE Webster-Ashburton Treaty with Great Britain, 1842

LOUISIANA PURCHASE from France, 1803

ADDITIONAL

TERRITORY Treaty of Paris with Great Britain, 1783

EAST FLORIDA

PURCHASE Adams-Onís Treaty with Spain, 1819

WEST FLORIDA

ANNEXATION

1810 and 1813

ORIGINAL

TERRITORY

1776

REFLECT ON THE LEARNING OBJECTIVE

1. Explain the reasons for and results of the Mexican War.

1. Why was the period of expansion between 1842 and 1853 so significant to the development of the United States? (A) The United States established borders that still exist today. (B) The United States purchased its largest single territory in one act. (C) The United States obtained territory along the Gulf of Mexico. (D) The United States expanded westward for the first time.

275 TOPIC 5.3 MANIFEST DESTINY AND THE MExICAN–AMERICAN WAR

2. The acquisitions of land in the West before 1845 were similar to land acquisitions after 1845 because they both were motivated by the controversial desire to (A) expand the institution of slavery (B) build factories near mineral resources (C) keep foreign influences out of the country (D) take advantage of wars among European countries

3. Which territory did the United States gain most directly by going to war? (A) Louisiana Purchase (B) Texas Annexation (C) Oregon Country (D) Mexican Cession

SHORT-ANSWER QUESTIONS

Use complete sentences; an outline or bulleted list alone is not acceptable.

1. Answer (a), (b), and (c). (a) Briefly explain ONE specific reason for American expansionism between 1840 and 1855. (b) Briefly explain ONE specific criticism of American expansionism between 1840 and 1855. (c) Briefly describe how ONE group of people were profoundly impacted by America’s expansionism between 1800 and 1860.

2. Answer (a), (b), and (c).

(a) Briefly explain ONE historical event or development in the 1840s that contributed to causing the Mexican War. (b) Briefly explain ONE historical event or development in the 1840s that contributed to the United States victory in the Mexican War. (c) Briefly explain ONE specific consequence of the Mexican War for the United States.

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Topic 5.4

The Compromise of 1850

I owe a paramount allegiance to the whole Union— a subordinate one to my own State.

Senator Henry Clay, Kentucky, July 22, 1850

Learning Objective: Explain the similarities and differences in how regional attitudes affected federal policy in the period after the Mexican–American War.

Manifest Destiny and expansion intensified the debate about the spread of slavery. Abolitionists and White people eager to settle Western lands without the competition of slave labor opposed expansion. Slaveowners and people who felt they benefited from slavery wanted the continued growth of slavery.

At the same time, most Americans still hoped for compromise that could keep the Union together.

Southern Expansion Many Southerners resented the Missouri Compromise because it barred slavery from the Louisiana Purchase lands. They were also dissatisfied with the territorial gains from the Mexican War because they were not large enough. In general, they were eager to find new land for cultivation using enslaved labor.

Manifest Destiny to the South In the early 1850s, many slaveowners hoped to acquire new territories, especially in areas of Latin America where they thought plantations worked by enslaved people were economically feasible. The most tempting, eagerly sought possibility in the eyes of Southern expansionists was the acquisition of Cuba.

Ostend Manifesto President Polk offered to purchase Cuba from Spain for $100 million, but Spain refused to sell the last major remnant of its once glorious empire in the Americas. Several Southern adventurers led small expeditions to Cuba in an effort to take the island by force. These forays, however, were easily defeated, and those who participated were executed by Spanish firing squads.

Elected to the presidency in 1852, Franklin Pierce adopted pro-Southern policies and dispatched three American diplomats to Ostend, Belgium, where they secretly negotiated to buy Cuba from Spain. The agreement that the diplomats drew up, called the Ostend Manifesto, was leaked to the press in the United States. Antislavery members of Congress reacted angrily and forced President Pierce to drop the scheme.

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TOPIC 5.4 THE COMPROMISE OF 1850

Walker Expedition Expansionists continued to seek new empires with or without the federal government’s support. Southern adventurer William Walker had tried unsuccessfully to take Baja California, the long peninsula stretching south of San Diego, from Mexico in 1853. Then, leading a force mostly of Southerners, he seized power in Nicaragua in 1855. Walker’s regime even gained temporary recognition from the United States in 1856. However, his grandiose scheme to develop a proslavery Central American empire collapsed when a coalition of Central American countries invaded his country and defeated him. Walker was executed by Honduran authorities in 1860.

Clayton-Bulwer Treaty (1850) Another American ambition was to build a canal through Central America. A canal would provide a shortcut to allow ships traveling from the Northern Atlantic to the Northern Pacific to avoid sailing around South America. Great Britain had the same ambition. To prevent each other from seizing this opportunity on its own, Great Britain and the United States agreed to the Clayton-Bulwer Treaty of 1850. It provided that neither nation would attempt to take exclusive control of any future canal route in Central America. This treaty continued in force until the end of the century.

A new treaty signed in 1901 (the Hay-Pauncefote Treaty) gave the United States a free hand to build a canal without British participation.

Gadsden Purchase Although he failed to acquire Cuba, President Pierce succeeded in purchasing a small strip of land from Mexico in 1853 for $10 million (see map in Topic 5.2). Though the land was semidesert, it lay on the best route for a railroad through the region. Known as the Gadsden Purchase, it forms the southern sections of present-day New Mexico and Arizona.

Conflict Over Status of Territories The issue of slavery in the territories gained in the Mexican War became the focus of sectional differences in the late 1840s. The Wilmot Proviso, which excluded slavery from the new territories, would have upset the Compromise of 1820 and the delicate balance of 15 free and 15 slave states. However, the proviso’s defeat only increased sectional feelings.

Three Conflicting Positions on Slavery Expansion Most people held one of three positions on whether to allow slavery in the Western territories. No single policy would appeal to them all, but many people hoped for a compromise that would allow each group to get something of what it wanted.

Free-Soil Movement Northern Democrats and Whigs supported the Wilmot Proviso and the position that all African Americans—slave and free—should be excluded from the Mexican Cession (territory ceded to the U.S. by Mexico in 1848). While abolitionists advocated eliminating slavery everywhere, many Northerners who opposed the westward expansion of slavery did not oppose slavery in the South. They sought to keep the West a land of opportunity for Whites only. This meant keeping out both enslaved and

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free African Americans. In 1848, Northerners who opposed allowing slavery in the territories organized the Free-Soil Party, which adopted the slogan “free soil, free labor, and free men.” In addition to its chief objective—preventing the extension of slavery—the new party advocated free homesteads (public land grants to small farmers) and internal improvements such as roads and harbors.

Southern Positions Southern plantation owners, whose wealth and social status made them politically powerful, viewed attempts to restrict the expansion of slavery as violations of their constitutional right to take their property wherever they wished. They saw the Free-Soilers—and the abolitionists—as intent on the destruction of slavery. Some Southerners held more moderate views. They would agree to extend the Missouri Compromise line westward to the Pacific Ocean and permit territories north of that line to be free of slavery.

Popular Sovereignty A Democratic senator from Michigan, Lewis Cass, proposed a compromise solution that soon won considerable support from moderates across the country. Instead of Congress determining whether to allow slavery in a new western territory or state, Cass suggested that the matter be determined by a vote of the people who settled a territory. Cass’s approach to the problem was known as squatter sovereignty, or popular sovereignty.

The Election of 1848 The expansion of slavery into the territories was a vital issue in the presidential race of 1848. Three parties represented different positions on the issue:

• The Democrats nominated Senator Cass and adopted a platform pledged to popular sovereignty.

• The Whigs nominated Mexican War hero General Zachary Taylor, who had never been involved in politics and took no position on slavery in the territories.

• A third party, the Free-Soil Party, opposed expansion. It nominated former president Martin Van Buren. The party consisted of Conscience Whigs (who opposed slavery) and antislavery Democrats. Members of this latter group were ridiculed as “barnburners” because their defection threatened to destroy the Democratic Party.

Taylor narrowly defeated Cass, in part because of the vote given the Free-Soil Party in key Northern states such as New York and Pennsylvania.

Compromises to Preserve the Union The Gold Rush of 1849 and the influx of about 100,000 settlers into California created the need for law and order in the West. In 1849, Californians drafted a constitution for their new state—a constitution that banned slavery. Even though President Taylor was a Southern slaveholder himself, he supported the immediate admission of both California and New Mexico as free states. (At this time, however, the Mexican population of the New Mexico territory had little interest in applying for statehood.)

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Taylor’s plan sparked talk of secession among the “fire-eaters” (radicals) in the South. Some Southern extremists even met in Nashville in 1850 to discuss secession. By this time, however, the astute Kentucky senator Henry Clay had proposed yet another compromise for solving the political crisis:

• Admit California to the Union as a free state.

• Divide the remainder of the Mexican Cession into two territories— Utah and New Mexico—and allow the settlers in these territories to decide the slavery issue by majority vote, or popular sovereignty.

• Give the land in dispute between Texas and the New Mexico territory to the new territories in return for the federal government assuming Texas’s public debt of $10 million.

• Ban the slave trade in the District of Columbia but permit Whites to own enslaved people there as before.

• Adopt a new Fugitive Slave Law and enforce it rigorously.

In the ensuing Senate debate over the compromise proposal, the three congressional giants of the age—Henry Clay of Kentucky, Daniel Webster of Massachusetts, and John C. Calhoun of South Carolina—delivered their last great speeches. (Webster and Calhoun, who were both born in 1782, died in 1850; Clay died two years later.) Webster argued for compromise in order to save the Union, and in so doing alienated the Massachusetts abolitionists who formed the base of his support. Calhoun argued against compromise and insisted that the South be given equal rights in the acquired territory.

Northern opposition to compromise came from younger antislavery lawmakers, such as Senator William H. Seward of New York, who argued that a higher law than the Constitution existed. Opponents managed to prevail until the sudden death in 1850 of President Taylor, who had also opposed Clay’s plan. Succeeding him was a strong supporter of compromise, Vice President Millard Fillmore. Stephen A. Douglas, a young Democratic senator from Illinois, engineered different coalitions to pass each part of the compromise separately. President Fillmore readily signed the bills into law.

Passage The passage of the Compromise of 1850 bought time for the Union. Because California was admitted as a free state, the compromise added to the North’s political power. The political debate deepened the commitment of many Northerners to saving the Union from secession. Parts of the compromise became sources of controversy, especially the new Fugitive Slave Law and the provision for popular sovereignty.

REFLECT ON THE LEARNING OBJECTIVE

1. Explain how the different views of the individual regions influenced the federal government in the years after the Mexican-American War.

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KEY TERMS BY THEME

Expansion Politics (POL) Ostend Manifesto (1852)

Military & Diplomatic Expansion (WOR) Walker Expedition Clayton-Bulwer Treaty

Gadsden Purchase

Battle for the Territories

(MIG, POL) free-soil movement Free-Soil Party “barnburners”

Compromising (POL) Lewis Cass popular sovereignty zachary Taylor Henry Clay Compromise of 1850

MULTIPLE-CHOICE QUESTIONS

Questions 1–3 refer to the following excerpts.

“It being desirable for the peace, concord, and harmony of the Union of these States, to settle and adjust amicably all existing questions of controversy between them arising out of the institution of slavery upon a fair, equitable, and just basis.”

Henry Clay, Resolution on the Compromise of 1850

“We are told now . . . that the Union is threatened with subversion and destruction. . . . If the Union is to be dissolved for any existing causes, it will be dissolved because slavery is interdicted [interfered with] or not allowed to be introduced into the ceded Territories; because slavery is threatened to be abolished in the District of Columbia, and because fugitive slaves are not returned . . . to their masters. . . .

I am for staying within the Union and fighting for my rights.”

Henry Clay, Speech on the Compromise Resolution, 1850

1. To which politician or politicians was Clay directing the last line of the second excerpt? (A) Southerners who were threatening to secede (B) Senators such as Daniel Webster who rejected any compromise (C) Advocates of popular sovereignty (D) The president, Zachary Taylor

2. The provision of the Compromise of 1850 that appealed most to advocates for slavery was the one regarding (A) the conditions under which California would become a state (B) the assumption of Texas’s public debt by the federal government (C) the status of slave trade in Washington, D.C. (D) the features of a new Fugitive Slave Law

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TOPIC 5.4 THE COMPROMISE OF 1850

3. Clay’s position on slavery in “ceded territories” was opposed by people who were mostly concerned that they could take enslaved people into (A) islands in the Caribbean that might be acquired, such as Cuba (B) the lands acquired in the Louisiana Purchase and from Mexico (C) Texas, where slavery had been banned under Mexico (D) Maine, which had been part of Massachussets

SHORT-ANSWER QUESTION

Use complete sentences; an outline or bulleted list alone is not acceptable.

1.

Source: Nathaniel Currier, 1848. Library of Congress

Using the cartoon, answer (a), (b), and (c). The figure on the right side of the cartoon is saying, “That’s you Dad! more ‘Free Soil.’ We’ll rat ’em out yet. Long life to Davy Wilmot.” (a) Briefly explain ONE historical perspective expressed by the artist concerning slavery in the territories in the period 1840 to 1854. (b) Briefly explain ONE development in the period 1840 to 1854 that supported the perspective expressed by the artist. (c) Briefly explain ONE development in the period 1840 to 1854 that challenged the perspective expressed by the artist.

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Topic 5.5

Sectional Conflict: Regional Differences

I did not write it. God wrote it. I merely did his dictation.

Harriet Beecher Stowe, describing her book Uncle Tom’s Cabin, 1879

Learning Objective 1: Explain the effects of immigration from various parts of the world on American culture from 1844 to 1877.

Learning Objective 2: Explain how regional differences related to slavery caused tension in the years leading up to the Civil War.

Among the issues that divided people politically in the mid-1800s were immigration, particularly by Roman Catholics, and how to promote and respond to industrial growth. However, the dominant issue increasingly became the possible expansion of slavery into the territories.

Immigration Controversy As immigration increased, especially from Ireland and Germany, opposition arose on many fronts. Some Americans disliked the ethnicity or religious faiths of the immigrants, while others feared them as low-wage workers who might take their jobs.

Irish During this period, half of all the immigrants—almost 2 million—came from Ireland. These Irish immigrants were mostly tenant farmers driven from their homeland by crop failures and a devastating famine in the 1840s. They came with limited interest in farming, few skills, and little money. They faced discrimination because of their Roman Catholic religion. The Irish worked hard, often competing with African Americans for domestic work and low-skill jobs that required physical strength and endurance. Most stayed where they landed, so strong Irish communities developed in Northern cities such as Boston, New York, and Philadelphia. In Irish neighborhoods, people continued the customs they brought with them. For example, perhaps one-third spoke Irish. Several newspapers included an Irish-language section and churches held services for Irish speakers.

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TOPIC 5.5 SECTIONAL CONFLICT: REGIONAL DIFFERENCES

The Irish did bring two valuable skills. Since their country was dominated by the British, most Irish spoke English well and understood electoral politics.

Using these skills, many entered local politics. They often organized their fellow immigrants and joined the Democratic Party, which was traditionally anti-British and pro-worker. Initially excluded from New York City’s Democratic organization, Tammany Hall, the Irish had secured jobs and influence by the 1850s. By the 1880s they controlled Tammany Hall.

Germans Both economic hardships and the failure of democratic revolutions in 1848 caused more than 1 million Germans to seek refuge in the United States in the late 1840s and the 1850s. Most German immigrants had some modest means as well as considerable skills as farmers and artisans. Moving westward in search of cheap, fertile farmland, they established homesteads throughout the Old Northwest and generally prospered. At first their political influence was limited. As they became more active in public life, many strongly supported public education and staunchly opposed slavery.

Like the Irish, they often formed close-knit communities in cities where the German language was commonly spoken. Germans in rural areas often formed their own Roman Catholic or Lutheran churches.

