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ap united states history/identifications for ap review compiled by adam crocker elizabeth dooley and emma vaughn chapter 2 1 puritan separatists/plymouth plantation/pilgrims/mayflower compact puritan separatists were a group of english puritans who left england to seek religious freedom they first went to the netherlands and in 1620 to america they were sponsored by thomas weston and other merchants who had received a patent for a settlement from the virginia company of london eighteen families went across the atlantic in the mayflower with the agreement that they would send back goods to england to pay for their new land in november of 1620 the mayflower landed at plymouth outside the bounds of virginia since they had no legal right to be there leaders and forced adult males in the group to sign the mayflower compact that created a civil government for all of them also called a civil body politic under the sovereignty of james i this group of puritans known as pilgrims created the colony of plymouth plantation the colony was aided by the knowledge of local indians 2 sir walter raleigh came to north america as part of elizabethan expansion in 1558 because of a lust for action and a readiness to lead overseas adventures in 1587 raleigh sponsored a colony on roanoke island off of what is now north carolina raleigh founded this colony based on the dream of a place where the english spanish and blacks could live together in a productive colony sponsored by england the leader of the colony john white went back to england to get supplies however when he returned he found nothing roanoke came to be known as the lost colony the failure of roanoke delayed the establishment of more english colonies for seventeen years 3 richard hakluyt an associate of sir walter raleigh and a geographer was a member of the company of adventures promoting the colonization of virginia he published collections of explorers accounts the principle navigations voyages and discoveries of the english nation he argued that england needed colonies to protect itself against spain his books circulated widely popularizing the idea of settlement and enticing interest in it throughout england 4 virginia company of plymouth was chartered by king james i in 1606 for merchants and others who wanted to set up trading colonies in america from maine to the potomac a colony was founded on the maine coast but failed after one harsh winter the charter of the failed virginia company of plymouth was bought by a group of puritan separatists who were seeking to escape religious intolerance puritans established plymouth colony in 1620 near the place where the previous colony failed 5 virginia company of london was chartered by king james i in 1606 to settle lands extending from cape fear north to the hudson river made possible after spain renounced its claims to virginia this grant overlapped with the one issued to virginia company of plymouth and it was understood that the land in question would go to first successful colonizer 105 settlers dispatched to settlement on the james river near chesapeake bay called jamestown in 1607 first colonists mostly single men of english gentry searched for gold and failed to plant crops by the time relief ships arrived in january 1608 only 38 survivors remained company gave control of jamestown in september 1608 to captain john smith 28 experienced in wars against spanish and turks smith instituted harsh discipline organized settlers and required them to build houses and plant food when smith returned england after serious injuries of the 500 residents in sept 1609 only 100 lived to may1610 by 1625 the virginia co of london declared bankruptcy after years of wars against indians and virginia became a royal colony 6 jamestown was founded in 1607 by the virginia company of london near the chesapeake bay the first colonists hunted for gold instead of farming and the colony was run by anarchy until the arrival of john smith in 1608 a soldier who instituted harsh discipline the colony was also plagued by many problems with the indians except when smith was in charge smith had to leave in 1609 and the colony crumbled shortly after john rolfe took over and introduced the growing of tobacco which helped them prosper in 1619 the colony started the house of burgesses the beginning of representative government in north america 7 captain john smith left for america with the london company in 1606 upon arrival he was appointed to the governing council of jamestown he helped to establish trade routes and lead colonists and settlers through the winter of starving time as a resourceful leader only losing 12 men he was also successful in creating good ties with the powhatan confederacy 8 john rolfe was an englishman who married pocahontas and figured out how to grow tobacco in virginia virginia had previously been relatively small due to a lack of profitable exports and war with the powhatan indians by1619 virginia was making enormous profits by exporting the tobacco the virginia company then financed the colony and brought over many more settlers mostly families and women to encourage permanence 9 the house of burgesses was the first elected assembly in british north america it was established in virginia in 1619 and was comprised of 22 burghesses 2 chosen by the planters of each town or plantation and the governor by mid-17th century the government of virginia split into a bicameral legislature the elected house of burghesses became its lower house and the governor s council or upper house was appointed by the crown this form of legislation became the prototype for us congress 10 mayflower compact see #1 chapter 3 11 puritan non-separatists/massachusetts bay company city upon a hill the massachusetts bay company made up of several non-puritan merchants obtained a charter to settle north of the separatist colony at plymouth the colony s seat of government was located in new england set up as self-governing colony under gov john winthrop in 1630 winthrop led 11 ships and 700 passengers to new england on the way he delivered a city upon a hill sermon which set out the new puritan colony to be the ideal colony an example to england revive piety and make england a nation of saints.
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12 governor john winthrop was the leader of the non-separatist puritans who sailed to new england in 1630 on the way he delivered the famous sermon a model of christian charity also known as the city upon a hill sermon in this speech winthrop proclaimed his hope that puritans would establish a godly community in contrast to england that would be an example to all winthrop especially denounced the economic competition that hindered the creation of a pious community and proposed to remedy it by combined forces of religion and government 13 roger williams was a minister who preached complete separation of church and state and challenged the legal basis of congregationalism he argued that church should remain distinct from and uninvolved with political or legal matters as he believed these would corrupt the saints and contaminate their purity he also believed that indians should be paid for lands taken by new settlers prosecuted and expelled he moved south where he established a city he named providence on land he purchased from indians by 1647 as more dissenters moved there providence became based on complete freedom of religion 14 harvard college was founded by the puritans in1636 to train clergy for their congregations and to administer the community of saints this made massachusetts the only american colony with an educated elite class in the 17th c 15 reverend john cotton was the chief architect of the non separatists idea of congregationalism see chapter outline he gave the idea that the control of the colony should be placed in the hands of male saints he laid the foundations for the puritan theocracy this eventually proved to be controversial and led to much dissent roger williams anne hutchinson 16 anne hutchinson presented a challenge to the traditional new england ways many of her ideas came from those of john cotton who stressed that saints be free of religious or political control by anyone who had not undergone conversion she attacked the clergy and ultimately claimed that there were only two saints in the colony john cotton and her brother in law her followers were known as antinominans meaning they opposed the rule of law she was brought to trial before the massachusetts bay legislature she was condemned by her own words since she claimed she had directly communicated with holy spirit she was tried twice once for sedition and then for heresy and was banished thereafter new restrictions were placed on women she settled in new netherlands where she died in dutch wars against indians 17 pequot indians controlled lands between the hudson and connecticut river valleys as more settlers moved into new england pressure for land led to confrontations the english waged a ruthless campaign against them using surprise attacks on their villages and killing under torture all they captured by late 1630s pequot resistance was crushed another new england conflict involving indians is the king philip s war in the 1670s the conflict began in plymouth plantation as separatist puritans eager to expand their lands demanded that wampanoag indians convert to christianity congregate in praying towns and relinquish their lands metacom a native american leader known as king philip gathered two-thirds of the native americans of new england their army was as well armed as the puritans metacom s forces started out strong devastating the countryside and wiping out twelve of new england s 90 towns things changed the next year in 1676 when the puritan militia destroyed the opposition s food supplies and sold many of the enemies into slavery the war reduced the indian population in new england by almost 40 and reduced open indian resistance to white expansion it also ended missionary work among the indians 18 salem witch trials plagued new england puritan communities in the late 17th century 1692 several girls in salem village began behaving strangely and denouncing saints and were therefore thought to be victims of witchcraft and were immediately imprisoned most often the women accused were middle-aged wives and widows the accused mostly resided in the eastern section of salem the richer side and the accusers resided mostly in the west the poorer side those condemned were executed the witch hunt was greatly a result of worry about the new social changes see class notes accusations of witchcraft were simply scapegoating to avoid growing tensions between farmers that were community-minded and merchants that were individually concerned these tensions heightened realization that city upon a hill was no longer relevant to new generations 19 lord baltimore received his grant or proprietorship from the crown as reward in 1632 this was the beginning of land grants being awarded to proprietors as opposed to joint stock companies he named the large tract east of chesapeake bay maryland in honor england s queen henrietta maria he exercised broad powers despite the existence of an elected assembly which had to approve all laws and despite the fact that matters of trade and war remained under the jurisdiction of the crown he intended the new colony as a haven for english catholics though it was mostly settled by protestants catholics held important offices in government and dominated the economy as large planters he enacted act religious toleration in 1649 20 act of religious toleration was passed in 1649 the first such law in colonial north america it was to tame the religious tension that had gradually developed in maryland as catholics and protestants argued over distribution of power catholics were large planters and controlled the appointive upper house while protestants were mostly tenant farmers and sought office in the elective lower house the protestant majority eventually repealed the act 21 bacon s rebellion began in 1676 when nathaniel bacon a member of virginia s royal council was elected by many settlers to lead them against nearby indians bacon wanted authority to wage war against all indians pressured by former indentured servants seeking cheap land on the frontier virginia passed a law that stipulated that all indians who left their villages were to be considered enemies and their lands could be confiscated this unleashed a campaign of violence against them the governor recalled bacon and his troops bacon then turned against virginia offering freedom to slaves and servants to undermine the economic backbone of the landed elite bacon s death of dysentery brought the rebellion to an end bacon s rebellion revealed a society under deep internal stress the inability of the governor and legislative body to control the land-hungry ex-indentured servants as well as the fragile hold of the governor on individuals living within the colony it also reflected the scramble for indian lands as more people settled in the region and as freed indentured servants moved to the frontier seeking cheap land.
