History Chapter 5-7 Review - Calynn Fetterolf

Chapter 5

• Causes of the French and Indian War

  • The French people had built a series of forts along the Ohio River Valley (Present day Pittsburgh) which allowed them to control trade routes and limited the British expansion in the area 

    • The French built these forts on areas of land that were disputed between Britain and France → As a result, Native Americans allied with both the French and the British (split) to fight against each other 

    • In the late 1800s, Native Americans allied with France and fired on British troops in one of the many battles during the war → One of the Indians killed a French officer (this was considered murder instead of a war casualty due to the war not starting yet); this led to a major conflict between the British and the French (causing the French and Indian War)

  • The Proclamation line of 1763 which attempted to protect Indian rights to western lands; however, this angered the colonists 

• Results of the French and Indian War

  • This war allowed the English colonies to gain about 3x as much land as before → British victory that granted them control over nearly all of North America that was east of the Mississippi River (included Canada and Spanish Florida), thus removing France from the continent and expanded British territory

  • The war ended with the Treaty of Paris that in 1763 that laid out the “rewards” of the British 

• Pontiac’s Rebellion (1763-1765)

  • Pontiac tried to get a Confederation of Native American together in the west → Created a large-scale Native American uprising against British rule in the Great lakes region (following the French and Indian War) → Britain wanted to change trade practices and did not give Native Americans land rights or respect in general

    • Responses:

      • Movement to return to former ways 

      • Pontiac’s Rebellion - Bloody and very violent rebellion (when White people violated the Proclamation line, Pontiac created the Confederation that gathered Native Americans together → Psychological impact)

• The Proclamation Line of 1763

  • An attempt to protect Indian rights to western land → Angered the white colonists who felt entitled to newly acquired territories after the French and Indian War (Created a boundary that limited the westward expansion and fueled the American Revolution)

• The Boston Massacre (March 5, 1770)

  • After months of increasing friction between townspeople and the British troops stationed in the city, British troops fired on American civilians in Boston who were throwing projectiles at them (killed five colonists and created even more hatred towards the British army)

  • A British Captain named Thomas Preston assured the Boston crowd that the British soldiers would not fire at them since he was standing in front of them; however, on of the civilians threw something at one of the British soldiers which led to the British firing at the crowd even when Preston did not initiate the order 

    • Fueled hatred towards the British authorities which created a larger number of the colonists to become anti-British

• The Boston Tea Party

  • A protest in 1773 by American colonists that involved dumping tea into the Boston Harbor → Colonists were protesting the Tea Act which taxed tea and gave British merchants an unfair advantage 

  • Colonists were also angry over being taxed by the British without having any representation in Parliament 

    • Britain shut down the Boston Harbor until the colonists paid for the tea (apart of the Intolerable Acts of 1774)

• The Intolerable/Coercive Acts

  • A series of laws passed by the British Parliament in 1774 that were intended to punish the American colonies for the Boston Tea Party 

    • Seen as highly oppressive by the colonists (Contributed to the American Revolution)

  • Some acts included the Boston Port Act/Tea Act, the Quartering Act, the Massachusetts Government Act → Replaced the elected government of Massachusetts with a British-appointed one, and the Administration of Justice Act → Allowed British officials to be tried in England rather than in the colonies

  • The colonists saw these acts as a violation of their rights and liberties which called for resistance and unity among the colonies

• Lexington and Concord (April 1775 - The beginning)

  • Known as the “shot heard around the world” due to it starting the Revolution even though it wasn’t much of a fight → Many minutemen ran while the British kept going 

  • Colonists were storing weapons when they were not allowed to own any weapons of their own (Stashed them in Concord) 

    • Paul Revere and William Dawes rode out to warn anyone in their area that the British were coming; however, both of them were captured (William ended up escaping while Paul told the British everything that they needed to know) 

  • British troops arrived at Concord and found no weapons because the colonists hid their weapons in the fields to make it look like the fields had been plowed 

    • When the British troops were walking back from Concord, the colonists caught them off guard and shot many of them which resulted in many British casualties

  • Marked the first major military engagement of the American Revolutionary War  and sparked widespread support for the American cause (demonstrated the colonists’ resolve to fight for their independence)

• Turning Points of the Revolution:

  • Bunker Hill (June 1775) → Although the Americans lost, the British were expecting to win the battle easily; however, it took 5 separate attacks/charges to break the colonists (First major battle)

