Context
During the period from the drafting of the
Constitution in 1787 to George
Washington's Farewell Address of 1796,
the young
United States went about the early stages of the experiment of democratic
government. Washington's presidency set precedents for operating procedure in
the national government, and each branch of the government developed and
explored its particular role. During Washington's eight years in office, the
nation transformed from a loose association of states into a cohesive unit,
vested in its collective national government. However, the close quarters
created by governmental cohesion spawned the early signs of political division.
Alexander Hamilton's policy initiatives as
Secretary of Treasury, perhaps more than anything else, brought the sharply
differing political ideologies of different segments of the nation to light.
Punctuated by Thomas Jefferson's resignation from Washington's cabinet in
dismay at the administration's efforts to consolidate power in the central
government, politicians and nation split into two rival political parties,
Republicans, who opposed strong central government, and Federalists, who
were in favor of a strong national government. Though the Federalists were well
entrenched in their position of power, the Republicans began to mount a greater
and greater challenge. The struggle between the two parties, largely defined by
the differing economic and social modalities of North and South, was the primary
political reality of the day at the time of Washington's Farewell
Address. The conflict between the parties would
characterize the years to come.
By 1808, when Thomas Jefferson decided not to seek a third term in office, the
conflict between Federalists and Republicans had all but evaporated. Despite
some remnants of Federalist power, primarily in the judiciary branch,
Republicans had clearly taken control of the national government. John
Adams' presidency had convinced many of the folly of Federalism, and Thomas
Jefferson's election in 1800 had been the result. Republican power grew and
matured during Jefferson's presidency. Jefferson left these Republicans, led by
his successor, James Madison, with a number of issues to deal with on the
national scale.
Perhaps Thomas Jefferson's greatest legacy was the doubling of the size of the
US through the Louisiana Purchase of 1803. The acquisition of Louisiana by
the United States was both a boon and a source of trouble for the US. The land
to the West of the Mississippi would provide farmland and homesteads for future
Americans, and open up further westward expansion. As the US increased its
economic base, tapping into the resources of the west, and its population grew
with ample room for settlement, the nation's power and prestige as an
international entity expanded. However, out of the new Louisiana Territory grew
many sources of political controversy, both domestic and international.
Internationally, the Louisiana Purchase meant that the US now held a larger part
in the somewhat disputed western lands of North America. Conflicts with Spanish
and British forces also present in the west became commonplace, and led to
violent struggles on a number of occasions. Additionally, conflicts with the
Native American tribes, which inhabited the Louisiana Territory, were inevitable
and became a major feature of westward expansion. Finally, the issue of the
legality of slavery in the new Territory and in the states which came out of it
proved so divisive that disagreement over this issue continued throughout the
first half of the nineteenth century and was
the clear precursor to the Civil War.
Additionally, Thomas Jefferson left office at a time of great international
unrest. The US had been caught up in the affairs of both sides in the war
between Britain and France, and, at the time of the election of 1808,
was desperately trying to maintain its neutrality in the face of naval
challenges from both great powers. Jefferson, and his successor, Madison, both
failed to bring about a peaceful conclusion to this conflict, and the result was
the outbreak of the War of 1812, a conflict that
would ravage US lands and spur the rebirth of sharp political division.