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22 peter stuyvesant was the strict and religiously intolerant leader of the new netherlands colony the involvement of his colony in the fur trade often led to clashes with the iroquois and the algonquians he expanded new netherlands by conquering new sweden present day new jersey and delaware and southeastern pennsylvania in 1655 which led to armed conflict with the algonquians his lands were settled by dutch swedes english quakers anglicans puritans scottish presbyterians and dutch calvinists economic opportunities helped maintain religious harmony until he was forced to peacefully surrender his land to england s charles ii in 1664 23 society of friends/quakers were a religious body originating in england in the middle of the 17th c led by george fox claiming that no theologically trained priest is needed to establish communion between the soul and god fox taught that everyone could receive understanding and guidance in divine truth from their own inner light the friends regarded sacraments as nonessential to christian life they refused to attend worship in the established church and to pay tithes they also resisted the requirement to take oaths and opposed war believing in the equality of all men and women friends would not remove their hats before their alleged superiors consequently they were subject to persecution in england they settled in rhode island and in pennsylvania where in 1682 william penn established his colony after the revolution friends took part in major reform movements abolitionism prison reform improvement of insane asylums mitigation of penal code and betterment of education 24 william penn was appointed as proprietor of the last unallocated tract of english territory pennsylvania a quaker he founded the colony as holy experiement and offered quakers the opportunity to make laws according to their ideals pennsylvania seemed the ideal community religious toleration and economic opportunity allowed indians quakers presbyterians baptists anglicans and catholics to live in harmony he founded philadelphia with a grid design allowing for parks and his frame of government created a strong executive under his leadership under penn indian lands were bought to accommodate increasing numbers of settlers named the city of brotherly love philadelphia became the capital of pa and a major port 25 frame of government constitution established by william penn featured a strong executive branch a governor and governor s council and a lower chamber the assembly with limited power penn hated intolerance and arbitrary governance so he offered quakers the opportunity to make laws according to their ideals the frame established a strong executive governor and his council and a lower chamber or assembly with limited legislative powers quakers dominated the lower chamber and penn often named them to government positions penn s peaceable kingdom turned into a mess after he returned to england for about 15 years as large planters refused to pay taxes and tariffs by the 18th c the legislature was reduced to one chamber and was allowed to initiate legislation nonetheless pa remained one of the more stable colonies in british no america chapter 4 26 navigation acts of 1651 1660 1663 were laws that limited imperial trade to british-owned ships whose crews were 3/4 british in an attempt to improve british merchant fleet they mandated that the colonial export of enumerated goods pass through england these regulations lowered profits of rice and tobacco producers only by 3 colonial trade remained lucrative 27 sir edmund andros was governor of new york 167481 where he was bitterly criticized for his high-handed methods in disputes over boundaries and duties when james ii consolidated all new england colonies into the dominion of new england he named andros governor in 1688 new york and the jerseys were also put under his control the suppression of charters and colonial assemblies and andros overbearing ways caused intense friction after the glorious revolution the colonials in boston rebelled 1689 seized andros and other officials and sent them to england as prisoners thus directly challenging the crown s centralization attempts the dominion of new england was dismantled and colonists reclaimed their original charters 28 leisler s rebellion is the 1689 new york rebellion led by jacob leisler who was one of new york s most prominent dutch merchants and land developers in the wake of the glorious revolution he assumed the role of king william iii s himself a dutchman governor of new york leisler s administration of new york split the province into two distinct camps along ethnic lines dutch and english leisler s rebellion controlled new york for two years but eventually ended in 1691 reluctant to relinquish power to the newly appointed royal governor leisler himself was charged and hanged for treason the province was ultimately returned to english control and reprisals against dutch rebels took place the new governor introduced anglicanism against the wishes of the dissenting majority leisler implemented a program based on direct popular representation that had wide impact from the chesapeake to new england the following year he called for and hosted english america s first intercolonial congress and organized the first inter-colonial military action against french and indians while dutch-english tension did not disappear with the end of leisler s rebellion the dutch were never again a real threat to english control of the province 29 king william s war began between a european coalition including england against france and led british colonists of the northeast to invade new france the iroquois fought on the british side lost nearly 1/4 of their warriors and decided to remain neutral in future wars this allowed them to play the british and french against one another maintaining balance of power 30 stono rebellion of 1739 is a slave uprising in south carolina the slaves stole guns and ammunition from a store on the stono river bridge near charleston and began marching south toward st augustine in spanish florida they recruited more slaves along the way the spanish looking to cause unrest within the english colonies had issued a proclamation stating that any slave who deserted to st augustine would be given land and freedom some plantations were burned and some planters were killed mounted militiamen captured the slaves and killed them placing their spiked heads along mileposts to charleston the rebellion proved southern planters fears of imminent slave uprisings and led to the adoption of a slave code that mandated strict supervision of slaves and threatened masters with fines for not disciplining their slaves the code also required that manumission the freeing of slaves by an individual planter be subject to legislative approval the code prohibited slaves from owning food learning to read and assembling in groups the harsh punishment against the runaways also postponed the occurrence of large scale slave rebellions in the south.
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31 the walking purchase was a result of pennsylvania s thrust against the delawares land having already taken over most of their lands in the early 18th c pennsylvania leaders produced a fraudulent document dated 1686 in which delawares promised to sell their land as far west as a man could walk in a day and half pennsylvania leaders hired three men to walk west as fast as they could and demanded that the land be ceded to pa this episode indicates how depopulation and dislocation of indians allowed for colonial expansion in the piedmont the delawares were forced to move and the proprietors made a huge profits 32 covenant chain was a series of agreements the iroquois entered to relocate indians whose lands colonists desired tribes were moved to areas near ny and pa to serve as buffers against english expansion by agreeing to the covenant the iroquois created a center of indian power that cooperated with the british who then issued the proclamation line of 1763 to protect them 33 georgia/james oglethorpe georgia was chartered by parliament as a royal colony to be a refuge for debtors whose settlements would buffer south carolina from spanish attacks james oglethorpe was an english general and a member of the english house of commons he and 19 associates were granted a royal charter for georgia and became trustees of the colony he founded savannah established friendly relations with neighboring creeks and set about perfecting the colony s defense against the spanish building forts he banned rum and slavery in the colony which aroused opposition this led to his recall to england since few debtors and immigrants sought refuge in georgia and since the monarchy s investments in the silk and wine business did not yield major profits the trustees of georgia removed the ban on rum and slavery in order to encourage settlement and the cultivation of rice as a cash crop the founding of georgia completes british settlement on the atlantic coast 34 benjamin franklin/poor richard s almanac/american philosophical society franklin was a printer philosopher and scientist upon moving to philadelphia he gathered a small group of young men with a zest for learning and began publishing poor richard s almanac which was a collection of proverbs franklin believed that science and community service were intertwined he organized the american philosophical society to encourage all philosophical experiments that let light into the nature of things tend to increase the power of man over matter and multiply the conveniences and pleasures of life his publications his clear and precise style and wit helped disseminate the ideas of the enlightenment in british north america 35 jonathan edwards was a congregationalist minister during first great awakening he emphasized the corruption of human nature the fury of divine wrath and the need for immediate repentance edwards preached the famous sermon sinners in the hands of an angry god during a revival in northampton mass in which he warned the wicked of the terrible punishments awaiting them in the afterlife though he upheld such calvinistic doctrines as predestination he insisted that man had freedom to choose alternative courses when forces outside him inclined his will to choose influence of enlightenment he created much controversy because he refused to give communion to unconverted church members after serving as a missionary to indians in stockbridge ma he became president of college of new england now princeton in 1758 but died that same year 36 george whitefield was an english cleric whose overpowering presence and booming voice awed many crowds he pulled together the diverse threads of revival but also attracted many extremists which led to divisions within the revival movement whitefield was the leader of the calvinistic methodist church chapter 5 37 king george s war known in europe as the war of the austrian succession pitted england against france 1740-1748 during this war the new englanders assault of the french fortress of louisbourg in nova scotia at the mouth of the st lawrence river resulted in the victory of the american colonists however in a treaty signed with the french in 1748 the british traded louisbourg back in exchange for privileges in south asia this led to colonist resentment because it showed that the american colonies did not present a focus of great britain s imperial policy 38 louisbourg was a french fortress in nova scotia at the entrance to the st lawrence river colonial recruits from new england attacked it during king george s war and after 7 weeks of fighting emerged victorious in a 1748 treaty with the french the british traded louisbourg for a trade outpost in india colonists were upset at how their victory was put aside as unimportant this also showed that the attention of british foreign policy was not focused on north america at this time 39 albany plan of union was a proposal by ben franklin of pennsylvania and thomas hutchinson of massachusetts seven northern colonies sent delegates to albany ny to plan their mutual defense against french retaliation indian raids and british inaction delegates endorsed a plan for a colonial confederation albany plan of union which collapsed because no colonial legislature would surrender control over its powers of taxation however it provided a precedent for colonial cooperation 40 the proclamation of 1763 was issued by the british at end of seven years war it asserted royal control of land transactions settlements and trade of non-indians west of the appalachians it also recognized existing indian land titles west of the proclamation line which ran down the crest of the appalachians this angered colonists because it subordinated western land claims to imperial authority the establishment of the proclamation line showed that the british were planning for future expansion in america and undermined the agreement they had signed with spain ceding them land west of the proclamation line 41 james otis was the former prosecuting attorney for boston s vice-admiralty court he resigned to protest the use of the writs of assistance he argued that an act against the constitution is void he declared that parliament had no authority to violate the traditional rights of englishmen and that there were limits to the validity of certain laws passed 42 the sugar act was passed to offset part of britain s north american military expenses it began with a 3-pence-per gallon tax and triggered tension between britain and the colonies the act brought a lot of colonial commerce under imperial control as valuable raw commodities would have to pass through britain instead of going directly to foreign ports it also complicated