Nativist Opposition to Immigration Many native-born Americans were alarmed by the influx of immigrants, fearing that the newcomers would take their jobs and dilute the culture of the Anglo majority. These ethnic tensions were closely tied to religion. Most of the native-born opponents of immigration were Protestants and most of the Irish and many of the German immigrants were Roman Catholics. In the 1840s, hostility to these immigrants, known as nativism, led to sporadic rioting in the big cities.

Nativists formed a secretive antiforeign society, the Supreme Order of the Star-Spangled Banner, which evolved into a political organization, the American Party. Because party members often responded “I know nothing” to political questions, the American Party was commonly called the Know-Nothing Party. The policies they supported included increasing the time required for immigrants to attain citizenship from five years to twenty-one years and allowing only native-born citizens to hold public office.

For a short period in the early 1850s, as the Whig Party disintegrated, the Know-Nothing Party gained strength, particularly in the New England and the Mid-Atlantic states. In the 1856 presidential election the party unsuccessfully ran former president Millard Fillmore.

By the late 1850s, antiforeign feeling faded in importance as the North and the South grew increasingly divided over slavery. However, nativism would periodically return when enough native-born citizens felt threatened by a sudden increase in immigration.

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Ethnic Conflict in the Southwest Though not immigrants, American Indians and Mexican Americans who had become part of the United States because of the Mexican-American War also faced religious discrimination. Many were Roman Catholics or practiced traditional American Indian beliefs.

POPULATION BY REGION, 1820 TO 1860

Region

1820

1840

1860

Northeast

4,360,000

6,761,000

10,594,000

North Central

859,000

3,352,000

9,097,000

South

4,419,000

6,951,000

11,133,000

West — —

619,000

All States

9,618,000

17,120,000

31,513,000

Source: U.S. Bureau of the Census. Historical Statistics of the United States, Colonial Times to 1970.

The Expanding Economy The era of territorial expansion coincided with a period of remarkable economic growth from the 1840s to 1857.

Industrial Technology Before 1840, factory production had been concentrated mainly in the textile mills of New England. After 1840, industrialization spread rapidly to the other states of the Northeast. New factories produced shoes, sewing machines, ready-to-wear clothing, firearms, precision tools, and iron products for railroads and other new technologies. The invention of the sewing machine by Elias Howe took much of the production of clothing out of homes and into factories. An electric telegraph demonstrated in 1844 by its inventor, Samuel F. B. Morse, went hand in hand with the growth of railroads in enormously speeding up communication and transportation across the country.

Railroads The canal-building era of the 1820s and 1830s was replaced in the next two decades with the expansion of rail lines, especially across the Northeast and Midwest. The railroads soon emerged as America’s largest industry. As such, they required immense amounts of capital and labor and gave rise to complex business organizations. Local merchants and farmers would often buy stocks in the new railroad companies in order to connect their area to the outside world.

Local and state governments also helped the railroads grow by granting special loans and tax breaks. Then, in 1850, the U.S. government made its first land grant to railroads. It gave 2.6 million acres of federal land to build the Illinois Central Railroad from Lake Michigan to the Gulf of Mexico.

Cheap and rapid transportation particularly promoted Western agriculture.

Farmers in Illinois and Iowa were now more closely linked by rail to the

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TOPIC 5.5 SECTIONAL CONFLICT: REGIONAL DIFFERENCES

Northeast than by the rivers to the South. The railroads united the commercial interests of the Northeast and Midwest and would also give the North strategic advantages in the Civil War.

Panic of 1857 In 1857 a financial panic caused a sharp decrease in prices for Midwestern agricultural products and a sharp increase in unemployment in Northern cities. However, cotton prices remained high and the South was less affected.

As a result, some Southerners believed that their plantation economy was superior to the Northern economy and that continued union with the Northern economy was not needed.

Agitation Over Slavery For a brief period—between the Compromise of 1850 and the passage of the Kansas-Nebraska Act in 1854—political tensions relaxed slightly. However, the enforcement of the Fugitive Slave Act and the publication of a best-selling antislavery novel kept the slavery question before the public.

Fugitive Slave Law The passage of a strict Fugitive Slave Law in 1850 persuaded many Southerners to accept that California would be a free state. However, many Northerners bitterly resented the law. As a result, it drove a wedge between North and South.

Enforcement The law’s purpose was to help owners track down runaway (fugitive) enslaved people who had escaped to a Northern state, capture them, and return them to their Southern owners. The law removed fugitive slave cases from state courts and made them the exclusive jurisdiction of the federal government. It also authorized special U.S. commissioners to issue warrants to arrest fugitives. A captured person who claimed to be free and not someone who had just escaped slavery was denied the right of trial by jury. State and local law enforcement officials were required to help enforce the federal law.

Opposition Anyone who attempted to hide a runaway or obstruct enforcement of the law was subject to heavy penalties. However, Black and White activists in the North bitterly resisted the law. Through court cases, protests, and sometimes force, they tried to protect African Americans from being returned—or taken for the first time—into slavery.

Underground Railroad The Underground Railroad was a loose network of activists who helped enslaved people escape to freedom in the North or Canada. Most of the “conductors” and those operating the “stations” were free African Americans and people who had escaped slavery themselves with the assistance of White abolitionists. The most famous conductor was Harriet Tubman, a woman who had escaped slavery. She made at least 19 trips into the South to help some 300 people escape.

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Free Black citizens in the North and abolitionists also organized vigilance committees to protect fugitive slaves from the slave catchers. During the Civil War, African American leaders such as Frederick Douglass, Harriet Tubman, and Sojourner Truth worked for emancipation and supported Black soldiers.

Books on Slavery—Pro and Con Popular books as well as unpopular laws stirred the people of all regions.

Uncle Tom’s Cabin The most influential book of its day was a novel about the conflict between an enslaved man, Tom, and the brutal White slave owner, Simon Legree. The publication of Uncle Tom’s Cabin in 1852 by the Northern writer Harriet Beecher Stowe moved a generation of Northerners and many Europeans to regard all slave owners as cruel and inhuman. Southerners condemned the “untruths” in the novel and looked upon it as one more proof of the North’s incurable prejudice against the Southern way of life. Later, when President Lincoln met Stowe, he is reported to have said, “So you’re the little woman who wrote the book that made this great war.” In response to Stowe's book, Mary Eastment wrote the pro-slavery novel Aunt Phillis's Cabin. She portrayed a world of kind slaveowners and happily enslaved people.

Impending Crisis of the South Appearing in 1857, Hinton R. Helper’s nonfiction book, Impending Crisis of the South, attacked slavery from another angle. The author, a native of North Carolina, used statistics to demonstrate to fellow Southerners that slavery weakened the South’s economy. Southern states quickly banned the book, but it was widely distributed in the North by antislavery and Free-Soil leaders.

COMPARING THE FREE AND SLAVE STATES IN THE 1850s

Category Free States Slave States Slave States as Percentage of Free States

Population

18,484,922

9,612,979 52%

Patents for New Inventions

1,929 268 14%

Value of Church Buildings

$67,778,477

$21,674,581 32%

Newspapers and Periodicals

1,790 740 41%

Capital

$230,100,840

$109,078,940 47%

Value of Exports

$167,520,098

$107,480,688 64%

Source: Hinton R. Helper, Impending Crisis of the South, 1857. Data from various years between 1850 and 1856.

Southern Reaction Responding to the Northern literature that condemned slavery, proslavery Southern Whites counterattacked, arguing that slavery was good for both the master and the enslaved. They pointed out that slavery was sanctioned by the Bible and grounded in philosophy and history. Slavery was also permitted by the U.S. Constitution. Southern authors contrasted the

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TOPIC 5.5 SECTIONAL CONFLICT: REGIONAL DIFFERENCES

conditions of Northern wage workers—“wage slaves” forced to work long hours in factories and mines—with the familial bonds that developed on plantations between slaves and masters. George Fitzhugh, the best-known proslavery author, questioned the principle of equal rights for “unequal men” and attacked the wage system as worse than slavery. Among his works were Sociology for the South (1854) and Cannibals All! (1857).

Effect of Law and Literature The Fugitive Slave Law and the books on slavery increasingly polarized the nation. Many Northerners who had opposed the expansion of slavery only for economic reasons and had scorned abolition became more concerned about slavery as a moral issue. At the same time, a growing number of Southerners, particularly wealthy ones, became more convinced that Northerners would abolish slavery and the way of life based upon it as soon as they could.

REFLECT ON THE LEARNING OBJECTIVE

1. Explain how sectional variations related to slavery increased hostilities in the years leading up to the Civil War.

KEY TERMS BY THEME

Expanding Economy

(WXT) industrial technology Elias Howe Samuel F. B. Morse railroads Panic of 1857

Conflict (NAT) nativism

Urban Growth (MIG) Irish Roman Catholic Germans

Changing Politics (PCE) Tammany Hall

Slavery (POL, ARC) Fugitive Slave Law Underground Railroad

Harriet Tubman

Literature (ARC) Uncle Tom’s Cabin Harriet Beecher Stowe Hinton R. Helper Impending Crisis of the South George Fitzhugh Sociology for the South

MULTIPLE-CHOICE QUESTIONS

Questions 1–2 refer to the following excerpt.

“The gentleman . . . has been anxious to proclaim the death of native Americanism. Sir, it is a principle that can never die. . . .

Native Americanism seeks to defend every institution that exists under that glorious Constitution . . . .

But we have been told that we belong to a party of ‘one idea.’ . . . Our great object is to attain to unity of national character; and, as necessary to that end, we embrace every measure and policy decidedly American . . . . We go for every thing American in contradistinction to every thing foreign. That . . . may be called ‘one idea’; but it is a glorious idea. . . .

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No alien has a right to naturalization . . . . To prevent this universal admission to citizenship, we frame naturalization laws, and prescribe forms that operate as a check upon the interference of foreigners in our institutions. . . .

We are now struggling for national character and national identity . . . .

We stand now on the very verge of overthrow by the impetuous force of invading foreigners.”

Rep. Lewis C. Levin, Speech in Congress, December 18, 1845

1. Which of the following groups would have most likely supported Levin’s concern “to attain unity of national character”? (A) Reformers who opposed the mistreatment of Native Americans (B) Southerners who viewed abolition as a threat to a long-standing institution (C) Protestants who viewed Roman Catholicism as a foreign faith (D) Men who opposed giving women the rights of citizenship, such as suffrage

2. How successful were Levin and his supporters in the mid-19th century? (A) They slowed down the growth of sectional division over slavery. (B) They helped pass a Fugitive Slave Law that appealed to Southerners. (C) They supported government funding of railroads to unite the country. (D) They formed a secretive society that evolved into a political party.

SHORT-ANSWER QUESTION

Use complete sentences; an outline or bulleted list alone is not acceptable.

1. Answer (a), (b), and (c). (a) Briefly explain ONE specific social or political response to immigration in the 1850s. (b) Briefly explain ONE specific social or political response to the conflict over slavery in the 1850s. (c) Briefly explain ONE specific example of how a piece of literature influenced social or political change in the 1850s.

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TOPIC 5.6 FAILURE OF COMPROMISE

Topic 5.6

Failure of Compromise

The real issue in this controversy—the one pressing upon every mind—is the sentiment on the part of one class that looks upon the institution of slavery as a wrong, and of another class that does not look upon it as a wrong.

Abraham Lincoln, during a debate with Stephen Douglas in Alton, Illinois, 1858

Learning Objective: Explain the political causes of the Civil War.

By 1861, politicians attempted many compromises to prevent war. Historians agree on the sequence of major events from 1848 to 1861 that led to the outbreak of the Civil War between the Union and the Confederacy. Facts alone, however, do not automatically assemble themselves into a convincing interpretation of why war occurred when it did. Three large issues, all related to slavery, divided the North and the South: (1) attitudes about the morality of slavery, (2) views about the constitutional rights of states, particularly the right to protect slavery, and (3) differences over economic policies between the free-labor industrial North and the slave-labor agricultural South. Some historians argue that solving these issues was possible but blundering politicians and extremism resulted in an unnecessary war. Others argue that the war was inevitable.

National Parties in Crisis The potency of the slavery controversy increased political instability. The two major parties—the Democrats and the Whigs—grew weak and divided over how to resolve the sectional differences over slavery. One effort to settle the issue, the application of popular sovereignty in the territory of Kansas, resulted in disaster.

The Election of 1852 Signs of trouble for the Whig Party appeared in the 1852 election for president.

The Whigs nominated another military hero of the Mexican War, General Winfield Scott. Attempting to ignore the slavery issue, the Whigs concentrated on the party’s traditional platform: improving roads and harbors. But Scott quickly discovered that sectional issues could not be held in check. The antislavery and Southern factions of the party fell to quarreling, and the party was on the verge of splitting apart.

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The Democrats nominated a compromise candidate, Franklin Pierce of New Hampshire, who they hoped would be a safe choice, one acceptable to people in all regions. A Northerner, Pierce was acceptable to Southern Democrats because he supported the Fugitive Slave Law. In the Electoral College, Pierce and the Democrats won all but four states, suggesting the days of the Whig Party were numbered.

The Kansas-Nebraska Act (1854) The Democrats, firmly in control of both the White House and Congress, found they could not avoid the issue of slavery in the territories. Senator Stephen A.

Douglas of Illinois proposed building a transcontinental railroad through the center of the country, with a major terminus in Chicago, to promote Western settlement (and increase the value of his own real estate in Chicago).

Southerners preferred a more southerly route. To win their support, Douglas introduced a bill to divide the Nebraska Territory into two parts, the Kansas and Nebraska territories, and allow settlers in each territory to decide whether to allow slavery. Since these territories were located north of the 36°30´ line, Douglas’s bill gave Southerners an opportunity to expand slavery into lands that had been closed to it by the Missouri Compromise of 1820. Many Northern Democrats condemned the bill as a surrender to “slave power.” Still, after three months of bitter debate, both houses of Congress passed Douglas’s bill as the Kansas-Nebraska Act of 1854, and President Pierce signed it into law.

Extremists and Violence The Kansas-Nebraska Act, in effect, repealed the Missouri Compromise that had lessened regional tensions for more than three decades. After 1854, the conflicts between antislavery and proslavery forces exploded, both in Kansas and on the floor of the United States Senate.

“Bleeding Kansas” Stephen Douglas, the Kansas-Nebraska Act sponsor, expected the slavery issue in the territory to be settled peacefully by the antislavery farmers from the Midwest who migrated to Kansas and constituted a majority. Slaveholders from neighboring Missouri also set up homesteads in Kansas as a means of winning control for the South. Northern abolitionists and Free-Soilers responded by organizing the New England Emigrant Aid Company (1855), which paid for the transportation of antislavery settlers to Kansas. Fighting broke out between the proslavery and the antislavery groups, and the territory became known as “bleeding Kansas.” Proslavery Missourians, called “border ruffians” by their enemies, crossed the border to create a proslavery legislature in Lecompton, Kansas. Antislavery settlers refused to recognize this government and created their own legislature in Topeka. In 1856, proslavery forces attacked the free-soil town of Lawrence,

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killing two and destroying homes and businesses. Two days later, John Brown, a stern abolitionist, retaliated. He and his sons attacked a proslavery farm settlement at Pottawatomie Creek, killing five.

THE UNITED STATES AFTER THE KANSAS–NEBRASKA ACT OF 1854

Free Territory

Free State

Territory Open to Slavery

Slave State

1,000 miles

1,000 kilometers

TX

INDIAN

TERRITORY

MINNESOTA

TERRITORY

NEBRASKA

TERRITORY

UTAH

TERRITORY

CA

NEW MEXICO

TERRITORY

M E X I C O

P O S S E S S I O N S

B R I T I S H

KANSAS

TERRITORY

OREGON

TERRITORY

WASHINGTON

TERRITORY

IA

FL

AR

LA

MS AL GA

SC

NC TN

KY MO

WI MI

IL IN OH

VA

PA

NY

MD DE

CT NJ

RI

MA

VT NH ME

G u l f o f M e x i c o

P A C I F I C

O C E A N

ATLANTIC

OCEAN

In Washington, the Pierce administration did nothing to keep order in the Kansas territory and failed to support honest elections there. As Kansas became bloodier, the Democratic Party became more divided between its Northern and Southern factions. The plan to let territories decide on slavery for themselves had resulted in chaos and bloodshed.

