CA EARLY REPUBLIC TEST

Test on the Politics and Culture of the Early Republic

Secondary sources:

  • Foner, ch. 7, as follows:

    • “Land Ordinances,” 202-204

  • Land Ordinance of 1784 → established stages of self-government for the West → districts governed by Congress, then, over time, admitted to the union as a state 

  • Land Ordinance of 1785 → (under AOC) regulated land sales in the region north of the Ohio River → land sold in sections (of a square mile/640 acres) $1 per acre → one section set aside in each township for public education

     → established the grid 

  • Northwest Ordinance of 1787→ eventual establishment of 3-5 states north of the Ohio River and east of the Mississippi River → also prohibited slavery in the Northwest territory  

      → allowed the realization of the (idea created by Jefferson) “empire of liberty,” - which allowed people on a new land to join as equals rather than ruling over them as a colonial power 

  • “The Ratification Debate and the Origins of the Bill of Rights” and “We the People,” 212-225 (excluding inset on Crèvecoeur)

  • The Federalist → Hamilton, Madison, and Jay composed 85 essays (gathered as a book called “The Federalist”) to gain support for the Constitution 

  • They tried to convey that the constitution would protect American liberties rather than restrict → the checks and balances would eliminate the possibility of tyranny 

  • In papers 10 and 51, Madison emphasized → the main issue of the current system was that the government was based on the wants of the people, and people are often susceptible to dangerous, unwell ideas → the balance of personal property and democracy was in danger - economic development would lead to more poor who could then use their power to seize land and distribute it 

  • Madison said the solution revolved around the balance of power as well as a nation's size and diversity → the size made it so no one single group could take over all the rest 

  • Anti-federalists →  people opposed to the Constitution for fear that it gave the central government too much power 

  • People in this position were state politicians (worried about losing power), small farmers (who wanted certain state debtor relief measures that  the constitution did not support) → there were also fears about its stance on slavery from both sides → small farmers or people in more rural, isolated areas

  • Fear that merchants and creditors (not the yeoman farmer proper Americans) would take over 

  • They wanted popular self-government in small communities 

  • Disliked a bill of rights in the Constitution → felt rights were left unprotected 

  • Federalists → often people in cities or rural areas linked to the commercial marketplace, men of substantial property, artisans, laborers, sailors (these last three in hopes of revival of the economy) 

  • Bill of Rights →  Though Madison thought it was redundant, states' legislatures explained their rights, and most people believed it should be added to the Constitution → ratified by states in 1791 → it affected the language of liberty and enforced that a strong central government holds the power of freedom 

  • Separated from the Declaration of Independence because of no religious basis and allowance of freedom of religion 

  • Citizenship via the Constitution →  The Constitution does not explicitly state the qualifications of an American citizen, and no clear role of the federal government in defining citizenship. → In Britain, citizens were “subjects of the crown.”  → Constitution identifies natives, slaves, and the people (only people entitled to American Freedom)

  • Native Nations on the US border and in the West → Natives either had to move farther west or assimilate into white civilization 

  • Fights between the U.S. and the natives, as well as the British refusal to help the natives, led to “the treaty of Greenville of 1795” → ended northwest indian war - 12 Native nations ceded what soon became Ohio and Indiana → also established the annuity system in which the US paid the natives for ceding their land - which gave them more power over native nations because could withhold payments 

  • The U.S. wanted the natives to “assimilate” into society by giving up their culture, religion, language, etc., and adopting American customs and gender norms to fully join the American society/become civilized  

  • Black Americans, Slavery, Race, Immigration→ “The gradual emancipation acts” assumed that free black people would join black communities within their states and freed slaves in the north at a certain age → also “natralization act” which offered the first legislative deinftion of American nationality, and explains the legal process by which a lawful non citizen can become a citizens of the U.S. - had to be free and white - racially definition what it means to be an american 

  • Black people were seen as inferior due to “racial science” → Jefferson believed Black people should have total freedom, but in a country simply for them, so they should leave the U.S. to gain this freedom 

  • Foner, ch. 8, as follows:

    • “Politics in an Age of Passion (excluding insets) and part of “The Adams Presidency,” 228-238

  • As the nation came into being, Americans were hoping for → the ability to maintain political harmony - avoid political factions/parties as well as preserve liberty and the republican model of government 

  • Jay's Treaty - an attempt to solve lingering tension between Britain and the US. Some people saw it as fratricidal with the people who harmed them 

  • Federalists and Republicans - two political parties, first typically elitist and aligned with Hamilton, second typically agrarian and aligned with Jefferson

  • Whiskey Rebellion of 1794 → a protest in the backcountry of Pennsylvania of farmers against Hamilton's whiskey tax

  • In 1793/94, more than 50 democratic-republican societies were formed → federalists saw this as democracy getting out of hand 

  • In Adams's presidency Alien and Sedition Acts arose, which led to the Virginia and Kentucky resolutions 

  • Alien Act → allowed deportation of a person from abroad that federal authorities deemed dangerous, 14 yearnatilization process …. Section Act → authorized persecution of any public (assembly/paper) criticizing the government 