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the requirements for shipping in that a captain had to have all documents with him to demonstrate his trade legal this was put in place to counteract smuggling the sugar act also discarded english protections for a fair trial vice-admiralty courts now delivered the verdict the enforced tax on molasses caused the almost immediate decline in the rum industry in the colonies the combined effect of the new duties was to sharply reduce the colonists trade with the french west indies an important destination for lumber flour cheese and assorted farm products the situation disrupted the colonial economy by reducing the markets to which the colonies could sell and the currency available to them for the purchase of british manufactured goods 43 the stamp act was passed to force colonists to pay their share of the expenses in maintaining royal troops in north america after the seven years war british prime minister george grenville thought that fairness demanded a larger colonial contribution and enacted the stamp act americans were to use specially marked/stamped paper for newspapers documents wills contracts etc it was an internal tax levied directly on property goods and services in the north american colonies the act raised the issue of representation and taxation colonial opponents argued that there could be no taxation without representation while grenville argued that the colonists had virtual representation that members of parliament represented all constituents of the empire he also believed that colonial assemblies had no powers except those granted to them by parliament these decisions gave rise to widespread protests in america that eventually boiled over into the war for independence these 2 issues of representation and taxation esp external taxation were sources of on-going friction for colonies 44 patrick henry a virginia lawyer and a member of its house of burghesses strongly opposed to the stamp act he helped establish committees of correspondence he convinced the burgesses to adopt resolutions denying parliament s power to tax the colonies 45 loyal nine was created by middle-class artisans and businessmen to fight the stamp act they used mob tactics and threats to drive out stamp distributors who held the exclusive right to sell stamps the use of which the law required they realized that if public pressure could be put on stamp distributors to resign before the tax went into effect the act would not work the loyal nine enlisted the help of boston street fighters to help oust stamp distributors pushing the city to the forefront of resistance 46 sons of liberty evolved from the loyal nine as a secret group of merchants and workers who organized demonstrations against the stamp act their objective was to force stamp distributors who had the exclusive right to sell the required stamps to resign the group applied pressure to any merchants who did not share their opposition they also resisted the tax on tea by instituting a boycott as well as the boston tea party they publicly showed the resentment against england s taxation policy and represented the political organization of the colonists their most effective work was performed in newsprint as a great many of the sons were printers and publishers themselves it was they who would pay the most in duties nearly every colonial newspaper carried daily reports of their activities accounts of their dramatic escapades spread throughout the colonies emboldening both citizens and colonial legislatures 47 stamp act congress/repeal of the stamp act the stamp act congress was a meeting in new york called by the massachusetts legislature at the suggestion of james otis it brought together representatives from nine colonies new york new jersey rhode island massachusetts pennsylvania delaware south carolina maryland and connecticut to discuss what should be done about taxes specifically the stamp act the congress unified the colonies which adopted a declaration of rights and grievances delegates agreed that britain had no right to tax the colonists without their consent or deny any person a fair trial by jury the public outcry against the stamp act became so strong that many stamp distributors fled and many officials refused to carry out the law this triggered panic in england s economy and parliament finally repealed the stamp act in 1766 48 declaratory act was passed by parliament at the same time that it revoked the stamp act it affirmed parliament s power to legislate for colonies in all circumstances colonists saw this as a face saving measure and ignored it parliament envisioned the act to mean that colonists were not exempt from its jurisdiction 49 the quartering act which was passed by parliament in 1765 ordered the colonial legislatures to provide barracks transportation and supplies to british troops stationed in north america because they were protecting the colonists against the french the law aroused much resentment especially in new york where many troops were stationed because it was seen as an indirect tax it also showed the clashing perceptions between the british and the colonists the british believed they were protecting colonists against indians and french while colonists believed that the british were merely protecting their empire 50 revenue act of 1767 also known as the townshend duties were taxes on imports of glass paint oil lead paper and tea to the colonies the act was made by exploiting a loophole in the colonial arguments against the stamp act the colonists had objected to internal taxes but had said nothing about external taxes however it soon became evident that the purpose was not to phase out foreign products by raising their prices but to raise revenue for the crown to pay for governors salaries to make them independent from pressures of the colonial legislatures the colonists protested the placement of taxes for the sole purpose of raising revenue without consent this led to publications by john dickinson and samuel adams adams crafted a circular letter denouncing the townshend duties and calling for boycotts and non-importation though most colonial legislatures refused to abide by the duties they continued to accept parliament as the supreme legislative power over them 51 samuel adams a harvard-educated massachusetts assemblyman and boston tax collector was opposed to the sugar and stamp acts he led the fight against the townshend acts headed demonstrations that led to the boston massacre and directed the boston tea party he galvanized the resources of new england against the british 52 john dickinson/letters from a farmer in pennsylvania dickinson was a delaware planter and a philadelphia lawyer he participated in the stamp act congress where he drafted its resolutions he wrote an important series of essays letters of a pennsylvania farmer regarding the non-importation and non-exportation agreements against england these essays were
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published in london in 1768 by benjamin franklin in 1774 he attended the first continental congress and advocated taking up arms against the british though he opposed independence and abstained from voting on and signing the declaration 53 the daughters of liberty a similar group was comprised of upper-class women who organized spinning bees that allowed americans to buy clothes from the colonies as opposed to those shipped from england they successfully proved that women s involvement in politics could be beneficial their boycott of imported products made america less dependent on british textiles 54 john hancock was the head of a boston mercantile firm and a smuggler he opposed the stamp act and other british trade restrictions in 1768 his ship liberty was seized as a smuggler and confiscated by the crown hailed as a martyr he was elected to the massachusetts legislature where he joined samuel adams in advocating resistance to england he later presided over the continental congress and became governor of massachusetts after the revolution 55 boston massacre 1770 was a conflict between british troops and civilians in boston five civilians were killed by redcoats during their trial the british captain and his men were defended by john adams most were acquitted two others were found guilty of manslaughter and discharged from the army it showed the rising tensions in boston that were partly a result of samuel adams and the sons of liberty s propaganda actions adams used this incident to further incite bostonians against the redcoats he raised the people s emotions by calling the event a massacre in addition he made the whole fiasco an even larger spectacle by holding a martyrs funeral for the victims it was one of the confrontations that led to the revolutionary war 56 the tea act of 1773 eliminated import duties on tea it gave the british east inida company the exclusive right to sell tea in north america and allowed the company to sell tea directly to the consumers instead of through wholesalers thus effectively lowering the price of tea significance the act angered some colonists who thought the british were trying to make them accept parliamentary taxation for the simple sake of tea colonists also recognized that revenue from the tea would eventually end up in the hands of the royal governors thus freeing the governors from their dependence on colonial assemblies for their salaries this anger eventually led to the boston tea party as the committees of correspondence decided to boycott the sale of tea 57 the boston tea party 1773 occurred as the colonists tried to prevent the port authorities in new york and philadelphia from accepting taxed tea and were successful at charleston the tea was landed but was held in government warehouses at boston three tea ships arrived and remained unloaded but gov thomas hutchinson refused to let the ships leave without first paying duties a group of indignant colonists led by samuel adams paul revere and others disguised themselves as native americans boarded the ships on the night of dec 16 1773 and threw the tea into the harbor in reply parliament passed the boston port bill see intolerable acts this was an act of open defiance of the british and tantamount to a declaration of war the intolerable acts that followed exacerbated tensions further paving the way for the continental congress and independence 58 the intolerable or coercive acts were laws imposed by the british on the colonists which limited their political and geographical freedom four of these laws were punishment for the boston tea party rebellion and involving the closure of boston harbor a request for payment for the damaged tea and a demand to quarter troops one of the laws was the quebec act which gave french canadians complete religious freedom recognized catholicism