Early American Rebellions What is a rebellion? How is a rebellion different than a protest? When should people protest? When should people rebel? Many early Americans engaged in rebellion to express their displeasure with the government.

Shays’ Rebellion (1787): Power of the Government Grows Led by farmer Daniel Shays. Causes: Small farmers in Massachusetts in great debt (they owe a lot of money) after the American Revolution war.

Shays’ Rebellion (Actions) 1787: A group of 1,200 farmers, led by Daniel Shay, took an arsenal of weapons. They forced courts to close to stop the government from foreclosing on their farms. State militias put down the revolt

Shays’ Importance (Effects) The rebellion… …showed the nation that something was wrong in the new country. …National government had to look at how their policies would affect peoples’ lives. More info here (click on link to explore).

Whiskey Rebellion: National government in Debt Secretary of the Treasury Department, Alexander Hamilton, wanted to increase revenue for the United States. Congress proposed a sales tax on whiskey in order to raise revenue. This made whiskey producers and small farmers angry.

Cause of Anger Whiskey was the Appalachian region’s source of cash. Whiskey producers were poor small farmers. Corn, used to make the whiskey, was already hard to transport over the mountains.

The Whiskey Rebellion: Actions 1794: Farmers in Pennsylvania refused to pay the whiskey tax. Violent fights between the farmers and federal marshals broke out. President Washington ordered 15,000 militiamen to put down the revolt.

Whiskey Rebellion Importance (Effects) The 1st time that the Federal Government used its power to deal with domestic (inside the country) affairs and interfere with power of the states.

A Fugitive Takes the Lead 1825: Slaves frustrated with slavery. Nat Turner, a slave, fled his Virginia plantation after a severe beating. Instead of going North he stayed in the South, Virginia, and preached to slaves and freemen about a rebellion.

Nat Turner’s Rebellion 1831: Nat Turner & 50 followers attacked 4 plantations. 70 whites living on plantations murdered Plantation owner and workers executed 16 members of the revolt. Turner was hunted down & hung. Whites killed more than 200 innocent blacks.

View a video about Nat’s Rebellion here (click on link).

Turner’s Rebellion Importance (Effects) Harder to ignore anger toward the slave-plantation system. Whites in the North became increasingly aware of slavery’s brutality in the South. Abolition movement grows in the North. Southern plantation owners increasingly afraid. Violence against blacks increases along with laws restricting blacks’ rights.

Were any of these violent actions justified? Yes, because… No, because… Explain your answer on the back of the sheet