Chapter
6: Securing Independence and Defining Nationhood
1776-1788
The
Prospects of War
·
The Revolution was a war of the American people
against the British
·
and a civil war between American supporters of
independence and Americans who were opposed to breaking with the mother country
Loyalists
and Other British Sympathizers
·
About 20% of all whites opposed the Revolution
·
Loyalists
o
Allegiance to the crown
o
Aka “Tories”
·
Hated by patriots (revolutionaries)
·
Largest % of loyalists were in NY and NJ
·
Recent British immigrants and French Canadians
tended to be loyalists
·
Thousands of southern slaves escaped to the
royal army
o
African-Americans in the North were more likely
to support the Revolution
·
Indian tribes were divided and many wanted to
sit out the conflict
o
Majority sided with the British
The
Opposing Sides
·
Advantages of the British
o
Outnumbered the Americans 11 million to 2.5
million
o
Largest navy
o
One of the best professional armies
·
Disadvantages of the British
o
Difficulty in recruiting soldiers (employed
21,000 loyalists and 30,000 Hessians)
o
Supplying armies 3,000 miles across the ocean
o
Financial strain
o
English domestic support for the War waned
·
Americans mobilized their smaller population
behind the war more effectively
·
After 1778 they had French and Spanish
assistance
o
Mostly veteran European officers
·
American problems:
o
1/3 of population were slaves or opposed to the
Revolution
o
State militias did well in guerrilla raids but
lacked training for battles
o
Few experienced officers
o
Raw recruits
·
Americans did not have to conquer redcoats
·
Rebels just had to keep resisting until the
British public tired of the struggle
·
George Washington was the logical choice as
commander of the American army
o
VA tobacco planter
o
Member of the House of Burgesses
o
Representative at the Continental Congress
o
Former military leader of the colonists
War
and Peace, 1776-1783
·
Until mid-1778, fighting remained in the North
o
Each side won important victories
·
American forces prevailed over British troops
and their Native American allies to gain control of the trans-Appalachian West
·
The War was finally decided in the South
o
American and French forces won at Yorktown, VA
in 1781
·
In the peace treaty, Britain acknowledged
American independence
Shifting
Fortunes in the North, 1776-1778
·
New York
o
130 British warships carrying 32,000 royal
troops landed near NY harbor in summer of 1776
§
Led by General William Howe and Admiral Richard
Howe
o
18,000 American soldiers
§
Led by Washington
o
By end of 1776, British forced Americans to
retreat from NY across NJ and the Delaware River into PA
·
During the winter of 1776-1777, Washington
struck back at Trenton and Princeton
·
Recoats pulled back to NY
·
In NJ, the Whigs forced loyalists remaining in
the state to pledge allegiance to the Continental Congress
·
Americans’ best hope for victory lay in French
diplomatic recognition and military alliance
·
Louis XVI held back until he became convinced
that the Americans had a chance of winning
o
October 1777 in Saratoga, NY
o
American forces surrounded British forces and
forced 5,800 British troops to surrender
·
French were impressed with the victory at
Saratoga
·
Feb. 1778, France recognized the United States
·
June 1778, France declared war on England
·
Subsequently, the Spanish and Dutch Republic
also declared war on Britain
·
Turning point in the war
o
The formation of this coalition against GB
·
Fall of 1777, the British inflicted defeats on
Washington’s army at Brandywine Creek and Germantown, PA
·
British occupied Philadelphia
·
Forced Continental Congress to flee
·
Winter of 1777-1778
o
Brit in Philadelphia (comfortable)
o
Washington’s troops at Valley Forge (froze and
under supplied and equipped)
·
Battle of Monmouth Court House
·
NJ on June 1778
·
Continentals defeated British
·
British escaped to NY
·
Protected by British Navy
·
Washington hovered across the Hudson River
keeping an eye on them
The
War in the West, 1776-1782
·
Although the number of people involved in the
frontier battles was small, the skirmishes were deadly
·
British, Americans, and Indians realized that