as the established religion of quebec and restored french law in the province furthermore it extended quebec s territorial claims to the ohio river and west of the mississippi an area much desired by the colonists the quebec act ensured canada s loyalty to the crown during the revolution the outcome was the first continental congress 59 the first continental congress was a meeting of delegates from all of the colonies except for georgia it convened in philadelphia in the wake of the intolerable acts and served to deal with colonial complaints and unrest the second congress convened in philadelphia and baltimore after the battles of concord and lexington and reflected the radicalization of the opposition to the british it led to the creation of a continental army with george washington as its commander american ports were opened in defiance of the navigation acts and on july 4 1776 the congress adopted the declaration of independence the first and second continental congresses acted as a legislature for the unified colonies and later the us the first congress most important act was the creation of the continental association which forbade importation and use of british goods and proposed prohibition of colonial exports the second congress most important achievement was to bridge the gap between supporters of the monarchy and supporters of independence while ensuring a transitional leadership for the colonies 60 suffolk resolves endorsed by the first continental congress proclaimed that the colonies owed no obedience to the coercive acts the resolves also advocated for a provisional government until the massachusetts charter was restored and warned that the colonies would defend themselves if royal troops attacked the resolves conceded that parliament can tax colonial commerce but refused to accept the imposition of taxes the enforcement of laws through admiralty courts and the revocation of colonial charters by sending these statements to king george iii instead of parliament the continental congress was demanding that he end the crisis by dismissing the ministers responsible for the coercive acts the king saw this as rebellion for any reply would mean he was recognizing continental congress as a power over his own parliament 61 the olive branch petition was sent to king george iii by the second continental congress demanding a cease-fire in boston the repeal of the coercive acts and the beginning of negotiations to establish guarantees of american rights the petition happened to reach london along with the news of the battle of breeds hill and bunker hill both of which took place outside of boston significance it was an attempt to accommodate the concerns of the loyalists and to present a unified front to the british its rejection by the king due to news of clashes in bunker hill opened the way for the revolutionary war 62 thomas paine/common sense thomas paine wrote common sense a book that sold more than 100,000 copies 1/4 of the adult male population it argued that colonists did not need a connection to britain and that at the root of the conspiracy against
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american liberties lay in the institutions of monarchy and empire the book ended any sentimental attachment colonists may have had to the king popularized idea of independence and helped provide a clear and understandable rationale for secession chapter 6 63 whigs tories whigs were supporters of the revolution those opposed to the revolution called themselves loyalists while the whigs dubbed them tories both opposed parliamentary taxation of the colonies but loyalists believed that separation from england was illegal and was not necessary to preserve the colonists constitutional rights loyalism thrived among ethnic and religious minorities some french german and dutch colonists as well as indians and slaves felt they would be at an even greater disadvantage if a revolution were to occur each side saw its cause as sacred and viewed opposition to it by a fellow american as a betrayal on the eve of the revolution one fifth of the colonial population consisted of loyalists in ny ga and the piedmont the percentage was 25 to 40 percent of the white population 64 continental army/george washington the state militias lacked the training necessary to fight pitched battles during the revolution thus the continental army created by the second continental congress had to rely on precision movements and mass formations of troops the continental army had no experienced officers in 1775 george washington a virginia surveyor an early opponent of parliamentary taxation a former member of the va house of burgesses and a former member of the continental congress was seen as a perfect candidate to head the continental army with his political and military experience washington learned that americans fought best when led by example and treated with respect the continental army did not have to destroy the british army its aim was to prolong the rebellion long enough until britain s taxpayers would no longer support the war effort entrusting the leadership to washington was to ensure va s participation in the drive toward independence 65 the articles of confederation began as a proposal drafted by john dickinson for national government it was sent by the second continental congress to the states for ratification 1781 they reserved each state its sovereignty freedom and independence the articles proposed a unicameral congress elected by the state legislatures and in which each state delegation had one vote the articles allowed congress to request funds from states but could not tax without state approval the articles did not allow congress regulation of interstate or overseas commerce all 13 states had to approve the articles the articles did not provide for executive or judicial branches they became law in march 1781 when maryland finally relented the new government represented an important step in the process of defining the role of national sovereignty and in creating a formal government it reflected the founders apprehensions about mobocracy as well as a centralized government with a strong executive the confederation congress was responsible for the land ordinance of 1785 and the northwest ordinance of 1787 66 battle of yorktown was the culminating battle of the american revolution it took place in virginia by the chesapeake bay british commander lord charles cornwallis hoped to fan out into virginia and pennsylvania and to sever communications between colonists in the south and the north in august 1781 a french fleet in support of the colonists dropped anchor off the coast and landed troops near yorktown conwallis troops became trapped and were forced to surrender ending the war 67 the peace of paris 1783 was the result of peace talks between the american delegation john adams benjamin franklin john jay and the british government in the wake of the revolutionary war it marked the end of the war and recognized american independence it called for the immediate removal of royal troops from us soil and awarded the united states the territory east of the mississippi where many colonists had settled although the settlement favored the us there were many issues it did not address including boundaries between the new nation and spanish territories the american government also promised to urge states to compensate loyalists for lost property many states refused and the issue remained controversial the peace of paris also failed to address the issue of indian lands leaving it open for negotiation with the new nation 68 abigail adams was the wife of president john adams and mother of president john quincy adams a lively intelligent woman she began her social activism as a daughter of liberty she was one of the most influential of the first ladies in us history her detailed letters are a vivid source on her struggle to ensure woman s suffrage in the wake of the revolution 69 jeferson s statute for religious freedom was introduced in 1786 to the virginia legislature to ensure both religious freedom and eliminate established religion it was one of many bills jefferson wrote to create a feeling of equality among the citizens of his state in the wake of the revolution it ended state-run anglican church and brought about a new era of religious acceptance 70 the federalist also known as the federalist papers was a series of eighty-five newspaper articles written by alexander hamilton james madison and john jay in an effort to sway the popular vote of new york during the debates on the ratification of the constitution to the federalists the vote did not end up being swayed significantly the writers tried to show that the main purposes of the constitution were twofold to protect the majority from a radical minority while at the same time protecting minority rights the federalist offers an insight into the original intent of the creators of the constitution since its authors were part of the philadelphia convention since no records were kept at the convention save madison s secret journal the federalist is the only source of such information and thus is one of the most important founding documents it also reflected how the founders used the media to ensure the ratification of the constitution 71 newburgh conspiracy occurred in 1783 during the tenure of the confederation congress it was instigated by then ny congressman alexander hamilton and the confederation s superintendent for finance robert morris a philadelphia merchant who had proposd a 5 tariff to finance the congressional budget when the bill did not pass both hamilton and morris convinced military officers who were stationed in ny to threaten a coup d etat unless the treasury received the power to tax which would then help raise the money to cover the cost of their pay it revealed the economic problems plaguing the military and the country in general in the wake of the revolutionary war the situation was saved because of the personal intervention of president washington who appealed to the soldiers honor and patriotism to prevent an escalation of the conflict.
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72 shays rebellion 178687 was an armed insurrection by farmers in rural western massachusetts against the state government debt-ridden farmers struck by the economic depression that followed the american revolution petitioned the state senate to issue paper money and to halt foreclosure of mortgages on their property and their own imprisonment for debt as a result of high land taxes resentment was particularly high against the commercial interests who controlled the state senate in boston and the lawyers who hastened the farmers bankruptcy by their exorbitant fees for litigation in 1786 when the state senate failed to undertake reform armed insurgents under the leadership of daniel shays a former revolutionary army captain began forcibly to prevent the county courts from sitting to make judgments for debt the governor countered by sending the militia which inflamed the rebels further the rebels were eventually captured shays escaped to vermont and other leaders were sentenced to death for treason in 1787 though they were later pardoned shays was finally pardoned in 1788 the rebellion influenced massachusetts s ratification of the constitution as it proved the fear of mobocracy 73 constitutional convention 1787 the government created by the articles of confederation and adopted by the thirteen colonies soon showed serious faults the threat of economic instability alarmed the wealthy conservative class who were anxious to have a stronger federal government to guarantee order and property rights the men who had money invested in western territories also favored a stronger federal government therefore agitation for the adoption of a stronger union grew steadily in force james madison and george washington in virginia alexander hamilton in new york and james wilson and benjamin franklin in pennsylvania it was chiefly through their efforts that delegates from va pa ny nj and de met at annapolis in 1786 and called for a general convention to revise the articles of confederation to meet at philadelphia in 1787 while it met to revise the articles the philadelphia convention eventually found itself analyzing the