Chapter 10The age of the common man

Theory of Democracy

• Democracy: Defined by the founders as direct rule by the people.

• Most founders disagreed with this because it threatened a balanced republic built by the Aristocracy.

• Slowly the idea of popular sovereignty growsPopular sovereignty is another way of saying being rules by the people. • The legitimacy of the state is created by the will of

the people

The changing society• Though there was inequality growing in in both urban

in rural areas there was this belief that there was equality.

Dress code between class cultures began to blur. Domestic workers ”were looking for moe respect.In realityInequality was actually increasing within the countryUrban Society: Most found themselves becoming low paid unorganized workers.Agrarian Society: There is a significant division between the average farmer and large plantation earners.

Democratic Culture

• In the Jacksonian Era the press played a greater role than it had in the past.

• Newspapers and magazines were swallowed up by the common man. This would usher them into the political arena.

Democratic literature

• Find the romantic movement in literature begins to thrive.

• With printing technology increasing books became a popular market.

• This was especially true for your average citizen.

• The idea of transcendentalism began to take shape which was the idea of novels being based around emotion.

Politics

• In this period of democratic principles politics adapt to fit the period.

• By 1820 most states had removed the last remaining barriers to voting participation for males. The idea that a certain amount of land needed to be held for a white man to vote.

• There was also a rise in public officials that were elected rather than appointed.

• The people chose judges as well as legislatures/law makers• Every male getting the right to vote was known as Universal

white manhood suffrage.

Election issues continued

• One of the major issues facing society during this democratic period was the depression caused by the panic of 1819.

• Solutions on how to handle this economic problem began to split the nation.

Election of 1824

• In post Monroe years the republicans were struggling to find a candidate.

• They settled with John Quincy Adams• Calhoun, Crawford and Clay would all run as

well• Jackson found support from his home state of

Tennessee• Calhoun eventually drop out of the election

Jackson as a candidate

What Qualifications does Jackson to be the President?• War Hero• Jackson was considered unlikely to• He doesn’t pick up speed until Calhoun drops

out and Crawford suffers from a stroke.

Scandal !!!!!!!!!

• Adams ,Calhoun and Jackson enter into a final three to be selected by the house of representatives.

• Clay who is left out of the last three tells his supporters to push Adams

• Adams wins the election, Clay becomes secretary of state

The Quincy Presidency

• How would we define Adam’s Presidency?• Congress seemed to be stacked against the

Adam’s Presidency• The congress during Adam’s presidency was

controlled by Jackson’s democrats. • Adam’s did to manage to pass a tariff the

helped the Northern industry grow at the expense of the south

• Known as the Tariff abominations.

The Jackson Presidency

• What were some of the main issues that Jackson faced during his Presidency?

• Indian Removal• Nullification• War over the bank

The big change in 1828

• By 1828 Presidential electors were chosen by popular vote instead of state legislators.

• We begin to see part systems form to try and bring in voters.

• Voting percentages begin to spike• 1824 27% of white males• 1828 55% of white males• 1840 78% of white males

Indian Removal

• During and just after the election of Jackson Georgia Mississippi and Alabama were looking for government to move groups of Native American’s out of their borders

• Theses states passed laws against the Natives in their areas.

• Native American rights fell under federal jurisdiction

• Jackson supported the states

Indian removal

• 1830 congress introduces a bill to implement the idea of Indian removal.

• Many claimed that this act was unconstitutional

• The bill would pass and Jackson would move into action to remove the Native Americans.

• Many slaves were moved from the south to Present day Oklahoma.

Worcestor V. Georgia

• case in which the United States Supreme Court vacated the conviction of Samuel Worcester and held that the Georgia criminal statute that prohibited non-Indians from being present on Indian lands without a license from the state was unconstitutional.

• This was the decree from John Marshall• Jackson took Georgia’s side and told Marshall

to defend his ruling.

Trail of Tears

Trail of Tears

• As you already know this is consider one of the greater humanitarian disasters in U.S. history

• Many Native Americans dies of disease most before even reaching their new home.

• This action exposes some of the prejudice and greed of jacksonian democracy.

Nullification

• John C. Calhoun emerges as the leader for states rights and begins to support nullification.

• Calhoun also moved against the Tariff abominations• There was already a great rivalry growing between

Jackson and Calhoun over the vice presidency.• Congress agreed to lower the tariffs but Carolina still

intended to nullify it. • Jackson asked congress to pass the force bill allowing

him to build an army and march into Carolina

Pre bank war

Due to the Panic of 1819 the bank was already unpopular and normally blamed for economic down turns.Nicholas Biddle was brought in to solve the issues with national bank. He was a decent politician and understood banking.In spite of this Jackson still targeted the bank.

Bank war

Jackson promised veto a major bank funding bill.The veto would close the bank. In the upcoming election Jackson ran as the defender of the people against the banks.

Election

Jackson and the Democrats were pitted against Clay and the Republicans.

Jackson won soundly as clay only received 49 electoral votes.

Pet banks and Specie Circular

After vetoing the bank bill he removed the federal deposits form the bank as well. The question was where the money would go. Jackson placed the money in twenty four state banks called pet banks. Mostly given this name because the banks were picked based on political reasons.

Specie Circular

As the west opened up land sails increased but there was no paper money for the sails. Banks were accepting payments in silver.Jackson gave into some criticism creating a hard silver currency to help with these payments known as specie.

Emergence of the Whigs

• The Whigs develop from national republicans, and old federalists that support Henry Clay.

• Daniel Webster became the major of the group• There are also a number of disappointed

southerners that supported the party.• They acted in opposition to Jackson and took control

over a large piece of congress• Where the Whigs went wrong was running different

candidates from different areas of the country against Van Buren

Van Buren and the panic of 1837

Van Buren Jackson’s vice president was elected and there came a sharp decline in the economy.

Cotton prices dropped by fifty percent and banks refused the specie payments of the former Jackson Presidency.

Van Buren Was eventually forced by the Whigs to establish another National bankLead to the election of John Tyler.

Result of Jackson

Jackson’s presidency lead to what we refer to as the two party system.

Candidates that chose their vice president and both political parties doing everything to they can to get their base to vote for them.This included using newspaper advertisements. Relied on the candidates personality to appeal to voters.