Creating a Republic

Creating a Republic Chapter 7

In forming Governments the states each wrote a constitution. • Constitution- a document that sets out the law, principals, organization, an process of a government. • States did this for two reasons • A written constitution would spell out the rights of all citizens • Limit the power of the government Section 1 A loose Confederation

The Virginia constitution included a bill of rights. • Bill of Rights- list of freedoms that the government promises to protect. • State constitutions were set up similar to the colonial governments in structure. • Divided power between executive and a legislature. • Legislature was elected by voters to pass laws • Every state but Pennsylvania had a governor to carry out the laws • Under state constitutions more people had the right to vote. • White males aged 21 and owner of a certain amount of land or pay a certain amount of taxes

Delegates of the Continental Congress drafted a plan for the country. • Delegates believed that the colonies needed to be united by one national government. • It was hard to write a constitution that all states agreed on. • Most states did not see themselves loyal to one government but loyal to individual state. • The Congress approved the Articles of Confederation in 1777 • Very loose alliance of the 13 colonies Articles of Confederation

Each state sent delegates to Congress. Each state had one vote. • Congress had the power to: • Declare war • Appoint military officers • Coin money • Responsible for foreign affairs • Congress could pass laws but 9 states had to approve it • Congress could not regulate trade between states or states between other countries. • Could not tax states. • Articles had no president to enforce the law. Limited power of Articles of Confederation

Before Articles were approved, land disputes arose about the land west of Appalachian Mountains. • Maryland refused to ratify the Articles until Virginia and other states that claimed land in the west ceded the land. • Maryland thought these states would become more powerful • Ceded- gave up Dispute over land in west

States were feuding over land. • New York and New Hampshire both were claiming Vermont • The Articles did not give the government the power to handle this problems. • After war was over the country now owed millions of dollars to people and countries. • Congress could not tax under the Articles Weaknesses of the Confederation

During the war Congress printed paper money. • Continental money had little to no value. • Continental money not backed by gold or silver • States began printing its own money which never equaled the same in all states. • States did not accept money from other states. Money Troubles

Great Britain ignored Treaty of Paris by not removing troops from the Ohio Valley. • Spain closed New Orleans port to American Shipping • Closing of port hurt the farmers in the west near the Mississippi River. • Farmers depended on the port to ship the goods East. Taking Advantage of America

Congress did have productive moments. • They passed laws on how to govern the Northwest Territory. • These laws established how territory would be governed and how it can become a state. AdmittingNew States

Set up a system for settling the NW territory. • Territory would be surveyed and divided into townships • Townships then would be divided into 36 sections of 1 square mile each • Congress would sale each section to settlers for $640 apiece. • One section in every township was set aside to support a public school Land Ordinance of 1785

Passed in 1787 the Ordinance set up a government for the NW territories. • Guaranteed basic rights to settlers • Outlawed slavery • Provided a vast region to be made into territories later. • Once a territory had a population of 60,000 “free” settlers it could ask congress to be admitted as a state. • Once made a state it would be equal to the original states in all respects Northwest Ordinance

Became the states of: Wisconsin 1848 Illinois 1818 Indiana 1816 Michigan 1837 Ohio 1803 Northwest Territory

NW Ordinance was a great achievement for the new government. • Congress still could do nothing about the economical state and the country fell into a depression. • Depression- a period when business activity slows, prices and wages fall, and unemployment rises. Call for Change

Depression hit farmers hard. • During war Farmers borrowed money for land, seed, animals, and tools. • After war was over the demand for farming goods went down and farmers could not pay back loans. • In MA the state raised taxes and seized farms from those that could not pay. Farmers Revolt

Daniel Shay, Massachusetts farmer who fought at Bunker Hill and Saratoga organized an uprising in 1786. • Over 1,000 farmers took place in Shays’ Rebellion. • Attacked courthouses and prevented the state from taking the farms. • Massachusetts legislature sent in the militia to drive them out. Shays’ Rebellion

Because of Shays’ Rebellion, Americans saw that the Articles of Confederation were not working. • Leaders of several states met in Philadelphia in May 1787 to revise the Articles. • In the end they created a whole new government. Convention called