va and nj plans which basically redrew the structure of government by writing the us constitution all the states except rhode island sent representatives the delegates mainly came from the wealthier and more conservative ranks of society thus showing their dominance in policy-making in the early republic george washington was elected to preside foreshadowing his emergence as one of the few people all states respected the convention decided the fundamental question of apportionment of power in the new government achieved the great compromise the 3/5 compromise and the commerce compromise 74 the new jersey plan was a proposal that strengthened national government through a unicameral legislature in which each state delegation was treated equally and had one vote it also proposed that the country have one single high court to be responsible for the interpretation of the constitution the nj plan allowed the 7 smallest states 25 of the us population to have their equitable representation in congress when the nj plan was combined with the va plan the great compromise was formed which incorporated the ideas of a bicameral legislature proportional representation and a strong national gov t 75 the virginia plan introduced by james madison during the philadelphia convention it proposed a national government where sovereignty resided in the states it gave congress virtually unrestricted rights of legislation and taxation power to veto state laws and authority to use military force against states the virginia plan proposed a bicameral legislature with proportional representation based on population in both houses the lower of which was elected and the upper was appointed by the lower house the va plan reflected the interests of the southern planters strong states dominating national government and national government dominated by the large states by basing representation on population 76 ordinance of 1785 also known as land ordinance of 1785 issued by the confederation congress established uniform procedures for surveying the region north of the ohio river the law made the basic unit of settlement a township that was six miles square each township was divided into 36 sections of 640 acres with one section reserved as a source of income for public schools each of the 36 sections would support four families on a 160-acre plot each along with the northwest ordinance of 1787 it was a major contribution to american expansion setting principles for surveying the frontier it allowed territorial selfgovernment at an early stage of settlement and provided reasonable standards for statehood 77 northwest ordinance of 1787 issued by the confederation congress defined the land north of the ohio river as the northwest territory and provided for its future division into states it also forbade slavery in this territory the ordinance outlined the 3 steps for admitting states to the union 1congress appoints a territorial governor and judges 2 as soon as 5,000 adult males living in territory the people would write a temporary constitution and elect a legislature and govern itself as a territory 3 when the population exceeded 60,000 people a state constitution would be crafted upon approval by the us congress the territory would be admitted into the union the prohibition of north of the ohio river became an important precedent of government-legislated limitation on the expansion of slavery it also allowed for territorial self-government which encouraged settlement which in turn expedited the process of territories applying for statehood westward expansion chapter 7 78 judiciary act of 1789 was an act of congress that created the federal court system and established a federal district court in each state to be operated according to local procedures the supreme court continued to retain final jurisdiction on constitutional interpretation the power to create this is given to congress in the constitution this act represented a compromise which respected state traditions while still offering the people wide access to federal justice it ensured the federalists that the strong national government will be represented in the way justice was administered across the nation while reassuring democratic republicans the anti-federalists by stipulating that federal district courts in each state would operate according to local procedures this reflected the ongoing tug of war between federalists and anti-federalists on the issues of states rights 79 bill of rights of 1791 consists of the first ten amendments to the constitution james madison played a leading role in the drafting of the bill of rights madison at the time a member of the house of representatives wanted to preserve a strong national government while simultaneously guaranteeing personal liberties the first 8 amendments guarantee personal liberties freedom of expression etc the ninth gives the people rights not enumerated in the constitution the tenth gives to the states or the people powers not delegated to the federal government the bill of rights was an effort to protect people from the tyranny
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that they feared would develop from too strong a federal government also it was the compromise worked out to achieve the ratification of the constitution by those states such as virginia that had concerns over the constitution and federal powers 80 chisholm v georgia/hylton v us/ware v us/eleventh amendment 1798 in chisholm v georgia 1793 the supreme court ruled that a non-resident could sue a state in federal court in hylton v us 1796 the justices ruled that the supreme court had the right to assess and determine the constitutionality of laws issued by the federal government that same year the court established its right to rule on the constitutionality of acts passed by the state governments ware v us in order to circumvent this trend toward the reinforcement of federal powers over the states congress passed the 11th amendment in 1798 the 11th amendment limits federal court jurisdiction by providing that the citizens of one state cannot bring suit in federal court against the government of another state except by its consent nor can the subjects of any foreign country this limitation was extended later by the supreme court to include suits against a state by its own citizens or by a foreign state the amendment however does not restrict the rights of individuals to appeal a decision from the highest court of any state to the u.s supreme court in cases involving federal laws or constitutional issues since these court cases had revealed the vulnerability of states to federal review and action the proponents of states rights pressured congress to pass the eleventh amendment which prevents private individuals from undermining states powers by using the federal courts this showed the ongoing tensions over the issue of states rights in the early republic and showed that constitutional amendments by congress could be used to check what was perceived to be an encroachment on their legislation or states rights 81 report on the public credit was hamilton s policy to help us government repay its debt to americans and foreigners he recommended that the government raise securities [stocks and bonds to honor the revolutionary debt of 54 million this way the debt would be funded that is the federal government would convert its debts into interest bearing bonds which would mature after an assigned period of time those who purchased the securities had several choices as mandated by the constitution the foreign debt and interest would be paid in full according to the terms initially agreed to the principal of the domestic debt would be paid at par to current bearers state debts would be assumed by the federal government with interest payments deferred until 1792 federal stocks would circulate as money thus making capital readily available and encouraging commerce as well as agriculture and manufactures hamilton s plan for revenue was based upon an import tariff and an excise tax the federal assumption of state debts was a chance for the national government to win the gratitude and loyalty of state creditors there was some resentment with this report for the policy rewarded rich profiteers and ignored ordinary citizens hamilton wanted to lure the financial interests of new york and have them invest in the government by enacting the report congress created an opportunity for the new republic to get out of debt 82 report on a national bank presented to congress by secretary of treasury hamilton was intended to direct money towards projects which would diversify the national economy through a federally chartered bank the proposed bank would raise 10 million through a public stock offering hamilton explained that a national bank would provide a safe depository for gov t funds regulate banking practices around the country provide a uniform currency provide capital for investments and industry and loan the government money in times of emergency this federal bank would be able to fund the economic expansion of the new nation the bank would also help to pay off much of the national debt while creating a stable investment for shareholders southerners raised the familiar point that the bank was another policy which would only benefit northern merchants and speculators not the southern planters madison and jefferson challenged the bank proposal by claiming that it was unconstitutional he stated that since the constitution did not explicitly sanction a bank the us government had no power to create one 83 report on manufactures was a report presented to congress by secretary of treasury hamilton he hoped to create protective tariffs on imports and assist the merchant marine against the british trade restrictions this report was meant to create an influx of manufacturing in the us thus drawing immigrants and creating a national wealth jefferson and madison strongly opposed protective tariffs because they argued these tariffs made foreign products highly expensive to consumers and reduced the motivation to produce low-cost goods they also feared that the tariffs would merely benefit the national government and those who had invested in the national bank finally the excise taxes on whiskey led to the whiskey rebellion 84 the whiskey rebellion was a reaction against an excise tax on domestically produced whiskey the tax was suggested by secretary of treasury hamilton in order to distribute the expense of financing the national debt evenly but would also improve the country s morale by lowering liquor consumption if distillers were caught evading the tax they would be summoned to attend court in far off pennsylvania the rebellion began with peaceful protest then in 1794 men attacked a u.s marshal serving delinquent taxpayers with summonses to appear in court roving bands torched buildings assaulted tax collectors and raised a flag symbolizing an independent country they wished to form from six western countries this was the first incident to severely test the new federal authority was a milestone in determining the limits of public opposition to federal policies president washington sent armed forces to quell the rebellion demanding that protestors use the courts rather than the streets to express their dissatisfaction this created an important precedent on how the new gov t would address challenges to national authority 85 mad anthony wayne/treaty of greenville anthony wayne was sent by president washington to negotiate trade agreement with the indians of the ohio valley the indians scoffed wayne until mad anthony led troops into their homeland ravaging villages wayne s troops routed 2000 indians at the battle of fallen timbers he built fort defiance to challenge british authority in the northwest wayne compelled 12 northeastern tribes to sign the treaty of greenville.this was part of president washington s initiative to avoid war with great britain jay s treaty and spain pinckney s treaty and to pacify the indians who could be manipulated by them treaty of greenville treaty of greenville opened up most of ohio river valley to white settlement and temporarily ended indian hostilities also allowed chief justice john jay to gain a promise from the british jay s treaty that they would withdraw troops form american soil.