the victor of the West would control the area west of the Appalachian Mountains
·
The battles began in the South
o
Cherokees attacked from VA to GA
o
By 1777, the frontiersmen had crushed the
Cherokees
o
forced the Cherokees to cede much of their land
in the Carolinas and TN
·
Expeditions led by George Rogers Clark, John
Bowman, and Daniel Brodhead inflicted heavy losses on hostile Ohio Indian
tribes
o
Ohio Indian tribes would continue to fight until
1780’s
·
Joseph Brant led the Iroquois on deadly raids
against the western NY and PA settlers until he was stopped at a battle near
Elmira, NY
·
By war’s end, the Iroquois population had
dropped by a 1/3
·
Not greatly influencing the outcome of the war
·
These battles played a major role in the
development of the future American nation
Victory
in the South, 1778-1781
·
After 1778, the British shifted their attention
to the South
·
1st victory at Savannah in 1780
o
British took Charles Town, SC
o
General Charles Cornwallis led British
o
Nathaniel Greene led Americans
·
Cornwallis led English forces into the Carolina
backcountry
o
British victories
§
Camden and Guilford Courthouse
o
American victories
§
Kings Mountain and Cowpens
·
British suffered heavy casualties in the
Carolina backcountry though
o
Cornwallis decided to head back to VA
·
Cornwallis established a new base on Virginia’s
Yorktown Peninsula
·
Battle of Yorktown
o
American and French armies and French fleet cut
off and surrounded the British
o
October 19, 1781 Cornwallis surrendered
·
The fighting in the Revolutionary War ended with
surrender at Yorktown
Peace
at Last, 1782-1783
·
Treaty of Paris
o
John Adams, John Jay, Benjamin Franklin
represented America
§
Began in June 1782 and Signed in Sept. 1783
o
British recognized American independence
o
British promised to remove all troops from
American soil
o
Mississippi River became the western boundary of
the new nation
o
New Orleans and the outlet of the river to the Gulf
of Mexico as well as East and West Florida went to Spain
·
Notably absent from the Treaty was any reference
to Native Americans
o
Native Americans refused to acknowledge American
sovereignty over their territories
·
The Confederation agreed to compensate loyalists
for their property losses and repay British creditors
o
several states later refused to comply
o
In retaliation, the British did not evacuate
forts they sill held in the Northwest
·
American victory had been costly
o
At least 5% of free males between 16 and 45 died
in the war
o
Many loyalists and former slaves fled to Canada,
Britain, and the West Indies
·
The War did not address 2 important issues:
o
what kind of society America was to become
o
what sort of govt. the new nation would possess
The
Revolution and Social Change
Egalitarianism
Among White Males
·
There was no significant redistribution of
wealth in American during the Revolution
·
The Declaration of Independence’s bold assertion
that “all men are created equal” did promote more egalitarian attitudes
·
The upper class found it prudent to simplify
their standards of living and treat common people with more respect
·
Ordinary folks were less likely to defer to
their “betters” or automatically leave governing to them
·
Americans began to feel that political leaders should
come from the “natural aristocracy”
o
Men who demonstrated virtue
o
accomplishments
o
dedication to the public good
·
The gains made through the advantage of family
retreated before the republican principle of ability
·
The new egalitarianism did not include women,
blacks, Indians, and landless white men
White Women in Wartime
·
During the Revolution, the assumptions about
women barely changed
o
Women were dependent on fathers and husbands
o
Had no public role to play
·
However, in the midst of war
o
women took on added responsibilities
o
served visibly in support of the fighting men
o
Raised $$$ for the troops
o
Some even served incognito
·
The gains and rights they deserved for this and
other social responsibilities would be up for discussion in the new republic
·
Abigail Adams would led fight for change
A
Revolution for Black Americans
·
In 1776, blacks accounted for 20% of U.S.
