Founding Father's Legacy
Who was the primary author of the Declaration of Independence?
Thomas Jefferson
Which key compromise during the Constitutional Convention helped resolved disagreement between states with large populations and those with smaller populations regarding representation in Congress?
The Great Compromise, also known as the Connecticut Compromise, resolved the disagreement by creating a bicameral legislature.
Define Bicameral Legislature (simple definition mentioned in the powerpoint)
The comprimise between large and
small states.
Who was the author of the Address to the People of Massachusetts? What was his actual identity?
The author of the Address to the People of Massachusetts was Dewitt, a pseudonym used by a write who was actually the Anti-Federalist Samuel Adams.
What is the term for a system of government where power is divided between a central authority and individual states?
Federalism
Which Founding Father is known for his role as the first Secretary of the Treasury and his financial policies that helped shape the early American economy?
Alexander Hamilton
Which key argument did the Anti-Federalists make against the ratification of the Constitution, and how did the Federalists respond to this concern in their writings?
The Anti-Federalists argued that the proposed Constitution created a strong central government that threatened individual liberties and states' rights, lacking a Bill of Rights to protect citizens from potential government overreach.
Which legislative act established the process for admitting new states in the Union and set up the Northwest Territory?
The Northwest Ordinance of 1787
In DeWitt's Address to the People of Massachusetts, what specific feature of the proposed Constitution did he argue would lead to a loss of individual liberties?
DeWitt argued that the lack of a Bill of Rights in the proposed Constitution would lead to a loss of individual liberties.
What is the term for the first one amendments to the U.S. Constitution that protect individual liberties and rights?
Bill of Rights
Which Founding Father is known for his contributions to the Constitutional Convention and his role in drafting the Federalist Papers?
James Madison
How did the Federalist Papers aim to address the concerns about the potential for tyranny in the new Constitution?
The Federalist Papers aimed to address concerns about tyranny by arguing for the necessity of a strong central government with a system of checks and balances.
“Instead of a powerful nation-state with imperial pretensions, the government established under the Articles of Confederation was not really much of a government at all, but rather a diplomatic conference where the sovereign states, each of which regarded itself as an autonomous nation, met to coordinate a domestic version of foreign policy. It was, in effect, designed to be weak, and lacked altogether the authority to manage a burgeoning empire.”
-Source: Joseph J. Ellis, historian, American Creation: Triumphs and Tragedies at the Founding of the Republic, 2007
Which of the following actions of the central government under the Articles of Confederation directly undermines Ellis’s assertions?
a. regulating interstate commerce
b. managing internal unrest
c. instituting a single, national currency
d. negotiating the Treaty of Paris of 1783
negotiating the Treaty of Paris of 1783
In DeWitt's Address to the People of Massachusetts, how does the author argue that the structure of the proposed federal government could impact state sovereignty and local governance?
DeWitt argued that the proposed federal government under the new Constitution could undermine state sovereignty and local governance by centralizing too much power in the federal government.
What is the term for a formal agreement between two or more sovereign states to cooperate for mutual benefit?
Treaty
Which Founding Father served as a diplomat in France and was instrumental in securing French support during the American Revolutionary War?
Benjamin Franklin
What was a primary reason the Anti-Federalists opposed the ratification of the Constitution?
A. They wanted to maintain British rule.
B. They believed it provided too many rights for citizens.
C. They feared it vested too much power in a central government.
D. They thought it should abolish state governments entirely.
They feared it vested too much power in a central government.
What was the primary purpose of the Land Ordinance of 1785?
The primary purpose of the Land Ordinance of 1785 was to establish a standardized system for surveying and selling western lands in the United States. It aimed to organize the sale of public lands and promote orderly settlement in the Northwest Territory.
What was the primary outcome of the Great Compromise?
The primary outcome was the creation of a bicameral legislature with two houses, the Senate and the House of Representatives.
What is the term for the principle that ensures that no single branch of government becomes too powerful by providing each branch with some measure of influence over the other branches?
Checks and Balances
Name at least 3 Anti-federalists leaders.
George Clinton, Patrick Henry, Samuel Adams, George Mason,
Richard Henry Lee, and John De Witt.
In light of Shay's Rebellion, how did debates at the Constitutional Convention tend to frame the need for stronger federal government oversight?
As evidence that stronger central authority was necessary to maintain order and prevent uprisings against legitimate government.
What was the primary reason for the establishment of the Electoral College in the 1787 Constitution, and how did it address the concerns of the delegates at the Constitutional Convention?
The primary reason for the establishment of the Electoral College was to balance the influence of both large and small states in the election of the President. By having electors chosen by each state, who would then vote for the President, the system aimed to ensure a more equitable representation of all states while addressing the fears of both larger and smaller states about being either overrepresented or underrepresented.
How did the Three-Fifths Compromise, agreed upon during the Constitutional Convention of 1787?
The Three-Fifths Compromise resolved the dispute by stipulating that each enslaved person would be counted as three-fifths of a person when determining a state's population for representation and taxation purposes.
What is the term for the compromise reached at the Constitutional Convention that combined elements of the Virginia Plan and the New Jersey Plan to create a bicameral legislature?
The Great Compromise
Extra Point: Connecticut Compromise