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86 jay s treaty an agreement signed in 1794 between the british and the americans required the removal of british troops from american soil the treaty also allowed american access to west indian markets it seems as though most americans would not welcome the treaty because it gave britain the ability to control u.s trade with french ports during the war in addition the treaty did not give american merchants the right to load cargoes of sugar molasses and coffee from the caribbean the treaty did not end impressment and failed to gain compensation [to the masters for slaves taken and freed by the british during the revolution despite these limitations american trade actually benefited from the treaty as british governors in the west indies opened their harbors to u.s ships its most important achievement was to end the state of war between britain and the us 87 treaty of san lorenzo also known as pinckney s treaty was brokered between the united states and spain by thomas pinckney in 1796 this treaty established the southern boundary of the us removed spanish forts in the us and ensured spanish cooperation in discouraging indian attacks against western settlers the treaty gave settlers on the western frontier unrestricted and duty-free access to world markets via the mississippi river this helped the washington administration ensure the us s territorial integrity and open the mississippi for western exports 88 the twelfth amendment 1804 provides for the reform of the method by which the electoral college elects the president and vice-president under the constitution the electors were to cast their votes for both offices on a single ballot without specifying which of the two candidates on their ballot was preferred as president and which as vice-president the candidate receiving the highest number of electoral votes would then become president and the runner-up would become vice-president the unforeseen election in 1796 brought together of a president federalist candidate john adams and vice-president democratic republican candidate thomas jefferson from different parties the election reflected another unforeseen result a tie between two presidential candidates thomas jefferson and aaron burr the house of representatives voted for jefferson after a protracted deadlock this triggered the demand for the 12th amendment which provides the following 1 separate ballots are used for each office 2 persons with the greatest number of votes for each office will be elected if that number constitutes a majority of the total electors 3 if no such majority is met for either or both of the two highest offices the house of representatives will then vote for the president from among the three highest candidates and the senate will vote for the vicepresident from among the two highest candidates 4 no person constitutionally ineligible to be president can be vice-president 89 xyz affair to avoid war over the french trade restrictions on american ships president john adams dispatched a peace commission to france but charles de talleyrand the french foreign minister refused to meet with the americans he instead promised through his three unnamed agents x y and z that he would negotiate with the americans after he received $250,000 and france obtained a $12 million loan this bribe known as the xyz affair pitted federalists against democratic republicans federalists supported a strong show of force while republicans tried to excuse french behavior this helped the federalists carry the next congressional elections and adopting defensive measures against france expanding the armed forces 90 alien and sedition acts were four measures passed by the federalist congress in 1798 the alien enemies act was designed to prevent wartime espionage or sabotage it outlines procedures for determining whether a country s citizens when staying in the us posed a threat to national security the alien friends act which was enforceable in peacetime authorized the president to expel foreign residents whose activities were considered dangerous without proof of guilt democratic republicans maintained the federalists passed this law to deport immigrants who were against federalists policies the third law the naturalization act increased the residency requirement for us citizenship from 5 to 14 years to reduce irish voting the sedition act the only one of these laws that applied to us citizens was designed to distinguish between free speech and criminal activity or revolution it forbade an individual or a group to oppose or criticize any gov t measures these acts were designed by the federalist congress to silence the democratic republican opposition the democratic republicans argued that these laws interfered with free speech the federalists wrote the law to expire in 1801 so that it could not be used against them should they lose the next election these laws aroused much discontent because they violated the bill of rights 91 virginia and kentucky resolutions 1798 the passage of the alien and sedition acts led to much criticism in southern and western states democratic republicans warned that the federal gov t was overstepping its powers and jeopardizing the bill of rights they pointed out that since federalists controlled all three branches of government the chances for the checks and balances to work were slim james madison and thomas jefferson wrote two anonymous manifestoes for virginia and kentucky respectively demanding that the states have the right of judicial review so that state legislatures may review the constitutionality of federal statutes they further argued that the states should have the right of interposition standing against the federal government to protect the civil and individual liberties of their citizens they also argued that the states can nullify federal government s actions and decisions if they were considered unconstitutional by the states this showed the potential for rebellion in the early republic as tension between the federalists and democratic republicans increased also it reflected the suspicions by the southern and western states of the powers of the central government and their continued vigilance for potential abuses 92 john adams was the 2nd resident of the united states 1797-1801 during his administration the balance of power between the federal government and the states was threatened by the alien and sedition acts which prompted the kentucky and virginia resolutions in 1798 adams s independent policy averted a war with france spain and great britain through a series of treaties that opened up the seas for american trade a staunch federalist he ensured that his party dominates the three branches of government his ongoing antagonism with alexander hamilton over the nature of federal powers eventually split the federalists as federalists lost the presidency and congress in the 1800 election he expanded the federal courts and made last minute appointments midnight appointments to these new judgeships to ensure the continuation of federalists policies 93 handsome lake was a seneca prophet after a long illness he had a vision 1800 and began to preach new religious beliefs his moral teachings showed a similarity to christian ethics and had a profound effect among the iroquois he advocated giving up the nomadic life in favor of agriculture his efforts reflected the desperate efforts of indian tribes in the post-revolutionary
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period to survive in face of expanding frontier the move of farmers westward and the loss of indian control on the fur trade his efforts were geared toward ending alcoholism and developing a new source of livelihood through agriculture 94 fugitive slave law of 1793 was passed by congress as a means to protect southern property slave rights it stated that to reclaim an escaped slave a master needed only to go before a judge and provide oral or written proof of ownership he would then obtain an order for the arrest of the slave the slaves were not given a trial in court or allowed to present evidence on their own behalf including proof of having previously earned their freedom many northern states passed personal liberty laws that granted fugitive slaves rights such as trial by jury other states such as pennsylvania passed strong kidnapping laws which functioned to punish slave catchers the fugitive slave law angered many free blacks residing in us in january of 1800 a group petitioned for congress to repeal the fugitive slave law and abolish slavery this petition and others like it sent by free blacks was ignored by congress on the basis that blacks were not recognized by the constitution and thus not their equals 95 gabriel prosser was the leader of a planned insurrection of more than 1,000 slaves in richmond va in 1800 the state militia put down the conspiracy and executed 35 slaves as well as prosser significance although isolated slave rebellions continued in the united states for years after gabriel s rebellion the abolitionist movement suffered a setback because of this chapter 8 96 judiciary act of 1801 was sponsored by federalists after the election of 1800 threw them out of the executive and legislative branches the act created 16 new federal judgeships to relieve supreme court justices of circuit riding responsibilities but reduced the number of justices from 6 to 5 the act threatened to strip jefferson of his first opportunity to appoint republicanminded justices to a supreme court dominated by federalists because of adams midnight appointments thus it threatened to perpetuate federalist domination of the judiciary branch it showed the ongoing conflict between the three branches 97 marbury v madison 1803 william marbury was appointed as a justice on the last day of president john adams term but marbury s commission was no delivered jefferson s secretary of state james madison refused to release the commission and thus marbury petitioned the supreme court for a writ of mandamus ordering madison to make the delivery marshall proclaimed that the commission did not have to be delivered to be valid so marbury could actually begin his new position marshall also ruled that although an article of the judiciary act of 1789 did allow the supreme court the right to issue writs of mandamus to other branches of government this was in fact unconstitutional because it destabilized the basic principle of balance of power and checks and balances marshall established the principle of judicial review when he ruled a section of the judiciary act of 1789 unconstitutional this solidified the role of the court as a third coequal branch of the federal government 98 chief justice john marshall an established richmond attorney was a staunch federalist who was appointed the fourth chief justice of the united states supreme court by president john adams as part of his midnight appointments a revolutionary war veteran he had served on a mission to france and great britain and had served as adams secretary of state under his judgeship the supreme court became an equal part of the government able to balance the powers of the executive and legislative branches his beliefs in the supremacy of the constitution and the need for a strong federal government underscored his loose interpretation of the constitution he upheld the government s control of interstate commerce gibbons v ogden and weakened the states powers to control contracts dartmouth college v woodward and federal agencies mcculloch v maryland he also established the principle of judicial review marbury v madison 99 samuel chase s impeachment incoming president thomas jefferson angered about the midnight appointments led the impeachment attack against samuel chase a staunch federalist jefferson claimed that he wanted to impeach chase because he was known for being openly partisan but the trial was actually a test of how involved the other branches could become in the judiciary branch jefferson wished to change the overwhelmingly federalist supreme court chase was acquitted the acquittal of chase put a limit to the intrusions of jefferson into judicial affairs after this the supreme court remained independent and judges did not have to fear impeachment due to differing party ideas 100 louisiana purchase 1803 in 1800 spain returned the louisiana territory to napoleon through the treaty of san ildefonso this frightened jefferson because now the us would be sandwiched between french louisiana and british canada he also feared that if the british seized the territory the us would be surrounded the french attempting to create an empire in the west indies failed miserably after a bloody slave uprising in santo domingo this led them to reconsider their imperial goals in north america this came at a time when the americans were concerned over a last minute spanish decision to prohibit the deposit of american products in new orleans for shipment overseas jefferson then appointed james monroe and robert r livingston to initiate talks with france over the purchase of new orleans and as much of the floridas a possible the congruence of the french and american objectives led to the purchase of all of louisiana for $15 million jefferson passed the purchase off as a treaty which was ratified by the senate although the constitutionality of this problematic treaty was questioned the purchase doubled the size of the us led to westward expansion and set the precedent for american expansion through purchases this new territory included new orleans and the mississippi giving western farmers access to sea outlets for their products it also offered protection from a potential alliance of great britain france and spain against the us finally it weakened the federalisits influence based in the northeast and new york by shifting the country s center of gravity westward 101 lewis and clark expedition 1804 this trip planned before the louisiana purchase became more than just an exploratory expedition after the addition of the large territory jefferson instructed lewis and his assistant clark to chart this new territory take accurate longitude and latitude measurements gather information about indians and study the geography climate and wildlife lewis and clark produced the first map of this area which showed how vast the purchase actually was the large number of indian tribes in the purchase foreshadowed the up coming conflicts that westward settlers would have with them this expedition exited american s interest in the west.