    • Proved that the Americans could stand up to the British (Encouraged the Revolutionary cause + helped accelerate movement towards independence)

  • Trenton (December 1776) → Washington crossed the Delaware river from the Pennsylvania side on Christmas night 1776 (First good thing that happened during the entire year of 1776)

    • Washington surprised soldiers stationed in Trenton, New Jersey (Boosted American morale + inspired many more colonists to join the fight → Considered a turning point in the war)

  • Valley Forge (Winter/Spring 1777-1778) → A winter encampment of the Continental Army during the American Revolutionary War (Helped create a disiplined and effective fighting force)

    • The army trained and reorganized at Valley Forge to become a more effective fighting force 

  • Saratoga (October 1777) → Foreign Alliance between America and France (without the alliance of France, the colonists would be have been able to win the war)

    • Britain surrendered their army to the American General Horatio Gates after the British were surrounded and out of supplies

  • The Crisis--Th. Paine → Wrote the Crisis to inspire courage and patriotism in the American colonists and encourage them to resist British rule and fight for their independence

• The Declaration of Independence; what it was...what it wasn’t

  • What the Declaration of Independence was → A message to Great Britain (specifically to the King) that announced the separation of the 13 American colonies from Great Britain in 1776 + a list of grievances

  • What the Declaration of Independence was not → Not a declaration of war

• The Articles of Confederation; weaknesses and it’s two success stories:

  • The Articles of Confederation were basically powerless and could not solve any of the problems the Americans were facing at the time (Lack of power to tax, no executive branch to enforce laws, a weak central government, made it difficult to address national issues such as repaying debts from the Revolutionary War + each state had equal voting power regardless of their population → Made decision making ineffective) Within the Articles, the states also had most of the power which made it difficult for the federal government to act decisively regarding national issues + disputes over trading between states could not be resolved by the federal government

  • Success stories → Established a framework for a united nation after the Revolutionary war by outlining the basicc powers of a central government (even though it was weak) and set aside land ordinances which established a system for organizing and settling new territories in certain areas of North America (mostly the Northwest)

• The Treaty of Paris

  • The Treaty of Paris (1783) → Ended the War of the American Revolution and recognized U.S. independence + granted the U.S. significant western territories 

  • The Treaty of Paris (1763) → Ended the 7 Years War (The French and Indian War) between Great Britain and France which gave Britain territories such as Canada, Spanish ruled Florida, and most of the land east of the Mississippi River

Chapter 6

• Shays’ Rebellion (1786) → Daniel Shays raised a militia and threatend many judges so they could not put more people in jail after the British imposed high taxes to pay back the war effort 

  • Armed movement of debt-ridden farmers in western Massachusetts in the winter of 1786-1787 who objected to the state’s effort to tax them to pay off the Revolutionary War debt

• How the Revolutionary War impacted; slaves, natives, and women

  • Slaves → Slavery remained intact in the south where plantation owners heavily relied on slaves + some slave owners chose to free some of their slvaees; however, this was not a widespread movement 

  • Native Americans → Native Americans faced a large amount of land lost after the Treaty of Paris which was decided without the Native Americans input + many tribes were forced to move from their land to new areas under harsh conditions

  • Republican Motherhood → Suggested that women play an important role; however, that role is at home (raising kids) - Women should be at home raising their children (this was important so they could teach their children how to read and write → educated the next generation of leaders in the United States) → Next step towards feminism (the future of the country would be very bleak without this)

    • Women’s rights were limited as they could not vote, own property, have an education, or any say in politics + created many women advocates that stood up for the rights of women such as Abigail Adams

• The Constitutional Debates; Representation, The Presidency, Slavery → Basis of the essay listed at the bottom

  • Representation (Either the states or individual people would be represented) → Created a new government that included 2 houses (the House of Representatives where the representation is based on the population of each state, and the Senate where the states were represented) The House of Representatives had proportional representation while the Senate had equal representation/equality → This is known as the Great Compromise 

    • Representation Among the Slaves → A couple states had more slaves than free people meaning that those states wanted their slaves to count towards representation (representation per 30,000 people → More souther states wanted this than the northern states) → Many people argued that if the slaves counted towards representation that it would be unfair or unjust because the southern states would always have more representation → This led to the ⅗ Compromise which stated that slaves were counted as ⅗ of a free person meaning that the southern states would have a little bit more representation + their property taxes decreased as well (the southern states would not have ratified the Constitution if slavery was abolished)

