Daniel Shays’ Rebellion The final battle of the Revolution OR America’s first Civil War?

George Washington Leaves After 8 years of war George Washington heads to Mount Vernon where he expects to retire...BUT THE COLONIES ARE IN TURMOIL! WEAK NATIONAL GOVERNMENT CONGRESS CANNOT TAX NO COMMON CURRENCY

Continental Army Problems Soldiers had been sent home and PROMISED that they would receive payments for their services (they got to keep their musket, uniform, one month’s pay and worthless government certificates)

Mistrust in Massachusetts Delegates in Boston decided to try to pay off Massachusetts war debt in three years. How were they going to do that? RAISING TAXES! Farmers like Daniel Shays asked (multiple times) the courts for leniency...they were denied.

Let’s Shut Down Some Courts! Daniel Shays gathered a militia and they started rioting at local courthouses and shut down the proceedings. If the courts couldn’t be in session then they couldn’t take the land of the farmers! In colonial America if a man didn’t own land then he COULDN’T VOTE!

Who Could Be Against Us? Rich merchants and businessmen didn’t like all of this rebellion - it was THEM who were benefitting from the farmer’s losing their land. However, when you’re rich you can hire up your own army to put down this rebellion (since the government couldn’t help) which is exactly what they did!

Courthouses, Check! Now on to the Springfield Arsenal! Once Daniel Shays and his men were successful at shutting down courthouses they rallied more men and headed for the Springfield, Mass. arsenal to try to get more weapons. It was here that they were met by the army paid for by rich Bostonians.

Irony? Samuel Adams is AGAINST Rebels? Samuel Adams, one of the leading Patriots against Britain is strongly against Daniel Shays and his rebels. He said: “Rebellion against a king may be pardoned, or lightly punished, but the man who dares to rebel against the laws of a republic ought to suffer death.”

Samuel Adams, the New “Mean Guy” in Massachusetts? Samuel Adams didn’t want to be king...but he did want to show these farmers who was in charge. As state senator of Massachusetts he passed: THE MILITIA ACT (execution of anyone who bears arms against the state) THE RIOT ACT (severely punished rioters) ARREST FOR ANY REASON

Come back George, Come Back! Former Continental Army general Henry Knox starts writing letters to Washington about what is going on in Massachusetts...and maybe he exaggerates a little but it worked! He said things like: What is to give us security against the violence of lawless men? Our government must be braced, changed, or altered to secure our lives and property.

Rebellion is put down...BUT? After their failure to take over the Springfield arsenal Daniel Shays and his men are run off. About 130 of them are arrested and 18 are sentenced to hang (at the recommendation of Samuel Adams.) All of them are eventually pardoned (let go) but this issue isn’t over.

National government...you must have more power! The national government was POWERLESS to help Daniel Shays OR the Massachusetts government in this mess. And if this could happen, what would be next? The government HAD to get some control - so it’s back to the meetinghouse to try again. The Articles of Confederation DIDN’T WORK!

Our favorite guy is back...OLE’ GEORGE! Because of Shays’ Rebellion, George Washington is finally convinced to come back and help start over with a new plan for government. He and other delegates meet at the Constitutional Convention where they decide to SCRAP the Articles of Confederation and write the U.S. Constitution where they give the federal government more power to help in the future.

Thomas Jefferson adds his two-cents... “I hold that a little rebellion now and then is a good thing.” (letter to James Madison, January 30, 1787)

Thomas Jefferson adds his two-cents... “The tree of liberty must be refreshed from time to time with the blood of patriots and tyrants.” (letter to Col. William Smith, November 13, 1787)

Let’s Ponder...and Discuss! Do you think it is significant that Daniel Shays was a Revolutionary War veteran? Do you think most Americans would AGREE or DISAGREE with the way that Shays and his men handled the situation? What could have been included in the Articles of Confederation that would have prevented this? What were the major complaints of Daniel Shays and his men? What did they want? What do you think about Samuel Adams’s role in this rebellion? Do you think the treatment of Shays and his men was fair after they were arrested?