During the period of 1754-1776, North America saw an large increase in tensions between the British and the colonists. This began following the French and Indian War, where the British eventually won in the struggle for North America. This led to the acquisition of new territory for the British, however the colonists were unable to settle it due to the Proclamation of 1763. This created many problems and tensions between the British and the colonists. These tensions were later intensified with increased regulation of the colonies as seen by the Sugar Act, the Quartering Act, Stamp Act, Townshend Acts, and the Intolerable Acts. These tensions were observed during the Boston massacre, Boston tea party, and the rebellious ideas developing during this time. These tensions and rebellious ideas would later inspire people to revolt against the British in what would become the American Revolution.
The First Continental congress was created to respond to the alarming threats by the British to the colonists' liberties. Many at the time did not want revolution, but instead to restore the relationship with the crown and protest against infringements of their rights. However continued colonial defiance led to more violent clashes with the British and growing interest of colonial self-government caused sentiments to change in favor of war. The Revolutionary War started with the battle of Lexington and Concord and soon after the battle of Bunker Hill. Some colonists advocated for peace, however the signing of the Declaration of Independence launched the colonies into war. The colonists faced many battles and hardships from the British and also faced resistance from the Tories, pro-British loyalists. After the colonists won a victory at the battle of Saratoga, they gained an alliance with France. This alliance was especially useful in the battle of Yorktown which proved to be the last battle of the war and a victory for the Americans. The Treaty of Paris officially ended the war and recognized the United States as an independent nation.
After establishing the United States as a nation came the problem of establishing a government. The first government system, the Articles of Confederation, was created shortly after the Declaration of Independence and was ratified in 1781. Under the Articles of Confederation the U.S. was governed by a one house legislature. While this document had some successes such as winning the war, the Land Ordinance of 1785, and the Northwest Ordinance of 1787, it also had many weaknesses such as unpaid war debts, no taxing power, weak foreign policy, and the inability to control rebellions such as Shays' Rebellion. These problems led to the meeting of delegates in Philadelphia to draft another constitution. Many compromises were agreed upon when making the Constitution, such as the Great Compromise which established the two-house legislature, the Three-Fifths Compromise which counted each enslaved person as three-fifths of a person, and the Commercial Compromise which allowed Congress to regulate interstate and foreign commerce. However the Constitution was still highly debated by the Federalists, who wanted a stronger central government, and the Anti-Federalists, who wanted a weaker central government and feared a strong national government would violate liberties. These disputes were settled by the creation of the Bill of Rights to protect individual liberties, but yet these disputes started the creation of a two-party system. This led to the ratification of the Constitution and the establishment of the three branch national government.
The first congress was elected in 1788 and began their first session in 1789 and unanimously elected George Washington as the first president of the United States. George Washington's presidency was marked by the Proclamation of Neutrality of 1793, the Jay Treaty, the Pinckney Treaty, the Whiskey Rebellion, problems with Native Americans, and the formation of the two-party system. Washington ended his presidency after two terms, setting a precedent for future presidents. In Washington's farewell address he urged to not get involved in European affairs, to not form political parties, and to not fall into sectionalism, however America would fail on all of these accounts in time. John Adam's became the next president and his administration was marked by the XYZ affair, the Alien and Sedition Acts, and the Kentucky and Virginia resolutions. John Adams was considered a failure when compared to Washington, and he was the last Federalist to be president. The election of 1800 was marked by the change in political parties with the rise of the Democratic-Republicans with the election of Jefferson.
During this entire period America experienced much social change, especially from the gaining of independence from Britain. New enlightenment, ideas began to take hold in America including the abolition of aristocratic titles, the separation of church and state, widespread suffrage for white men, the participation of women in societal affairs and the economy, and some resistance to the growing practice of slavery. These social changes would continue to define America for centuries as America continued to try to establish itself as a country.
The First Continental congress was created to respond to the alarming threats by the British to the colonists' liberties. Many at the time did not want revolution, but instead to restore the relationship with the crown and protest against infringements of their rights. However continued colonial defiance led to more violent clashes with the British and growing interest of colonial self-government caused sentiments to change in favor of war. The Revolutionary War started with the battle of Lexington and Concord and soon after the battle of Bunker Hill. Some colonists advocated for peace, however the signing of the Declaration of Independence launched the colonies into war. The colonists faced many battles and hardships from the British and also faced resistance from the Tories, pro-British loyalists. After the colonists won a victory at the battle of Saratoga, they gained an alliance with France. This alliance was especially useful in the battle of Yorktown which proved to be the last battle of the war and a victory for the Americans. The Treaty of Paris officially ended the war and recognized the United States as an independent nation.
After establishing the United States as a nation came the problem of establishing a government. The first government system, the Articles of Confederation, was created shortly after the Declaration of Independence and was ratified in 1781. Under the Articles of Confederation the U.S. was governed by a one house legislature. While this document had some successes such as winning the war, the Land Ordinance of 1785, and the Northwest Ordinance of 1787, it also had many weaknesses such as unpaid war debts, no taxing power, weak foreign policy, and the inability to control rebellions such as Shays' Rebellion. These problems led to the meeting of delegates in Philadelphia to draft another constitution. Many compromises were agreed upon when making the Constitution, such as the Great Compromise which established the two-house legislature, the Three-Fifths Compromise which counted each enslaved person as three-fifths of a person, and the Commercial Compromise which allowed Congress to regulate interstate and foreign commerce. However the Constitution was still highly debated by the Federalists, who wanted a stronger central government, and the Anti-Federalists, who wanted a weaker central government and feared a strong national government would violate liberties. These disputes were settled by the creation of the Bill of Rights to protect individual liberties, but yet these disputes started the creation of a two-party system. This led to the ratification of the Constitution and the establishment of the three branch national government.
The first congress was elected in 1788 and began their first session in 1789 and unanimously elected George Washington as the first president of the United States. George Washington's presidency was marked by the Proclamation of Neutrality of 1793, the Jay Treaty, the Pinckney Treaty, the Whiskey Rebellion, problems with Native Americans, and the formation of the two-party system. Washington ended his presidency after two terms, setting a precedent for future presidents. In Washington's farewell address he urged to not get involved in European affairs, to not form political parties, and to not fall into sectionalism, however America would fail on all of these accounts in time. John Adam's became the next president and his administration was marked by the XYZ affair, the Alien and Sedition Acts, and the Kentucky and Virginia resolutions. John Adams was considered a failure when compared to Washington, and he was the last Federalist to be president. The election of 1800 was marked by the change in political parties with the rise of the Democratic-Republicans with the election of Jefferson.
During this entire period America experienced much social change, especially from the gaining of independence from Britain. New enlightenment, ideas began to take hold in America including the abolition of aristocratic titles, the separation of church and state, widespread suffrage for white men, the participation of women in societal affairs and the economy, and some resistance to the growing practice of slavery. These social changes would continue to define America for centuries as America continued to try to establish itself as a country.