Securing Independence, Defining Nationhood, 1776-1788 CHAPTER 6 Securing Independence, Defining Nationhood, 1776-1788 1. What factors enabled the Americans to defeat the British in the American Revolution? 2. How did the Revolution affect relationships among Americans of different classes, races, and genders? 3. What political concerns were reflected in the first state constitutions and Articles of Confederation? 4. What were the principal issues dividing proponents and opponents of the new federal Constitution?

Loyalists and Other British Sympathizers The Prospects of War Loyalists and Other British Sympathizers Loyalists/Tories: Patriots/Whigs: 20% 80% Slaves: Slaves: 20,000 to the British 5,000 fought for the patriots Indians: Indians: Most sided with the A few sided with the British patriots

The Prospects of War The Opposing Sides BRITAIN 11 million people 1. Had to pay for it all Largest navy in the world 2. Had to transport it all Exceptional army 3. Over doubled the debt to people already paying record taxes Hessians and Loyalists 4. Had to defeat the colonists 5. No formidable allies

The Prospects of War The Opposing Sides COLONIES “Home Field” advantage 1. 2.5 million people (1/3 were slaves or loyalists) 220,000 troops (to the British 2. Untrained army/militia 162,000 3. European allies (later) 3. Most Indians fought with the British They didn’t have to win the 4. Inexperienced officers war – just outlast the British (except for George Washington) 5. Short-term service

Shifting Fortunes in the North, 1776-1778 War and Peace, 1776-1783 Shifting Fortunes in the North, 1776-1778 Things were going fairly well for the Brits until… October, 1777 – The Battle of Saratoga Convinced the French that the colonists could win and they declared war against Britain Spain joined in 1779 Netherlands joined in 1780 Baron Friedrich Wilhelm von Steuben whipped the Continental Army into a formidable fighting force Von Steuben Day parades are held every year. Ferris Beuller went to the one in Chicago on his “day off”.

War and Peace, 1776-1783 The War in the West, 1776-1782 The colonists and the Native Americans pretty much continued their skirmishes from before the war Nothing too memorable for AP purposes except that many Indians were killed, making it that much easier for the whites to conquer them later

War and Peace, 1776-1783 Victory in the South, 1778-1781 October 19, 1781 – British General Cornwallis surrendered after being trapped by G. Washington from the North and the French from the sea. This all but ended the war. So, in summary…

War and Peace, 1776-1783 Peace at Last, 1782-1783 Treaty of Paris (again) of 1783 Britain recognized American independence Britain promised to remove all troops American got all land east of the Mississippi Spain received Florida Indians weren’t mentioned in the treaty Both sides didn’t follow the treaty: British didn’t remove troops/forts or return slaves Americans didn’t repay British creditors, compensate loyalists Many loyalists and slaves fled to Canada, Britain, or the West Indies

The Revolution and Social Change Egalitarianism Among White Men After the Revolution, white men with property began to treat each other with a more-mutual respect

The Revolution and Social Change White Women in Wartime Although during the war women were awesome and essential to winning the war by taking over the “men’s work”… after the war it was back to the status quo “All men are created equal” apparently didn’t apply to women… of any color

The Revolution and Social Change A Revolution for African-Americans Gradual emancipation started to take place in the North However, free blacks were still very much second-class citizens without much chance of real success “All men are created equal” and slavery didn’t sit well with a lot of Americans, so slavery actually looked as if it was going to fade away, but… (stay tuned for more in the next few chapters)

The Revolution and Social Change Native Americans and the Revolution Native Americans suffered more than any other group after the war Many of them were either killed or their land was taken from them A few assimilated into white American culture

Forging New Governments, 1776-1787 From Colonies to States State governments usually kept a bicameral system and property requirements to vote The new state constitutions were written down and included bills of rights At first the legislative branch had more power and the executive branch had less, but the rich folks saw to it that that didn’t last for more than a couple of decades

Forging New Governments, 1776-1787 Formalizing a Confederation, 1776-1781 The Articles of Confederation – written in 1776 – finally ratified in 1781 It was purposely written to create a weak national government (with the power going to the states) One branch (legislative) with each state getting one vote No national army No required taxes No chief executive No judicial system Needed 9/13 states to create a law Needed 13/13 states to create an amendment

Forging New Governments, 1776-1787 Finance, Trade, and the Economy, 1781-1786 The Revolutionary War cost $160 million The US couldn’t raise that money via taxes (thanks to the rules stated in the Articles of Confederation) The US currency (The Continental) depreciated by 98%

Forging New Governments, 1776-1787 The Confederation and the West The Land Ordinance of 1785 This laid out how land would be surveyed into 36 sections This was one of the two ‘successes’ of the Articles of Confederation

Forging New Governments, 1776-1787 The Confederation and the West The Northwest Ordinance of 1787 This laid out how new states would be created in the land called the NW Territory No slaves in new territories Britain still had forts in the NW Territory and helped Indians harass the Americans Spain closed off New Orleans to the Americans

Toward a New Constitution, 1786-1788 Shays’s Rebellion In 1786-1787 Daniel Shays led some angry farmers to raid a federal arsenal in Springfield, MA. They were upset with the MA government’s severe taxes. The rebellion itself isn’t what you should focus on… the real significance is what it led to… The rebellion showed that we needed a much stronger national government and so the Philadelphia Convention happens (after meeting in Annapolis) – we create the Constitution – all because of some ticked-off farmers!

Toward a New Constitution, 1786-1788 The Philadelphia Convention, 1787 May 25, 1787 – September 17, 1787 55 Delegates from all states but Rhode Island Biggest hurdle = how to represent states in Congress

Toward a New Constitution, 1786-1788 The Philadelphia Convention, 1787 The national government got a lot more powerful while the states lost a lot of power to the new “supreme law of the land” However, the separation of powers, checks and balances, and federalism all limit the government

Toward a New Constitution, 1786-1788 The Philadelphia Convention, 1787 The Preamble to the Constitution

Toward a New Constitution, 1786-1788 The Philadelphia Convention, 1787 Slavery and the Constitution Can’t interfere with the international slave trade for 20 years (until 1808) Can’t prevent escaped slaves from being returned to their owners Slaves count as 3/5 of a person for representation purposes Every 30,000 citizens = 1 representative So, every 50,000 slaves = 1 representative

Toward a New Constitution, 1786-1788 The Struggle Over Ratification, 1787-1788 Constitution written: 1787 Constitution ratified: 1788 Government commenced operations under the Constitution: 1789