The Early Republic (1788-1800)

HIST 120 Dr. Schaffer
Topic 7

The Early Republic (1788-1800)
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The Early Republic (17881800)
The focus of this topic is the US Constitution. Its ratification in 1788 marks the start of what historians call the
Early Republic, a period that lasted until the end of the century. The Constitution may be found at the back of
Out of Many (pp. A-5 to A-13) or via the link in the Topic 7 folder on D2L. Read the entire Constitution: the
original document and the subsequent 27 amendments. The first ten amendments to the US Constitution are
called the Bill of Rights; they were ratified as a group in 1791. Subsequent amendments were added at later
dates.
One of the things you will learn about for this topic is how an amendment gets added to the Constitution.
One of the ways involves Congress passing an amendment and then sending that amendment out to the states.
An amendment only becomes part of the Constitution if and when of all states approve of it. If the
amendment reaches the threshold, the amendment it is said to have been ratified. In other words, Congress
passing an amendment and that amendment being ratified (= becoming part of the US Constitution) are not the
same thing, so be careful with your wording when discussing amendments.
To give a bit more context for understanding the bumps and snags the country encountered as
Americans debated what, precisely, the young country should be like, I have given you two more clips from
Hamilton (required viewing) and an optional article in the tumultuous election of 1800. If you read the latter
you may use it in your post.
Understanding the Constitution, the issues that confronted the Founding Fathers when writing the
Constitution, and how the Constitution has been interpreted over the years are all crucial to
understanding early American history. It is therefore very important that, as a class, you do your part to
ensure that each of the focus questions is answered at least once. So if there are unanswered focus questions
when you finish the reading, choose one of those to answer. Also, remember that all graded posts need to be at
least 300 words long.
Key Terms Shays Rebellion
Constitutional Convention (1787)
James Madison
the Great Compromise
Virginia Plan vs New Jersey Plan
the three-fifths rule
Federalists
Anti-Federalists
Alexander Hamilton
Bill of Rights
Judiciary Act (1789)
judicial review
Alexander Hamiltons fiscal plan
Citizen Gent
Whiskey Rebellion
Jays Treaty (1794)
Democratic-Republicans
John Adams
Thomas Jefferson
Alien and Sedition Acts (1798)
election of 1800
Aaron Burr
suffrage
HIST 120 Dr. Schaffer
Focus Questions
Tying the Readings Together (Draw on Out of Many and, as appropriate, the US Constitution
and/or Hamilton.)
1. In what ways does the US Constitution differ from its predecessor, the Articles of Confederation?
2. What is the Bill of Rights? For whom was it written?
3. Choose one of the first ten amendments and explain why the founding fathers thought it was necessary
for inclusion in the US Constitution and why you think the amendment is either still relevant today or no
longer relevant and should be changed.
4. What were the Alien and Sedition Acts? What part of the Constitution do they violate?
5. Apart from Amendments 1315, where does slavery figure into the US Constitution?
a. Hint: the Constitution, as it stood in 1800, did not mention slavery by name, although it is
referred to using other wording. In your answer, consider why the word slavery was not used.
6. One of the main goals of the Constitutional Convention was to create a document in which powers were
balanced among different levels of government, regions of the country, and branches within
government. Give examples of how, in the Constitution, the powers of the following were checked by
or balanced with each other: (Choose at least two categories to discuss. This question is a very
important one.)
a. the executive, legislative and judicial branches of government
b. large and small states
c. the federal government and state governments
d. the people and the federal government
e. different regions of the country (especially: the northern states and the southern states)
7. Compare Articles I, II and III. Which of the branches of the federal government do you think the
founding fathers envisioned as being the most powerful? Which do you think is the most powerful
today? Why?
a. Hint: For the first part of question consider which of the first three articles is the longest and
most detailed.
8. How did Alexander Hamilton attempt to put the young United States on sound financial footing? What
challenges did he face?
9. Why was the election of 1800 so contentious? (Hint: Explain the process outlined in the Constitution
for choosing a president. What problems did this method create during the elections of 1796 and 1800
and how did the Twelfth Amendment attempt to fix those problems?)
Out of Many, Ch. 8
10. What were the major issues that were debated at the Constitutional Convention and in the state ratifying
conventions?
11. What foreign threats did the young United States face during the presidencies of George Washington
and John Adams? (Choose a couple of specific examples to discuss.)
Hamilton: Round II: See Questions 8 and 9 in the Tying the Readings Together section.