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102 aaron burr and his treason trial aaron burr jefferson s vice president during the first term ran against jefferson in the election of 1804 however alexander hamilton who had thwarted burr s grab for the presidency in 1800 by supporting jefferson now foiled burr a second time by allowing publication of his horrible opinion of burr burr challenged hamilton to a duel and mortally wounded him indicted for murdering alexander hamilton burr joined forces with the military governor of the louisiana territory and launched a campaign to create an independent confederacy of the western states conquer mexico and invade west florida however the governor notified jefferson of the plot and the president denounced burr of conspiracy burr was captured and brought to richmond to stand trial chief justice john marshall used a strict interpretation of the constitution s section on treason to demand that the jury actually prove treasonable acts however since the conspiracy had not really taken place or been completed the jury returned a not proved verdict a clear embarrassment to jefferson this was the first time that section of the constitution was interpreted to convict a high government official and established an important precedent about the meaning and interpretation of that section 103 john randolf the quids the yazoo land scandal john randolph was the virginian leader of a group of democratic republicans known as the quids originally jefferson agreed with their ideas moral superiority of agrarian life but found that once in office he was forced to compromise this alienated the quids the yazoo land scandal turned the quids against jefferson in 1795 the georgia legislature had sold the huge yazoo tract for a fraction of its value to land companies that had bribed virtually the entire legislature though the next legislature canceled the sale many investors had bought in a good faith and brought suit to keep their purchases it was a moral challenge to jefferson because of the good-faith purchases and a political dilemma as well since some of the investors were northerners whom jefferson wanted to attract to his power base the president validated part of the sales the compromise alienated the quids from jefferson john randolph believed jefferson had sold out on his agrarian virtue ideas 104 the embargo act 1807 one of the most controversial pieces of legislation during jefferson s presidency prohibited vessels from leaving american harbors for foreign ports jefferson believed this was a way of forcing france and britain to respect american neutrality but it did not work this reflected jefferson s policy of peaceable coercion although technically the act prohibited exports only it stopped imports as well since foreign ships would not come into us harbors if they could not leave with merchandise therefore us itself felt its harshest effects thousands lost their jobs went bankrupt and debtors swelled the jail population there were some long term gains for the northern states merchants used their capital and began manufacturing cotton mills the non-intercourse act 1809 opened us trade to all nations except britain and france and authorized jefferson to restore trade with either of those nations if it stopped violating neutral us rights however neither nation complied and since american shippers kept up their profitable trade with the british and french despite the restrictions congress passed macon s bill no.2 1810 it reopened trade with both france and britain and stated that if either nation repealed its restrictions on neutral shipping the us would halt all trade with the other these last two acts indicate the collapse of peaceable coercion because they did not prohibit americans from trading with the english and the french and did not prohibit britain from continuing impressment and did not prohibit the french from pressuring americans into joining them by setting them up against the british 105 the war hawks henry clay and john c calhoun elected to congress in the congressional elections of 1810 democratic republicans henry clay of kentucky and john c calhoun of south carolina are known as war hawks they represented the southern and western interests they advocated that war was the solution to the british and french challenges to american foreign policy neutral navigation and trade not peaceable coercion they wanted to expel britain from canada and spain from the floridas the southern planters were concerned with the declining prices and recession of 1808-1810 and westerners feared that the british in canada were recruiting indians to halt their settlement in the louisiana territory though a senate minority by 1812 the war hawks were an influential voice in the country s drive toward war which was highly opposed by federalists 106 tecumseh was the shawnee indian chief who tried to unite several ohio and indiana tribes against westward-moving settlers he tried to revive traditional values to help end continuing loss of tribal lands and to fight alcoholism he and his halfbrother known as the prophet believed that indians had to purge themselves of liquor and corrupting influences of white civilization they did not sign the treaty of fort wayne prepared by indiana gov william henry harrison which had led to the purchase of miamis and delawares lands this reflects the struggle for the control of the ohio river valley and resulted in the battle of tippecanoe which made harrison a national hero and led the shawnee to join the british in the war of 1812 107 the treaty of ghent 1814 signed in ghent belgium between the us and britain ended the war of 1812 at first england demanded territories from america but took back the demand after the battle of plattsburgh the treaty restored the status quo ante bellum which means neither country gained or lost land despite two years of war it brought an end to the war of 1812 after dealing with napoleon england just wanted peace and realized it wasn t worth fighting a minor war in north america the treaty created a joint commission to fix the canadian-american border and did not clarify the impressment issue 108 the hartford convention 1814 was a meeting of new england federalists that convened to express regional grievances to the government in the wake of the war of 1812 some supported secession but moderates eventually prevailed they asked for constitutional amendments to abolish the 3/5ths clause to require a 2/3 majority in congress to go to war and to admit new states into the union to limit presidents to a single term to disallow successive presidents from the same state and to ban all embargoes lasting more than sixty days with the signing of the treaty of ghent and the victory at new orleans these demands lost all public support and were not heeded by the national government the convention represented the fears of new englanders of being marginalized by the expanding country the focus of the country was moving west the embargo was hurting new england trade and the war was damaging their homes and incomes and threatening their safety this convention was the last major political move by the federalists because after its failure to achieve anything the party gradually faded away 109 andrew jackson and the battle of new orleans 1815 two weeks after the treaty of ghent a british forces attacked new orleans.us troops commanded by general andrew jackson succeeded in driving them out inflicting heavy casualties the
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battle was a great victory for the us and jackson a famed indian fighter although it did not affect the outcome of the war the battle of new orleans launched the political career of andrew jackson it also destroyed the support base of the federalist party as their primary views were anti-war and anti-madison the president at a time when this victory had strengthened support for madison and the war federalists lost the next election in a landslide this signified the end of the federalists as a political force 110 dartmouth college v woodward 1819 focused on new hampshire s attempt to transform a private corporation dartmouth college into a state university by taking over its colonial charter and appointing a new board of trustees the supreme court ruled that dartmouth s original charter was a contract and therefore was protected under the contract clause of the constitution which prohibited state interference the court s opinion said that once a state had chartered a college or business it surrendered its power to alter the charter the court thus upheld the sanctity of contracts and private property rights 111 mcculloch v maryland 1819 a landmark supreme court case raises the question of whether the state of maryland had the power to tax an agent of the federal government in this case the baltimore branch of the second bank of the united states chief justice john marshall ruled that the broad sweep or interpretation of enumerated listed in the constitution powers especially of the elastic clause [which gives congress the power to make all laws which shall be necessary or proper for carrying into execution the powers the constitution gives the legislative branch could be construed to imply the power to charter a bank although the constitution did not explicitly grant this power he also ruled that any power of the national government enumerated or implied was supreme within its sphere therefore states could not interfere with the exercise of federal power thus maryland s attempt to tax the bank was clearly unconstitutional marshall s decision dismayed democratic republicans because it placed the unpopular bank beyond the regulatory power of any state government furthermore the decision attacked state sovereignty this case helped marshall establish the principle of federal supremacy and gave the supreme court the exclusive right to interpret the constitution 112 the monroe doctrine 1823 was a message to congress by president james monroe written largely by secretary of state john quincy adams the doctrine stated three principles 1 to avoid european wars unless american interests were involved 2 american continents are not subjects for future colonization by any european power 3 us will look upon european attempts at colonization as unfriendly acts europeans mocked the monroe doctrine as a unilateral demand that the young inexperienced us could not enforce it was europeans fear of britain s royal navy not the monroe doctrine that prevented their involvement in south america the doctrine implied two important us plans 1 the us would not support any revolution in europe 2 the us claimed a preeminent position for itself in the new world by keeping its options open to annex territory in the americas chapter 9 113 the national road begun in 1811 was a highway that reached vandalia illinois by 1838 the road was quite popular as it helped intrastate and interstate commerce and as many westbound settlers traveled along it the road was the result of western lands ceded articles of confederation surveyed and sold land ordinance of 1785 and transformed into states northwest ordinance it had become an important linkage between the original 13 states and the new states created in the louisiana and northwest territories in the wake of the treaty of ghent and the adams-onis treaty the treaties and subsequent national road aided whites and brought misery to the indians the louisiana purchase and adams-onis treaty took spain s protection away from indians and the war of 1812 removed british protection over them while initially opposed by jefferson who did not see transportation as being a federal task the national road involved the federal government in the economy more directly 114 the indian removal act 1830 treaty of new echota/trail of tears the five civilized tribes cherokees creeks choctaws chickasaws and seminoles lived on the piedmont northern georgia and alabama and eastern north and south carolina intermarriage had created influential minorities of mixed-bloods within the tribes these minorities embraced the european culture christianity and agriculture they were generally more cooperative with the us ceding and selling western lands under andrew jackson as gold was found in lands claimed by the cherokee and disputed by georgia the federal government became more involved in trying to find a federal solution to the indian problem at the beginning of his presidency in 1830 jackson pushed the indian removal act through a reluctant congress the act granted the president authority to remove the indians by force if necessary the indian act gave authority to the states to force out or attack indians all of the five civilized tribes were severely affected and eventually removed to indian territory the act was challenged by the cherokee in the us supreme court nonetheless jackson went through with it jeopardizing the balance of power in the republic treaty of new echota 1835 was a fraudulent treaty jackson negotiated with a handful of unauthorized individuals from the cherokee nation it ceded most remaining cherokee lands to the us for 5.6 million in exchange for the indians transportation west principal signers were killed by other cherokees but to no avail their fate was already sealed 16,000 cherokees were forced to walk west to the indian territory between 1835-1838 trail of tears almost 4,000 died in the on the trail to the lands reserved to them in perpetuity in oklahoma indian territory 115 cherokee nation v georgia 1831 when gold was discovered on cherokee tribal lands in 1829 thousands of white settlers sought to move there the state of georgia refused to protect tribal claims acknowledged by previous treaties and passed a law forbidding the cherokee to mine gold the supreme court ruled that the tribe was a domestic dependent nation under the guardianship of the federal government and not subject to state jurisdiction marshall denied georgia its desire to deal independently with the cherokee nation marshall used the case to reinforce federal powers and to provide a final legal solution to the indian problem under federal jurisdiction worcester v georgia 1832 samuel worcester a pastor working with the cherokee was arrested for violation of a georgia law requiring whites to get permits to work in the cherokee territory the supreme curt declared the cherokee nation to be sovereign and reiterated its decision in cherokee nation that all dealings with them fell under federal jurisdiction marshall further ruled that the laws of georgia had no force within cherokee lands jackson ignored marshall s decision and used federal troops to remove the indians trail of tears
