...Alexander Hamilton was a man who was quite an influence in our country. Even at his young age, he wowed the other famous men in his time with his amazing literary skills, eventually gaining himself a spot in the Continental Congress. Still today Hamilton is still a well known figure in and throughout American history. He did not sign the Declaration of Independence but is considered a founding father due to his helping in the framing of that document. Despite his many accomplishments Hamilton had a hard early life. Alexander Hamilton was born on January 11, either 1775 or 1777, the exact year was never known. He was born out of wedlock and after being abused by his real father, Alexander's mother left to St. Kitts. Rachel (Alexander’s mother) soon met and moved in with James Hamilton and had another son named James who was Alexander’s older brother. She then moved back with Alexander to live with James Sr. He left them again and they lived in poverty forcing Alexander at the young age of 11 to find a job. After working as hard as she could, Rachel died at the age of 38. Leaving Alexander and his brother orphans, as their step father had abandoned them. “Our great error is that we suppose mankind to be more honest than they are.” - Alexander Hamilton - 1787 Later in his life Alexander was able to work as an...
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...In Ron Chernow’s, Alexander Hamilton, Chernow tries to paint an image of what he calls “America’s most controversial Founding Father” (Chernow, 16). His work provides the reader with a broad view of early American political climate and culture, while emphasizing Hamilton’s accomplishments and relations with other Founding Fathers. The general picture of Hamilton that comes to mind in the thoughts of historian’s is an image of a brilliant man who was overbearing and involved in political scandals such as advocating for monarchy, protectionism, mercantilism, a centralized banking system, and a stronger federal government. Many are familiar with his popularized Federalist Papers, and know about his infamous political rivalry with Aaron Burr, who...
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...When you mention Alexander Hamilton, people often automatically think about the negative things he did, such as the highly publicized scandal with Maria Reynolds or how he might have even been called a traitor because he led American politician to create mercantilism after the Revolutionary War. Despite these negatives, Hamilton also had a number of achievements during his political career. Although Hamilton never was the highest member of office, he did a lot more for his country than he is often credited. To start, some of his accomplishments include that he was a member of the Continental Congress, authored more than half of the Federalist Papers, and he was the first secretary of Treasury from 9/11/1789-1/31/1795. The Federalists...
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...Jefferson and would shape the structure of American political parties forever. (1) In 1788, George Washington was the first President of the United States and he chose two men with contrasting views on what the fate of the United States should be as part of his advisory board. Thomas Jefferson was chosen by Washington as the head of Department of State. Jefferson was a Virginian and diplomat, known for his views on small national government and representing the small planters and western farmers of America. George Washington then chose Alexander Hamilton as his secretary of the Treasury. Born and raised in the Caribbean, he worked for Washington as his aid during the revolutionary war and was a lawyer. Hamilton was known for his views on a strong national government. He favored merchants and financiers by implementing bold financial policies which gave the national government more authority. (1) As secretary of the Treasury, Hamilton submitted to Washington and Congress three major proposals which shaped American Treasury forever. The first was for a national public credit which helped fund the United States debt both nationally and internationally. The second was for the creation...
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...Alexander Hamilton (1757-1804) Andrew Walsh The American dream has been around long before that term was coined. Alexander Hamilton is proof of it, as well as all migrants who came to the colonies to populate this New World. Most had nothing, or very little as Alexander, but from hardships and squalor some of our nation’s greatest men were formed. These hardships taught lessons of self-reliance, forged ideologies, and paved the way for those opportunistic enough to take this new country and lead it. Alexander Hamilton came from a very tumultuous childhood. His legitimacy as a child always haunting him. His mother dying, father leaving, all family ties gone. Mr. Hamilton had to grow up quick and he did. He grew up and moved to the states. He...
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...in the political system at the time. It is when Jefferson, James Madison, and Alexander Hamilton come to a dinner party to discuss a deal that changed the country. They consistently tried to come to an agreement over gaining the support of Hamilton, leader of the Federalist Party, getting the States to turn over their debt to the Central Government and the creation of a National Bank. He did not actually support the idea of the Government gaining more power over the states. Although, Thomas Jefferson hoped by having this party that some kind of agreement could finally be made. The reason was that they had “consistently been debating in the past over Hamilton’s Proposal” at other places and times (Ellis 72). Thomas Jefferson understood that the “Country could not be taken serious by Europe, until all of its debt was paid” (Ellis 68). He managed to get Madison’s support from the Democrat-Republicans by agreeing to the proposal of having the country’s new capital be placed between Maryland and Virginia at the Potomac River; as Madison was a person that understood the politics that this move would satisfy the southern politicans. This would lead to Hamilton getting the support that he needed to pass the motion. Jefferson knew that if the motion was presented without the support of the Federalist’s, then “it would never be regained through Congress and the Assemblies of the two states” (Ellis 75). Hamilton knew that with the bank, he could “create a dynamic force that would concentrate...
