Ch 7 - Hammering Out a Federal Government

Judiciary Act of 1789

Established federal district courts in each state, three circuit courts, and gave the Supreme Court final say. It specified that cases involving federal laws in state courts could be appealed to the Supreme Court.

Bill of Rights

The first ten amendments to the Constitution, drafted by James Madison and officially ratified by 1791. They safeguarded fundamental personal rights like freedom of speech and religion, easing Antifederalist fears and securing the Constitution's legitimacy.

Alexander Hamilton

Founding Father, the first U.S. Secretary of the Treasury, and leader of the Federalist Party. He shaped the early financial system, condemned democracy in favor of an authoritarian government, and called for near-monarchical presidential powers.

Report on the Public Credit

Alexander Hamilton's 1790 report arguing that the federal government should assume all state war debts and fund the national debt at full value. His goal was not to be debt-free, but to make the new country creditworthy to Dutch and British financiers.

Bank of the United States

A bank chartered in 1790 jointly owned by private stockholders and the national government. Hamilton argued it would stabilize the economy by providing loans and handling government funds, though Jefferson opposed it via a strict constitutional interpretation.

Report on Manufactures

Hamilton's report that urged the expansion of American manufacturing. Rather than high protective tariffs, it advocated for revenue tariffs to pay national debt and expenses.

Proclamation of Neutrality

Issued by George Washington, this allowed U.S. citizens to trade with all nations and remain neutral in the conflict between Britain and France.

French Revolution

A European conflict that abolished French feudalism and established a constitutional monarchy. It deeply divided Americans; Jeffersonians viewed it as an extension of democratic ideals, while Federalists condemned its radical actions like executing the King.

Jacobins

A political club in France that embraced democratic ideology. Their radical ideas led to the formation of similar political clubs in the United States.

Whiskey Rebellion

A 1794 uprising by western Pennsylvania farmers protesting Hamilton's excise tax on whiskey, which cut demand for their distilled crops. It was dispersed by Washington's militia, proving the Constitution provided a strong national government capable of enforcing its laws.

Jay’s Treaty

A 1795 pro-British treaty that accepted Britain's right to stop neutral ships and ignored American claims that "free ships make free goods". It required the British to remove troops from the Northwest Territory and allowed U.S. claims for illegal maritime seizures.

Haitian Revolution

A successful slave uprising in Saint-Domingue led by Toussaint L’Ouverture that created the first black republic in the Atlantic World. U.S. southern planters were terrified that this liberation would undermine their own slave regimes.

XYZ Affair

A 1797 diplomatic scandal where French agents rebuffed American envoys by demanding a substantial bribe and loans just to begin peace talks. The incident caused war hysteria and led to an undeclared maritime war cutting off trade with the French West Indies.

Naturalization, Alien, and Sedition Acts

Four coercive laws passed in 1798 by a Federalist-controlled Congress to suppress political criticism and limit foreign influence. They lengthened citizenship residency, authorized the deportation of foreigners, and made it illegal to publish malicious attacks against the president or Congress.

Virginia and Kentucky Resolutions

Resolutions of 1798 that tested the idea that state legislatures could judge the constitutionality of federal laws and nullify them. They were drafted to condemn the Alien and Sedition Acts, setting up a states' rights interpretation of the Constitution.

Treaty of Greenville

A landmark agreement following the Battle of Fallen Timbers forcing the Western Confederacy to cede most of present-day Ohio. It accepted American sovereignty and sparked a massive wave of white migration westward.

Marbury v. Madison (1803)

A landmark case where Chief Justice John Marshall established the principle of judicial review. The Supreme Court assumed legal authority to overrule acts of other branches by finding parts of the Judiciary Act of 1789 unconstitutional.

Louisiana Purchase

The 1803 acquisition of French territory west of the Mississippi River that nearly doubled the size of the U.S.. Securing New Orleans required Jefferson to reverse his strict interpretation of the Constitution, as he lacked explicit presidential power for the purchase.

Embargo Act of 1807

An act pushed by Jefferson prohibiting U.S. ships from traveling to foreign ports to deter British and French trade restrictions. This policy of peaceful coercion caused grave economic hardships for American merchants engaged in overseas commerce.