Caning of Senator Sumner The violence in Kansas spilled over into the halls of the U.S. Congress. In 1856, Massachusetts senator Charles Sumner attacked the Democratic administration in a vitriolic speech, “The Crime Against Kansas.” His remarks included personal charges against South Carolina senator Andrew Butler. Butler’s nephew, Congressman Preston Brooks, defended his uncle’s honor by walking into the Senate chamber and beating Sumner over the head repeatedly with a cane. Sumner never fully recovered from the attack. The action by Brooks outraged the North, and the House voted to censure him while Southerners applauded the deed. The Sumner-Brooks incident was another sign of growing passions on both sides.

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Birth of the Republican Party The increasing tensions over slavery divided Northern and Southern Democrats, and completely broke apart the Whig Party. Ex-Whigs scattered. Those who were frightened about immigration joined the Know-Nothing Party. With the support of new members, the Know-Nothings won a few local and state elections in the mid-1850s. However, as the expansion of slavery became the paramount political issue, the significance of immigration declined, and along with it, the Know-Nothing Party.

Ex-Whigs who supported the expansion of slavery usually joined the Democratic Party. The South became the core of the party, although Democrats were still strong in the North.

Former Whigs who opposed slavery expansion formed the core of a new party. The Republican Party was founded in Wisconsin in 1854 as a reaction to the passage of the Kansas-Nebraska Act. Composed of Free-Soilers and antislavery Whigs and Democrats, its purpose was to oppose the spread of slavery in the territories—not to end slavery itself. Its first platform called for the repeal of both the Kansas-Nebraska Act and the Fugitive Slave Law.

As violence increased in Kansas, more and more people, including some abolitionists, joined the Republican Party, and it became the second largest party in the country. But it was strictly a Northern, or sectional, party. Its success alienated and threatened the South.

The Election of 1856 The Republicans’ first test of strength came in the presidential election of

1856. Their nominee was a California senator, the explorer and “Pathfinder,” John C. Frémont. The Republican platform called for no expansion of slavery, free homesteads, and a probusiness protective tariff. The Know-Nothings also competed strongly in this election, with their candidate, former President Millard Fillmore, winning 20 percent of the popular vote.

As the one major national party, the Democrats expected to win. They nominated James Buchanan of Pennsylvania, rejecting President Pierce and Stephen Douglas because they were too closely identified with the controversial Kansas-Nebraska Act. As expected, the Democrats won a majority of the popular and electoral vote. The Republicans made a strong showing for a sectional party. In the Electoral College, Frémont carried 11 of the 16 free states. Some predicted that the antislavery Republicans could win the White House without a single vote from the South.

The election of 1856 foreshadowed the emergence of a powerful political party that would win all but four presidential elections between 1860 and 1932.

Constitutional Issues Both the Democrats’ position of popular sovereignty and the Republicans’ stand against the expansion of slavery received serious blows during the Buchanan administration (1857–1861). Republicans attacked Buchanan as a weak president.

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Lecompton Constitution One of Buchanan’s first challenges as president in 1857 was to decide whether to accept or reject a proslavery state constitution for Kansas submitted by the Southern legislature at Lecompton. Buchanan knew that the Lecompton Constitution, as it was called, did not have majority support. Even so, he asked Congress to accept the document and admit Kansas as a slave state. Congress did not do so because many Democrats, including Stephen Douglas, joined with the Republicans in rejecting the constitution. The next year, 1858, the proslavery document was overwhelmingly rejected by Kansas settlers, most of whom were antislavery Republicans.

Dred Scott v. Sandford (1857) Congressional folly and presidential ineptitude contributed to the sectional crisis of the 1850s. Then the Supreme Court worsened the crisis when it infuriated many Northerners with a controversial proslavery decision in the case of an enslaved man named Dred Scott. Scott had been held in slavery in Missouri and then taken to the free territory of Wisconsin, where he lived for two years before returning to Missouri. Arguing that his residence on free soil made him a free citizen, Scott sued for his freedom in Missouri in 1846. The case worked its way through the court system. It finally reached the Supreme Court, which rendered its decision in March 1857, only two days after Buchanan was sworn in as president.

Presiding over the Court was Chief Justice Roger Taney, a Southern Democrat. A majority of the Court decided against Scott and gave these reasons:

• Dred Scott had no right to sue in a federal court because the Framers of the Constitution did not intend African Americans to be U.S. citizens.

• Congress did not have the power to deprive any person of property without due process of law. If slaves were a form of property, then Congress could not exclude slavery from any federal territory.

• The Missouri Compromise was unconstitutional because it excluded slavery from Wisconsin and other Northern territories.

The Court’s ruling delighted Southern Democrats and infuriated Northern Republicans. In effect, the Court declared all parts of the Western territories open to slavery. Republicans denounced the decision as “the greatest crime in the annals of the republic.” The timing of the decision, after Buchanan’s inauguration, led Northerners to suspect the Democratic president and majority on the Supreme Court, including Taney, had planned the decision so that it would settle the slavery question. This increased Northern suspicions of a conspiracy and induced thousands of Democrats to vote Republican.

Northern Democrats such as Senator Douglas were left with the impossible task of supporting popular sovereignty without rejecting the Dred Scott decision.

Douglas’s hopes for compromise and the presidency were in jeopardy.

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Lincoln-Douglas Debates In 1858, the focus of the nation was on Stephen Douglas’s campaign for reelection as senator from Illinois. Challenging him was a successful trial lawyer and former member of the Illinois legislature, Abraham Lincoln, as the Republican candidate. Lincoln had served one term in Congress in the 1840s as a Whig. Nationally, he was an unknown compared to Douglas (the Little Giant), who was the champion of popular sovereignty and possibly the best hope for holding the nation together if elected president in 1860.

Lincoln was not an abolitionist. As a moderate who was against the expansion of slavery, he spoke effectively of slavery as a moral issue. (“If slavery is not wrong, nothing is wrong.”) Accepting the Illinois Republicans’ nomination, he delivered his celebrated “house-divided” speech that won him fame. “I believe this government,” said Lincoln, “cannot endure, permanently half slave and half free,” a statement that made Southerners view Lincoln as a radical. In seven campaign debates in different Illinois towns, Lincoln shared the platform with his famous opponent, Douglas. The Republican challenger attacked Douglas’s indifference to slavery as a moral issue.

In a debate in Freeport, Illinois, Lincoln challenged Douglas to reconcile popular sovereignty with the Dred Scott decision. In what became known as the Freeport Doctrine, Douglas responded that slavery could not exist in a community if the local citizens did not pass laws (slave codes) maintaining it. His views angered Southern Democrats because, from their point of view, Douglas did not go far enough in supporting the implications of the Dred Scott decision.

Douglas won his campaign for reelection to the U.S. Senate. In the long run, however, he lost ground in his own party by alienating Southern Democrats.

Lincoln, on the other hand, emerged from the debates as a national figure and a leading contender for the Republican nomination for president in 1860.

REFLECT ON THE LEARNING OBJECTIVE

1. Explain the political causes for the Civil War.

KEY TERMS BY THEME

Battle for the Territories

(MIG, POL) New England Emigrant Aid Company “bleeding Kansas” Pottawatomie Creek Lecompton Constitution

Compromising (POL) Stephen A. Douglas

Kansas-Nebraska Act

Politics in Crisis (POL) Franklin Pierce Know-Nothing Party Republican Party John C. Frémont Millard Fillmore James Buchanan

Slavery (POL, ARC) Dred Scott v. Sandford Roger Taney Lincoln-Douglas debates Abraham Lincoln house-divided speech Freeport Doctrine

Violent Responses (POL) Sumner-Brooks incident

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TOPIC 5.6 FAILURE OF COMPROMISE

MULTIPLE-CHOICE QUESTIONS

Questions 1–2 refer to the following excerpt.

“Mr. President . . . I proposed on Tuesday last, that the Senate should proceed to the consideration of the bill to organize the Territories of Nebraska and Kansas . . . .

Now I ask the friends and the opponents of this measure to look at it as it is. Is not the question involved the simple one, whether the people of the Territories shall be allowed to do as they please upon the question of slavery, subject only to the limitations of the Constitution? . . .

If the principle is right, let it be avowed and maintained. If it is wrong, let it be repudiated. Let all this quibbling about the Missouri Compromise, about the territory acquired from France, about the act of 1820, be cast behind you; for the simple question is, will you allow the people to legislate for themselves upon the subject of slavery? Why should you not?”

Stephen A. Douglas, Defense of the Kansas-Nebraska Bill, 1854

1. Which of the following ideas best describes what Douglas is proposing in this excerpt? (A) The theme of The Impending Crisis of the South (B) The concept of popular sovereignty (C) The right of a state to secede (D) The distinction between a territory and a state

2. Opponents of Douglas’s views in this excerpt were mainly concerned that (A) the Supreme Court had ruled popular sovereignty unconstitutional (B) Congress was repealing a law that had held the Union together for more than 30 years (C) the president would not fully support implementation of a new law (D) European powers would object to the possibility of slavery’s expansion

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SHORT-ANSWER QUESTION

Use complete sentences; an outline or bulleted list alone is not acceptable.

Question 1 is based on the following excerpts.

1. “The country had been founded in compromise, and to compromise it was dedicated. . . . But this conception of compromise was in trouble, and the word would . . . become an epithet. . . .

The underlying issue was the North’s increasing power. And that power endangered slavery. Secessionists worried if slavery did not expand into the territories, the black population would stay where it was, bottled up and likely to explode. Fear motivated them. That is to say, racial anxiety was as pervasive as economic anxiety when it came to secession, though it was hard to separate the two, for they were threaded together with the rope that bound secessionists and many Southerners to their land, their way of life, their mint juleps, and their pride of race.

Lincoln’s election was thus not so much the cause of secession as its excuse: institutional restraints (read: the federal government) had insulted Southerners, imperiled their way of life, and held them in thrall to Northern financiers who had forced planters to buy goods in a protected market.”

Brenda Wineapple, Ecstatic Nation, 2013

“During the 1850s, however, the forces that had worked to hold the nation together in the past fell victim to new and much more divisive pressures that were working to split the nation apart. Driving the sectional tensions of the 1850s was a battle over national policy toward the western territories which were clamoring to become states of the Union—and over the place of slavery within them. Should slavery be permitted in the new states? And who should decide whether to permit it or not? . . . Positions on slavery continued to harden in both the North and South until ultimately each region came to consider the other its enemy.”

Alan Brinkley, American History, 2003

Using the excerpts, answer (a), (b), and (c). (a) Briefly explain ONE major difference between Wineapple’s and Brinkley’s historical interpretations of Manifest Destiny. (b) Briefly explain how ONE historical event or development in the period 1848 to 1861 that is not explicitly mentioned in the excerpts could be used to support Wineapple’s interpretation. (c) Briefly explain how ONE historical event or development in the period 1848 to 1861 that is not explicitly mentioned in the excerpts could be used to support Brinkley’s interpretation.

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TOPIC 5.7 ELECTION OF 1860 AND SECESSION

Topic 5.7

Election of 1860 and Secession

I, John Brown, am now quite certain that the crimes of this guilty land will never be purged away but with blood.

John Brown, December 1859

Learning Objective: Describe the effects of Lincoln’s election.

In Northern states outside of Illinois where Douglas and the Democrats defeated Lincoln, the Republicans did well in the congressional elections of

1858. This greatly alarmed many Southerners. They worried not only about the antislavery plank in the Republicans’ program but also about that party’s economic program, which favored Northern industrialists at the expense of the South. The higher tariffs pledged by the Republicans would help Northern businesses but hurt the South, which depended on exporting cotton. The events leading up to Lincoln’s election and the secession of eleven Southern states from the Union set the stage for war.

The Road to Secession Southern fears grew that a Republican victory in 1860 would spell disaster for their economy and threaten their “constitutional right,” as affirmed by the Supreme Court, to own enslaved people as property. Adding to their fears were Northern radicals supporting John Brown, the man who had massacred five farmers in Kansas in 1856.

John Brown’s Raid at Harpers Ferry John Brown confirmed the South’s worst fears of radical abolitionism when he tried to start an uprising of enslaved people in Virginia. In October 1859, he led a small band of followers, including his four sons and some formerly enslaved people, to attack the federal arsenal at Harpers Ferry. His impractical plan was to use guns from the arsenal to arm Virginia’s enslaved African Americans, whom he expected to rise up in revolt. Federal troops under the command of Robert E. Lee captured Brown and his band after a two-day siege. Brown and six of his followers were tried for treason by the state of Virginia. At the trial, Brown spoke with simple eloquence of his humanitarian motives in wanting to free enslaved people. However, he was convicted and hanged.

Brown’s raid divided Northerners. Moderates condemned his use of violence, while abolitionists hailed him as a martyr. Southern whites saw the raid, and Northern support for it, as final proof of the North’s true intentions— to use slave revolts to destroy the South.

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The Election of 1860 After John Brown’s raid, more and more Americans feared that their country was moving to disintegration. The presidential election of 1860 would test the Union.

Breakup of the Democratic Party As 1860 began, the Democratic Party represented the last hope for compromise. The Democrats held their national convention in Charleston, South Carolina. Stephen Douglas was the party’s leading candidate and the most capable of winning the presidency. Blocking his nomination were angry Southerners and supporters of President Buchanan.

After deadlocking at Charleston, the Democrats held a second convention in Baltimore. Many delegates from the slave states walked out, enabling the remaining delegates to nominate Douglas on a platform of popular sovereignty and enforcement of the Fugitive Slave Law. Southern Democrats then held their own convention in Baltimore and nominated Vice President John C.

Breckinridge of Kentucky as their candidate. The Southern Democratic platform called for the unrestricted extension of slavery in the territories and annexation of Cuba, a Spanish colony that still practiced slavery.

Republican Nomination of Lincoln When the Republicans met in Chicago, they enjoyed hopes of an easy win over the divided Democrats. They drafted a platform that appealed to the economic self-interest of Northerners and Westerners. They called for the exclusion of slavery from the territories, a protective tariff for industry, free land for homesteaders, and internal improvements to encourage Western settlement, including a railroad to the Pacific. To win moderates on slavery, they rejected the well-known New York Senator William Seward, a strong opponent of slavery. They turned to a little-known Illinois lawyer Abraham Lincoln, a strong debater. They believed that Lincoln could carry the Midwestern states of Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio. One cloud darkened the Republicans’ otherwise bright future. In the South, radicals warned that if the country elected Lincoln, their states would leave the Union.

A Fourth Political Party Fearing a Republican victory, a group of former Whigs, Know-Nothings, and moderate Democrats formed a new party: the Constitutional Union Party. For president, they nominated John Bell of Tennessee and pledged enforcement of the laws and the Constitution and, above all, preservation of the Union.

Election Results While Douglas campaigned across the country, Lincoln remained at home in Springfield, Illinois, meeting with Republican leaders and giving statements to the press. The election results were predictable. Lincoln carried every free state of the North, which represented a solid majority of 59 percent of the electoral votes. Breckinridge, the Southern Democrat, carried the Deep South, leaving Douglas and Bell with just a few electoral votes in the border states.

However, Lincoln won only 39.8 percent of the popular vote, so he would be a minority president. The new political reality was that the populous free states had enough electoral votes to elect a president without any electoral votes from the South. Southern fears that the North would dominate the federal government—and could soon threaten slavery—appeared to be coming true.

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TOPIC 5.7 ELECTION OF 1860 AND SECESSION

Secession of the Deep South In 1860, Republicans controlled neither the Senate nor the Supreme Court.

Even so, the election of Lincoln was all that Southern secessionists needed to call for immediate disunion. In December 1860, a special convention in South Carolina voted unanimously to secede, saying they needed to protect slavery.

Within six weeks, state conventions in Georgia, Florida, Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana, and Texas did the same. In several states, particularly Georgia and Alabama, many people were uncertain about or opposed to secession. However, large slaveowners, arguing that states had a right to defend slavery, prevailed.

