Overview

The era including the years of 1754-1800 traces the developments that led to the expulsion of the French as a factor in the imperial struggle for North America and the subsequent American Revolution. It then focuses on the efforts by the new United States to define its government, policies, identity, and place in the world.

Although the British were victorious in the French & Indian War (known as the Seven Years War in Europe) ending in 1763, they faced new problems with their North American colonies and the Native American tribes. British acquisition of the lands west of the Appalachians and in the Ohio Valley meant dismantling of the French-Indian trade networks and new waves of colonial settlers. The opening of lands west of the Appalachians led to rapid settlement and renewed conflicts with both Native Americans, including Pontiac’s Rebellion, and the British who remained in the Ohio Valley. Colonists in the backcountry developed an independent yeoman culture, increasing tensions as they sought to defend their new homes as can be seen with the Paxton Boys in Pennsylvania and the Regulators in North Carolina. Indians tried to form new alliances to ward off these threats, and the British sought to limit migration of settlers into western territories with the passage of the Proclamation of 1763.

Colonists, frustrated at attempts to stop western settlement, were further outraged when the British began to deviate from their previous policy of salutary neglect and began to tighten control over trade and taxes in an effort to clear debts left from the French & Indian War as well as to address the substantial increases of administrative costs in overseeing a colony now doubled in size. Colonial resistance was fueled by the ideas of the Enlightenment as well as the determination to be treated fairly under British law for the colonists continued to identify themselves as British subjects at the closure of the French and Indian War. That identity changes with the increased tensions and differing political views between the colonists and the British government specifically in regards to representation in policy-making. Boycotts, committees of correspondence, and violent means of protesting proved futile, which eventually led to conflict. Although initially there existed two perspectives of the purpose for engaging in in conflict with the British, the majority of the colonists quickly recognized that complete separation was the most logic course of action. In spite of the British military and financial advantages, the resulting revolution succeeded due to colonial resilience, ideological commitment, and timely foreign intervention.

The late eighteenth century was a time of international debate about religion, politics, and new forms of government, leading to new theories that challenged old imperial systems and beliefs. Americans embraced the ideals of the Enlightenment, hoping to create a model republican government that would guarantee natural rights and protect the people from both autocratic leaders and the rule of the mob. Thomas Paine’s Common Sense made the case for a republic. The first attempt at government of the new country was the Articles of Confederation, which concentrated power in the hands of the legislature and had no chief executive. This document proved too limited and the central government it created was too weak to be effective. The Articles of Confederation were replaced by the United States Constitution after long deliberation about the proper role of the federal government, distribution and safeguards of power, and a series of compromises about representation. Ratification almost failed when some states felt there were not strong enough guarantees of individual rights, but the addition of the Bill of Rights calmed those fears. Continuing debate in the new government over federal power, foreign policy, and economics eventually led to the formation of political parties: Democratic-Republicans led by Thomas Jefferson and the Federalists led by Alexander Hamilton.

The new United States also had to deal with foreign policy issues, Early leaders felt the best course to take with Europe was that of neutrality in order to protect the new nation’s borders and secure favorable trade alliances. The French Revolution presented a special challenge because the French government had aided the colonists in their own revolution yet the French people were embracing the ideals of democracy and republic. President Washington stated his belief in the importance of neutrality, though others in government continued to debate the wisdom of this approach.

Slavery remained a point of disagreement among the states in the new nation. Many felt the existence of slavery ran counter to the ideals of the American Revolution and the Declaration of Independence. To ensure passage of the Constitution, debates over slavery were postponed, though the issue continued to be at the forefront of political debate for decades.

In California, the Spanish continued to expand their mission settlements which offered some social mobility to a few soldiers and settlers who dared to venture to distant lands. The Northwest Ordinance created an orderly way for land to be sold and new states to be admitted, while also providing for public education and prohibiting slavery. This proved to be one significant success of the overall unsuccessful Articles of Confederation. For Native Americans, their claims and rights remained unaddressed, and they continued to lose land to settlers. Increasing need for access to the Mississippi River led to new problems for the new country with both the Spanish and the British.

People in the United States still wrestled with the tension between regional identity and loyalty and the loyalties to the federal government. The South’s determination to expand slavery into new territories conflicted with states in other parts of the country that were moving to end the institution. Women also confronted a disconnect between the ideals of equality promoted by the Enlightenment and the Revolution with the second-class status in the new country. White women had to be content with the ideal of “republican motherhood,” seeing their role as that of forming good citizens as they raised their children at home rather than playing a role in public life. These topics will be furthered examined in the next era of study: the antebellum period.