Transcript (right) New Orleans in 1803, at the time of the Louisiana Purchase.

Introduction: George Washington’s
Inauguration
A colorful image from around the time of the War
Politics in an Age of Passion
• Hamilton’s Program
– As secretary of the treasury, Alexander Hamilton’s
long-range goal was to make the United States a
major commercial and military power.
Politics in an Age of Passion
• Hamilton’s Program
– His program had five parts:
•
•
•
•
•
Create creditworthiness by assuming state debts
Create a new national debt
Create a bank of the United States
Tax producers of whiskey
Impose tariffs and provide government subsidies to
industries
Liberty and Washington
Politics in an Age of Passion
• The Emergence of Opposition
– Opposition to Hamilton’s plan was voiced by
James Madison and Thomas Jefferson.
• Hamilton’s plan depended on a close relationship with
Britain.
• Opponents believed the United States’ future lay
westward, not with Britain.
Venerate the Plough
Politics in an Age of Passion
• The Jefferson-Hamilton Bargain
– At first, opposition to Hamilton’s program arose
almost entirely from the South.
– Hamilton argued the “general welfare” clause of
the Constitution justified his program.
Politics in an Age of Passion
• The Jefferson-Hamilton Bargain
– Jefferson insisted on “strict construction” of the
Constitution, which meant the federal
government could only exercise powers
specifically listed in that document.
– Jefferson agreed southerners would accept
Hamilton’s plan in exchange for placing the
national capitol on the Potomac River between
Maryland and Virginia.
Politics in an Age of Passion
• The Impact of the French Revolution
– The French Revolution became very radical by
1793, and France went to war with Britain.
– George Washington declared American neutrality.
– Jay’s Treaty abandoned any American alliance
with France by positioning the United States close
to Britain.
Politics in an Age of Passion
• Political Parties
– The Federalist Party supported Washington and
Hamilton’s economic plan and close ties with
Britain.
• Freedom rested on deference to authority.
• The Whiskey Rebellion
– The Whiskey Rebellion of 1794 proved to
Federalists that democracy in the hands of
ordinary citizens was dangerous.
A 1794 painting by the Baltimore artist
Politics in an Age of Passion
• The Republican Party
– Republicans were more sympathetic to France and
had more faith in democratic self-government.
– Political language became increasingly heated.
• An Expanding Public Sphere
– The political debates of the 1790s expanded the
public sphere.
Politics in an Age of Passion
• An Expanding Public Sphere
– Newspapers and pamphlets were a primary
vehicle for political debate.
– Supporters of the French Revolution and critics of
the Washington administration formed nearly fifty
Democratic-Republican Societies in 1793–1794.
– The societies argued that political liberty meant
not only voting at elections but also constant
involvement in public affairs.
A print shop in the early republic
Politics in an Age of Passion
• The Rights of Women
– The expansion of the public sphere offered
women an opportunity to take part in political
discussions, read newspapers, and hear orations.
• Mary Wollstonecraft’s Vindication of the Rights of
Women
• Judith Sargent Murray
Politics in an Age of Passion
• The Rights of Women
– A common call was for greater educational
opportunities.
• Women and the Republic
– Although politics was a realm for men, the
American Revolution had deepened the
democratization of public life.
An engraving from The Lady’s Magazine
The Adams Presidency
• The Election of 1796
– Adams won with seventy-one electoral votes and
Jefferson became vice president with sixty-eight
electoral votes.
– His presidency was beset by crises.
• Quasi-war with France
• Fries’s Rebellion
The Adams Presidency
• The “Reign of Witches”
– The Alien and Sedition Acts limited civil liberties.
– The main target was the Republican press.
• The Virginia and Kentucky Resolutions
– The Sedition Act thrust freedom of expression to
the center of discussions of American liberty.
• No other state endorsed the Virginia and Kentucky
resolutions.
The Adams Presidency
• The “Revolution of 1800”
– Jefferson defeated Adams in the 1800 presidential
campaign.
– A constitutional crisis emerged with the election.