In February 1861, representatives of the seven states of the Deep South met in Montgomery, Alabama, and created the Confederate States of America. The constitution of this Southern country was like the U.S. Constitution, except that the Confederacy placed limits on the government’s power to impose tariffs and restrict slavery. Elected president and vice president were Jefferson Davis of Mississippi and Alexander Stephens of Georgia.

THE ELECTION OF 1860

Douglas (No. Dem.)

Breckinridge (So. Dem.)

Bell (Const. Union)

Lincoln (Rep.)

12

72

39

180

Electoral votes

1,375,000

848,000

591,000

1,866,000

Popular votes

M E X I C O

B R I T I S H P O S S E S S I O N S

TERRITORIES

G u l f o f M e x i c o

PACIFIC

OCEAN

ATLANTIC

OCEAN

OR

CA

TX

MN

VT NH ME

NY

MD DE NJ CT RI

MA

AR

LA MS

SC

NC MO

IA

WI

IL IN VA

AL GA

FL

TN

KY

MI

OH PA

Crittenden Compromise A lame-duck president (a leader completing a term after someone else has been elected to his or her office), Buchanan had five months in office before Lincoln succeeded him. Buchanan was a conservative who did nothing to prevent the secession. Congress was more active. In a last-ditch effort to appease the South, Senator John Crittenden of Kentucky proposed a constitutional amendment that would guarantee the right to hold slaves in

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all territories south of the old Missouri Compromise line, 36°30´. Lincoln, however, said that he could not accept this compromise because it violated the Republican position against extension of slavery into the territories.

Southern Whites who voted for secession believed they were acting in the tradition of the Revolution of 1776. They argued that they had a right to national independence and to dissolve a constitutional compact that no longer protected them from the “tyranny” of Northern rule. Many also thought that Lincoln, like Buchanan, might permit secession without a fight. Those who thought this had badly miscalculated.

A Nation Divided When Lincoln took office as the president in March 1861, people wondered if he would challenge the secession militarily. In his inaugural address, Lincoln assured Southerners that he would not interfere with slavery where it existed.

At the same time, he warned, no state had the right to break up the Union. He appealed for restraint: “In your hands, my dissatisfied fellow-countrymen, and not in mine, is the momentous issue of civil war. The government will not assail you. You can have no conflict without being yourselves the aggressors.

Fort Sumter Despite the president’s message of conciliation, the danger of a war was acute.

Critical was the status of federal forts in states that had seceded. Fort Sumter, in the harbor of Charleston, South Carolina, was cut off by Southern control of the harbor. Rather than either giving up Fort Sumter or attempting to defend it, Lincoln announced that he was sending provisions of food to the small federal garrison. He thus gave South Carolina the choice of either permitting the fort to hold out or opening fire. Carolina’s guns thundered and thus, on April 12, 1861, the war began. The attack on Fort Sumter and its capture after two days of pounding united most Northerners behind a patriotic fight to save the Union.

Secession of the Upper South Before South Carolina attacked Fort Sumter, only seven states of the Deep South had seceded. After it was clear that Lincoln would use troops to defend the Union, four states of the Upper South—Virginia, North Carolina, Tennessee, and Arkansas—seceded and joined the Confederacy. As in the earlier states, the decision to secede was controversial. The Confederates then moved their capital to Richmond, Virginia. The people of western Virginia remained loyal to the Union, becoming a separate state in 1863.

Keeping the Border States in the Union Four other slaveholding states remained in the Union. The decisions of Delaware, Maryland, Missouri, and Kentucky not to join the Confederacy were partly a result of pro-Union sentiment in those states and partly the result of shrewd federal policies. In Maryland, pro-secessionists attacked Union troops and threatened the railroad to Washington. The Union army resorted to martial

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law to keep the state under federal control. In Missouri, U.S. troops prevented the pro-South elements from gaining control, although guerrilla forces for the Confederacy were active during the war. In Kentucky, the state legislature voted to remain neutral. Lincoln initially respected its neutrality and waited for the South to violate it before moving in federal troops.

Keeping the border states in the Union was a military and political goal for Lincoln. Their loss would increase the Confederate population by 50 percent and weaken the North’s strategic position. Partly to avoid alienating Unionists in the border states, Lincoln rejected initial calls for the emancipation of slaves.

HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVES: WHAT CAUSED THE CIVIL WAR?

Was slavery the primary cause of the Civil War? In the decades after the war, Northern historians argued emphatically that the South’s attachment to slavery was the principal, if not the only, cause. They blamed the war on a conspiracy of slave owners—a small minority of Southerners—who wanted only to expand slavery at the expense of White and Black Americans alike.

Southern historians, on the other hand, viewed the conflict between the two sections, North and South, as a dispute over the nature of the Constitution.

They argued that Northern politicians violated the original compact of the states by attacking their property rights (the ownership of enslaved people).

Therefore, the Southern states had to secede to defend their constitutional rights and escape tyranny of the Northern majority.

By the early 20th century, passions had cooled on both sides, and scholars of the Progressive era (1900–1917) thought economic interests were the foundation of all political conflict. The Civil War, then, was a clash between two opposing economic systems: the industrial North versus the agricultural South. They downplayed the divisive issue of slavery.

American disillusionment with World War I led historians to question whether the Civil War was necessary or inevitable. Previously, people had assumed that the Civil War was an “irrepressible conflict.” In the 1920s and 1930s, historians challenged that assumption, arguing that blundering politicians and fanaticism on both sides, such as radical abolitionists in the North and secessionists in the South, were chiefly responsible for the war. The leaders admired from this perspective were politicians of the 1850s who worked for compromise, such as Henry Clay and Stephen Douglas. They criticized Lincoln for his passionate “house-divided” speech.

In the 1950s and 1960s, the civil rights movement provided the backdrop for rethinking the causes of the Civil War. Historians who were affected by African Americans’ struggles for civil rights returned to the view that slavery was the chief cause of disunion after all. Arthur Schlesinger, Jr., a leading historian of the 1950s, argued: “A society closed in the defense of evil institutions thus creates moral differences far too profound to be solved by compromise.” In this view, slavery was an inherently evil institution and the root of a conflict that was indeed “irrepressible.”

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REFLECT ON THE LEARNING OBJECTIVE

1. Explain the consequences of Lincoln’s election.

KEY TERMS BY THEME

Violent Responses

(POL) John Brown Harpers Ferry

Politics in Crisis (POL) John C. Breckenridge

Constitutional Union Party John Bell secession

Compromising (POL) Crittenden Compromise

The Break (NAT, POL) border states

The Fighting

(POL, GEO, CUL) Fort Sumter

MULTIPLE-CHOICE QUESTIONS

Questions 1–2 refer to the following excerpt.

“Apprehension seems to exist among the people of the Southern States that by the accession of a Republican administration their property and their peace and personal security are endangered. There has never been any reasonable cause for such apprehension. . . .

In your hands, my dissatisfied fellow countrymen, and not in mine, is the momentous issue of civil war. The Government will not assail you. You can have no conflict without being yourself the aggressors. You have no oath registered in heaven to destroy the Government, while I shall have the most solemn one to ‘preserve, protect, and defend it.’”

Abraham Lincoln, First Inaugural Address, March 4, 1861

1. Which of the following actions by the Confederates was the first sign of their rejection of Lincoln’s words in the excerpt above? (A) The secession of seven states in the Deep South (B) The decision to locate the Confederate capital in Virginia (C) The adoption of a new constitution by the Confederacy (D) The attack on Fort Sumter by South Carolina

2. The position of Lincoln and the Republicans on which of the following issues caused the greatest fear among Southern defenders of slavery? (A) The extension of slavery into the territories (B) The Fugitive Slave Act (C) The slave trade in Washington, D.C. (D) The Dred Scott decision

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SHORT-ANSWER QUESTION

Use complete sentences; an outline or bulleted list alone is not acceptable.

1. “[In the Civil War,] great issues were at stake, issues about which Americans were willing to fight and die, issues whose resolution profoundly transformed and redefined the United States. The Civil War was a total war in three senses: It mobilized the total human and material resources of both sides; it ended not in a negotiated peace but in total victory by one side and unconditional surrender by the other; it destroyed the economy and social system of the loser and established those of the winner as the norm for the future. . . .

The North went to war to preserve the Union; it ended by creating a nation.”

James M. McPherson, historian, “A War That Never Goes Away,” American Heritage, March 1990

“Should we consecrate a war that killed and maimed over a million Americans? Or should we question . . . whether this was really a war of necessity that justified its appalling costs? . . .

Very few Northerners went to war seeking or anticipating the destruction of slavery. They fought for the Union, and the Emancipation Proclamation was a means to that end: a desperate measure to undermine the South and save a democratic nation that Lincoln called ‘the last, best hope of earth.’ . . .

From the distance of 150 years, Lincoln’s transcendent vision at Gettysburg of a ‘new birth of freedom’ seems premature. . . . Rather than simply consecrate the dead with words, he said, it is for ‘us the living’ to rededicate ourselves to the unfinished work of the Civil War.”

Tony Horwitz, journalist and writer, “150 Years of Misunderstanding the Civil War,” The Atlantic, June 2013

Using the excerpts, answer (a), (b), and (c). (a) Briefly explain ONE major difference between McPherson’s and Horwitz’s historical interpretations of the Civil War. (b) Briefly explain how ONE historical event or development from the period 1861 to 1865 not directly mentioned in the excerpts supports McPherson’s interpretation. (c) Briefly explain how ONE historical event or development from the period 1861 to 1865 not directly mentioned in the excerpts supports Horwitz’s interpretation.

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Topic 5.8

Military Conflict in the Civil War

It is enough to make the whole world start to see the awful amount of death and destruction that now stalks abroad. I see no signs of a remission till one or both the armies are destroyed.

General William T. Sherman, June 1864

Learning Objective: Explain the various factors that contributed to the Union victory in the Civil War.

The Civil War between the Union and the Confederacy (1861–1865) was the costliest American war in terms of the loss of human life, resulting in the deaths of 750,000 people. Most important, the Civil War freed 4 million enslaved African Americans, giving the nation what President Lincoln called a “new birth of freedom.” The war also transformed American society by accelerating industrialization and modernization in the North and destroying much of the South. These changes were so fundamental and profound that some historians refer to the Civil War as the Second American Revolution.

War Less than 100 years after fighting a war to establish their republic, the Union and the Confederacy each entered the Civil War with strengths and weaknesses.

Military Differences The Confederacy started with the advantage of having to fight only a defensive war to win, while the Union had to conquer an area as large as Western Europe. The Confederacy had to move troops and supplies shorter distances than the Union. It had a long, indented coastline that was difficult to blockade, experienced military leaders, and high troop morale.

The Union’s population of 22 million against the Confederate’s of 5.5 million free Whites would work to its favor in a war of attrition. Its population advantage was aided by 800,000 immigrants, and emancipation brought 180,000 African Americans into the Union army. The Union could also count on a loyal U.S. Navy, which ultimately gave it command of the rivers and territorial waters.

Economic Differences The Union dominated the nation’s economy, controlling most of the banking and capital of the country, 85 percent of the factories, 70 percent of the railroads, and 65 percent of the farmland. The skills of Northern clerks and bookkeepers proved valuable in the logistical support of military operations. Confederates hoped that European demand for its

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cotton would bring recognition and financial aid. Like other rebel movements in history, the Confederates counted on outside help to be successful.

Political Differences The two sides had distinct goals. The Confederates were struggling for independence, while the Union was fighting to preserve the Union. But states’ rights proved a liability for the Confederate government; to win the war, they needed a strong central government with strong public support. They had neither, while the Union had an established central government. The ultimate hope of the Confederates was that the people of the Union would turn against Lincoln and the Republicans and quit the war because it was too costly.

The Confederate States of America The Confederate constitution was modeled after the U.S. Constitution, but it denied the Confederate congress the powers to levy a protective tariff and to appropriate funds for internal improvements. However, it did prohibit the foreign slave trade. President Jefferson Davis tried to increase his executive powers during the war, but Southern governors resisted his attempts, some holding back troops and resources to protect their own states. At one point, Vice President Alexander H. Stephens, in defense of states’ rights, even urged the secession of Georgia in response to the “despotic” actions of the Confederate government.

The Confederacy was chronically short of money. It tried loans, income taxes, and even impressment of private property, but these revenues paid only a part of war costs. The government issued more than $1 billion in paper money, causing severe inflation. By war’s end, a Confederate dollar was worth less than two cents. The Confederate congress nationalized railroads to promote industrial growth, but it was not enough. In a war of attrition, the Confederacy faced the challenge of making its resources last until the Union stopped fighting.

First Years of a Long War: 1861–1862 People at first expected the war to last no more than weeks. Lincoln called the first volunteers for a period of only 90 days. “On to Richmond!” was the cry, but it would take four years of fighting before Union troops marched into the Confederate capital.

Union Strategy General-in-Chief Winfield Scott, veteran of the 1812 and Mexican wars, devised a three-part strategy for winning a long war:

• Use the U.S. Navy to blockade Southern ports (called the Anaconda Plan), cutting off essential supplies from reaching the Confederacy

• Take control of the Mississippi River, dividing the Confederacy in two

• Raise and train an army 500,000 strong to conquer Richmond

The first two parts of the strategy proved easier to achieve than the third, but ultimately all three were important in achieving Northern victory.

After the Union’s defeat at Bull Run, federal armies experienced a succession of crushing defeats as they attempted various campaigns in Virginia.

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First Battle of Bull Run In the first major battle of the war (July 1861), 30,000 federal troops marched from Washington, D.C., to attack Confederate forces near Bull Run Creek at Manassas Junction, Virginia. As the Union forces seemed close to victory, Confederate reinforcements under General Thomas (Stonewall) Jackson counterattacked and sent the inexperienced Union troops in disorderly flight back to Washington. The battle ended the illusion of a short war and also promoted the myth that the rebels were invincible in battle.

Peninsula Campaign General George B. McClellan, the new commander of the Union army in the East, insisted that his troops be given a long period of training before going into battle. Finally, after many delays that tested Lincoln’s patience, McClellan’s army invaded Virginia in March 1862. The Union army was stopped by brilliant tactical moves by Confederate general Robert E. Lee, the commander of the South’s eastern forces. After five months, McClellan was forced to retreat and was ordered back to the Potomac, where he was replaced by General John Pope.

THE CIVIL WAR: THE UNION VS. THE CONFEDERACY

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ALABAMA

TENNESSEE

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CAROLINA

SOUTH

CAROLINA

New Orleans

1862

Philadelphia

Savannah

1864

Columbia

Richmond

Washington D.C.

Charleston

Chattanooga

Gettysburg

1863 Antietam

1862

Chancellorsville

1863

Appomattox

1865

Ft. Sumter

1861

Shiloh

1862

Atlanta

1864

Vicksburg

1863

Monitor vs.

Merrimac

1862

area of inset map

Confederacy Border states

300 Kilometers

300 Miles

Major battle

Second Battle of Bull Run Lee struck quickly against Pope’s army in Northern Virginia. He drew Pope into a trap, struck the enemy’s flank, and sent the Union army back to Bull Run. Pope withdrew to defend Washington.

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Antietam Following his victory at Bull Run, Lee led his army across the Potomac into Maryland. He hoped that a Confederate victory in a Union state would convince Britain to give recognition and support to the Confederacy.

By this time (September 1862), Lincoln had restored McClellan to command.

McClellan had the advantage of knowing Lee’s plan because a copy of it had been dropped accidentally by a Confederate officer. The Union army intercepted the Confederates at Antietam Creek in the Maryland town of Sharpsburg. Here the bloodiest single day of combat in the entire war took place, with more than 22,000 soldiers killed or wounded.

Unable to break through Union lines, Lee’s army retreated to Virginia.

Disappointed with McClellan for failing to pursue Lee’s army, Lincoln removed him for the final time as the Union commander.