population
o
Almost all of them were enslaved
o
Majority in the South
·
5,000 blacks served in the Continental Army
·
The Declaration of Independence’s words about
equality made the Whigs uneasy about slavery
·
The Quakers had taken the lead in attacking
slavery
·
Between 1777 and 1810
o
All northern states instituted gradual
emancipation
o
No southern states outlawed bondage
·
Several southern states did make the voluntary
freeing of slaves easier
o
By 1790, about 5% of VA and MD blacks had been
freed
·
Most free blacks remained poor laborers,
domestics, or tenant farmers
·
Some blacks and whites began to advocate the
idea that freed slaves might be better off being returned to their homelands in
Africa (Prince Hall)
·
Most states granted freedmen certain civil
rights
o
Blacks continued to be treated as 2nd class
citizens
Native
Americans and the Revolution
·
Native Americans suffered the worst of any group
during the War
·
For many whites the republic’s promise of equal
opportunity meant moving west to obtain their own land
o
Moving into Indian territory
·
The tribes of the Ohio Valley were especially
vulnerable
o
Between 1754 and 1783, war and uprooting had
reduced the Native American population east of the Mississippi by nearly 50%
·
Many Indians still living east of the River
adapted some features of white culture, combined it with native customs, and
created new lifestyles
·
But they insisted on their right to control
their own communities and lives
Forging
New Governments
From
Colonies to States
·
Certain beliefs inherited from the colonial era
stood in the way of a thorough democratization of politics
·
Most Whigs believed that voting and office
holding must be tied to property ownership
o
They frowned on political parties as
strife-causing factions
o
They did not see the need for apportioning seats
in a legislature on the basis of population
·
Whigs were wary of unchecked executive authority
o
Inclined to augment the role of elected legislatures
o
Interested in framing government institutions
that would balance the interests of different classes to prevent any one group
from gaining absolute power
·
The 1st state constitutions reflected both the
radical and traditional features of Whig thought
·
Except for PA’s, they did not provide for
election districts that were equal in population
·
9 of the 13 state reduced property
qualifications for voting
o
But none abolished them entirely
·
By 1784, all state constitutions included a bill
of rights
·
The state constitutions provided for frequent
elections and stripped the governors of most of their powers
·
In 1780’s, many states revised their
constitutions to strengthen the executive branch and increase the political
power of wealthy elites
·
Most of the states also enacted social reforms
·
For Example
o
In VA, Thomas Jefferson framed legislation
abolishing primogeniture (the right of the 1st child to inherit their parents
property)
o
Abolishing entails (to restrict inheritance of
property in a will)
o
Abolished the established churches guaranteeing religious freedom
§
NH, Connecticut, MA exceptions where churches
still collected tithes from non-Christians
Formalizing
a Confederation, 1776-1781
·
In 1777, the Continental Congress drafted a
constitution called the Articles of Confederation
·
4 years passed before the states ratified the
Articles of Confederation
o
Disputes over states’ claims to western land and
their representation in Congress
·
There was a unicameral congress in which each
state had 1 vote
o
No national court system
o
No executive branch
·
Financial, diplomatic, and military affairs were
managed by congressional committees
o
The congress could request funds from states but
could not tax the people directly or regulate interstate and foreign commerce
·
The Articles affirmed the new nation’s
attachment to decentralized power when it reserved to each state full
“sovereignty, freedom, and independence”
·
This left the national government severely
limited in important respects
Finance,
Trade, and the Economy, 1781-1786
·
The confederation proved too weak to meet its
greatest challenge (putting the country’s finances on a sound basis)
·
Unable to tax the people or force the states to
contribute funds
o
the congress could not pay off it Revolutionary
War debt
o
Or meet its operating expenses
·
Nor could the government under the Articles win
diplomatic concessions from the British, who badly hurt New England shippers
and merchants by shutting them out of the West Indian trade and imposing steep
customs fees on goods entering England
·
Declining exports depressed the economies of
both New England and the South
·
Its paper currency, the Continental, depreciated
by 98%
The
Confederation and the West, 1785-1787
·
The confederation also had to decide on the
future of the trans-Appalachian west
o
speculators and settles wanted to acquire these
lands immediately
o
Native Americans determined to keep their homes
·
The Confederation responded by forcing Indian
leaders to sign treaties ceding western lands,
·
the tribes, disputed the legitimacy of these
American appointed Indian leaders
o
repudiated the treaties
·
Congress passed the Ordinance of 1785 and the
Northwest Ordinance of 1787
o
Set a successful pattern for surveying, selling,
and administering western lands
o
Provided the way for territories to become states
with the same powers and privileges as the original 13 states
o
Northwest Ordinance for the 1st time banned
slavery from a territory
·
The British and Spanish governments made life
difficult for western settlers.