Battle of Tippecanoe

An attack led by William Henry Harrison on Prophetstown while the Native alliance was gathering. This conflict helped weaken the pan-Indian confederacy resisting U.S. expansion.

Treaty of Ghent

Signed on Christmas Eve 1814, this treaty ended the War of 1812. It resulted in no land gained or lost, explicitly retaining the prewar borders of the United States.

McCulloch v. Maryland (1819)

A Supreme Court case asserting the dominance of national over state statutes. It declared the Second Bank of the United States constitutional and ruled that states cannot tax a federal government agency.

Adams-Onís Treaty

An 1819 treaty negotiated by John Quincy Adams that persuaded Spain to cede the Florida territory to the United States. In return, the U.S. accepted Spain's claim to Texas and agreed on a western boundary for Louisiana.

Monroe Doctrine

A landmark U.S. foreign policy statement convinced by John Quincy Adams, asserting that the Western Hemisphere was completely closed for European colonization.

Thomas Jefferson

The third U.S. President and leader of the Republicans who believed farmers were the backbone of the economy. He cut the national government's size, abolished internal taxes, and compromised his strict constitutional views to acquire the Louisiana territory.

John Adams

The second U.S. President and Federalist who maintained a pro-British foreign policy. He signed the coercive Alien and Sedition Acts and rapidly appointed "midnight judges" to the federal courts in his final days in office.

Little Turtle

Miami chief who led the Western Confederacy to severely crush American expeditionary forces who were attempting to take lands in the Ohio Valley.

John Marshall

The fourth Chief Justice of the United States and a staunch Federalist appointee. His landmark Supreme Court decisions established judicial review, upheld property rights, and cemented the supremacy of federal law over state authority.

Tecumseh

A Shawnee leader who, alongside his brother Tenskwatawa, formed a major pan-Indian military and religious confederacy. He resisted U.S. settler expansion in the Old Northwest and received weapons from the British before his defeat at the Battle of Thames.

Henry Clay

A prominent Western Republican congressman and War Hawk who pushed President Madison toward the War of 1812. He was later a leader of the National Republicans pursuing Federalist-style policies.

John Quincy Adams

The son of John Adams who served as Secretary of State under James Monroe, successfully negotiating vital agreements like the Treaty of Ghent, the Rush-Bagot Treaty, and the Adams-Onis Treaty.

To resolve the conflict over his controversial debt assumption plan, Alexander Hamilton compromised with Southern states by agreeing to locate the permanent national _____ in the South.

Capital.

Which political party in the First Party System included tobacco farmers, western farmers in debt, and immigrants, while favoring states' rights over a strong central government?

The Republican Party (or Democratic-Republicans).

To stop further violent frontier conflicts, the U.S. government encouraged Native Americans to _____ into white society, though most Natives firmly rejected this to retain their cultural and religious beliefs.

Assimilate.

What was the significance of the "Revolution of 1800"?

It demonstrated that popularly elected governments could experience a peaceful and orderly transition of power between deeply opposing political parties.

As part of the Lewis and Clark expedition funded by Jefferson, the explorers were sent into the Louisiana territory to locate resources, map the region, and find a _____ route to the Pacific.

Water.

The aggressive British practice of seizing American merchant ships and forcing sailors into British military service was known as _____.

Impressment.

Who were the "Midnight Judges"?

Federalist federal judges rapidly appointed to the Supreme Court and lower courts by John Adams during his final days in office to maintain Federalist influence.

What was the Hartford Convention and how did it impact the Federalists?

A meeting of Federalists to address grievances about the War of 1812 and propose constitutional amendments; it ultimately severely damaged the party's reputation when the U.S. secured victories, reducing them to a crumbled minority.

In the landmark case _____ v. _____, the Marshall Court upheld vested property rights by declaring that contracts cannot be impaired by state governments.

Dartmouth College v. Woodward.

What invention fueled a massive boom in the economies of Georgia and South Carolina, leading to a rapid expansion into Mississippi and Alabama before the Atlantic Slave Trade was cut off?

The cotton gin.

In the landmark decision of _____ v. _____, the Supreme Court established Congress's broad authority to regulate interstate commerce, asserting national dominance over state monopolies.

Gibbons v. Ogden.