The Constitutional Convention Section 2

The Constitutional Congress opened May 25, 1787. • Every state sent representatives but the state of Rhode Island. • 55 delegates in all. 8 had signed the Declaration of Independence. • Most of the men were young and represented the new generation Delegates to the Convention

Best-prepared of the delegates. • 36 years old representative from VA. • Shy but intelligent. • Came to Philadelphia a lot of research on history, government and commerce • Became known as Father of the Constitution James Madison

Delegates wanted to keep the talks over what to do secret. • They wanted to speak freely without having influence from the outside. • They closed all the windows and doors. • This made the room extremely hot. • After meetings began the delegates realized they had to do more than just revise the Articles of Confederation. They had to write a brand new constitution. • The delegates disagreed on which form the new national government should take Secret Debates

Virginia Plan was proposed by James Madison and Edmund Randolph. (delegates from Virginia) • Called for a strong national government with three branches • Legislative Branch- pass the laws • Would consist of 2 houses where seats would be awarded on population of the state. • Larger states would more representatives than smaller ones • Executive Branch – carry out the laws • Judicial Branch- courts that would decide if laws were carried out fairly. The Virginia Plan

William Paterson presented the New Jersey Plan • Set up like Virginia Plan with the exception of : • There should only be one house in the Legislative Branch • Each state, regardless od population would only have one vote. • Small states feared that under the Virginia plan large states could outvote them in congress. • Large states said it was only fair that states with more people should have more representatives The New Jersey Plan

For a while no one could agree on a plan and the congress began to fall apart. • Roger Sherman of Connecticut worker out a compromise that he hoped would satisfy both sides. • Compromise- a settlement in which each side gives up some of its demands in order to reach an agreement • Sherman compromise called for a two house system • Lower house would be called the House of Representatives that would be elected by popular vote. • Larger states got what they wanted because larger states would have seats awarded by population. • Upper house would be called the Senate • Members of senate would be chosen by state legislatures. Regardless of the population each state would have 2 senators. • July 16, 1787 the Great compromise was barely passed Great Compromise

Slavery was another big argument between the states. • Would slavery make up part of states population? • Would the slave trade still bring enslaved Africans to the US? Northern and Southern states Comprimise

Wanted to let slavery count into population even though they were not allowed to vote. • If slaves were counted the southern states would have more representatives. • Northerners objected because if slaves did not vote they should not be counted. • Both made another compromise. If a southern state had 5,000 slaves, 3,000 would be counted in the population. • This agreement was known as the Three-Fifths Compromise South and Slavery

1787 northern states had banned slavery. • Delegates from the North wanted congress to ban the slave trade in the whole country. • The southern states warned congress that this would ruin the economy of the country. • Both sides compromised again. Northern states agreed that Congress could not outlaw slave trade for 20 years. After which time Congress could do as they wished. • Northerners also agreed no state could stop a fugitive slave from being returned to an owner. North and Slave Trade

At the end of the summer there were 3 questions that Congress has left to answer. • How many years should the President, head of the executive branch, serve? • How should the system of federal courts be organized? • Would members of Congress be paid? • September 17,1787 was ready to be signed. • After 9 state governments approved the document it would take affect. • All but 3 delegates signed the Constitution. Those three felt it had to much power in the national government. • Edmund Randolph • George Mason • Elbridge Gerry Signing the Constitution

Ideas Behind the Constitution Section 3

Delegates wanted to create a Republic. • Republic- a government in which citizens rule themselves through elected representatives. • The only problem delegates found with a republic was they didn’t survive long. • Founding fathers liked the virtues of the Roman Republic of independence and public service • Roman officials would serve in public office not for money, but because they were devoted to the republic Rome’s Influence

Founding Fathers realized when the Roman republic fell it was no longer a republic, but a dictatorship under Caesar Augustus. • Dictatorship- a government in which one person or small group holds complete authority • They knew in order for the republic to last the citizens had to remain independent and devoted to public service. Rome’s warning

Despite the war with Britain they respected the traditions of freedom. • Founding Fathers looked to the Magana Carta for inspiration. • States that English monarchs had to follow the laws they enforced • States that people hold certain rights that can not be take away: private property and trial by jury Britain's influence

Founding fathers took examples from the English Bill of Rights • Government elections should be held regularly • Trial by jury • And the right to bear arms • Also affirmed the right of habeas corpus • Habeas corpus- the idea that no person could be held in prison without first being charged with a specific crime • f English Bill of RIgths