·
British
o
refused to evacuate 7 forts in the Ohio Valley
o
Supplied Indians in the region with arms and
ammunition.
·
Spanish
o
Sided with the Indians against American frontier
families
o
closed off New Orleans to western farmers who
wanted to ship their produce down the Mississippi and out to eastern cities and
Europe through New Orleans
·
Some westerns saw independent negotiations with
Spain as the best resolution
·
Many westerns predicted a new independent
western country would break away from the weak confederation
Toward
a New Constitution, 1786-1788
·
Shays’ Rebellion, 1786-1787
o
1786
o
Massachusetts
o
Led by Daniel Shay
o
Farmers and debtors vs. the MA govt.
o
State militia defeated Shays’ followers
·
Results:
o
Some Americans feared that the govt. was unable
to protect even domestic law and order
o
Producers wanted a stronger govt. to regulate
interstate and foreign commerce
o
Merchants and shippers desired a govt. that
could secure foreign trade opportunities for them
o
Westerns hoped for better protection from the
Indians
·
1786
o
Meeting in Annapolis
o
Originally meant to promote interstate commerce
o
Instead called for a general convention of all
the states to amend the Articles and create a more effective national govt.
The
Philadelphia Convention
·
Spring and summer of 1787
·
55 delegates from every state besides RI
o
The
majority were wealthy, had legal training, and shared a nationalist
rather than a local perspective
·
Sessions were closed to the press and the public
·
Decided to abandon the Articles and write a new
constitution
·
The convention worked from a draft written by
James Madison
·
“Virginia
Plan”
o
A national govt.
§
Broad powers to tax, legislate, and use military
force against the states
o
2 house congress
§
Representation in both chambers based on
population
·
Small states worried that they would always be
outvoted
·
Objected to the VA Plan
·
Created the “New Jersey Plan”
·
“New
Jersey Plan”
o
Unicameral congress
o
Each state, regardless of population, had an
equal voice
·
The convention finally agreed to a compromise
·
2-chamber legislature
o
Representation in the House based on population
o
Representation in the Senate based on the
principle of equality for each state
·
The Constitution was finished in September 1787
·
Federal govt. powers:
o
Levy and collect taxes
o
Conduct diplomacy
o
Protect domestic order
o
Authority to coin $$$$
o
Regulate interstate and foreign commerce
·
The Constitution carefully balanced state and
federal power, the interests of one social group against another, and the
authority of one branch of the national govt. vs. another
·
Federalism, separation of powers, checks and
balances
·
Many features of the Constitution were NOT
democratic:
o
Recognized and in some ways protected slavery
(3/5’s clause)
o
Allowed direct election only of members of the
House of Rep.
·
Democratic features:
o
It acknowledge the people as the “ultimate
source of political legitimacy”
o
Amendment process (allowed democratization of
the govt. in years ahead)
·
The delegates provided for ratification of the
Constitution by special state conventions composed of delegated elected by the
people
·
Needed 9 conventions to approve the new
Constitution
The
Struggle over Ratification, 1787-1788
·
During 1787 and 1788, the country divided into
Federalists and Antifederalists
·
Federalists supported the Constitution
·
Antifederalists did NOT support it
o
feared that the Constitution concentrated too
much centralized power in the hands of a national elite
o
that individuals’ freedoms would be trampled
because the document contained no bill of rights
·
Antifederalists lacked the leadership stature of
prominent Federalists like George Washington and Benjamin Franklin
·
Federalists promised to provide a bill of rights
·
Federalist victory
The Federalist Papers
·
A series of articles
·
an effort to win New Yorkers over to the
Constitution
o
Written by John Jay, Alexander Hamilton, and
James Madison
·
Valuable commentary on the Constitution and
insight into the political philosophy of the Founding Fathers
Conclusion
·
The final triumph of the nationalism born of the
War of Independence came in late 1789 and early 1790, when the last 2 reluctant
states (NC and RI) ratified the Constitution and joined the new nation
·
The Constitution did not create a democratic
govt. for the U.S.A.; but it did establish the “legal and institutional
framework within which Americans could struggle to attain democracy”