  • Virginia and Kentucky Resolutions → written by Madison and Jefferson, attacking the sedition act as a violation of the First Amendment right 

  • Hamilton → want -  establish financial stability, encourage economic development, investest government money into what would benefit the country most → long-term make the US a major commercial and military power 

  • Plan → 1. Establish the nation's creditworthiness → pay back all bonds 2.  Creation of new national debt → funded by the wealthy so they have a stake in the government and want its success 3. Bank of the United States → facilitate business and tax collection 4. The imposition of a tariff and government subsidies to encourage the building of factories 

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  • “Jefferson in Power,” 240-242

  • Hoped to dismantle as much of the federalist systems as possible

  • Marbury v. Madison →  Supreme Court established the principle that it helps the power of “judicial review” → so it could decide if laws violate the Constitution  

  • Louisiana Purchase → Jefferson purchased this territory in 183 from Napoleon because of his loss of control and debt → this doubled the size of the land → the right to buy land is not explicitly mentioned in the Constitution, so Jefferson did not follow his typical strict constitutional ways 

  • Richard Newman, “Black Founders”

  • ​​Newman argues that free and enslaved African Americans were active participants in the founding of the United States

  • The Black Founders used the same revolutionary principles that created the United States to insist that liberty must belong to everyone.

  • They built communities, wrote powerful works, and redefined what it meant to be an American in the age of the Revolution.

Primary sources:

  • Thomas Paine, Common Sense

January 1776

  • Appealed to the general public → ordinary colonists, not just elites 

  • Published on January 10, 1776, anonymously

  • 100k-150k copies, the average newspaper reached about 2k readers.

  • Common sense → obvious, available to all people, not just the gentry → enlightenment (everyone possesses the faculty of reason)

  • Paine fuses Enlightenment rationalism with passionate rhetoric, turning abstract philosophy into a populist argument. He democratized the Revolution, presenting liberty as a universal right, and framed independence as a moral duty rather than a political option.

  • Attacks monarchy → explains why Britain is hurtful → asks for an independent republic 

  • Strategies: 

    • Analogy → comparing 2 things to enable us to understand more clearly

    • Syllogism → If a=b and b=c, then a=c


  • Lemuel Haynes, “Liberty Further Extended”

  • Written just after declaration 

  • ​​Begins with praise for the “glorious revolution” against tyranny, but insists liberty must apply equally to all, including Africans. → Quotes and reworks the Declaration’s logic: if “all men are created equal,” then slavery is incompatible with divine and natural law. → Uses Christian reasoning: God created all men equal, and therefore “the gospel breathes the spirit of liberty.” → Critiques hypocritical patriots who “complain of oppression” while enslaving others.


  • Free black man who argues the illegality of “Slave-keeping”

                        ↳1. Liberty confined, 

    2. Slavery is a sin against God


  • Phillis Wheatley, “On Being Brought from Africa to America”

  • African American Women 

  • Wrote Poems

  • Supported the Patriots during the American Revolution

  • Starts by saying it was all worth → then discusses people's racist views and says people should not see her as inferior because of her skin color 


  • Phillis Wheatley, “To the Right Honorable William, Earl of Dartmouth”

  • Written as a letter-poem to a sympathetic British official.

  • Talks about how she was taken → and uses to connect herself to indepeendace ot gain authority of opinions on freedom 

  • Thomas Jefferson, “Manufactures”

  • Argues that agriculture should be the foundation of the republic because it creates independent, virtuous citizens.

  • Agranisn reoublicanisn 

  • James Madison, Federalist No. 10

  • Proving a republic could succeed if not only small and homogeneous 

  • Problem → factions could destroy the republic → so could either destroy liberty or control effects → controlling effects works because there is a minority and majority -> stable, factions will never become the majority factions → one faction cannot take over 

  • Defines “factions” as groups driven by passion or self-interest that threaten liberty

  • Small republics cannot control factions; a large republic, however, dilutes them by extending the sphere. → Advocates for a federal system that balances majority rule with protections for minority interests.


  • Hector St. John de Crèvecoeur, “What Is an American?”

  • Refers to the yeoman farmer 

  • Crèvecoeur builds the myth of the American Dream — a land of opportunity and moral renewal. His optimism reflects Enlightenment faith in progress but also erases racial and colonial realities, defining Americanness narrowly through property and productivity

  • Describes the American farmer as the “new man,” industrious, self-reliant, and equal

  • Discusses the other groups of people living in the US as well → farmer is best!

  • George Washington, Farewell Address

  • Warning against political factions and getting too close to other countries 

  • Holds view that the president is clothed (the title can be taken on or taken off, so it’s not defined by the person)

  • Washington uses hyperbole and personification

  • The personification makes parties seem more like a threat and gives the people a common enemy

  • Delivered near the end of Washington’s presidency, as the U.S. faced political polarization between Federalists and Jeffersonian Republicans and tensions with France and Britain.


