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Political and economic impact of the cotton gin on the state
Political and economic impact of the cotton gin on the state
Lowcountry planters resisted giving the Upcountry more equal representation in the legislature because they feared that the Upcountry farmers did not support slavery. The invention of the cotton gin made cotton a viable cash crop in the Upcountry and, as a result, the Upcountry had a greater need for slave labor. As the numbers of slaves in the Upcountry increased, the willingness of the Lowcountry to share power increased as well. In the compromise of 1808, the legislature agreed to reapportionment. Representation was to be based equally on the white population and the amount of taxable property (including slaves). Consequently, those areas that had the most slaves continued to have disproportionate control over the legislature. But now both the Lowcountry and the Upcountry had their share of slaves and so their share of political power.
Similarities between problems of the national government under the Articles of Confederation and the problems faced by South Carolina following the Revolution
Similarities between problems of the national government under the Articles of Confederation and the problems faced by South Carolina following the Revolution
The problems of the United States government under the Articles of Confederation were similar to the economic problems of indebtedness and depression faced by South Carolinians after the Revolutionary War (8-3.1). Political tensions between the coastal elite and the backcountry folk in Massachusetts [Shays’ Rebellion] were instrumental in bringing about the call for a stronger central government that could control this type of rebellion.
Positions of South Carolina delegates to the Constitutional Convention concerning the major issues debated, including the Virginia Plan, the Great Compromise, the Three-Fifths Compromise, the Commerce Compromise, and the strength of the executive branch
Positions of South Carolina delegates to the Constitutional Convention concerning the major issues debated, including the Virginia Plan, the Great Compromise, the Three-Fifths Compromise, the Commerce Compromise, and the strength of the executive branch
Great Compromise: raised the issue of whether or not slaves should be counted for the purposes of determining representation in the new government. As a slaveholding state, South Carolina wanted slaves to be counted. Northern states, many of which were emancipating their slaves in the spirit of the Declaration of Independence, did not.
3/5s Compromise
3/5s Compromise
Agreement to count three-fifths of a state's slaves in apportioning Representatives, Presidential electors, and direct taxes South Carolina did not support the Three-Fifths Compromise that resolved this debate.
Commerce Compromise:
Commerce Compromise:
South Carolina delegates were also concerned that a stronger national government might attempt to regulate trade. They objected to any regulation of exports since South Carolina exported its cash crops and they feared any control of the international slave trade through a tax on imports. A compromise was reached that promised that the federal government would not tax exports or attempt to regulate the international slave trade for at least twenty years. This agreement is known as the Commerce Compromise.
Strength of the Executive Branch
Strength of the Executive Branch
Regarding the issue of how strong the president should be, South Carolina supported a strong executive with a term of six or seven years, rather than the four year term included in the final document. As representatives of the elite, they advocated an aristocratic republic in which only property owners could hold office. States were given the authority to determine voter qualifications. Although South Carolina delegates did not get everything they wanted in the Constitution, they were satisfied with the new document and returned to South Carolina to lobby for its ratification.
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