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...Joseph J. Ellis, the author of the historical novel “Founding Brothers: The Revolutionary Generation”, is an American historian, novelist, and professor at the University of Massachusetts at Amherst. Ellis was born on July 18, 1943 in Washington, D.C. and is still alive today, living with his wife in Amherst, Massachusetts and is the father of three adult sons. As for his career, he has had some impressive accomplishments in his lifetime and some not so pleasant scandals. Ellis earned his Bachelor’s degree from the College of William and Mary in 1965. He went on to receive many higher educational degrees from the prestigious Yale University such as the following: a Master of Arts, a Master of Philosophy,...
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...Preface: The Generation In the preface, Joseph Ellis takes his time in explaining the importance of the American Revolution. He starts off by stating that during the 1780’s everyone thought that it was only natural that America verge away from British rule. They all figured that it would be a gradual change; not a full blown revolution. Throughout the chapter, Ellis puts great emphasis on the many things that could have gone wrong during the revolution. He points all these negative events and set backs that he felt could easily have brought the developing America down to show just how great of an accomplishment the revolution was. The Founding Fathers were not completely oblivious to the severity of breaking away from Great Britain. Tom Pain states that, “it is only common sense that an island can not rule a continent (pg.3).” Many assumed that it was only natural that the thirteen colonies govern themselves. They figured that it would be a peaceful break such as the gaining of independence for Ghana or Canada. It was not until later on that the colonies realized that Britain would not easily hand over the land. What I find interesting is that only the Founding Fathers seemed to realize the great events taking place during their time. John Adams even instructed his wife to file and keep all of his records. It is as if he knew that hundreds of years from then, we the future Americans would look back at his notes and recognize his greatness. This makes me wonder why they...
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...APUSH Study Guide Chapter 10 * There was no Bill of Rights. * Freedom, religion, speech, press, assembly and petition. * It said that powers not held by the feds were held by the states. * The rich were favored, Hamilton created the National Bank which made it easier to start a business and for the rich to have more control over the government. * Eliminate the debt and bolster the country’s credit. * Eliminate debt, make a bank for future debts or troubles we might have and make us trustworthy so we can borrow money when needed. * Jefferson’s strict construction directly took the constitution for what it said exactly, Hamilton’s loose construction said that what the constitution didn’t forbid, it allowed. * Whiskey tax was made, low class whiskey farmers got angry and started to rebel, Washington came in and “smashed a fly with a sledgehammer” * At the time, the founding fathers believed that anyone against the government was disloyal. * Hamiltonians and Jeffersonians were the beginning of these political parties. One side supporting strong central government and the other supporting a weak government. * At first, we were flattered that the French would follow our precedent of revolution but after heads rolled, Hamiltonians feared that the same would happen in the U.S. * This was an alliance made because the French helped us win our revolution, we were then held to our alliance but couldn’t due to the imminent danger that the...
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...documents was the contrast between the Hamiltonian Federalism and the Jeffersonian republicanism. Many of the men who decided against signing both documents did so because of their acceptance of the Articles of Confederation. If we had noticed that the same men had signed both documents were the same, it would have seemed that the Jeffersonian republicanism had more of a significant role in the Constitution, which could have made it seem that the government was established on principles of the Declaration rather than creating a liberal capitalist monolith. The philosophy of the Declaration was that of a revolutionary outlook on government concentrated on the rights of citizens and detaching from the repression and tyranny. Alexander Hamilton outlined the Constitutions philosophy in the Federalist Papers; the Constitutions philosophy was the notion of Federalism. The Declaration was a long list of complaints made by the colonists against King George III, and was partly the reason the Bill of Rights was drawn up. King George III denied citizens the right to a trial by jury; the Constitution gave this right to all citizens, as well as the right to a speedy trial. The Bill of Rights also addressed the issue of King George III transporting colonists overseas to be tried on charges that were made...
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...In this case, a defamation suit arose after NY Post journalist Larry Brooks wrote a column about a hockey fight in Vancouver containing allegations about manager Brian Burke which he claimed to be untrue. The column was published in the paper and also appeared in its website. What’s interesting about this case is that a British Columbia court faced a defamation action against a U.S. publisher. The court held that it could properly exercise jurisdiction and apply local law because it was foreseeable that Burke would bring suit in the forum. This foreseeability determination rested on two findings. First, Burke had an established reputation in British Columbia. Second, it was foreseeable that a British Columbian audience would be interested in plaintiff's online newspaper column, regardless of whether the foreign publisher intended to address that audience. When combined with the strong cross-border reputation of the defendant's newspaper (the New York Post) and its sports columnist (Larry Brooks), these facts, the court held, made it foreseeable that the online posting of the story would be read in British Columbia by both ordinary readers and the by British Columbia media -- even if no paper editions were sold in British Columbia. This case helped re-frame the "here, there (and everywhere)" narrative as an engagement in legally inscribing wider borders around the relevant online community regardless of geographic territory -- that is, to be defining the relevant public as...