  • Parson Weems, Life and Death of General George Washington

  • Making a hagiography of Washington

  •  Hagiography: biography of a saint

What’s believable

  • Americans don’t believe Washington is from Virginia

  • Washington’s marriages and family

What’s not believable

  • The cherry tree story

  • Anything in quotes

  • His enslaved people didn’t sing for him


  • Noah Webster

  • Declares that language shapes thought and national character: “Language is the expression of ideas.”

  • Argues for uniquely American spellings and usages (“color” instead of “colour”).

  • Claims America’s independence should extend to its culture and mind.

  • Presents the dictionary as a unifying tool for national education and identity.

  • Washington Irving, History of New York

  • Why should we start the history of New York with the Europeans when the Natives have been there for much longer?

  • Rights of the Europeans:

    • Right by Discovery (Doctrine of Discovery)

      • Property acquired by discovery, but specifically unhabited

      • Counterargument: The Natives don’t count as inhabitants of the land because they aren’t truly people, and there was no written Native history, so they were barbarians

      • Right by Cultivation:

        • Counterargument: The Natives didn’t use the land property, and they didn’t exploit the land (no greed), so they have no claim → Savage

    • Right by Civilization

      • Christian faith 

      • Counterargument: Even though the Natives were practicing things that were a part of the Christian faith, their actions didn’t count UNLESS they were Christian

      • Europeans tried to bring over medicine, but there was no disease -- They introduced disease to bring medicine as a form of civilization

  • James Fennimore Cooper, Deerslayer

  • He thinks about “what makes America distinct from Europe?” → Native Americans

  • His work becomes very popular → exposing people to his idea of what Native Americans are (savages in the natural world).

  • Often called the “Father of American Literature”

  • Preoccupied with Nature, American identity, and North America.

  • Believed that mixed race/mixed ethnicity and culture make America distinct and successful → Very controversial at the time.

  • Contradiction → Named Deerslayer by the Delaware Indians → Sees them as brothers/family YET Prides himself on being white, “pure”, morally superior, and Christian.

  • Represents an uncorrupted ideal of manhood untouched by modern society. → Deerslayer is the archetypal American Adam — pure, self-reliant, close to nature.





Terms and topics you are responsible for:

You should know the definition of each term, but you should also be able to use the terms appropriately. As you study, be sure to (1) write full sentences using the terms and (2) express connections among the terms.

Republicanism → Power is always hostile to liberty; it is always seeking to expand, and it does so at the expense of liberty → liberty resides in the virtue of people, therefore if people's virtue is corroded, they are susceptible to loss of liberty  

Aristocratic republicanism → elitist version of republicanism, so society based on status and wealth is good → elites are capable of more independence, they are better republicans and can (leisure to) look out for others  

Democratic republicanism → power of the people, no social privilege = more equality, getting hands dirty is good! 

Republican motherhood → women are crucial to a country's development because they can educate children, so they should be educated → Reinforced women’s moral influence but limited political rights 

Republican virtue (what are the qualities of a good republican?) → moderate, balanced, plain, not interested in luxury, humble yet courageous, keeps the good of the whole in mild, reasonable rules and decisions, independent  

Yeoman farmer → symbol of republican virtuous agranism → farmer who gets hands dirty → independent landowner who works for himself 

John Locke’s social contract → 

The idea that government derives power from consent of the governed and exists to protect natural rights (life, liberty, property).


Liberalism → emphasizes the protection of liberty via limiting the power of government to interfere with the natural rights of citizens 

Popular sovereignty → government authority comes from the people - let the people decide 

The main weakness of the Articles of Confederation → central government was too weak to be effective → could not levy taxes or enforce laws 

Federalists and Anti-Federalists (during ratification debate)

Federalists and Democratic-Republicans (political parties emerging in the 1790s)

gradual emancipation

Public Domain → land that is available to everyone for access → part of the grid in new land acquisitions where the federal government had a desire to control land 

Land Ordinance of 1785

Northwest Ordinance of 1787

Hamilton’s program and the opposition it generated

Treaty of Greenville (1795)

Alien and Sedition Acts

Virginia and Kentucky Resolutions

Marbury v. Madison and judicial review

George Washington’s personal qualities/connection to the character of the nation → aloof, patient, mentally and phsycially stong, tall, integrity, calculating, arrogant, “invincible” wants repect from the wsie → cared about future of the country and willing to give up power to better the countries future- set precedent by leaving office after two terms even though people wanted him to stay 

Louisiana Purchase


Basic chronology/Periodization: 

(years of the Articles of Confederation, date of the Constitution, period when the 1st party system developed)

1776 - America Declares Independence 

1777 - Articles of Confederation adopted by the Second Continental Congress 

1781 - war ends at the Battle of Yorktown 

1787 - Constitutional Convention 

1789 - GW first president 

1792 - founding of the Democratic Republic 

1794 - Whiskey Rebellion

1794 - Jay's Treaty 

1797-1801 - Adams administration 

1789 - Alien and Sedition Acts, followed by the Virginia and Kentucky Resolutions

1801-1809 - Jefferson administration   

1803 - Louisiana Purchase 

1809-1817 - Madison administration