  • Presidency (How long will they serve? How will they be elected?) → Eventually came to having 4 years per one term during the Presidency (in the original Constitution, the number of terms was unlimited) → Created the Electoral College (Each states is appointed a certain number of electros based on its representation in Congress, then each elector casts one vote following the general election and the candidate who wins gets more than half wins (270 out of 538)

  • Slavery + the Slave Trade → Many southern states depended on slavery for much of their income so Congress could not agree on whether slavery should be abolished or not

    • The Slave Trade → The north wanted to abolish the slave trade while the south did not agree to that due to them relying on slaves for labor and income purposes (eventually Congress agreed that the slave trade would last for at least 20 more years and the slave trade could be abolished after those 20 years; however, slavery still existed up until the Civil War (1865)

• The Ratification Process → Before the document could become a law and a new government could form, the document has to be ratified by nine of the thirteen states for the Constitution to be ratified 

• The Federalist Papers → Written by Alexander Hamilton, James Madision, and John Jay that argued in favor of the Constitution to try and promote the ratification of the Constitution of the United States

• Anti-federalists → Against the ratification of the Constitution (George Mason) → Argued that the Senate was too undemocratic and that the President had too much power + there was no protection for individual rights (led to the Bill of Rights (the first 10 amendments) written by George Mason)

Chapter 7

• Hamilton’s Funding Act of 1790 → Left the states with substantial revenue earned through the federal securities 

  • Assumption → The debt that you owed is lifted off your shoulders and someone else is paying the debt back for you (the federal government assumed the state’s debt so they did not have to pay it off) → Hamilton tried to build up the United States credit so they could get loans whenever they needed them 

  • Ensuing compromise → The Residence Act was passed which established the temporary and permanent seat of the Government in the United States (In other words → Moved the capital from Philadelphia to Washington D.C./the southern states) → Compromise between Hamilton and Jefferson (In exchange, The Funding Act and the Assumption Act were passed, thus establishing the foundation for Hamilton’s public credit)

  • The National bank (A bank that is owned and run by the federal government) → Hamitlon wanted a place to keep the nations money and to get a loan whenever they needed it (crucial to the stabilization of the nations economy) → The National Bank managed government debt, collected taxes, issued currency, and provided loans to businesses (many thought the National Bank exceeded the federal governments powers)

• Federalists → Anyone in favor of the Constitution (Alexander Hamilton)

• Republicans → Rural, Agricultural, and support commoners (Thomas Jefferson and James Madison)

• The Wealth of Nations by Adam Smith 

  • Absorbed by Alexander Hamilton and set the precedent for funding the government (Introduced Hamilton to the ideas that helped fund the government)

• The Whiskey Rebellion → Armed uprising in 1794 by farmers in western Pennsylvania who attempte to prevent the collection of the excise (tax on one object or item) tax on whiskey → Many people did not listen to the warnings of the states that opposed the tax; therefore, any tax collector was shot at, tarred and feathered, or beaten and threatened with scalping which then led to the rebels attacking the homes of the tax collectors) –. Ended with George Washington’s response of sending a large number of troops to help suppress the rebellion (demonstrated how commited the government was about enfocing rules within the Constitution)

• The Citizen Genèt Affair → The efforts of Edmond-Charles Genet, French ambassador to the United States (1793-1794), to stir up military support for France and the French Revolution among Americans, led to long-term anti-French sentiment → During the French revolution, many of the French people relied on American troops to help them fight their battle just as the French did for the Americans during their Revolution; however, the Americans promised to stay neutral to any conflicts in Europe → Genet tried holding rallies, created armed ships in U.S. ports to try and attack the British and Spanish ships, and he tried to encourage Americans to go agaisnt the neutrality laws → George Washington prioritized maintaining neutrality and preventin the U.S. from getting involved in European affairs

• Jay’s Treaty → A treaty with Britain was negotiated in 1794, in which the United States made major concessions to avert a war over the British seizure of American ships (negotiated by John Jay) → Stated that the British had to withdrawl from western ports, had to pay for the seized American ships during the French conflict, and the U.S. would agree to pay the revolutionary war debts to the British → Helped advert the potential war between Britain and America; although, this led to conflict points between the French and America