Americans enjoyed a long tradition of representative government • Americans were use to using written documents to spell out powers and limits of governments and the people. • Mayflower compact • Founding Fathers also remembered all the grievances they held against England. • Most of what was in the new constitution came from state constitutions and from the Articles American Experience

Most of the ideas in the Constitution came from the ideas from the European Enlightenment. • Founding fathers drew from John Locke and his writings on Natural Rights • Framers of the Constitution wanted to protect natural rights Ideas from the Enlightenment

French Enlightenment thinker Baron de Montesquieu influenced how the government was formed. • In his book The Spirit of the Laws, stressed the importance of the rule of law. • Stated “ powers of government should be clearly divided up and split up” • Legislative • Executive • Judicial • This idea was know as separation of power • Separation of power- designed to keep any person or group from gaining too much power Separation of power

Founding fathers drew up the constitution using many traditions from all over the world. • In the end the government they created was unlike any other that came before it. • As many other countries came into their own they used our Constitution to create there governments Legacy of the Constitution

Ratification and the Bill of Rights Section 4

In 1787 and 1788 each state elected delegates to a special state convention that would decide if that state would ratify the Constitution. • In every state there was a heated debate between two groups. • Federalists- supporters of the Constitution who favored a strong federal government • Antifederalists-opponents of the Constitution and a strong federal government Federalists vs Antifederalists

Argued that the Articles of Confederation left to much power with states, that produced an imbalance that produced a weak federal government. • Constitution gave the government the authority to function effectively but at the same time it protected the rights and powers of individuals and states. • James Madison, Alexander Hamilton, and John Jay wrote a series of essays that explained and defended the Constitution. • These essays are called the Federalist papers today Federalists

Thought the Constitution left the national government to strong and the states to weak. • Thought it gave the president to much power. • Most people expected Washington to become the first president. • Antifederalists admired Washington and knew he would not abuse the power but were uncertain of future presidents. Antifederalist

Antifederalists main concern with the Constitution was that it did not include a bill of rights. • They wanted to make sure that the war they just fought was not for anything. • Federalist replied that it was impossible to list all of a persons natural rights. They said the Constitution protected the people well enough . • Antifederalists said that the rights that the Constitution protected would be easily ignored. Key Issue

One by one the states started voting on the Constitution. • Delaware December 7, 1787 Pennsylvania December 12, 1787, New Jersey December 18, 1787 Georgia January 2, 1788, Connecticut January 9, 1788, Massachusetts February 6,1788, Maryland April 28,1788, South Carolina May 23,1788, New Hampshire June 21,1788, Virginia June 25,1788, New York July 26, 1788 • All but two states ratified the Constitution at first. • Later Rhode Island May 29, 1790 and North Carolina November 21, 1789 followed suit and ratified the Constitution. • Vermont became a stand and they ratified the Constitution January 10, 1791 States Vote to Ratify

Americans voted in the First election under the new Constitution in January 1789. • As expected Washington became the first President • John Adams was chosen as the Vice President • The first capital was chosen in NY city. This is where the first Congress met. • The first thing Congress did was to add a bill of rights to the Constitution. • This was to please the states that did not want to ratify it without a bill of rights. Adding a Bill of Rights

Framers of the Constitution established a way that the constitution could be amended if the need arose. • Amend- to change • The framers did not want people to take it lightly when changing the Constitution so they made it difficult • 1789 Congress proposed a set of 12 amendments that were written by James Madison • In order for the amendments to hold they had to be approved by the states. • December 1791 ¾ of the states had ratified 10 of the 12 amendments. These amendments became known as the Bill of Rights Making changes to Constitution

Madison made it clear that the Bill of Rights did not give Americans any rights. It simply was a list of rights that belonged to all human beings. • Some of the rights were intended to prevent the same abuse Americans suffered under British rule. • 3rd amendment forbade the government from quartering troops in citizens homes without their consent. • 6th and 7th guaranteed the right to a trial by jury • Other amendments were to protect a persons rights. • Right to freedom of religion. 1st Amendment • With the Bill of rights the framework of the Government was now set and the Constitution became a living breathing document that could be changed as the country changed. What is in the Bill of Rights?

Creating a Republic