The United States had a turbulent start in the year 1789, as a new, vulnerable nation, desperately trying to gain respect from foreign countries. The country’s first president, George Washington, was beginning to shape the foundation of the government, while facing large economic problems, both foreign and domestic. The Federal Government issued taxes on goods, causing much colonial unrest. Meanwhile, political party spirit became very prevalent as well as a geographical divide; the country was a long way from becoming as united and stable as it was in 1816. Although the Embargo Act hurt America’s foreign policy, domestic and foreign affairs from 1789 through 1816 beneficially impacted the United States because of the Louisiana Purchase and …show more content…
When France took control of the Louisiana territory in March 1801, they closed the port of New Orleans in the Mississippi River to American farmers. President Thomas Jefferson feared the establishment of a French colonial empire in North America, and sent United States minister Robert R. Livingston and other negotiators to France in order to purchase New Orleans and as much of the Gulf Coast as possible. Two years later, when France failed to repress the Haitian Revolution and continued war with Great Britain, they had no other option but to sell the Louisiana territory to the United States for a price of $15 million for about 828,000 square miles. American and French negotiators established a treaty that doubled America’s national territory and went into effect in December 1803. As John Bakeless expressed in “History’s Greatest Real Estate Bargain”, The Louisiana Purchase gave the United States control of the most fertile land in the world and immense resources to provide for a growing population. Therefore, there was was more land for farming, which helped America to become self sufficient. Agriculture was able to improve and expand because of the rich land and newfound resources. John Bakeless also ranted about the improvement of geography. By expanding the United States territory, new, exciting animals and plants were discovered, along with vast resources. Therefore, the new land …show more content…
The war involved Canada, America, the Native Americans, and Great Britain, and was fought over maritime rights from 1812 through 1814. It was America’s second and last war against the British. Great Britain continued to attack American ships, convincing United States Congress to finally declare war on the British. The United States attacked Canada, which was seen as territorial aggression. As Donald Hickey, a professor of history at Wayne State College, argued in “An American Perspective on the War of 1812”, the war encouraged national self-confidence and provided the republic with a new selection of saying, symbols, and songs that helped Americans define who they were and what they stood for. For instance, “the Star Spangled Banner” was written by Francis Scott Key at the infamous bombardment of Fort McHenry. As a result of the war, the United States was able to adopt the song as their national anthem, representing the bravery and the perseverance of Americans. In addition, Donald Hickey mentioned the triumphs that the United States army faced at many of the battles in the War. America was successful at the Thames in the Northwest, Chippewa and Lake Erie, Baltimore in the Chesapeake, and the Battle of New Orleans, to name a few. These victories proved that America was capable of taking on the British, which established power and
The victory of the War of 1812 was a huge leap toward America becoming its own nation because of the national unity the win provided its citizens. The morale of the citizens lifted greatly because they managed to defeat the greatest military powers of the world and managed to survive. It also proved to the world that the american nation could defend itself from foreign threats. The victory improved America’s self confidence and faith in the military to defend the natiosn freedom and honor.
George Washington contributed in helping establish a stable government after the adoption of the Constitution. Washington negotiated treaties to help stabilize the United States government. The first treaty was the Jay Treaty with Great Britain. This treaty was to address any loose ends that America had with its mother country including unfair trade policies, presence of British troops, and impressment of American sailors. Impressment was when the British would kidnap American sailors and force the sailors to work in their military under brutal conditions. Through the treaty, the U.S. realized on an international level how weak America appeared, as well as not have much negotiating power with Great Britain in the treaty. People disliked how the United States gave into Britain’s negotiations. Although the Jay Treaty did not do much for America, the Pinckney Treaty did. This treaty was negotiated with Spain, who controlled New Orleans at the time, and allowed the Unites States to use the New Orleans port to trade. This was considered a very successful accomplishment, as farmers in the Northwest Territory could now ship their goods down by the Mississippi River to trade. Washington also helped to
One’s ability to analyze the motives of the Framers necessitates some understanding of the sense of national instability instilled in the US its first form of government, the Articles of Confederation in granting little power to the central government; in particular, focusing on the economic turmoil and it’s effects on the Framers. In his analysis of America in the Articles, Beard comprehensively summarizes the failures of the Articles as compromising to the “national defense, protection of private property, and advancement of commerce,” (Beard, 36) in the US. Additionally, Beard utilizes these indisputable truths to establish a case for what he believes to be the self-interested influences that urged the Framers to craft an undemocratic Constitution. As Beard puts it, the state centered control of the US under the Articles caused the economic
The United States acquired the Louisiana Territory from France in 1803, thereby gaining control of the Mississippi River, and its watershed at the golf of Mexico. The U.S. government realized how important this was and its potential of becoming a great trading post. By 1812 this area called New Orleans grew as expected in size and importance. In peace it was a commercial outlet and trading center of the western United States.
In the year of 1800, Jefferson ran for the second time averse to former president, John Adams but unlike the previous election, John Adams wins the presidency, Jefferson was able to defeat John Adams. The Adams lost the election due to passing the Alien and Sedition Acts, Considered unconstitutional laws because the Acts took away the first amendment, freedom of speech. Jefferson was a more promising choice as he promised to have a “Republican Revolution”, Jefferson promised to help the yeoman farmer and decrease the Federal debt the United States had at the time period. Jefferson’s presidency was to a certain extent a “Republican Revolution” and to a certain extent it was a Federalist Continuation.