While essentially a draw on the battlefield, Antietam was among the most significant battles of the war. Because the Confederates did not win, they failed to get what they so urgently needed—recognition and aid from Great Britain and France. Because the Union did not lose, Lincoln found enough encouragement in a Union victory. As explained in Topic 5.9, Lincoln used the partial triumph to announce a direct assault on the institution of slavery.

Fredericksburg Replacing McClellan with the aggressive General Ambrose Burnside, Lincoln discovered that a strategy of reckless attack could have even worse consequences than McClellan’s strategy of caution. In December 1862, a Union army under Burnside attacked Lee’s army at Fredericksburg, Virginia, and suffered immense losses: 12,000 dead or wounded compared to 5,000 Confederate casualties. Both Union and Confederate generals were slow to learn that improved weaponry took the romance out of heroic charges against entrenched positions. By the end of 1862, the awful magnitude of the war was all too clear—with no prospect of victory for either side.

The second year of war, 1862, was a disastrous one for the Union except for two engagements, one at sea and the other on the rivers of the West.

Monitor vs. Merrimac The Union’s hopes for winning the war depended upon its ability to maximize its economic advantages by an effective blockade of Confederate ports (the Anaconda Plan). During McClellan’s Peninsula campaign, the Union’s blockade strategy was jeopardized by an unusual Confederate ship, the Merrimac, that attacked and sank several Union ships near Hampton Roads, Virginia. Unlike the standard wooden ships of the day, the Merrimac was covered with metal plates. The “ironclad” seemed unstoppable. However, on March 9, 1862, the Union’s own ironclad, the Monitor, engaged the Merrimac in a five-hour duel. The battle ended in a draw, but the Monitor prevented the Confederates’ new weapon from breaking the U.S. naval blockade. The two ships marked a turning point in naval warfare, as ironclad ships replaced wooden ones.

Grant in the West The battle of the ironclads occurred at about the same time as a bloodier encounter was taking place in western Tennessee. The Union’s campaign for control of the Mississippi River was partly under the command

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of a West Point graduate, Ulysses S. Grant, who had joined up for the war after an unsuccessful civilian career. Striking south from Illinois in early 1862, Grant used a combination of gunboats and army maneuvers to capture Fort Henry and Fort Donelson on the Cumberland River (a branch of the Mississippi).

These stunning victories, in which 14,000 Confederate soldiers were taken prisoner, opened up the state of Mississippi to Union attack.

A few weeks later, a Confederate army under Albert Johnston surprised Grant at Shiloh, Tennessee, but the Union army forced the Confederates to retreat after terrible losses on both sides (more than 23,000 dead and wounded).

Grant’s drive down the Mississippi was complemented in April 1862 by the capture of New Orleans by the Union navy under David Farragut.

Foreign Affairs and Diplomacy The Confederacy’s hopes for independence hinged as much on its diplomats as on soldiers. Confederate leaders expected that cotton would prove to be “king” and induce Britain or France, or both, to give aid to their war effort. Besides cotton for their textile mills, wealthy British industrialists and aristocrats looked forward to ending the American democratic experiment. From the Union’s point of view, it was critically important to prevent the Confederacy from gaining the foreign support and recognition that it desperately needed.

Trent Affair Britain came close to siding with the Confederacy in late

1861 over an incident at sea. Confederate diplomats James Mason and John Slidell were traveling to England on a British steamer, the Trent, on a mission to gain recognition for their government. A Union warship stopped the British ship, removed Mason and Slidell, and brought them to the United States as prisoners of war. Britain threatened war over the incident unless the diplomats were released. Despite intense criticism, Lincoln gave in to British demands.

Mason and Slidell were set free, but they failed to obtain full recognition of the Confederacy from either Britain or France.

Confederate Raiders The British did allow the Confederates to purchase warships from British shipyards. These commerce-raiders did serious harm to U.S. merchant ships. One of them, the Alabama, captured more than 60 vessels before being sunk off the coast of France by a Union warship. After the war, Great Britain eventually agreed to pay the United States $15.5 million for damages caused by Confederate attacks in ships built in Britain.

Failure of Cotton Diplomacy In the end, the Confederacy’s hopes for European intervention were disappointed. “King Cotton” did not have the power, as Europe quickly found ways of obtaining cotton from other sources.

Shipments of cotton began arriving from Egypt and India for the British textile industry. Also, other materials could be used for textiles, and the woolen and linen industries took advantage of this opportunity.

Two other factors went into Britain’s decision not to recognize the Confederacy. First, General Lee’s setback at Antietam played a role. Without a decisive Confederate victory, the British government would not risk

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recognition. Second, Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation (January 1863) made the end of slavery an objective of the Union, which appealed strongly to Britain’s working class. While conservative leaders of Britain were sympathetic to the Confederacy, they could not defy the pro-Northern, antislavery feelings of the British majority.

The Union Triumphs, 1863–1865 By early 1863, the fortunes of war were turning against the Confederacy.

Although General Lee started the year with a victory at Chancellorsville, Virginia, the Confederate economy was in bad shape as planters lost control of their slave labor, and an increasing number of starving soldiers were deserting the Confederate army.

Turning Point The decisive turning point in the war came in the first week of July when the Confederacy suffered two crushing defeats in the West and the East.

Vicksburg In the West, by the spring of 1863, Union forces controlled New Orleans as well as most of the Mississippi River and surrounding valley.

The Union objective of securing complete control of the Mississippi River was close when General Grant began his siege of the heavily fortified city of Vicksburg, Mississippi. Union artillery bombarded Vicksburg for seven weeks before the Confederates finally surrendered the city (and nearly 29,000 soldiers) on July 4. Federal warships now controlled the full length of the Mississippi, which cut off Texas, Louisiana, and Arkansas from the rest of the Confederacy.

Gettysburg Meanwhile, in the East, Lee again took the offensive by leading an army into Maryland and Pennsylvania. If he could either destroy the Union army or capture a major Northern city, Lee hoped to force the Union to call for peace—or to gain foreign intervention for the Confederacy. On July 1, 1863, the Confederate army surprised Union units at Gettysburg in southern Pennsylvania. What followed was the most crucial battle of the war and the bloodiest, with more than 50,000 casualties. Lee’s assault on Union lines on the second and third days, including a famous but unsuccessful charge led by George Pickett, proved futile and destroyed part of the Confederate army. Lee’s forces retreated to Virginia, never to regain the offensive.

Grant in Command In Grant, Lincoln finally found a general who would fight and could win. In early 1864, he brought Grant east to Virginia and made him commander of all Union armies. Grant settled on a strategy of war by attrition. He aimed to wear down the Confederacy’s armies and destroy their lines of supply. Fighting for months, Grant’s Army of the Potomac suffered heavier casualties than Lee’s forces in the battles of the Wilderness, Spotsylvania, and Cold Harbor.

But Grant succeeded in reducing Lee’s army in each battle and forcing it into

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a defensive line around Richmond. Rather than a small-scale war “between gentlemen” over control of territory, the war had become more like a modern “total” war in which victory depended on undercutting civilian support for the opponent’s military.

Sherman’s March The chief instrument of Grant’s aggressive tactics for subduing the South was the veteran general William Tecumseh Sherman.

Leading a force of 100,000 men, Sherman set out from Chattanooga, Tennessee, on a campaign of deliberate destruction that went across the state of Georgia and then swept north into South Carolina. Sherman was a pioneer of the tactics of total war. Marching through Georgia, his troops destroyed everything, burning cotton fields, barns, and houses—everything the enemy might use to survive. Sherman took Atlanta in September 1864 in time to help Lincoln’s reelection. He marched into Savannah in December and completed his campaign in February 1865 by setting fire to Columbia, the capital of South Carolina and cradle of secession. Sherman’s march had its intended effect: to break the spirit of the Confederacy and destroy its will to fight.

The End of the War The effects of the Union blockade, combined with Sherman’s march of destruction, spread hunger through much of the South in the winter of 1864–

1865. In Virginia, Grant continued to outflank Lee’s lines until they collapsed around Petersburg, resulting in the fall of Richmond on April 3, 1865. Everyone knew the end was near.

Surrender at Appomattox The Confederate government tried to negotiate for peace. However, Lincoln would accept nothing short of restoration of the Union, and Jefferson Davis still demanded nothing less than independence.

Lee retreated from Richmond with an army of fewer than 30,000 men. He tried to escape to the mountains, only to be cut off and forced to surrender to Grant at Appomattox Court House, Virginia, on April 9, 1865. The Union general treated his longtime enemy with respect and allowed Lee’s men to return to their homes with their horses.

Still to be seen were the long-term effects of the war. What would be the impact of the many changes led by Lincoln and his government on the policies, laws, and society of the United States? What would the nearly 4 million African Americans freed from slavery do as free people? What would happen to American democracy?

REFLECT ON THE LEARNING OBJECTIVE

1. Explain several reasons for the Union victory in the Civil War.

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MULTIPLE-CHOICE QUESTIONS

Questions 1–3 refer to the following excerpt.

“We drift fast toward war with England, but I think we shall not reach that point. The shopkeepers who own England want to do us all harm they can and to give all possible aid and comfort to our slave-breeding and woman-flogging adversary, for England has degenerated into a trader, manufacturer, and banker, and has lost all the instincts and sympathies that her name still suggests . . . .

She cannot ally herself with slavery, as she inclines to do, without closing a profitable market, exposing her commerce to [Yankee] privateers, and diminishing the supply of [Northern] breadstuffs on which her operatives depend for life. On the other side, however, is the consideration that by allowing piratical Alabamas to be built, armed, and manned in her ports to prey on our commerce, she is making a great deal of money.”

George Templeton Strong, New York lawyer, Diary, 1863

1. A major part of the Confederate strategy for winning independence was based on (A) building a modern navy to break the Union blockade (B) developing factories to manufacture weapons (C) encircling the Union capital, Washington, D.C. (D) winning recognition and support from Great Britain

KEY TERMS BY THEME

The Break (NAT, POL) Confederate States of America Jefferson Davis Alexander H. Stephens Second American Revolution

The Fighting (POL, GEO) Bull Run Thomas (Stonewall) Jackson Winfield Scott Anaconda Plan George B. McClellan Robert E. Lee Antietam

Fredericksburg Monitor vs. Merrimac Ulysses S. Grant Shiloh David Farragut Vicksburg Gettysburg Sherman’s March William Tecumseh Sherman Appomattox Court House

War Diplomacy (WOR) Trent Affair Alabama

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2. Which of the following describes a reason not mentioned by Strong in this excerpt that discouraged Britain from recognizing the Confederacy? (A) Concern about retaliation by British leaders in Canada (B) Desire for closer ties with Mexico by British investors (C) Respect for the Monroe Doctrine by the British public (D) Opposition to slavery among the British working class

3. The Union was most disturbed because they believed that Britain was supporting the Confederates by doing which of the following? (A) Allowing British shipyards to build warships for the Confederacy (B) Transporting Confederate diplomats on British ships (C) Lending money to Confederate states (D) Supplying food to the Confederate army

SHORT-ANSWER QUESTION

Question 1 is based on the following cartoon.

1.

Source: J. B. Elliot, 1861. Library of Congress

Using the cartoon, answer (a), (b), and (c). (a) Briefly explain ONE perspective expressed by the author of this political cartoon. (b) Briefly explain ONE historical event or development in the period

1861 to 1865 that resulted from the Union strategy to win the war. (c) Briefly explain ONE specific part of the Confederate strategy to counteract the Union strategy illustrated here.

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Topic 5.9

Government Policies During the Civil War

The dogmas of the quiet past are inadequate to the stormy present. The occasion is piled high with difficulty, and we must rise—with the occasion.

Abraham Lincoln, Annual Message to Congress, December 1, 1862

Learning Objective: Explain how Lincoln’s leadership during the Civil War impacted American ideals over the course of the war.

More than any previous president, Lincoln acted in unprecedented ways, drawing upon his powers as both chief executive and commander in chief, often without the authorization or approval of Congress. For example, right after the Fort Sumter crisis he (1) called for 75,000 volunteers to put down the “insurrection” in the Confederacy, (2) authorized spending for a war, and (3) suspended the privilege of the writ of habeas corpus. Since Congress was not in session, the president acted completely on his own authority, explaining that it was “indispensable to the public safety.”

The End of Slavery Though Lincoln in the 1850s spoke out against slavery as “an unqualified evil,” as president he hesitated to take action against slavery. Lincoln’s concerns included (1) a wish to keep the support of the border states, (2) the constitutional protections of slavery, (3) the racial prejudice of many Northerners, and (4) the fear that premature action could be overturned in the next election.

All these concerns made the timing and method of ending slavery difficult.

Enslaved individuals were freed during the war as a result of military events, governmental policy, and their own actions.

Confiscation Acts Early in the war (May 1861), several enslaved people escaped to the Union lines.

General Benjamin Butler refused to return them to their Confederate owners, arguing that their labor could be used to help the Confederates. Therefore, they were “contraband,” and he was not required to return them. Building on this example, Congress passed two laws known as the Confiscation Acts:

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• The law passed in August 1861 gave the Union army the power to seize enemy property, including enslaved people, used to wage war against the United States. The law also empowered the president to use those freed in the Union army in any capacity, including battle.

• The law passed in July 1862 freed persons enslaved by any individual in rebellion against the United States.

Because of these laws, thousands of “contrabands” were using their feet to escape slavery by going into Union camps. As they did, they added pressure on the Union to abolish slavery. At the same time, they deprived the Confederacy of badly needed laborers to grow food to avoid starvation.

Emancipation Proclamation By July 1862, Lincoln had decided to use his powers as commander in chief to free all enslaved persons in the states then at war. He justified his policy as a “military necessity.” However, he worried that such a move would alienate conservative Northerners who were pro-Union and pro-slavery. Furthermore, the action might look desperate if it came when the army was losing battles, so he delayed announcement of the policy. At the same time, he encouraged the border states to plan for emancipation that provided compensation to the owners. No one proposed providing compensation to the freedpeople.

After the Confederates retreated at the Battle of Antietam on September 22, 1862, Lincoln issued a warning that slaves in states still in rebellion on January 1, 1863, would be “then, thenceforward, and forever free.” On the first day of the new year, 1863, he issued his Emancipation Proclamation, which stated: I do order and declare that all persons held as slaves within said designated States and parts of States are, and henceforward shall be, free; and that the Executive Government of the United States, including the military and naval authorities thereof, shall recognize and maintain the freedom of said persons.

Consequences Since the president’s proclamation applied only to the Confederate states outside Union control, it freed only about 1 percent of enslaved people. Slavery in the border states also continued. Still, the proclamation was important because it enlarged the purpose of the war by adding weight to the Confiscation Acts. Now Union armies were openly fighting against slavery, not merely against secession. By the end of the war, hundreds of thousands of enslaved people had become free by escaping to Union lines.

African Americans in the War An even greater blow to the Confederacy was that the Union army soon had thousands of dedicated new recruits. Almost 200,000 African Americans, most of whom had recently escaped slavery, served in the Union army and navy.

Segregated into all-Black units, such as the Massachusetts 54th Regiment, they won the respect of White Union soldiers for their bravery under fire. More than 37,000 African American soldiers died in this “Army of Freedom.”

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Effects of the War on Civilian Life Both during the war and in the years that followed, American society underwent deep and sometimes wrenching changes.

Political Change The electoral process continued during the war with surprisingly few restrictions. Secession of the Southern states left Republican majorities in both houses of Congress. Northerners were split into several factions:

• Radical Republicans demanded immediate abolition of slavery.

• Free-Soil Republicans focused on economic opportunities for Whites.

• Most Democrats supported the war but criticized Lincoln’s conduct of it.

• Some Democrats, called Peace Democrats or Copperheads, opposed the war and wanted a negotiated peace.

Civil Liberties Like many wartime leaders, Lincoln focused more on prosecuting the war than on protecting constitutional rights. Early in the war, he suspended the writ of habeas corpus in states with strong pro-Confederate sentiment. Suspension of this constitutional right meant that persons could be arrested without being informed of the charges against them. During the war, an estimated 13,000 people were arrested on suspicion of aiding the enemy.

Without a right to habeas corpus, many of them were held without trial.