• Twelfth Amendment
• Hamilton-Burr duel
– Adams’s acceptance of defeat established the
vital precedent of a peaceful transfer of power
from a defeated party to its successor.
An 1800 campaign banner
Map 8.1 The Presidential Election 1800
The Adams Presidency
• Slavery and Politics
– Jefferson’s election as president was aided by the
three-fifths clause, which gave a disproportionate
number of electoral votes to southern states.
– The First Congress received petitions calling for
emancipation, which set off a long sectional
debate in that body.
– In 1793, Congress adopted a law to enforce the
Constitution’s fugitive slave clause.
The Adams Presidency
• The Haitian Revolution
– Events during the 1790s underscored how
powerfully slavery defined and distorted American
freedom.
– A successful slave uprising led by Toussaint
L’Ouverture established Haiti as an independent
nation in 1804.
The Adams Presidency
• Gabriel’s Rebellion
– A slave rebellion was attempted in Virginia
in 1800.
– The conspiracy was rooted in Richmond’s black
community.
– Gabriel spoke the language of liberty forged in the
American Revolution and reinvigorated during the
1790s.
– Virginia’s slave laws became stricter.
Jefferson in Power
• Jefferson’s inaugural address was conciliatory
toward his opponents.
• However, he hoped to dismantle as much of
the Federalist system as possible.
Jefferson in Power
• Judicial Review
– John Marshall’s Supreme Court established the
Court’s power to review laws of Congress and of
the states (judicial review).
– Marbury v. Madison (1803) established the
precedent of the Court’s power of judicial review
relative to federal laws.
– Fletcher v. Peck (1810) extended judicial review to
state laws.
Jefferson in Power
• The Louisiana Purchase
– To purchase Louisiana, Jefferson had to abandon
his conviction that the federal government was
limited to powers specifically mentioned in the
Constitution.
– Jefferson’s concern with the territory was over
trade through New Orleans.
– Jefferson asserted that the additional territory
would allow the republic to remain agrarian and
therefore virtuous.
White Hall Plantation
Map 8.2 The Louisiana Purchase
Jefferson in Power
• Lewis and Clark
– Lewis and Clark’s object
was both scientific and
commercial.
– Their journey from 1804 to
1806 brought invaluable
information and paved the
way for a transcontinental
country.
A page from William Clark’s journal of the Lewis
and Clark expedition (right)
New Orleans in 1803, at the time of the Louisiana Purchase.
Jefferson in Power
• The Barbary Wars
– Jefferson hoped to avoid foreign entanglements.
– Barbary pirates from North Africa demanded
bribes from American ships.
– Because Jefferson refused to increase payments to
the pirates, the United States and Tripoli engaged
in a naval conflict that ended with American
victory in 1804.
Jefferson in Power
• The Embargo
– War between France and Great Britain hurt
American trade.
– The Embargo Act resulted in a crippled U.S.
economy.
• Replaced with the Non-Intercourse Act
Jefferson in Power
• Madison and Pressure for War
– Macon’s Bill no. 2 allowed trade to resume.
– The War Hawks called for war against Britain.
• Wished to annex Canada
The “Second War of
Independence”
• The Indian Response and Tecumseh’s Vision
– The period from 1800 to 1812 was an “age of
prophecy” among Indians.
– Tecumseh and Tenskwatawa tried to revive a panIndian movement and unite against white
Americans.
– William Henry Harrison destroyed Prophetstown
at the Battle of Tippecanoe (1811).
The “Second War of
Independence”
• The War of 1812
– Madison asked Congress for a declaration of war.
– The government found it difficult to finance the
war.
– Americans enjoyed few military successes.
• Andrew Jackson achieved the war’s greatest victory at
New Orleans in January 1815.
• Peace officially came with the Treaty of Ghent in
December 1814, although news of it did not arrive until
after the Battle of New Orleans.
Map 8.3 The War of 1812
The bombardment of Baltimore’s Fort
The “Second War of
Independence”
• The War’s Aftermath
– The war confirmed the ability of a Republican
government to conduct a war without
surrendering its institutions.
• The End of the Federalist Party
– A casualty of the war was the Federalist Party.
• Hartford Convention