U. S. History, 17A
Study Guide 5
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Study Guide 5
Nation of Nations
Chapter Eight
Crisis and Constitution
Answer the following questions:
1. After the revolution, the newly independent
colonists
did not identify themselves as members of a nation, but they identified
deeply with their ___ and even more deeply with their ___.
2. It followed that, for a decade after
independence,
the
revolutionaries were less committed to creating an American nation than
to ____.
I. Republican Experiments
3. Americans believed that republican governments
were best
suited to ___ . Why? (three reasons)
4. From the republican perspective of 1776, what
was
the
greatest problem of any government? Consequently, what were five
of the powers denied to the new state governors?
5. After the revolution, the state legislatures
gained more
power at the expense of the executive. How was it ensured that the
newly
powerful legislatures truly represented the will of the people?
6. The revolutionaries insisted on written state
constitutions
because they believed that constitutions should be ____?
7. What was the name of the first national
constitution?
What year was it first approved by the Second Continental Congress?
What
year did it go into effect?
8. What powers was the new national legislature
(or
congress)
given under the Articles of Confederation?
9. What two important powers were denied to the
Congress
under the Articles of Confederation?
10. If the Congress was denied the power to tax
under
the
Articles of Confederation, how would the Congress raise money for the
operation
of the government? (Answer: the states were supposed to contribute
funds
at Congressional request. As you might imagine not much money was
raised
from the states under these circumstances)
II. The Temptations of Peace
11. What was the western boundary of the
United
States
in 1790?
12. What states were eventually carved out of the
Northwest
territory?
13. How did the Ordinance of 1785 organize this
Northwest
territory?
14. Why did lots sell slowly in the Northwest
territory?
How did Congress finally sell at least 6 million acres there?
15. Under the Northwest Ordinance of 1787, what
was
the status
of slavery in the Northwest territory?
16. African-Americans constituted ___ % of the
total
population
of the colonies in 1775? What percent of those lived in the south?
17. Although no southern state legally abolished
slavery,
the legislatures of most northern states provided for the immediate or
gradual abolition of slavery. Why?
18. How had Congress and the states financed the
fighting
during the war for independence? Combined with a wartime shortage of
goods,
this triggered ___ ?
19. Why didn't the national Congress stop
this?
III. Republican Society
20. After the revolution, what was the most
significant reform
of the republican campaign against artificial privilege?
21. How much alcohol did colonials consume
compared
to Americans
today?
22. Laborers often received ___ as part of their
wages?
23. Until the middle of the 18th century, most
colonials
considered spirits an ___ ?
24. What was the most popular form of distilled
liquor in
America in the middle of the 18th century, (before the revolution)? And
after? Why?
IV. From Confederation to Constitution
25. Why did Daniel Shays and mobs of farmers
close
the county
courts in western Massachusetts in 1786?
26. How did conservatives view Shays' Rebellion?
27. Shays' Rebellion provided the necessary jolt
to a
movement
that was already under way to ____ ?
28. How many delegates met to disscuss the
revision
of the
Articles of Confederation? Where and when did they meet?
Who
presided over the meetings? How did he differ from most of his
colleagues?
29. Who, more than anyone else, shaped the
framing of
the
new federal Constitution?
30. Madison's Virginia Plan proposed a bicameral,
(or
two-house)
legislature. How would representation be apportioned in this new
legislature?
How would this be a change from practice under the Articles of
Confederation?
31. How many houses of Congress were proposed
under
the New
Jersey Plan, and how would it apportion representation?
32. How did Franklin's compromise over
representation
satisfy
both the small and large states?
33. The size of each state's population
determined
which
plan it supported. Explain.
34. How many people would it take to be eligible
for
one
representative? How much would slaves count in determining each state's
population?
35. For what 3 reasons did the delegates believe
that
electors
would do a better job of electing the president?
36. How would each state's share of electoral votes
in the
Electoral College be determined?
37. Why did the delegates reject the idea of
letting
the
people elect the president directly?
<> 38. What powers were given to the new
president
under
the
Constitution?
39. Under the Constitution, what two powers were
given to
the Congress that were denied to the the Congress under the Articles of
confederation?
40. What four powers did the states enjoy under
the
Artilcles
of Confederation that were denied to the states under the Constiltution?
41. Under the Constitution, which laws prevailed
in
case
of a dispute -- the laws of Congress or the laws of the states?
42. How are amendments to the Constitution
proposed
and ratified?
When was the Constitution signed by the delegates in Philadelphia?
43. What was one of the greatest misgivings of
the
Anti-Federalists
about the new Constitution?
44. What was the other misgiving of the
Anti-Federalists
about the new Constitution?
45. How did Madison counter these concerns?
(These
are outlined
in the tenth of the Federalist Papers written in support of the
Constiltution,
usually referred to as Federalist #10.)
<> 46. What was the most impressive legacy of
the
anti-federalists?
47. What was the one Anti-Federalist
criticism of
the
constitution
that Madison could not dispute?<>
Please click on the site, Federalist
#10, read the selection there, and then answer the following
questions
48. What is a faction? How can the causes
of
factions
be eliminated?
49 How can the effects of factions be
controlled?
50. Why are factions controlled better in large
republics
than in small ones?
Assignments
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Revised February 28,
2008
by Tom Gallup, e-mail address: tom_gallup@westvalley.edu
West Valley College
http://www.westvalley.edu/wvc/ss/gallup/gallup.html