Early Republic, Market Revolution, and the Age of Jackson

Vocabulary practice flashcards covering early United States history from the Early Republic and the First Party System through the Marshall Court, the Market Revolution, and the Age of Jackson.

Assumption of Debt

A component of Alexander Hamilton's financial plan where the federal government assumed both national and state Revolutionary War debts to bind wealthy creditors to the new national government.

First Bank of the United States

A national bank created under Hamilton's financial plan to hold government funds, issue stable paper currency, and provide loans to stimulate business, justified through the Necessary and Proper Clause.

Whiskey Rebellion (1794)

An uprising sparked by Alexander Hamilton's proposed excise tax on whiskey.

Federalists

A political faction led by Alexander Hamilton and John Adams that favored a strong central government, loose constitutional interpretation, an economy based on commerce and manufacturing, pro-British foreign ties, and drew support from wealthy merchants in New England and coastal cities.

Democratic-Republicans

A political faction led by Thomas Jefferson and James Madison that supported states' rights, strict constitutional interpretation, an agrarian economy of yeoman farmers, pro-French foreign policies, and drew support from small farmers and plantation owners in the South and West.

Virginia & Kentucky Resolutions

Responses formulated by Democratic-Republicans opposing the Alien & Sedition Acts that advanced the theory of nullification against unconstitutional federal actions.

XYZ Affair (1797–1798)

An incident where three French agents demanded a bribe of $\$250{,}000$ and a loan of $\$12\text{ million}$ from American diplomats before negotiating peace, triggering public outrage and the undeclared Quasi-War.

Chief Justice John Marshall

Appointed by John Adams in 1801, this Supreme Court Chief Justice served for 34 years and authored landmark decisions that established the Court as a co-equal branch and consistently expanded federal authority over the states.

Marbury v. Madison (1803)

A landmark Supreme Court case over an undelivered judicial commission that established the principle of judicial review by invalidating a portion of the Judiciary Act of 1789.

Judicial Review

The constitutional principle established in Marbury v. Madison granting the Supreme Court the authority to declare acts of Congress unconstitutional.

McCulloch v. Maryland (1819)

A landmark Supreme Court ruling asserting that Congress had implied powers under the Necessary and Proper Clause to charter a national bank and that states could not tax federal institutions because "the power to tax involves the power to destroy."

Impressment

The British practice of seizing and kidnapping American merchant sailors to force them into service in the Royal Navy.

Embargo Act of 1807

A measure enacted by President Thomas Jefferson prohibiting all American exports to foreign ports to coerce Britain and France into respecting U.S. neutrality, which ultimately devastated the American economy, particularly New England shipping.

War Hawks

Members of Congress, including Henry Clay and John C. Calhoun, who advocated for war against Great Britain prior to the War of 1812.

War of 1812

A conflict fought from 1812 to 1815 against Great Britain driven by impressment, maritime interference, and British aid to western Native American resistance; resulted in the collapse of the Federalist Party, elevated American nationalism, and increased domestic manufacturing.

Market Revolution

A fundamental economic transformation during the early 19th century that moved the United States from local subsistence farming to an integrated national commercial economy through transportation, communication, and industrial innovations.

Missouri Compromise (1820)

A legislative compromise engineered by Henry Clay that admitted Missouri as a slave state, Maine as a free state, and banned slavery in the remainder of the Louisiana Purchase territory north of the $36^\circ 30'$ parallel.

Monroe Doctrine (1823)

A foreign policy statement issued by President James Monroe warning European nations against further colonization or intervention in the Western Hemisphere, while committing the U.S. to stay out of European wars and existing colonies.

"Corrupt Bargain"

A phrase used by Andrew Jackson's supporters to denounce the outcome of the 1824 presidential election, alleging that Speaker of the House Henry Clay traded his congressional support to John Quincy Adams in exchange for being appointed Secretary of State.

Spoils System

President Andrew Jackson's practice of replacing existing government officials with his loyal political backers, defended as a way to promote democracy and prevent an entrenched aristocracy.

Nullification Crisis (1832–1833)

A sectional confrontation led by John C. Calhoun in which South Carolina declared federal protective tariffs null and void and threatened secession, resolved through the Force Bill and a compromise tariff negotiated by Henry Clay.

Indian Removal Act (1830)

Legislation that empowered President Andrew Jackson to negotiate treaties forcing the Cherokee, Chickasaw, Choctaw, Creek, and Seminole tribes to relocate west of the Mississippi River to Indian Territory.

Worcester v. Georgia (1832)

A Supreme Court ruling declaring the Cherokee Nation a sovereign community exempt from Georgia state laws, a decision that President Andrew Jackson refused to enforce.

Trail of Tears (1838)

The forced westward march of approximately $16{,}000$ Cherokee under President Martin Van Buren covering over $1{,}000\text{ miles}$, during which roughly $4{,}000$ individuals died from starvation, exposure, and disease.

"Pet Banks"

Loyal state financial institutions selected by Andrew Jackson to receive transferred federal deposits in his effort to dismantle the Second Bank of the United States.

Specie Circular

An executive order by Andrew Jackson requiring public lands to be purchased using hard currency (gold or silver) rather than paper money.

Panic of 1837

A prolonged economic depression caused by speculative lending and unchecked paper money from state banks, exacerbated when the speculative bubble burst following the implementation of the Specie Circular.