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116 panic of 1819 was a period of economic recession under james monroe state banks issued their own bank notes promising to pay the holder a certain amount of specie in gold or silver this led to more borrowing and use of credit because the bank notes were plentiful as westward expansion allowed opportunities for land purchases at competitive prices and as the industrial revolution in england created larger demands for cotton and wheat more and more farmers and planters borrowed relying on the hopes of profits and large harvests to pay their debts however unrestricted speculation and an unexpected economic slump in england jeopardized the repayment of the loans when the bank of the united states started insisting that state banks deal in specie the state banks demanded that farmers and planters pay their loans in specie this made land prices collapse because farmers could not pay their debts land speculators could not collect their money this led to much distrust of banks especially the bank of the united states this helped with jackson s veto on the renewal of its charter americans recognized how vulnerable their factories were to foreign competitors and wanted higher tariffs and farmers realized how dependant on distant markets they were and tried to find better cheaper ways to transport goods national road erie canal 117 gibbons v ogden 1824 is a landmark supreme court case concerned with federal control of interstate commerce aaron ogden had purchased monopoly rights to running a ferry in new york and he thought it was also a monopoly of moving things from new york to new jersey ogden filed a suit against gibbons who had been given a license by the federal government to service coastal waterways in the new york area the supreme court upheld gibbons right to his concession by stating that gibbons license was valid marshall upheld the national government s right to regulate interstate commerce this also showed that marshall felt that the federal government should be superior to the states this decision came at a time when such interstate transportation projects such as the national road and the erie canal were raising issues of state and federal jurisdiction 118 missouri compromise 1820 was a series of congressional agreements to resolve the conflict over accepting missouri a slave state into the union because it would unbalance the equal power between slate and free states 11 each in 1820 james tallmadge jr r-ny tried to work out a compromise by proposing a prohibition on the importation of new slaves into missouri and by requiring that existing slaves be emancipated after a certain age the proposal did not pass a divided senate congress admitted maine as a free state and missouri as a slave state to balance the number of free states and free states it also prohibited slavery in the remainder of the louisiana purchase north of the 36°30 missouri s southern border it also prohibits missouri from discriminating against the citizens of other states from entering missouri the compromise was largely considered a southern victory because the south had gained admission of missouri the compromise also reinforced the principle that congress could prohibit slavery in some territories votes in congress reflected the clear divisions between north and south and between the fading federalists and the democratic republicans 119-120 erie canal 1825 which stretched ten times longer than any existing canal in north america linked lake erie to the hudson river new york city and the atlantic ocean in 363 miles from buffalo to albany the erie canal was part of the canal boom that slashed shipping costs before the canal transporting wheat corn and oats were three six and twelve times its market value respectably the erie also dramatically cut freight charges which dropped from 19 cents to 2 cents a ton per mile between the 2 cities these reductions dramatically helped transportation and shipping costs this was the first major canal project in north america boston manufacturing company/lowell mills the boston manufacturing company opened in 1813 built textile mills in the massachusetts towns of lowell and waltham within a 40 mile radius of boston unlike the mills of samuel slater in pawtucket rhode island the boston manufacturing company turned out finished products the workers in the lowell mills were mostly unmarried women who were 15-30 years old the company enforced high moral standards and controlled employees lives outside the factory e.g church attendance housing etc working conditions were extremely poor and wages were low this was part of the industrial boom that began with robert fulton s and robert livingston s steam engine north and with eli whitney s cotton gin south 121 alexis de tocqueville and democracy in america de tocqueville was a french nobleman who came to america and was one of many who sensed changes sweeping over the country his classic democracy in america cited the general equality of condition among the people as the fundamental shaping force of american society he was also aware of inequalities in that society and saw the divisions between the classes he also observed that americans were a society of joiners chapter 10 122 john quincy adams son of former president john adams and secretary of state to james monroe became president in 1824 he made several decisions that made his presidency controversial and ensured him a sing-term presidency he alienated supporters by appointing his opponents to high office as well he infuriated southerners by sending american delegates to a conference of newly independent latin nations thus recognizing haiti the black republic created by slave revolutionaries in addition his administration was marred by charges of a corrupt bargain levied by jackson s supporters during the election of 1824 none of the three candidates jq adams andrew jackson and henry clay had achieved a majority of the electoral votes and the decision had been transferred to the house however when clay threw in his support to adams in exchange for his appointment as secretary of stae jackson cried foul this election led to the division of the democratic republican party 123 martin van buren was andrew jackson s vice-president second term before becoming president in 1836 a new york politician who controlled a statewide party machine he was instrumental in bringing together the forces within the democratic republican party who had supported jackson in the election of 1824 to form the democratic party by 1828 he believed that the election had shown the necessity of a two-party competition for elected office to concentrate the votes around the parties choices and to avoid the rise of splinter groups within a party this movement split jefferson s democratic republican party into the supporters of jackson and van buren who began to call themselves democrats and the national republicans later called whigs who backed john quincy adams and henry clay this led to the creation of the second party system see #132
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124 national republicans/whigs the national republican party formed in the split of the democratic republican party after the 1824 election the national republicans endorsed the presidency of john quincy adams and enjoyed the support of henry clay they brought together the remnants of the federalist party and western farmers who supported a strong central government a national bank and the printing of paper money during jackson s second term the national republicans changed their name to the whig party by 1836 whigs had become a national party with widespread appeal as jackson s policies alienated his followers some began to side with the whigs eventually the party split over slavery 125 maysville road veto in 1830 jackson vetoed a bill that would provide federal support for a road in kentucky between maysville and lexington similar to most southerners jackson maintained that federal support for internal improvements was simply a lavish give-away as well he thought that it violated the constitution that said that the congress could only provide money for national purposes this veto enhanced jackson s popularity in the south 126 tariff of abominations/john c calhoun this high protective tariff was passed under president john quincy adams in 1828 it inevitably raised the price of domestically manufactured goods and proved to be more profitable for new englanders and western farmers however it was greatly opposed in the south because england who purchased most of the southern cotton and produced textiles which it then sold in the us became reluctant to rely on southern cotton if that meant that british textiles would have to be charged a tariff as they were imported into the us the crisis came to a head when andrew jackson became president while the president considered a compromise solution vice president john c calhoun who had his own presidential ambitions lent his support to south carolina s efforts at the nullification of what had come to be called the tariff of abominations this tariff created a rift between calhoun and jackson jackson s support base was mainly in the west so southerners felt as though their president was not heeding their interests this hostility led to a major crisis over nullification where south carolina declared that the state was to nullify the tariff jackson even feared the outbreak of a civil war in the south the crisis ended when the president signed the compromise tariff of 1833 127 compromise tariff of 1833/force bill were measures proposed by president jackson to get out of the nullification crisis created by the tariff of abominations the compromise tariff gradually lowered the tariff duties on imports the force bill allowed the president to use force if necessary to collect duties in south carolina these compromises reflected the president s policy of the olive branch and the sword making a concession with one measure and flexing the muscle with the other jackson had to do whatever possible to prevent secession or a civil war the compromise was worked out by henry clay who wanted to take the control of the tariffs issue away from the executive branch 128 henry clay s american system involved ideas such as federal support for internal improvements tariff protection for new industries and the rechartering of the national bank that clay proclaimed would help make the nation economically selfsufficient this system led to congress chartering the second bank of the united states and enacting a moderate tariff however after the war of 1812 when congress tried to pass an internal improvements bill that was to be federally supported madison vetoed it claiming that a constitutional amendment was needed in order to permit such improvements 129 the national bank or the bank of the united states under the leadership of its president nicholas biddle was first chartered under washington it was rechartered in 1816 as the second bank of the united states based in philadelphia rather than washington dc it was established and operated as a private organization in which the federal government was a shareholder along with foreign and local investors it was the official repository of federal funds and therefore had a larger lending power than state banks it controlled the ability to print and lend paper money and specie the bank was blamed for the panic of 1819 since it included foreign investors and was a privileged institution that viewed itself as above politics and separate from the federal government the bank came under much suspicion that eventually resulted in jackson s decision not to renew its charter which was due to expire in 1836 jackson was concerned that the foreign investors in the bank could at any time pull out their moneys jeopardizing us economy he vetoed the bank s rechartering and began removing money from the bank and put it in state banks further reinforcing his advocacy for states rights the money issue eventually split the democratic party between supporters of soft money paper strong in the west and those who advocated the use of hard money specie 130 the panic of 1837 was a depression that occurred after andrew jackson left office but was due primarily to his policy of placing federal funds in state banks this resulted in inflation affecting mostly manufactured goods and land an increase in the number of banks and in the value of notes banks were issuing and which they promised to redeem in specie after jackson s presidency prices fell and banks suspended specie payments causing an economic crisis the panic was caused in part by jackson s specie circular of july 1836 declared that only specie could be used to purchase land which dried up credit during the large scale westward expansion of the 1810-1830s it was also caused by britain s decision to stop its flow of specie to the u.s the panic led to president van buren s signing of the independent treasury bill in 1840 this showed that the us will be subject to economic crises so long as there was no agreement as to which type of currency to use and how and who regulates lending 131 the independent treasury bill was adopted under president van buren in 1840 it created an independent treasury for the safe-keeping of government funds keeping them away from the control of corporations the bill was created as a solution for the panic of 1837 it reflected the jacksonian suspicion of an alliance between the federal government and banking it helped save the federal government from financial problems caused by the fluctuations of the state banks and corporations unrestricted and unregulated lending policies however it failed to address the increase in the number of state banks an issue that launched another wave of speculative lending for westward expansion and divided the whigs and the democrats 132 second party system came about after the election of 1824 when the democratic republican party of jefferson split into the democratic party led by andrew jackson and martin van buren and the national republicans later called whigs led by john quincy adams and later by henry clay and william henry harrison the whigs which included the remnants of the
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