Democrats accused Lincoln of tyranny, but most historians have been less critical. In the border states, people had difficulty distinguishing between combatants and noncombatants. Furthermore, the Constitution allows only Congress, not the president, to suspend the writ of habeas corpus “when in cases of rebellion or invasion the public safety may require it.” After the war, the Supreme Court ruled in Ex Parte Milligan (1866) that the government had improperly subjected civilians to military trials. The Court declared that such procedures could be used only when regular civilian courts were unavailable.

The Draft When the war began in 1861, those who fought were volunteers.

As the need for replacements increased, both the Union and the Confederacy resorted to laws for conscripting, or drafting, men into service. The Union’s March 1863 Conscription Act made all men aged 20 to 45 liable for military service. However, a draftee could avoid service by finding a substitute to serve or paying a $300 exemption fee. The law provoked fierce opposition among poorer laborers, most of whom were Irish or German immigrants. They feared that when they returned to civilian life their jobs would be taken by freed African Americans. In July 1863, protests against the draft in New York City quickly turned into a riot against the city’s Black residents. About 117 people were killed before federal troops and a temporary suspension of the draft restored order.

The Election of 1864 The Democrats’ nominee for president was the popular General George McClellan, whose platform calling for peace had wide appeal among millions of war-weary voters. The Republicans renamed their

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party the Unionist Party as a way of attracting the votes of “War Democrats” (those who disagreed with the Democratic platform). A brief “ditch Lincoln” movement fizzled out, and the Republican (Unionist) convention again chose Lincoln as its presidential candidate and a loyal War Democrat from Tennessee, Senator Andrew Johnson, as his running mate. The Lincoln-Johnson ticket won

212 electoral votes to the Democrats’ 21. The popular vote was much closer as McClellan took 45 percent of the total votes cast.

Political Dominance of the North The suspension of habeas corpus and the operation of the draft were only temporary. More important were the long-term effects of the power of the federal government and the balance of power between the North and the South. With the military triumph of the Union came a clearer definition of the nature of the federal union. Old arguments for nullification and secession receded. After the Civil War, few people doubted the supremacy of the federal government.

The abolition of slavery—in addition to its importance to freed African Americans—gave new meaning to the concept of American democracy. In his famous Gettysburg Address, November 19, 1863, Lincoln rallied Americans to the idea that their nation was “dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal.” Lincoln was probably alluding to the Emancipation Proclamation when he spoke of the war bringing “a new birth of freedom.” His words— and even more, the abolition of slavery—advanced the cause of democratic government in the United States and inspired democracy around the world.

Economic Change The costs of the war in both money and men were staggering and called for extraordinary measures by the government.

Financing the War The Union financed the war by borrowing $2.6 billion through the sale of government bonds. To gain added funds, Congress raised tariffs, added excise taxes, and instituted the first income tax. The U.S. Treasury also issued $430 million in a paper currency, greenbacks, not backed by gold, which contributed to creeping inflation. Prices in the North rose by about

80 percent during the war. To manage the added revenue Congress created a national banking system in 1863, the first since Andrew Jackson vetoed the recharter of the Bank of the United States in the 1830s.

CIVILIANS EMPLOYED BY THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT

Year Post Office Defense Other Total

1841

14,290 598

3,150

18,038

1851

21,391 403

4,480

26,274

1861

30,269 946

5,457

36,672

1871

36,696

1,183

13,741

51,020

1881

56,421

16,297

27,302

100,020

Source: U.S. Bureau of the Census. Historical Statistics of the United States, Colonial Times to 1970

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TOPIC 5.9 GOVERNMENT POLICIES DURING THE CIVIL WAR

Modernizing Northern Society Economic historians differ on the question of whether, in the short run, the war promoted or retarded the growth of the Northern economy. Workers’ wages did not keep pace with inflation, but the war accelerated many aspects of a modern industrial economy. By placing a premium on mass production and complex organization, the war sped up the consolidation of the North’s manufacturing businesses. War profiteers took advantage of the need for military supplies to sell shoddy goods at high prices—a problem that decreased after the federal government took control of the contract process away from the states. Fortunes made during the war produced a concentration of capital in the hands of a new class of millionaires who would finance the North’s industrialization in the postwar years.

Republican politics also stimulated the economic growth of the North and the West. With a wartime majority in Congress, the Republicans passed the probusiness Whig program that was designed to stimulate the industrial and commercial growth of the United States:

• The Morrill Tariff Act (1861) raised tariff rates to increase revenue and protect American manufacturers. Its passage initiated a Republican program of high protective tariffs to help industrialists.

• The Homestead Act (1862) promoted settlement of the Great Plains by offering parcels of 160 acres of public land free to any person or family that farmed that land for at least five years. Like the headright system in colonial Virginia and the sale of land in the Northwest Territory, this

act helped many White settlers, but very few African Americans.

• The Morrill Land Grant Act (1862) encouraged states to use the sale of federal land grants to found and maintain agricultural and technical colleges. These schools not only educated farmers, engineers, and scientists, but they also became centers of research and innovation.

• The Pacific Railway Act (1862) authorized the building of a transcontinental railroad over a northern route in order to link the economies of California and the Western territories with the Eastern states.

While four years of nearly total war, the tragic human loss of 750,000 lives and an estimated $15 billion in war costs and property losses had enormous effects on the nation, far greater changes were set in motion. The Civil War destroyed slavery and devastated the Southern economy. It also acted as a catalyst to transform America into a complex modern industrial society of capital, technology, national organizations, and large corporations.

Assassination of Lincoln Only a month before Lee’s surrender, Lincoln delivered one of his greatest speeches, the second inaugural address. He urged that the defeated South be treated benevolently, “with malice toward none; with charity for all.” On April 14, John Wilkes Booth, an embittered actor and Confederate sympathizer, shot and killed the president while he was attending a performance

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MULTIPLE-CHOICE QUESTIONS

Questions 1–3 refer to the map below.

UNITED STATES, JULY 1861

at Ford’s Theater in Washington. On the same night, a co-conspirator attacked and wounded Secretary of State William Seward. These shocking events aroused the fury of Northerners when the Confederates most needed a sympathetic hearing. The loss of Lincoln’s leadership was widely mourned, but the extent of the loss was not fully appreciated until the two sections of a reunited country had to cope with the problems of Reconstruction.

REFLECT ON THE LEARNING OBJECTIVE

1. Explain how Lincoln’s governance during the Civil War influenced American principles during the war.

KEY TERMS BY THEME

Economic Growth (WXT) greenbacks Morrill Tariff Act Morrill Land Grant Act federal land grants Pacific Railway Act

Free Land (MIG) Homestead Act (1862)

War and the Law (POL) habeas corpus Confiscation Acts Emancipation Proclamation Ex Parte Milligan

Wartime Politics (POL) Copperheads

Social Impact (NAT, SOC) Gettysburg Address Massachusetts 54th Regiment

Violet

Yellow

Red

Orange

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TOPIC 5.9 GOVERNMENT POLICIES DURING THE CIVIL WAR

1. In July of 1861, President Lincoln was particularly concerned about how his policies on slavery would affect which areas? (A) The states in violet because they were slave states that remained in the Union (B) The states in orange because they were home to most of his political supporters (C) The states in red because he thought he could persuade them to rejoin the Union (D) The region in yellow because it consisted of territories that had not yet become states

2. Which of the following statements best describes the states in orange? (A) Most people lived in large cities. (B) Most people advocated abolition of slavery. (C) They lacked good river transportation. (D) They included most of the country’s population.

3. Which of the following statements best describes the states in red? (A) They were economically self-sufficient. (B) They were well connected by railroads. (C) They were fighting a defensive war. (D) They had a strong navy.

SHORT-ANSWER QUESTION

Use complete sentences; an outline or bulleted list alone is not acceptable.

1. Answer (a), (b), and (c). (a) Briefly explain ONE specific action of President Abraham Lincoln during the Civil War that supports the view that he was one of the most democratic presidents. (b) Briefly explain ONE specific action of President Abraham Lincoln during the Civil War that supports the view that he was one of the most autocratic presidents. (c) Briefly explain how ONE president who came before Lincoln was both democratic and autocratic.

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Topic 5.10

Reconstruction

“The whole fabric of Southern society must be changed, and never can it be done if this opportunity is lost. Without this, this government can never be, as it never has been, a true republic.”

Thaddeus Stevens, September 6, 1865

Learning Objective: Explain the effects of government policy during Reconstruction on society from 1865 to 1877.

The silencing of the cannons of war left the victorious United States with immense challenges. How would the South rebuild its shattered society and economy after four years of war? What would be the place in that society of

4 million freed Black Americans? How responsible was the federal government for helping former slaves adjust to freedom? Should the states of the Confederacy be treated as though they had never left the Union—Lincoln’s position—or as conquered territory under military occupation? Under what conditions would those states be fully accepted as equal partners in the Union? Finally, who had the authority to decide these questions, the president or Congress?

Postwar Conditions Slavery gradually crumbled as African Americans escaped to Union-controlled territory. The last people to hear they were free lived in Texas. The date they heard the news, June 19th, became a day for celebration known as Juneteenth.

Most freedpeople began their free lives with no money, no land, and no formal education. Near the end of the war, some freedpeople in South Carolina and Georgia received “40 acres and a mule” under an order from Union General William Sherman. However, this order was soon cancelled by President Andrew Johnson. The land they had was taken away from them.

The South was devastated by the war. It had lost about one-third of its horses, cattle, and hogs. Roads, bridges, railroad tracks, and fencing had been destroyed. Though people had not died from mass starvation as often happens in war, chronic food shortages, particularly for African Americans, left many in poor health and susceptible to epidemic diseases.

The regional, political, and economic conflicts that existed before and during the Civil War continued after the war. Northern Republicans wanted to continue the economic progress begun during the war. Southern aristocrats still wanted low-cost labor to work their plantations. The freedmen and

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TOPIC 5.10 RECONSTRUCTION

freedwomen hoped for independence and equal rights. However, traditional beliefs limited the actions of the federal government. Concepts of limited government and states’ rights discouraged national leaders from taking bold

action. Little economic help was given to White or Black Southerners, as most Americans believed that people had an opportunity and a responsibility to care for themselves. The physical rebuilding of the South was left up to the states and individuals, while the federal government concentrated on political issues.

Reconstruction Plans of Lincoln and Johnson Throughout his presidency, Abraham Lincoln held firmly to the belief that the Southern states could not constitutionally leave the Union and therefore never did leave. He viewed the Confederates as only a disloyal minority. After Lincoln’s assassination, Andrew Johnson attempted to carry out Lincoln’s plan for the political Reconstruction of the 11 former states of the Confederacy.

Lincoln’s Policies Lincoln believed the Southern states could regain their full place in the Union by meeting a minimum test of political loyalty.

Proclamation of Amnesty and Reconstruction (1863) As early as December 1863, Lincoln set up a process for political reconstruction of the state governments in the South so that Unionists were in charge rather than secessionists. The president’s Proclamation of Amnesty and Reconstruction was simple:

• Full presidential pardons would be granted to most Confederates who (1) took an oath of allegiance to the Union and the U.S. Constitution, and (2) accepted the emancipation of slaves.

• A state government could be reestablished and accepted as legitimate by the U.S. president as soon as at least 10 percent of the voters in that state took the loyalty oath.

In practice, Lincoln meant that each Southern state would be required to rewrite its state constitution to abolish slavery. Lincoln’s seemingly lenient policy was designed both to shorten the war and to give added weight to his Emancipation Proclamation.

Wade-Davis Bill (1864) Many Republicans in Congress objected to Lincoln’s 10-percent plan, arguing that it would allow supposedly reconstructed state governments to be dominated by disloyal secessionists. In 1864, Congress passed the Wade-Davis Bill, which required 50 percent of the voters of a state to take a loyalty oath and permitted only non-Confederates to vote for a new state constitution. Lincoln pocket-vetoed the bill after Congress adjourned.

Congress was ready to reassert its powers, as Congresses usually do after a war.

Freedmen’s Bureau In March 1865, Congress created an important new agency: the Bureau of Refugees, Freedmen, and Abandoned Lands, or Freedmen’s Bureau. The bureau acted as a welfare agency, providing food, shelter, and medical aid for both Black and White Americans left destitute by

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the war. At first, the Freedmen’s Bureau had authority to resettle freedpeople on confiscated farmlands in the South. Its efforts at resettlement, however, were later frustrated when President Johnson pardoned Confederate owners of the confiscated lands, and courts restored most of the lands to their original owners.

The bureau’s greatest success was in education. Under the able leadership of General Oliver O. Howard, it established nearly 3,000 schools for freedpeople, including several colleges. Before federal funding was stopped in 1870, the bureau’s schools taught an estimated 200,000 African Americans how to read.

Johnson and Reconstruction Andrew Johnson’s origins were as humble as Lincoln’s. A self-taught tailor, he rose in Tennessee politics by championing poor Whites in conflict with rich planters. Johnson was the only senator from a Confederate state who remained loyal to the Union. He was appointed Tennessee’s governor when it was occupied by Union troops. Johnson was a Southern Democrat, but Republicans picked him to encourage pro-Union Democrats to vote for Lincoln. Johnson ended up being the wrong man for the job. As a White supremacist, he was bound to clash with Republicans in Congress who believed that the war was fought not just to preserve the Union but also to liberate African Americans from slavery.

Johnson’s Reconstruction Policy At first, many Republicans in Congress welcomed Johnson’s presidency because of his animosity toward the Southern aristocrats who had led the Confederacy. In May 1865, Johnson issued his own Reconstruction plan. In addition to Lincoln’s terms, it provided for the disenfranchisement (loss of the right to vote and hold office) of (1) all former leaders and officeholders of the Confederacy and (2) Confederates with more than $20,000 in taxable property. However, the president could grant individual pardons to “disloyal” Southerners. This was an escape clause for the wealthy planters, and Johnson made use of it. As a result of his pardons, many former Confederate leaders were back in office by the fall of 1865.

Johnson’s Vetoes One sign of the battle between Congress and the presidents was his use of the veto. The three presidents before Johnson vetoed a total of 23 bills. In his one term, he vetoed 29 bills. Johnson alienated even moderate Republicans in early 1866 with vetoes of two bills. One increased the services and protection of the Freedmen’s Bureau. The other was a civil rights bill that nullified the Black Codes and guaranteed full citizenship and equal rights to African Americans. The vetoes marked the end of the first round of Reconstruction. During this round, Presidents Lincoln and Johnson had restored the 11 former Confederate states to the Union, ex-Confederates had returned to high offices, and Southern states began passing Black Codes to restrict the rights of former slaves.

Congressional Reconstruction By the spring of 1866, the angry response of many members of Congress to Johnson’s policies led to the second round of Reconstruction. This one was

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TOPIC 5.10 RECONSTRUCTION

dominated by Congress and featured policies that were harsher on Southern Whites and more protective of freed African Americans.

Radical Republicans Republicans had long been divided between (1) moderates, who were chiefly concerned with economic gains for the White middle class, and (2) radicals, who championed civil rights for Black citizens. Although most Republicans were moderates, several became more radical in 1866, partly out of fear that a reunified Democratic Party might again become dominant. After all, now that the federal census counted all people equally (no longer applying the old three-fifths rule for enslaved persons), the South would have more representatives in Congress than before the war and more strength in the Electoral College.

The leading Radical Republican in the Senate was Charles Sumner of Massachusetts. In the House, Thaddeus Stevens of Pennsylvania hoped to revolutionize Southern society through a period of military rule in which African Americans could exercise their civil rights, attend schools operated by the federal government, and take ownership of lands confiscated from the planters. Many Radical Republicans endorsed several liberal causes: women’s suffrage, rights for labor unions, and civil rights for Northern African Americans. Although their program was never fully implemented, the Radical Republicans struggled to extend equal rights to all Americans.

