After a fiercely fought revolution, the newly independent American nation struggled to establish a concrete government amidst an influx of opposing ideologies. Loosely tied together by the Articles of Confederation, the thirteen sovereign states were far from united. As growing schisms in American society became apparent, an array of esteemed, prominent American men united in 1787 to form the basis of the United States government: the Constitution. Among the most eminent members of this convention were Alexander Hamilton, Aaron Burr, James Madison, and Thomas Jefferson. These men, held to an almost godly stature, defined the future of the nation; but were their intentions as honest as they seemed? Joseph J. Ellis’s groundbreaking Founding Brothers …show more content…
Many northerners, Benjamin Franklin among them, began to question the legitimacy of the revolutionary ideal of liberty, if the same rights weren’t awarded to everyone. After landing the presidential seat of the Pennsylvania Abolition Society, Franklin started to protest the racist claims of his Southern counterparts (they argued that slaves were incapable of integrating into society). He also proposed legislation that called for the eventual emancipation of all slaves. After Franklin’s death in 1790, the political conversation about slavery halted. Ellis claims the discourse went “silent”. Never directly mentioned in the Constitution, and commonly refereed to as “others”, African Americans were often denied existence in the Constitutional Conventions. James Madison embodied the complacency of the average white American man. Ellis describes his thinking as “a kind of mysterious region where ideas entered going in one direction but then emerged headed the opposite way.” (114). The Southern founding fathers, Madison included, acknowledged the moral evils of the slave trade but many of them slave owners themselves, did not desire an end to it, admittedly for their own profit. These men, the most educated and powerful of the era, had the chance to abolish the system of which many of them deemed immoral while creating the republic, but failed to as they were concerned only with their …show more content…
The topic of the night was the national debt crisis. Alexander Hamilton, a strong supporter of federal assumption, and James Madison, a loyal Virginian, were among the guests of this carefully calculated soiree. Personal motivations of wealth and power guided their conversations. Hamilton’s economic plan was devised to benefit the urban elite, who were, in his mind, the keystone of American economics. States like Virginia that had managed to pay off large amounts of their debt, now risked being charged more in new taxes under Hamilton’s plan. Jefferson protested Hamilton’s proposal for this reason, predicting that the most important citizens of his Republican vision, the yeoman farmers, would suffer. By the end of the night a compromise had been made that appeased both parties: the federal government would assume the national debt, and in turn, the capital of the nation would move from Pennsylvania to Virginia, an easily accessible region for Jefferson and Madison. Their quiet conversations clearly displayed their sole concern for themselves, not the American people. In addition, the fact that their compromise was made privately proves the lack of respect they
After the new Federal Constitution went into effect, those supporting it split between Thomas Jefferson and Alexander Hamilton. The ones who chose Hamilton, supported his economic plan. Hamilton’s plan for the nation included consolidating the state's’ debts under the federal government. He issued a report in which he proposed that the Federal government assume and fund all of the debts. He would then pay it by issuing new bonds at an interest rate of 4% payable over 20 years.
Chapters nine and ten explain the huge national debt, debating about ways to fix the problem they wanted the government to undertake the entire debt of the federal government and the states, congress got together to find a solution, the plan was to retire the old and borrowing money at a lesser interest rate, referred ass the Hamilton tax plan. In chapter eleven following twelve Jefferson describes how uttered he is with how excellent the economy has developed hastily in the small period of 1791-1792. This chapter also presents polished Photos of Philadelphia in 1800 using them as examples of the development in the constitution since the first term, at the same time describing the negative effects deadly yellow fever hade in the society and the economy income in the city of Brotherly. Federalist James Madison influenced the development of bonds of the party in the early Republic being describe as the father of the constitution bringing the upcoming of the bill of rights, described him of owning hundreds of slaves during his period. Chapter thirteen principles skillfully described the shapes of rivalry between American parties during the time it was held in systems that led to the representation of the United States back to solid trade and business with Great
Looking back on the most recent election driven by partisan rancor, many Americans may be cursing Hamilton and Jefferson, the two men responsible for the creation of political parties. But, without the contributions of Alexander Hamilton and Thomas Jefferson the United States economy, principles, laws and shape of the nation would not be as stable. Alexander Hamilton had fought in the revolutionary war. When he started serving as Secretary of the Treasury under George Washington America was drowning in debt. Alexander Hamilton proposed a financial plan involving the establishment of a national bank, the assumption of state debts, creating a paper currency and setting tariffs on imports to increase government revenue.
The second chapter goes back during the time of the revolution, where a dinner party, hosted by Thomas Jefferson, was insinuated for the purpose of gathering Alexander Hamilton and James Madison together, so they could come to an agreement. Prior to the dinner, a proposal by Hamilton was impeded by the likes of James Madison. Hamilton generated a financial plan that would help get the United States out of the debt they were in, however, it was at the cost of the states and veterans of war. The debate on this topic shook up the government and sent them into a stage of paralysis. All of the statesmen were concerned that this was it, a breaking point that would jeopardize the state that the politicians are trying to build
In the 1790s, the first Secretary of the Treasury, Alexander Hamilton and fellow Federalists wanted to protect the United State's economic future through several different means; namely, the creation of a national bank, maintaining good financial credit, and by developing a lasting economic system. The United States was in turmoil, still rebuilding from their recent detachment from Britain. The United States government was in shambles, its economy arguably in an even worse one. It was for that reason that president George Washington elected Alexander Hamilton to develop a sound economic plan for the United States. Hamilton and his fellow Federalists had many ideas for improving the economy; however, the Republicans or Anti-Federalists, were disinclined to agree with their federalist counterparts due to opposing views on government authority.
