Chapter 5

Republicanism
American experiments in self-government started even before the writing of the D of I.
To form new governments, state legislatures relied on republicanism: political leaders receive from the
citizens their authority to make and enforce laws. --Mayflower Compact of 1620 incorporated this idea.
Locke’s natural rights
Americans were influenced by works of Enlightenment thinkers: John Locke developed the theory of
“natural rights”.
Believed that all people were born with the rights of life, liberty, and property and that the role of the
government was to protect these rights.
Supporters of Republicanism embraced Locke’s argument and used it to challenge older forms of political
and social organization.
Virginia Statute for Religious Freedom
Most new state constitutions restricted the powers of governors--reflected their resentment of the influence
of Brit governors.
Some states limited governors to one-year terms and denied them the power to overturn laws.
Many state constitutions reduced the influence of the church on the government. Before, colonists were
required to pay taxes to support a particular church even if they didn’t belong to the church.
The statute, drafted by Jefferson, stated that the human mind was created free and the govt control over
religious beliefs or worship was domineering.
Jefferson argued that every man has the right to act upon his own religious beliefs.
Republican Motherhood
Republican state constitutions didn’t grant full citizenship to woman. Most men (along with many women)
opposed women’s participation in politics.
Many constitutions limited the right to vote and the right to hold office to white male property owners.
Influential writers like Mercy Otis Warren and Judith Sargent Murray felts that women had an essential part
to play in the creation of a new republican nation and began to redefine the ideal of motherhood.
Republican Motherhood proposed that American women could influence politics and society through their
work in the home
Republican mothers would offer moral guidance to their husbands, and educate their children in the
principles of liberty, democratic values, and civic responsibility.
Weakened women’s chances of gaining greater political rights, but coz women were responsible for their
children’s education, support grew for expanding women’s educational opportunities.
Articles of Confederation
Although many states had created new constitutions, nothing existed at the national level. The second
continental congress preformed some duties of a national govt but it lacked legal authority over the states.
The states were willing to join in a loose union but were reluctant to hand over control to a national govt.
The congressional committee presented its plan: the Articles of Confederation on July 12,1776.
The Articles created a confederation of states while guaranteeing each state its sovereignty, freedom, and
independence. A state has supreme power over its own affairs. All governmental powers expressly delegated to
congress were to be retained by the states.
Authorized congress to borrow and coin money, conduct foreign affairs, set policy toward american
Indians, and settle disputes between the states. Congress could ask, but no require, states to contributes money
to the central government and to provide recruits for the military.
Allowed each state one vote in congress, regardless of its population or number of representatives.
Land Ordinance of 1785.
Control of the Allegheny Mtns and the land beyond, just east of the Mississippi River was an issue blocking
the ratification of the Articles.
The two states with the largest landholdings, NY and VA, gave the disputed land Congress to promote
national unity. Other states followed suit and agreed to enter the Confederation.-- the 13 Brit colonies were now
the United States of America.
The Land Ordinance marked of the land into townships and divided each township into 640-Acre tracts.
It permitted the cash sale of these tracts for not less than one dollar per acre and reserved one section of
 each township for the establishment of a school. -Marked the first national govt aid given to public education.
Four sections in each township were to be reserved for veterans of the Revolutionary War.
Northwest Ordinance
Established a system for governing the Lakes west of Pennsylvania to the Miss. River.
Outlined present-day states of IL, IN, MI, OH, and WI.
Set a precedent that would be used for settling territories farther west.
Created a system of government for the territory and a process for the establishment of states.
Guaranteed the settlers’ civil rights and banned slavery in the territory. --reflected growing antislavery
sentiment in the Northern states.
Required that escaped slaves seeking freedom in the territory would be returned to their owners.
Depression
Congress needed cash to pay its war debts. They couldn’t tax the people directly, so congress had to appeal
to the states for funds.
Some states avoided paying their share of the national debt by claiming independence as sovereign states.
As a response to the shortfall, Congress printed paper money. These bills of credit, Continentals, were not
backed by gold or silver, so merchants and lenders refused to accept them at face value.
In 1784 the nation began to experience a depression: a sharp drop in business activity accompanied by
rising unemployment.
One cause of the depression was the loss of British markets. After the war, Brit closed some of its colonial
markets to American commerce. Then the Brits flooded the US with inexpensive goods.
Struggling Americans could not match the low price and Congress was powerless to help wince the Articles
did not give it authority to regulate international rule.
Shay’s Rebellion.
The depression and money shortage left farmers with fewer markets for their goods and little money to pay
their debts. Merchants demanded payment in gold or silver which farmers seldom possessed.
Angry farmers took up arms against the govt under the leadership of Daniel Shays. Farmers shut down
debtor courts and stopped property auctions.
On Dec. 26, 1786 Shays and ~1,200 farmers set out for Springfield, MA, intent on seizing the federal
arsenal. The governor quickly called for 4,000 additional recruits. Shay and his men attacked in late January, but
when artillery fire killed four farmers, Shay’s men fled and the Massachusetts militia crushed the rebellion.
The rebellion raised doubts about the central government’s ability to deal with civil unrest.
As a result, many people began calling for the confederation to have additional powers.
Constitutional Convention
Scheduled to being on May 14, 1987 but didn’t proceed until May 25th until enough delegates had arrived.
Met in the Pennsylvania State House--now independence hall.
Consisted of Washington and 54 other remarkable politicians, many who helped write their state
constitutions. The delegates were generally wealthy and well educated.
Thomas Jefferson and John Adams were absent due to diplomatic missions in Europe.
Virginia Plan
Congress charged the delegates to revise the Articles of Confederation, but others believed the Articles
should be replaced with an entirely new plan of government.
Governor Edmund Randolph of VA triggered a heated debate on May 29 with his VA plan drafted by James
Madison
The plan shifted political away from the states and toward the central govt, which would coordinate the
states’ activities for the benefit of the entire nation.
Reflected the belief that the nation’s survival depended on federalism: the division powers between a strong
central government and the state governments.
Gave Congress the right to overturn state laws, tax the states, and “bring the force of the Union against any
state…failing to fulfill its duty.”
Called for the federal government to be made up of three branches: executive, judicial, and legislative.
Legislature would be bicameral: made up of two houses. Voters would elect representatives to the lower
house, who would then choose members of the upper house. State populations would determine the number of
representatives in each house.
Father of the Constitution
James Madison helped draft VA’s state constitution and served as a member of the Continental Congress.
His leadership in the constitutional convention earned him the name “father of the constitution.”
New Jersey Plan
With the VA plan a dispute arose over the number of representatives each state could send to the legislature
because of states with larger populations like VA and PA.
William Paterson offered an alternative plan the provided for a strong unicameral, one-house, legislature in
which each state would have one vote.
It proposed giving the federal government the power to tax and to regulate commerce.
Madison and others rejected this plan coz they believed that it didn’t correct the weakness of the Articles.
On June 19, the convention rejected the New Jersey Plan and resumed consideration of the Virginia Plan.
The Great Compromise
Roger Sherman of CT, proposed a two-house legislature that would allow for both equal representation and
representation based on population.
This Great Compromise granted each sate, regardless of size, and equal voice in the upper house. In the
lower house, representation would be according to population.
Delegates narrowly approved this proposal.