3.4 vocab

shays’ rebellion

in 1786-1787, after the American Revolution ended, farmers in western Massachusetts were drowning in debt from war expenses. The Articles, which left the federal government with no way to make money, were blamed for the creditors that would collect taxes from the poor farmers. Daniel Shay, one of the leaders, led the Shaysites formed blockades around courthouses to keep judges from issuing foreclosure orders.

virginia plan

the plan James Madison proposed; to change the articles of confederation to a whole new constitution. He took it to Philadelphia, and it was named after his home state - Virginia.

new jersey plan

proposed by William Patterson, it said that the states should each continue to have one vote in the continental congress and that the states should remain small.

great compromise

the compromise that came from the New Jersey and the Virginia plan. Each state would have two senators, who could vote independently. Slaves were also considered ⅗ of a vote, so 5 slaves counted as 1 vote.

federalists

supporters of the Constitution and its strong federal government. They thought adding a bill of rights to the constitution was dangerous because it could potentially limit future addition of rights.

federalist papers

written by Alexander Hamilton, John Jay, and James Madison and published in New York newspapers from ‘87-’88. They presented reasons for believing in the practi­cality of the major constitutional concessions.

anti-federalists

opponents of the constitution and its strong federal government. They were often small farmers and settlers on the western frontier. They argued that Americans risked losing their personal liberty by not adding a bill of rights to the constitution.

bill of rights

in 1791, 10 amendments were added to the constitution, providing protection against abuses of power by the central ( or federal) government.