Framing a New Government - Who were the advocates of centralization, and why did they want to alter or abolish the Articles of Confederation?
- What did those who favored centralization see as the most serious problem of the Articles, and how would they have changed them? What had prevented these changes?
- What were the characteristics of the men who met at the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia? Whose presence was essential to the meeting's success? Why?
- What were the two major points of view that divided the convention? What plans did each side propose to carry its view?
- How were the differences between the "large state" and the "small state" plans resolved? What other issues divided the convention, and how were they resolved?
- What was to be the role of various branches of government under the new Constitution?
Adoption and Adaptation - Why did the supporters of the new Constitution call themselves "Federalists"? Were they actually Federalists, or did their philosophy of government reveal them to be something else? If so, what?
- What method did the Federalists employ to get their views across to the people? What were their arguments, and how did the "Antifederalists" respond?
- What was the process by which the Constitution was finally ratified? Which states supported it, by what margins, and which states did not? What objections were raised by the states?
- What was the process by which the new government set up operations? What were the initial matters discussed, and how were they resolved?
- In what way did Congress continue the work of the Constitutional Convention? What "gaps" in the Constitution did Congress fill?
- Who were the men Washington selected for his cabinet, and on what basis did he choose them?
Federalists and Republicans - How did the divisions of the 1790s reflect the differences in philosophy that were at the heart of the debate over the Constitution?
- What was the view of society and politics held by Hamilton? Who did he feel should govern, and why?
- What was Hamilton's plan for paying the nation's debts and restoring credit on a sound basis? To which social, economic, and political groups would this have appealed?
- How did Hamilton propose to enact his programs? Who opposed him, and to what degree was Hamilton successful?
- How did political parties rise as a result of Hamilton's programs?
- What was the political philosophy of Jefferson and Madison? How did it differ from that of Hamilton?
- How did the French Revolution highlight the differences between the Federalists and the Republicans?
Establishing National Sovereignty - How did Washington's reaction to the Whiskey Rebellion underscore the difference between the Constitution and the Articles of Confederation?
- How did the government under the Constitution guarantee that people on the frontier would be loyal to it? What was the impact on Native Americans?
- What diplomatic problem did the French Revolution and the war that followed pose for the United States? How did Washington and Congress deal with this problem?
- What were the circumstances that sent John Jay to England, and what were the results of his mission?
- How did Jay's Treaty affect American relations with Spain?
The Downfall of the Federalists - Why was John Adams selected as the Federalist candidate in 1796?
- What circumstances led to an administration with a Federalist president and a Republican vice president?
- What caused the "quasi war" with France during the Adams administration? What as the result of this struggle?
- How did the Federalists attempt to silence those who opposed the undeclared war, and what groups did these attempts most affect?
- What gave rise to the Virginia and Kentucky Resolutions, and what attitude toward the nature of the federal government did these resolutions reveal?
- What were the issues in the election of 1800, and what were the reactions of the losers and the victors?
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