• Pinckney’s Treaty → A treaty with Spain that set the border between the United States and Spanish Florida (Gave the U.S. the right to navigate the Mississippi River freely + established a clear boundary between the U.S. and Spanish Florida) Created economic growth for the United States because it led to westward expansion and prevented a potential wa between the U.S. and Spain (This treaty secured better relations between the U.S. and Spain)

• Washington’s Farewell Address → Urged Americans to set aside their violent likes and dislikes of foreign nations + advised the American people on how to govern themselves and to guide the future presidents (Purpose → warn against foreign entanglements, encouraged unity, established a precedent (stepping down after two terms), warning against political fractions, and encouraging education that was essential to democracy)

• The XYZ Affair → The diplomatic incident in 1798 in which Americans were outraged by the demand of the French for a bribe as a condition for negotiating with American diplomats → The French government became upset with this treaty between the U.S. and Britain because they saw it as a violation of their alliance between the U.S. during the Revolutionary War (France demanded that America should pay specific amounts of money to the French government → Americans refused) This affair sparked the Quasi-War between the United States and France over a naval conflict

  • Adams sent 3 commissioners to negotiate with France about its violations of U.S. trade rights + the Adams administration was hailed as heroes for not being bullied by France

• The Alien and Sedition Acts → Destroyed Adams’ chances of being re-elected → A series of three acts passed by Congress in 1798 that made it harder for new immigrants to vote and made it a crime to criticize the president or Congress (Tried suppressing the criticism of the government which contradicted the first amendment rights of freedom of speech, religion, and the press + increased power within the federal government to imprison people without a trial or clear cause as to why) → Led to the Virginia and Kentucky Resolutions

• The Virginia and Kentucky Resolutions → Resolutions written by Thomas Jefferson and James Madison that criticized the Alien and Sedition Acts and asserted the rights of states to declare federal law null and void within a state (canceled/invalidated/ineffective) → Direct response to the Alien and Sedition Acts (The resolutions argued that the states had the authority to determine whether a federal law was constitutional or unconstitutional (many ideas at the time were controversial) → Became an important part of the balance of power between the state and federal government 

• The Election of 1800/Revolution of 1800

  • Federalists → Charles Pinkney (Vice-president) and John Adams (going for 2nd term as president)

  • Republicans → Thomas Jefferson (going for 1st term as president) and Aaron Burr 

    • On election day, Thomas Jefferson won with 73 electoral votes while John Adams only had 65; however, the Constitution stated that the second place finisher becomes the vice-president → Unfortunately this did not happen because Thomas Jefferson and Aaron Bur were tied with 73 votes (The House of Representatives decides elections that are not settled in the Electoral College) → Had a total of 36 ballots/votes between Jefferson and Burr; however, on the 36th ballot, Hamilton recommended that the Federalists should change their support to Jefferson because Hamilton would rather have a president with morals who also believes in those morals (Jefferson) than a president who did not have any morals of his own, or believe in those morals (Burr) → As a result, many of the states that could not choose between Jefferson or Burr withdrew their support from Burr and casted a blank ballot which gave more support to Jefferson 

  • Why was the Election referred to as the Revolution of 1800?

    • Resulted in the 12th amendment that outlines the procedure of how Presidents and Vice-presidents are elected (they are elected together) + changed the ideology after Adams left the presidency without a fight and Jefferson stepped in

Essay:  To what extent did “compromise” help to establish the United States between 1783 and 1801?

• The Great Compromise → Either the states or individual people would be represented → Created a new government that included 2 houses (the House of Representatives where the representation is based on the population of each state, and the Senate where the states were represented) The House of Representatives had proportional representation while the Senate had equal representation/equality

• The ⅗ Compromise → A couple states had more slaves than free people meaning that those states wanted their slaves to count towards representation (representation per 30,000 people → More souther states wanted this than the northern states) → Many people argued that if the slaves counted towards representation that it would be unfair or unjust because the southern states would always have more representation → This led to the ⅗ Compromise which stated that slaves were counted as ⅗ of a free person meaning that the southern states would have a little bit more representation + their property taxes decreased as well

• Electoral College → Eventually came to having 4 years per one term during the Presidency (in the original Constitution, the number of terms was unlimited) → Created the Electoral College (Each states is appointed a certain number of electros based on its representation in Congress, then each elector casts one vote following the general election and the candidate who wins gets more than half wins (270 out of 538)