The Republican Betrayal

The role of presidential power in challenging republican convictions

I. American Expansion

A. Population Growth

• Between 1800-1810, the population of the country increased by 2 million

• 84% of the population were farmers

• Sectionalism was a growing reality both north and south

B. Growth in the West

• There was much movement west—by 1840, one-third of the US population lived across the Appalachian Mountains

• By 1820, 10 new states were added and several territories were organized

B. Growth in the West (cont)

• Key to the growth was water transportation

• The culture of the west--Daniel Boone--Mike Fink

• Continuing problems with Indians--Tecumseh and the Prophet

C. Commercial Expansion

• Cotton exports doubled between 1790-1810

• The importance of the New England merchant marine--The Barbary Pirates

• Combination of cotton exports and carrying trade produced a 500% increase in net American profits between 1793-1807

C. Commercial Expansion

• Most urban professions were related to shipping and cities were relatively isolated

• The carrying trade discouraged industrialization

• Fulton’s steamboat on the Hudson River (1807)

II. The Presidency of Thomas Jefferson (1801-1809)

• Little pretense and a lack of personal charisma

• Selected only loyal cabinet officers

• Washington, D.C. as a “frontier”-type town

A. Achievements

• Did not exercise a veto in 8 years

• Reduced the national debt--$83 million in 1801 to $45 million in 1808

• Establishment of West Point in 1802

A. Achievements (cont)

• Contributes to the decline of the Federalist Party

--Removed only 109 of 433 Adams’ appointees in 1801

• The Louisiana Purchase (1803)

--Lewis and Clark Expedition (1804-1805)

--Sacajawea

B. Failures

• Attack on the Judiciary--Marbury v. Madison (1803)--First national example of “judicial review”--John Pickering and Samuel Chase

• Republican party disunity• Tertium Quids: “A Third

Something”--John Taylor and John Randolph

B. Failures (cont)

• Problems with Aaron Burr--Secession attempts in New York and the West--Found innocent of treason

• The divisive issue of slavery

• Growing Tension with the British--The Embargo of 1807

• Embargo contributes to American industrialization

III. Questions Historians Ask About War

• What are the origins or causes of a war?

• Where and how was the war fought?

• What were the results or consequences of the war?

• What impact did the war have on the home front(s)?

IV. The War of 1812

• Growing problems with British

--Interference with American Shipping (Impressment)

--Stirring up Indians: Battle of Tippecanoe (1811)

--Defense of National Honor

--land hunger for Canada

--Spain as refuge for escaped slaves

A. Where and How the War was Fought

• War of 1812 = “unrepublican” action

• Lack of American preparedness for the War

• American strategy in the War

• Andrew Jackson’s attack on Florida

• Naval Battles on the Great Lakes--Oliver Perry and the Battle of Put-in-Bay

A. Where and How the War was Fought (cont)

• Burning of Washington, D.C.

• The Siege of Fort McHenry (Baltimore)

• The War of 1812 was a very strange war--War begins just when relations improve with the British

• The Battle of New Orleans (January, 1815)

B. Results and Consequences of the War of 1812

• Treaty of Ghent (December 24, 1814)

--Henry Clay and John Quincy Adams

--status quo antebellum

• The war bolstered American nationalism

• The war created a new generation of political leaders: Clay, Calhoun, Webster, Jackson

B. Results of the War (cont)

• The war encouraged US manufacturing

• The war sends the Federalist Party into extinction--The Hartford Convention (late 1814)--Note reversals of roles: Federalists want states rights and Republicans want more national power