Thirteenth Amendment Laws, but not the U.S. Constitution, banned slavery. To free all enslaved people in the border states, the country needed to ratify an amendment. Even the abolitionists gave Lincoln credit for playing an

active role in the political struggle to secure enough votes in Congress to pass the 13th Amendment. By December 1865 (months after Lincoln’s death), this amendment abolishing slavery was ratified by the required number of states.

Its language was clear: “Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude, except as a punishment for crime whereof the party shall have been duly convicted, shall exist within the United States, or any place subject to their jurisdiction.” After the adoption of the 13th Amendment in 1865, 4 million people (3.5 million in the Confederate states and 500,000 in the border states) were “freedmen” and “freedwomen.” For these people and their descendants, economic hardship and political oppression would continue for generations.

Even so, the end of slavery represented a momentous step. Suddenly, formerly enslaved people who had no rights could claim protection by the U.S.

Constitution and had open-ended possibilities of freedom.

Civil Rights Act of 1866 Among the first actions in Congressional Reconstruction were votes to override, with some modifications, Johnson’s vetoes of both the Freedmen’s Bureau Act and the first Civil Rights Act. The Civil Rights Act pronounced that all African Americans were U.S. citizens (thereby nullifying the decision in the Dred Scott case) and attempted to provide a legal shield against the operation of the Southern states’ Black Codes.

Fearing that the law could be repealed if the Democrats ever won control of

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UNITED STATES HISTORY: AP® EDITION

Congress, Republicans looked for a more permanent solution in the form of a constitutional amendment.

Fourteenth Amendment In June 1866, Congress passed and sent to the states an amendment, ratified in 1868, that had immediate and even greater long-term significance:

• It declared that all persons born or naturalized in the United States were citizens.

• It obligated the states to respect the rights of U.S. citizens and provide them with “equal protection of the laws” and “due process of law.”

For the first time, the Constitution required states as well as the federal government to uphold the rights of citizens. The amendment’s key clauses about citizenship and rights produced mixed results in 19th-century courtrooms.

However, in the 1950s and later, the Supreme Court used the power of the federal government to protect individuals from encroachment of their constitutional rights by state and local governments, making “equal protection of the laws” and the “due process” clause the keystone of civil rights for minorities, women, children, disabled persons, and those accused of crimes.

Other parts of the 14th Amendment applied specifically to Congress’s plan of Reconstruction. These clauses:

• disqualified former Confederate political leaders from holding either state or federal offices

• repudiated the debts of the defeated governments of the Confederacy

• penalized a state if it kept any eligible person from voting by reducing that state’s proportional representation in Congress and the Electoral College

Report of the Joint Committee In June 1866, a joint committee of the House and the Senate issued a report declaring that the reorganized Confederate states were not entitled to representation in Congress. Therefore, those elected from the South as senators and representatives should not be permitted to take their seats. The report further asserted that Congress, not the president, had the authority to determine the conditions for allowing reconstructed states to rejoin the Union. By this report, Congress officially rejected the presidential plan of Reconstruction and promised to substitute its own plan, part of which was embodied in the 14th Amendment.

The Election of 1866 Unable to work with Congress, Johnson took to the road in the fall of 1866 to attack his opponents. His speeches appealed to the racial prejudices of White citizens by arguing that equal rights for Black Americans would result in an “Africanized” society. Republicans counterattacked by accusing Johnson of being a drunkard and a traitor. They appealed to anti-Southern prejudices by “waving the bloody shirt”—inflaming the anger of Northern voters by reminding them of the hardships of war.

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TOPIC 5.10 RECONSTRUCTION

Republican propaganda emphasized that Southerners were Democrats and, by a jump in logic, branded the Democrats a party of rebellion and treason.

Election results gave the Republicans an overwhelming victory. After 1866, Johnson’s political adversaries—both moderate and Radical Republicans—had more than a two-thirds majority in both the House and the Senate.

Reconstruction Acts of 1867 Over Johnson’s vetoes, Congress passed three Reconstruction Acts in 1867 that placed the South under military occupation.

The acts divided the former Confederate states into five military districts, each under the control of the Union army. In addition, the acts increased the requirements for gaining readmission to the Union: an ex-Confederate state had to ratify the 14th Amendment and place guarantees in its constitution to grant the franchise (right to vote) to all adult males, regardless of race.

Impeachment of Andrew Johnson Also in 1867, Congress passed the Tenure of Office Act over Johnson’s veto.

This law prohibited the president from removing a federal official or military commander without Senate approval. The purpose of the law was strictly political. Congress wanted to protect the Radical Republicans in Johnson’s cabinet, such as Secretary of War Edwin Stanton, who was in charge of the military governments in the South.

Johnson challenged the constitutionality of the new law by dismissing Stanton. The House responded by impeaching Johnson. He was charged with

11 “high crimes and misdemeanors,” thus becoming the first president to be impeached. In 1868, after a three-month Senate trial, Johnson’s foes fell one vote short of the two-thirds vote needed to remove him from office.

Reforms After Grant’s Election The impeachment and trial of Andrew Johnson occurred in 1868, a presidential election year. At their convention, the Democrats nominated another candidate, Horatio Seymour, so that Johnson’s presidency would have ended soon in any case, with or without a conviction in Congress.

The Election of 1868 At their presidential convention, the Republicans turned to a war hero, General Ulysses S. Grant, even though he had no political experience. Despite Grant’s popularity in the North, he managed to win only 300,000 more popular votes than his Democratic opponent. The votes of 500,000 Black men gave the Republican ticket its margin of victory. Even the most moderate Republicans began to realize that the voting rights of the freedmen needed federal protection if their party hoped to keep control of the White House in future elections.

Fifteenth Amendment Republican majorities in Congress acted quickly in 1869 to secure the vote for African Americans. Adding one more Reconstruction amendment to those already adopted (the 13th Amendment in 1865 and the 14th Amendment in 1868), Congress passed the 15th Amendment, which prohibited any state from denying or abridging a citizen’s

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UNITED STATES HISTORY: AP® EDITION

right to vote “on account of race, color, or previous condition of servitude.” It was ratified in 1870. While it banned open racial discrimination in voting laws, it did not prevent states from passing other restrictions on voting rights that disproportionately affected African Americans.

Civil Rights Act of 1875 The last civil rights reform passed by Congress during Reconstruction was the Civil Rights Act of 1875. This guaranteed equal accommodations in public places (hotels, railroads, and theaters) and prohibited courts from excluding African Americans from juries. The law was poorly enforced, as moderate and conservative Republicans tired of trying to reform an unwilling South and feared losing White votes in the North. By 1877, Reconstruction was abandoned by Congress.

Reconstruction in the South During the second round of Reconstruction by Congress, the Republican Party in the South dominated the governments of the former Confederate states.

Beginning in 1867, each Republican-controlled government was under the military protection of the Army until Congress was satisfied that a state had met its Reconstruction requirements. Then the troops were withdrawn. The period of Republican rule in a Southern state lasted from as little as one year (Tennessee) to as much as nine years (Florida), depending on how long it took conservative Democrats to regain control.

CONGRESSIONAL RECONSTRUCTION 1865-1877

TX

1870

(1873)

VA

1870

(1869)

NC

1868 (1870)

SC

1868

(1876) GA

1870

(1872)

AL

1868

(1874)

FL

1868

(1877)

MS

1870

(1876) LA

1868

(1877)

AR

1868

(1874)

TN

1866 (1869)

G u l f o f M e x i c o

ATLANTIC

OCEAN

The date is the year when a state was readmitted to the Union.

The date in parentheses is the year when a state reestablished a conservative government.

300 miles

300 kilometers

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TOPIC 5.10 RECONSTRUCTION

Composition of the Reconstruction Governments In every Republican state government in the South except South Carolina, Whites were in the majority in both houses of the legislature. In South Carolina, freedmen controlled the lower house in 1873. Republican legislators included native-born White Southerners, freedmen, and recently arrived Northerners.

“Scalawags” and “Carpetbaggers” Democratic opponents derisively called Southern Republicans “scalawags” and Northern newcomers “carpetbaggers” (after cheap luggage made from carpet fabric). Southern Whites who supported the Republican governments were usually former Whigs who were interested in economic development for their states and peace between the sections. Northerners went south after the war for various reasons.

Some were investors interested in setting up new businesses, while others were ministers and teachers with humanitarian goals. Some went simply to plunder.

African American Legislators Most African Americans who held elective office in the reconstructed state governments were educated property holders who took moderate positions on most issues. During the Reconstruction era, Republicans in the South sent two African Americans, Blanche K. Bruce and Hiram Revels, to the Senate and more than a dozen African Americans to the House of Representatives. Revels was elected in 1870 to take the Mississippi Senate seat once held by Jefferson Davis. Seeing African Americans and former slaves in positions of power caused bitter resentment among ex-Confederates.

African Americans Adjusting to Freedom Undoubtedly, the Southerners who had the greatest adjustment to make during the Reconstruction era were the freedmen and freedwomen. Having been so recently emancipated from slavery, they were faced with the challenges of securing their economic survival as well as their political rights as citizens.

Building Black Communities Freedom meant many things to African Americans: reuniting families, learning to read and write, or migrating to cities where “freedom was freer.” Most of all, formerly enslaved people viewed emancipation as an opportunity for achieving independence from White control. This drive for autonomy was most evident in the founding of hundreds of independent African American churches after the war. By the hundreds of thousands, Black members left White-dominated churches for the Negro Baptist and African Methodist Episcopal churches. During Reconstruction, Black ministers emerged as leaders in the African American community.

The desire for education induced large numbers of African Americans to use their scarce resources to establish independent schools for their children and to pay educated African Americans to become their teachers. Black colleges such as Howard, Atlanta, Fisk, and Morehouse were established during Reconstruction to prepare African American ministers and teachers.

Another aspect of African Americans’ search for independence and self-sufficiency was the decision of many freedpeople to migrate away from the South and establish new Black communities in frontier states such as Kansas.

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UNITED STATES HISTORY: AP® EDITION

PERCENTAGE OF SCHOOL-AGE CHILDREN ENROLLED, 1850 TO 1880

Year White African American

1850 56 2

1860 60 2

1870 54 10

1880 62 34

Source: U.S. Bureau of the Census. Historical Statistics of the United States, Colonial Times to 1970

The North During Reconstruction The North’s economy in the postwar years continued to be driven by the Industrial Revolution and the probusiness policies of the Republicans. As the South struggled to reorganize its labor system, Northerners focused on railroads, steel, labor problems, and money.

Greed and Corruption During the Grant administration, as the material interests of the age took center stage, the idealism of Lincoln’s generation and the Radical Republicans’ crusade for civil rights were pushed aside.

Rise of the Spoilsmen In the early 1870s, Republican Party leadership passed from reformers (Thaddeus Stevens, Charles Sumner, and Benjamin Wade) to political manipulators such as senators Roscoe Conkling of New York and James Blaine of Maine. These politicians were masters of the game of patronage—giving jobs and government favors (spoils) to their supporters.

Corruption in Business and Government The postwar years were notorious for the corrupt schemes devised by business bosses and political bosses to enrich themselves at the public’s expense. For example, in 1869, Wall Street financiers Jay Gould and James Fisk obtained the help of President Grant’s brother-in-law in a scheme to corner the gold market. The Treasury Department broke the scheme, but not before Gould had made a huge profit.

In the Crédit Mobilier affair, insiders gave stock to influential members of Congress to avoid investigation of the profits they were making—as high as 348 percent—from government subsidies for building the transcontinental railroad. In the case of the Whiskey Ring, federal revenue agents conspired with the liquor industry to defraud the government of millions in taxes. While Grant himself did not personally profit from the corruption, his loyalty to dishonest men around him badly tarnished his presidency.

Local politics in the Grant years were equally scandalous. In New York City, William Tweed, the boss of the local Democratic Party, masterminded dozens of schemes for helping himself and his cronies steal $200 million from New York’s taxpayers before The New York Times and the cartoonist Thomas Nast exposed “Boss” Tweed and brought about his arrest and imprisonment in 1871.

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TOPIC 5.10 RECONSTRUCTION

The Election of 1872 The scandals of the Grant administration drove reform-minded Republicans to break with the party in 1872 and select Horace Greeley, editor of the New York Tribune, as their presidential candidate. The Liberal Republicans advocated civil-service reform, an end to railroad subsidies, withdrawal of troops from the South, reduced tariffs, and freer trade. Surprisingly, the Democrats also nominated Greeley. The regular Republicans countered by merely “waving the bloody shirt” again—and it worked. Grant was reelected in a landslide.

The Panic of 1873 Grant’s second term began with an economic disaster that rendered thousands of Northern laborers both jobless and homeless. Overspeculation by financiers and overbuilding by industry and railroads led to widespread business failures and depression. Debtors on the farms and in the cities argued about what should be done. Grant finally adopted the ideas of Eastern bankers and creditors, setting a new trend for the Republican Party. Black Southerners were the biggest losers, as preoccupation with the financial crisis diverted the North’s attention away from what was happening in the South.

Women’s Changing Roles Every part of American society away from the battlefield was touched by the war.

The impact of the war on the roles and opportunities of women was significant.

The absence of millions of men from the fields and factories added to the responsibilities of women in all regions. They stepped into the vacuum created by the war, operating farms and plantations and taking factory jobs customarily held by men. In addition, women played a critical role as military nurses and as volunteers in soldiers’ aid societies. When the war ended and the war veterans returned home, most urban women vacated their jobs in government and industry, while rural women gladly accepted male assistance on the farm.

Women’s Suffrage The responsibilities undertaken by women during the war also boosted demands for equal voting rights for women. Some members of the women’s suffrage movement who had worked tirelessly for the abolition of slavery opposed the passage of the 14th and 15th Amendments. While they supported extending the franchise to African Americans, they objected to the fact that these amendments specifically limited it to men. Ironically, this was the first time sex was mentioned in the Constitution, in an amendment meant to extend rights but that ended up discriminating against half the nation’s citizens.

In 1869, Wyoming Territory became the first territory or state to grant women full suffrage rights. The suffragists’ goal would not be achieved until women’s efforts in another war—World War I— finally convinced enough male conservatives to adopt the 19th Amendment, with wording that echoed that of the 15th Amendment.

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UNITED STATES HISTORY: AP® EDITION

MULTIPLE-CHOICE QUESTIONS

Questions 1–2 refer to the following excerpt.

“All persons born or naturalized in the United States . . . are citizens. . . .

No State shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens . . . nor shall any State deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process; nor deny . . . equal protection of the laws.

Representatives shall be apportioned among the several States . . . counting the whole number of persons in each State, excluding Indians not taxed.

But when the right to vote at any election . . . thereof, is denied to any of the male inhabitants . . . being twenty-one years of age, and citizens . . . or in any way abridged, except for . . . crime, . . . the basis of representation therein shall be reduced. . . .

No person shall . . . hold any office . . . who, having previously taken an oath . . . shall have engaged in insurrection or rebellion against the same . . . But Congress may by a vote of two-thirds of each House, remove such disability.”

14th Amendment, Constitution of the United States, July 9, 1868

REFLECT ON THE LEARNING OBJECTIVE

1. Explain the consequences of government policy during Reconstruction on society from 1865 to 1877.

KEY TERMS BY THEME

Equality (NAT, POL) 13th Amendment Civil Rights Act of 1866 14th Amendment equal protection of the laws due process of law 15th Amendment Civil Rights Act of 1875

Corruption (WXT, POL) Jay Gould Crédit Mobilier William Tweed

Politics (POL) spoilsmen

patronage Thomas Nast Horace Greeley Liberal Republicans Panic of 1873

Reconstruction

(POL, SOC, ARC) Reconstruction Proclamation of Amnesty and Reconstruction Wade-Davis Bill Andrew Johnson Freedmen’s Bureau congressional Reconstruction

Radical Republicans Charles Sumner Thaddeus Stephens Benjamin Wade Reconstruction Acts Tenure of Office Act Edwin Stanton impeachment scalawags carpetbaggers Blanche K. Bruce Hiram Revels

Social Impact (NAT, SOC) women’s suffrage

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TOPIC 5.10 RECONSTRUCTION

1. In proclaiming that all persons born in the United States were citizens, the 14th Amendment directly repudiated which of the following? (A) Compromise of 1850 (B) Dred Scott decision (C) Johnson’s Reconstruction plan (D) Wade-Davis Bill

2. Which of the following provisions would be the basis of one of the most contentious judicial issues of the late 19th and early 20th centuries? (A) “nor deny . . . equal protection of the laws” (B) “Representatives shall be apportioned” (C) “the basis of representation therein shall be reduced” (D) “shall have engaged in insurrection or rebellion”

SHORT-ANSWER QUESTIONS

Use complete sentences; an outline or bulleted list alone is not acceptable.