The Louisiana Purchase stands as an iconic event today that nearly doubled the size of America, ultimately introducing the United States as a world power. In 1762, during the Seven Years’ War, France ceded its control of the Louisiana Territory to Spain (Britannica). However, when Napoleon Bonaparte assumed control of France in 1799, France rallied as a world power once more. Bonaparte’s interest in the Louisiana Territory spiked, and he pressured Spain’s king, Charles IV to relinquish his control of the land on October 1, 1800. This was known as the Treaty of San Ildefonso (Britannica). In view of the transfer between France and Spain, president Thomas Jefferson sent Robert R. Livingston to Paris in 1801. Jefferson became worried, because
It also allowed for continued easy trade through New Orleans, which was a major motivation to make the Purchase (History). However, it did have its negative consequences, namely that, while France may have sold the land, many Native Americans still considered it their home, and for Jefferson’s plan to fill the land with farmers to succeed, they would have to be removed, additionally much of the wildlife on this frontier suffered. Though this probably would have happened even if Jefferson did not make the purchase, his action did speed up the
As the new century approached, a national crisis began to develop in the United States. The nation faced a severe depression, nationwide labor unrest and violence, and the government’s inability to fix any of the occurring problems. The Panic of 1893 ravaged the nation and became the worse economic crisis of its time. The depression’s ruthlessness contributed to social unrest and weakened the monetary system’s strength, leading to a debate over what would be the foundation of the national currency. As the era ended, the US sought to increase its power and strength. America began expanding its oversees empires, eventually drawing itself into numerous war efforts and creating an anti-imperialist movement that challenged the government. At the turn of the century, America became engrossed in numerous economic and social tribulations, as well as foreign problems rooted in imperialism and the pursuit of the new manifest destiny.
The Louisiana Purchase came as a surprise that neither Thomas Jefferson nor anyone else had ever dreamed of. It began with Thomas Jefferson sending two men, James Monroe and Robert R. Livingston, to Paris to negotiate the acquisition of New Orleans with the government of the feared Napoleon Bonaparte. Napoleon had roused fears once France acquired Louisiana from the Spanish. Concerned with French intentions, Thomas Jefferson took immediate action and sent his two men to negotiate. The negotiation didn’t go as intended at all. We asked to buy New Orleans, but Napoleon offered the entire Louisiana Territory. Apparently, Napoleon had little use for Louisiana. He also couldn’t spare any troops to defend the enormous amount of territory. Napoleon needed funds more than anything, so he could support his military ventures in Europe. This led to the exhilarating time of April, 1803 when Napoleon offered to sell Louisiana to the United States.
The Louisiana Purchase was the most important event of President Thomas Jefferson's first Administration. In this transaction, the United States bought 827,987 square miles of land from France for about $15 million. This vast area lay between the Mississippi River and the Rocky Mountains, stretching from the Gulf of Mexico to the Canadian Border. The purchase of this land greatly increased the economic resources of the United States, and cemented the union of the Middle West and the East. Eventually all or parts of 15 states were formed out of the region. When Jefferson became president in March 1801, the Mississippi River formed the western boundary of the United States. The Florida's lay the south, and the Louisiana Territory to the west. Spain owned both these territories.
There wasn’t much issue surrounding the purchase of the Louisiana Territory. A war wasn’t even required to acquire the land as document 5 explains. The major problem was that the Federalist Party argued that the Louisiana Purchase was a worthless dessert, and the constitution did not provide for the acquisition of new land or negotiating treaties without the consent of the Senate (Document 5).
During the period 1800-1817, the Jeffersonians to a great extent compromised their political principles and essentially “out Federalized the Federalists”. While traditional Jeffersonian Republicanism advocated a strict interpretation of the Constitution and an emphasis on an agrarian economic system, the actual policies of Presidents Thomas Jefferson and James Madison were markedly different from their theoretical principles. This obvious compromise of Jeffersonian principles is evident in the Federal government’s assumption of broad-based political powers and institution of capitalistic Hamiltonian economic reforms, both of which stemmed from Jefferson and Madison’s adoption of broad constructionist policies.
Did Thomas Jefferson make the right deal on purchasing the Louisiana Territory in 1803? I believe Thomas Jefferson made the right choice of accepting the deal Napoleon Bonaparte offered. The Louisiana Purchase was one of the biggest and cheapest land deals in United States history. The Louisiana Purchase involved two countries, the United States and France, and a big bill for the newly formed United States. Thomas Jefferson doing his best to follow the constitution would soon find it difficult to do so. When Spain gave the Louisiana territory back to France, Jefferson was hit with a dilemma. Thomas Jefferson was caught between his ideas and reality, and with the Pinckney Treaty now void, Jefferson had to find a way to get access to the Mississippi
The Louisiana Purchase was the most influential and important land purchases in American history. The acquired land in this historical purchase proved to far outweigh what most Americans at the time could imagine. The Louisiana Purchase more than doubled the size of the United States, and lead to many great discoveries and societal benefits. Some of the major and most prominent ways that the Louisiana Purchase influenced the evolution of American were the expeditions of Louis and Clark on the newly acquired westward territory, increase in the countries resources, which in turn increased in trade and resulted in a richer, more economically stable country, and it also played a very pivotal role in the relationship with African Americans, which still is remembered and prevalent in today's society.
In 1803 the United States would make the largest and possibly most controversial land purchases in American history, the Louisiana Purchase. During the years leading up to this event the United States was still trying to solidify a national identity. There were two subjects that were causing for division of the new national identity, one being westward expansion. The Northern states and Federalists opposed the idea of westward expansion while the Southern States and the Jeffersonians backed this purchase. Although there was a struggle for a single national identity and this controversial purchase did not aid in finding that single identity, it was still the right decision for the United States. By purchasing this land from the French the United States would not share a colonial boundary with the French who were continuing to gain power under Napoleon. Purchasing the Louisiana Territory would prove to be beneficial for the United States for more reason than one.