David O. Stewart’s The Summer of 1787: the Men Who Wrote the Constitution provides an un-biased historical account on how the constitution came to be. The book begins in post-revolutionary war America under the failed Articles of Confederation to the constitutional convention and through the ratification process of the constitution. It provides the readers with an in depth look at the hard ball the founding fathers played to create a government that could deal with a violent rebellion, mass debt, and the states conflicting goals. The goal of The Summer of 1787 the Men Who Wrote the Constitution is to enlighten readers on how the constitution came to be by illustrating how the founding fathers personalities affected the process by providing a deeper look into these key figures personal life’s and how their experiences shaped their political views.
Chapter 2, which was all about the dinner that Thomas Jefferson, held. The purpose of the dinner was to create a plan to eliminate national debt. The attendees, who include James Madison and Alexander Hamilton, were to come up with a plan to eliminate national debt. They all came from different
In 1791, Treasurer Alexander Hamilton proposed the First Bank of the United States, also called the First Bank, which, with the necessary-and-proper clause, allowed the government to act on the four rights stated in the Constitution: “the rights to collect taxes, borrow money, regulate trade among states, and support fleets and armies.” The charter of the First Bank caused a debate that Secretary of State, Thomas Jefferson, a large opponent of a central banking system, later described as “the most bitter and angry contest ever known in Congress before or since the union of the states.” The intensity of it is conveyed in “Cabinet Battle #1” in Hamilton: An American Musical, in which the debate between Hamilton and Jefferson is recreated in
Although it can be argued that Thomas Jefferson’s government policies were better than Alexander Hamilton’s, Hamilton, overall, had the better policy because of his persistence to progress, his federalist beliefs, and his understanding of the issues with Jefferson’s trust in the common man’s morals. Thomas Jefferson can be described as a leader who lived in the present*, whereas Alexander Hamilton had his vision set on the future of the country. He saw America’s strength lying in its commerce, and saw industry, trade, and manufacturing as forces of progression. In order to fuel the nation’s success in the global marketplace, a strong federal government would be needed. Hamilton supported a powerful central government because he recognized that
Hamilton believed that wealthy Americans would provide political support to the government and his plan in general would help pay off the debt to merchants who they owed most of their debt to. However, the debt would have to be paid by through taxes by the American people. Hamilton thought money and wealthy Americans would solve all of their problems concerning debt, and that in result would secure the government. Unfortunately, most Americans were not the wealthy
If anyone was to do even a little research about the United States in 1787, one would find that the states were not very unified and life was not easy. Men like, James Madison, Alexander Hamilton and George Washington had one thing in mind, to reunite the United States. The book, A Brilliant Solution by Carol Berkin, very clearly depicts the obstacles and adversity that the men attending the constitutional convention had to overcome. Due to a plethora of factors, the men attending the constitutional convention encountered many complications during the convention, ranging from travel issues to a lack of power to even do anything necessary to change the “United” States. The book shows this by describing the story of the men as a “story of anxious
The Founding Fathers desperately feared that a breakdown in the federal government would result in civil war. Their conflict also draws attention to how well these Founding Brothers tended to know one another. Hamilton and Burr had worked together on the battlefield and in the early legislation halls, all of which is true of most of the figures Ellis speaks about. He also introduces the crucial themes of his book: the importance of compromise, the centrality of the specific relationships in the early Union, and the strict expectations that these Founding Fathers had for one another. Finally, Ellis 's research in this chapter reveals his desire to uncover factual
Before they came to this compromise, the Americans were divided mostly between the North and the South. The states were still independent and against the idea of a federal government overruling the people of the states. If the South hadn’t made the deal to help the North with its debt, they might have fallen into a extremely severe depression, and the nation might not even be together. Hamilton understood the need for the states to stand on a united front, which is why he supported The North. Madison led the South, which was against the taking on of the rest of the countries debt due to already being rid of their own.
Founding Brothers In this book there are many interesting stories and lots to learn. Although the first chapter to really capture my interest would have to be Chapter 2, ‘The Dinner”. It discusses the dinner which Thomas Jefferson held to decide the issues of the early nation 's deficit and the location of its new capital. This event would later become known as the Compromise of 1790. During the summer of 1790, Hamilton said that his financial plan for the nation had reached a stalemate, because Southern politicians opposed the proposed assumption of state debt by the federal government.
Founding Brothers In the "Founding Brothers" by Joseph Ellis he tries to tell us a story about our founding fathers and their great generation. He tells us about some of our founding fathers and what they had to do to set the frame work for our government today. He also talks about some of the issues they face and how they will later dissolve into issues to follow later. These leaders are considered to be our revolutionary leaders. They argued that succession from the British empire is enviable.