1. Answer (a), (b), and (c). (a) Briefly explain how federal government actions taken during Reconstruction were similar to federal government actions taken during the Civil War. (b) Briefly explain how federal government actions taken during Reconstruction were different from federal government actions taken during the Civil War. (c) Briefly explain ONE factor that accounts for the difference in federal government actions during the two periods.

2. Answer (a), (b), and (c). (a) Briefly explain ONE specific part or aspect of President Lincoln’s plan for Reconstruction. (b) Briefly explain ONE specific part or aspect of President Johnson’s approach to Reconstruction. (c) Briefly explain ONE specific example of the efforts of formerly enslaved African Americans to use their freedom during the period of Reconstruction.

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Topic 5.11

Failure of Reconstruction

Though slavery was abolished, the wrongs of my people were not ended. Though they were not slaves, they were not yet quite free.

Frederick Douglass, 1882

Learning Objective: Explain how and why Reconstruction resulted in continuity and change in regional and national understandings of what it meant to be American.

Views of Reconstruction have varied greatly. Many historians have seen it as a missed opportunity to promote racial equality. However, some have pointed out that the institutions and amendments from the Reconstruction era provided the foundation for the civil rights movement that emerged nearly a century after the Civil War ended.

Lincoln’s Last Speech In his last public address (April 11, 1865), Lincoln encouraged Northerners to accept Louisiana as a reconstructed state. (Louisiana had already drawn up a new constitution that abolished slavery in the state and provided for African Americans’ education.) The president also addressed the question—highly controversial at the time—of whether freedmen should be granted the right to vote. Lincoln said: “I myself prefer that it were now conferred on the very intelligent, and on those who serve our cause as soldiers.” Three days later, Lincoln’s evolving plans for Reconstruction were ended with his assassination.

His last speech suggested that, had he lived, he probably would have moved closer to the position taken by the progressive, or Radical, Republicans. In any event, hope for lasting reform was dealt a devastating blow by the sudden removal of Lincoln’s skillful leadership.

Evaluating the Republican Record As mentioned in Topic 5.10, Congress and presidents fought over specific amendments, laws, and actions. In evaluating Reconstruction, it is particularly useful to look at the controversial record of the Republicans during their brief control of Southern state politics. Did they abuse their power for selfish ends (corruption and plunder), or did they govern responsibly in the public interest?

They did some of each.

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Accomplishments On the positive side, Republican legislators liberalized state constitutions in the South by providing for universal male suffrage, property rights for women, debt relief, and modern penal codes. They promoted the building of railroads, roads, bridges, and other internal improvements.

They established such institutions as hospitals, asylums, and homes for the disabled. The reformers provided for state-supported public-school systems, which benefited Whites and African Americans alike. They paid for all of this by overhauling the tax system and selling bonds.

Failures Long after Reconstruction ended, many Southerners and some Northern historians continued to depict Republican rule as utterly wasteful and corrupt. Some instances of graft and wasteful spending did occur, as Republican politicians took advantage of their power to take kickbacks and bribes from contractors who did business with the state. However, corruption occurred throughout the country, in Northern states and cities as well. No geographic section, political party, or ethnic group was immune to the decline in ethics in government during the postwar era.

The End of Reconstruction The way Reconstruction ended shows how it failed to fulfill the nation’s needs.

During Grant’s second term, it was apparent that Reconstruction had entered a third phase, which would be its final one. With Radical Republicanism on the wane, Southern conservatives—known as redeemers—took control of one state government after another. This process was completed by 1877. The redeemers had different backgrounds, but they agreed on their political program: states’ rights, reduced taxes and spending on social programs, and White supremacy.

White Supremacy and the Ku Klux Klan During the period that Republicans controlled state governments in the South, some Whites organized secret societies to intimidate African Americans and White reformers. The most prominent of these was the Ku Klux Klan, founded in 1867 by a former Confederate general, Nathaniel Bedford Forrest. The “invisible empire” burned Black-owned buildings and flogged and murdered several thousand freedmen to keep them from exercising their voting rights. To give federal authorities the power to stop Ku Klux Klan violence and to protect the civil rights of citizens, Congress passed the Force Acts of 1870 and 1871.

Southern Governments Just eight months after Johnson took office in 1865, all 11 of the ex-Confederate states qualified under the president’s Reconstruction plan to become part of the Union. The Southern states drew up constitutions that repudiated secession, negated the debts of the Confederate government, and ratified the 13th Amendment abolishing slavery. On the other hand, none of the new constitutions extended voting rights to Blacks citizens. Furthermore, to the dismay of Republicans, former leaders of the Confederacy won seats in Congress. For example, Alexander Stephens, the former Confederate vice president, was elected U.S. senator from Georgia.

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Black Codes The Republicans became further disillusioned with Johnson as Southern state legislatures adopted Black Codes that restricted the rights and movements of African Americans:

• They could not rent land or nor borrow money to buy land.

• They could not testity against Whites in court.

• They had to sign work agreements or they could be arrested for vagrancy. Under this contract-labor system, African Americans worked cotton fields under White supervision for deferred wages.

The costs of being convicted of any crime could be disastrous for an African American. The 13th Amendment had abolished slavery “except as a punishment for crime.” Hence, a person convicted of a minor or even made-up offense could be rented from the government by a landowner or business and used as essentially slave labor.

Sharecropping The South’s agricultural economy was in turmoil after the war, in part because landowners had lost their compulsory labor force. At first, White landowners attempted to force freed African Americans into signing contracts to work the fields. These contracts set terms that bound the signer to almost permanent and unrestricted labor. African Americans’ insistence on autonomy, however, combined with changes in the postwar economy, led White landowners to adopt a system based on tenancy and sharecropping. Under sharecropping, the landlord provided the seed and needed farm supplies in return for a share (usually half) of the harvest.

While sharecropping gave poor people of all races in the rural South the opportunity to work a piece of land for themselves, sharecroppers usually remained dependent on the landowners or in debt to local merchants. By 1880, no more than 5 percent of Southern African Americans owned their own land.

Sharecropping had evolved into a new form of servitude.

The Amnesty Act of 1872 Seven years after Lee’s surrender at Appomattox, many Northerners were ready to put the war behind them. In 1872 Congress passed a general Amnesty Act that removed the last restrictions on ex-Confederates, except for the top leaders.

The chief political consequence of the act was to allow Southern conservatives to vote for Democrats and thus to retake control of state governments.

The Election of 1876 By 1876, federal troops had been withdrawn from all Southern states except— South Carolina, Florida, and Louisiana. The Democrats had returned to power in all of the other former Confederate states. This was important in the presidential election.

At their convention, the Republicans looked for someone untouched by the corruption of the Grant administration. They nominated the governor of Ohio, Rutherford B. Hayes. The Democrats chose New York’s reform governor,

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TOPIC 5.11 FAILURE OF RECONSTRUCTION

Samuel J. Tilden, who had fought the corrupt Tweed Ring. In the popular votes, the Democrats won a clear majority and expected to put Tilden in the White House. However, in three Southern states, the returns were contested.

To win the election, Tilden needed only one electoral vote from the contested returns of South Carolina, Florida, and Louisiana.

A special electoral commission was created to determine who was entitled to the disputed votes of the three states. In a straight party vote of 8–7, the commission gave all the votes to Hayes, the Republican. Outraged Democrats threatened to filibuster the results and send the election to the House of Representatives, which they controlled.

The Compromise of 1877 Leaders of the two parties worked out an informal deal. The Democrats would allow Hayes to become president. In return, he would (1) immediately end federal support for the Republicans in the South, and (2) support the building of a Southern transcontinental railroad. Shortly after his inauguration, President Hayes fulfilled his part in the Compromise of 1877 and promptly withdrew the last of the federal troops protecting African Americans and other Republicans.

The end of a federal military presence in the South was not the only thing that brought Reconstruction to an end. In a series of decisions in the 1880s and 1890s, the Supreme Court struck down a number of Reconstruction laws that protected Black citizens from discrimination. Even though some Southern leaders called for a “New South” based on industrial development, most Southerners, regardless of race, remained poor farmers. The region fell further behind the rest of the nation in prosperity.

By 1877 the nation was more interested in its recent Centennial celebration and was again looking westward and for industrial growth. Tired of Reconstruction, the majority left it to the historians to decide the success or failure of Reconstruction.

HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVES: DID RECONSTRUCTION FAIL?

Historical opinions on Reconstruction have changed dramatically over the past century. Scholars have disagreed over how well it worked and who deserves praise or blame for what happened.

Blame for Too Much Equality Generations of both Northern and Southern historians, starting with William Dunning in the early 1900s, portrayed Reconstruction as a failure. Dunning and others charged that illiterate African Americans and corrupt Northern carpetbaggers abused the rights of Southern Whites and stole vast sums from the state governments. These historians blamed the Radical Republicans for bringing on these conditions by their desire to punish the South and to give formerly enslaved people too many rights. The Dunning school of historical thought provided a rationale for the racial segregation in the early 20th century. It was given popular expression in a 1915 movie, D. W. Griffith’s The Birth of a Nation, which pictured the Ku

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Klux Klansmen as heroes coming to the rescue of Southern Whites oppressed by vindictive Northern radicals and African Americans.

Praise for Accomplishments African American historians such as W. E. B.

Du Bois and John Hope Franklin countered Dunning by highlighting the positive achievements of the Reconstruction governments and Black leaders.

Their view was supported and expanded upon in 1965 with the publication of Kenneth Stampp’s Era of Reconstruction. Other historians of the 1960s and 1970s also stressed the significance of the civil rights legislation passed by the Radical Republicans and pointed out the humanitarian work of Northern reformers.

Blame for Too Little Equality By the 1980s, some historians criticized Congress’s approach to Reconstruction, not for being too radical, but for being not radical enough. They argued that Congress failed to provide land for African Americans, which would have enabled them to achieve economic independence. Furthermore, these historians argued, the military occupation of the South should have lasted longer to protect the freedmen’s political rights.

Eric Foner’s comprehensive Reconstruction: America’s Unfinished Revolution (1988) acknowledged the limitations of Reconstruction in achieving lasting reforms but also pointed out that, in the post-Civil War years, the freedmen and freedwomen established many of the institutions in the African American community upon which later progress depended: churches, schools, universities, and businesses. According to Foner, it took a “second Reconstruction” after World War II (the civil rights movement of the 1950s and 1960s) to achieve the promise of the “first Reconstruction.”

Support an Argument Explain two perspectives on the failures of Reconstruction.

REFLECT ON THE LEARNING OBJECTIVE

1. Explain how Reconstruction caused both continuity and change in the regional and national views of what it meant to be American.

KEY TERMS BY THEME

Politics (POL) redeemers Rutherford B. Hayes Samuel J. Tilden Election of 1876 Compromise of 1877

Reconstruction

(POL, SOC, ARC) Ku Klux Klan Force Acts Black Codes sharecropping Amnesty Act of 1872

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TOPIC 5.11 FAILURE OF RECONSTRUCTION

MULTIPLE-CHOICE QUESTIONS

Questions 1–3 refer to the map below.

PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION RESULTS, 1876

ALA 10

ARIZONA

TERR ARK 6

CALIF 6

COLORADO 3

CONN 6

DEL 3

FLA 4

GA 11

IDAHO

TERR

ILL 21 IND 15

IOWA 11

KANSAS 5 KY 12

LA 8

ME 7

MD 8

MASS 13

MICH 11

MINN 5

MISS 8

MO 15

MONTANA

TERR

NEBRASKA 3

NEVADA 3

NH 5

NJ 9

NEW MEXICO

TERR

NY 35

NC 10

OHIO 22

Unorg Terr

OREGON 3

PA 29

RI 4

SC 7

DAKOTA

TERR

TENN 12

TEXAS 8

UTAH

TERR

VT 5

VA 11

WASH

TERR

W VA 5

WIS 10

WYOMING

TERR

Hayes (Republican)

Tilden (Democratic)

Territories not eligible to vote

Electoral Vote Total: 369

50% 185

48%

4,036,298

51%

4,300,590

Minor 1%

93,895

50% 184

Popular Vote Total: 8,430,783

1. Which of the following was most important in enabling the Democratic Party to regain political power in the South? (A) The limits on education for the freedpeople (B) The restrictions on the voting rights of the freedmen (C) The effects of the Panic of 1873 (D) The impact of the development of sharecropping

2. The victor in the 1876 presidential election was decided based on the recommendation of (A) a special electoral commission (B) a meeting of state governors (C) the Senate (D) the Supreme Court

3. Democrats agreed to accept Rutherford B. Hayes as president in 1876 because he agreed to (A) support a nationwide Black Code (B) remove federal troops from the South (C) promote Southern industrial development (D) support civil service reform

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UNITED STATES HISTORY: AP® EDITION

SHORT-ANSWER QUESTION

Use complete sentences; an outline or bulleted list alone is not acceptable.

1. “Alone among the societies that abolished slavery in the nineteenth century, the United States, for a moment, offered the freedmen a measure of political control over their own destinies. However brief its sway, Reconstruction allowed scope for a remarkable political and social mobilization of the black community. It opened doors of opportunity that could never be completely closed. Reconstruction transformed the lives of Southern blacks in ways unmeasurable by statistics and unreachable by law. It raised their expectations and aspirations, redefined their status in relation to the larger society, and allowed space for the creation of institutions that enabled them to survive the repression that followed.

And it established constitutional principles of civil and political equality that, while flagrantly violated after Redemption, planted the seeds of future struggle.”

Eric Foner, “The New View of Reconstruction,” American Heritage, 1983

“Reconstruction, which was far from radical, constituted the most democratic decades of the nineteenth century, South or North, so much so that it amounted to the first progressive era in the nation’s history. Just ten years after Supreme Court Chief Justice Roger B. Taney endorsed the expansion of slavery into the western territories and announced that black Americans, even if free born, could not be citizens of the republic, blacks were fighting for the franchise in northern states; battling to integrate streetcars in Charleston, New Orleans, and San Francisco; funding integrated public schools; and voting and standing for office in the erstwhile Confederacy. . . .

Black veterans, activists, ministers, assemblymen, registrars, poll workers, editors, and a handful of dedicated white allies risked their lives in this cause, nearly brought down a racist president, but ultimately lost their fight because of white violence.”

Douglas R. Egerton, The Wars of Reconstruction, 2014

Using the excerpts, answer (a), (b), and (c). (a) Briefly explain ONE major difference between Foner’s and Egerton’s historical interpretations of the success or failure of Reconstruction. (b) Briefly explain how ONE historical event or development in the period 1863 to 1877 that is not explicitly mentioned in the excerpts could be used to support Foner’s interpretation. (c) Briefly explain how ONE historical event or development in the period 1863 to 1877 that is not explicitly mentioned in the excerpts could be used to support Egerton’s interpretation.

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TOPIC 5.12 COMPARISON IN PERIOD 5

Topic 5.12

Comparison in Period 5

Learning Objective: Compare the relative significance of the effects of the Civil War on American values.

The reasoning process of comparison is based on describing similarities and differences between specific historical developments. It helps highlight the many factors that show the effects of the Civil War on American values.

For example, consider the role of Manifest Destiny in influencing Americans and how they viewed slavery. Use historical reasoning to understand how expansion affected those who wanted new land and the expansion of slavery as opposed to those who wanted to abolish slavery or to reserve western lands for White settlers as the nation extended its borders. For some on each side, this was a question supported by historical evidence from many areas including economic, cultural (religious), and regional interests.