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...Springtime meeting – ½ of all trade takes place at that time, concerned about losing revenue James Madison – drafted tariff and tonnage bills Tariff – import tax – Tonnage – licensing fee Generate revenue to kick start the economy 2. Bill of Rights Originally their were 12 – but gutted down to 10 2nd amendment right – right to bear arms AND maintain a well-regulated militia Reaction to Boston Massacre, Quartering Act, etc. All amendments reactions to the revolution Passed and ratified by 1791 3. Pay for the President and Congress 4. unilateral removal of individuals – the cabinet members serve at the pleasure of the President 5. Establish a Cabinet 1st sec of state – Thomas Jefferson 1st sec of Treasury – Alexander Hamilton 5. Creation of the Judiciary - Judiciary Act of 1789 – 1. deemed that a trial court should be established in every state – called district courts – 13 2. appeals levels courts – circuit courts 3. establish the number of Supremes at that 6 – groups of 2 – travel around and works the circuit courts Lifetime Appointments 1st Chief Justice – John Jay, hated the job, so John Marshall will take over Hamilton’s Financial Program - *** 1st congress asked...
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...1. George Washington- Served 8 years as president. He was a neutral party. Foreign Policies - was to remain neutral, and form as little alliances and deals with other countries as possible to avoid being dragged into a war, Jay Treaty helping with trade with Great Britian. Domestic Policies – Signed in the Residence Act of 1790, invoked the Militia Act of 1792 One positive aspect that Washington created was imposing an excise tax on distilled spirits, which led to protests in frontier districts when this happened the military was not big enough in just Pennsylvania so he had to invoke the Militia Act. 2. John Adams – Served 4 years as president, was part of the Federalist Party. Domestic Policy- Alien and Sedition Acts in 1798, the Direct Tax of 1798 Foreign Policy - The XYZ Affairs, Treaty of Mortefontaine When Adams signed and instated the Direct Tax act which was taxing on land to pay for our country to rebuild the navy was a positive thought but the negative consequences was the Fries’s Rebellion it created. 3. Thomas Jefferson – Served 8 Years as president. His party was the Democratic- Republican. Foreign Policies- Louisiana Purchase and the Embargo Tax Act Domestic Policies – He drastically cut the federal government reducing spending in his administration as well as the armed forces, he voluntarily stepped down after two terms and declared that no president should serve more than two terms. One positive Jefferson had while in office is he reduced the national...
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...John Adams, a New Englander from Massachusetts and Thomas Jefferson, a Southerner from Virginia were revolutionary period colleagues and friends during the founding of the Republic even though they could not have been more different in personalities, temperament, and politics. It was perhaps inevitable they would have a falling out. Jefferson was the Vice-President of the United States when Adams was President from 1797-1801 on the basis of Jefferson receiving the second most electoral votes even though they belong to different political parties. When Jefferson challenged Adams for the presidency and won in 1801 not only was the rupture in their friendship complete, they became bitter enemies. During the last days of Adams’s one presidential term the majority Federalist Party in congress passed legislation greatly expanding the number of federal judges including justices-of-the-peace. Adams proceeded to name people of his political persuasion to these positions. A few weeks before Adams had named his Secretary of State and 2nd cousin of Thomas Jefferson, Virginian John Marshall as Chief Justice of the then six-man US Supreme Court (the court was increased to the present number of nine in 1869). Marshall thus became the 4th Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, replacing President Washington appointed Oliver Ellsworth (John Jay of course was the 1st). Adams was literally still writing out the names of the people he appointed as judges on his last day in office. As Secretary...
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...A book by Gary L. Gregg and Mark David Hall, is a book biographies of important founders who contributed to the signing of the Declaration of Independence but were forgotten in history. James Wilson was born in 1742, Wilson was born to a Presbyterian farming family he received a solid education that allowed him to receive a scholarship to the university of St. Andrews. James Wilson studied at St. Andrews for four years before entering the university's divinity school St. Mary's in 1761. In 1762 he was forced to leave school because the death of his father to support his family financial he served as a tutor. When his siblings were old enough to support their mother, he left to America in search for better opportunities. In 1765 James Wilson arrived in Pennsylvania, where he taught Latin and Greek at the college of Philadelphia for a year before studying law under John Dickinson. After becoming a lawyer before the upcoming revolution, Wilson was drawn into politics. In 1774 Wilson gained national attention with his essay on the "considerations on the nature and extent of the legislative authority of the British Parliament". In this essay, Wilson argued that the Parliament had no authority to pass laws for the American colonies because the colonies had no representation in Parliament. In 1776 he was appointed to The second continental Congress where he actively participated in the proceedings and eventually cast a important vote in favor of independence. In the late 1770's...
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