Revised:Jeffersonian Revolution

Thomas Jefferson was born April 13, 1743 in Shadwell , Virgina. Jefferson grew up to practiced law and served in the Virginia House of Burgesses. Jefferson Also served as governor of Virginia from 1779–1781. He also was a primary author of the Declaration of Independence.Further more Jefferson served as minister to France from 1785 to 1789. In addition he also was the first Secretary of State under the first president, George Washington.Finally in 1800 Jefferson became president of the United States. Jefferson's presidency was a second revolution for the United States. This is due to the 1800 Revolution ,Jeffersonian movement, and both of his terms as president.

United States presidential election of 1800, sometimes referred to as the “Revolution of 1800”, was the year when Thomas Jefferson( A Republican) defeated John Adams( A Federalist).The election resulted in a tie between Jefferson and Aaron Burr. Federalist ,Alexander Hamilton, who favored Jefferson more than Burr, voted for Jefferson instead of Burr, which allowed Jefferson to take hold of the presidency. The election brought in the time of the Democratic-Republican Party rule and the eventual decline of the Federalist Party. Further more, the republican party took control of the presidency and both houses of Congress, beginning a quarter century of control of those institutions. All in all the revolution was a peaceful transition in to the republican political party.

After the American Revolution and the ratification of the AOC the Americans seemed to split into two political parties, the Federalist and Democratic-Republicans.The leader of the Republicans Was Jefferson .Jefferson being the leader historians decided to name the movement of Republican beliefs after him, the Jeffersonian Movement.The types of people that were amongst this movement were mostly Farmers. these people believed in a strict interpretation of the constitution and favored a limited central government. They also believed in a agrarian society. Further more this movement helped to further democratize the United States.

During his first term Jefferson had one major achievement, The Louisiana Purchase.This was a Foreign and Domestic affair In 1803 French Emperor, Napoleon, needed money to fight Britain so he decided to sell Louisiana. Though it wasn't in his belief Jefferson purchased Louisiana for agricultural purposes. After the purchase he sent Meriwether Lewis and William Clark on a expedition to the new land.He told them to find out as much as possible about topographical , features, and resources. This was a great achievement for him because it increased the size of the country. It would also help make more land for his fellow farmers.

During 1814 in North Africa, Barbary Pirates started to seize American ships. This was a problem for Jefferson because the United States had no navy.To Stop this the United states decided to pay tribute to protect the ships. Finally the united states stopped paying when they defeated the pirates in 1815.This was foreign because it had to do with Africa. This is also a Domestic affair because they had to pay for the tributes.

French and British conflict in 1805 started to effect the United States.The British controlled the sea, whiled the french controlled the earth.In 1805 The British came out with the Essex In 1805 the British came out with Essex decision which stated that trade was closed and meant that the Americans couldn't trade in the french west indies. Again in 1807 The British blockaded the french ports with the Orders of council so the french couldn't get supplies. In that some year the French announced the Milan Decree which said they would capture any ships that obeyed the french. This feud often had American ships seized, Which angered Jefferson. To Deal with the French and British Jefferson came out with acts. The first one was the Nonintercourse act . This act Halted importation of British goods. The next act was the Embargo act mentioned before. It ended all foreign trade together which hurt the Americans more the the french and British.This is a great example of domestic affairs because it made the American economy decline. Later in 1809 the Americans again came out with the Nonintercourse act which prohibited trade if French and British. The last act was the Macon's bill no. 2. It would trade with both countries if they revoked their Decree's and or Order's. Overall this was a foreign affair because France and Britain were in Europe. This also is a example of what President Washington warned against,in his farewell speech.


Jefferson's presidency was in the end a transitional political revolution. Jefferson's beliefs and achievements further modernized the United states. Though he messed up with the Embargo act he redeemed hes self with the Macons bill. Jefferson was not the first president but he was the first to help our country to get ahead.

To what extent were the articles of confederation and inadequate form of goverment?

The Articles of Confederation were an inadequate form of government to the extent that the very nature of the AOC was weak.This is due to domestic affair problems,foreign affair problems, and features of the government under the AOC.



After the revolutionary war the new country was immediately faced with economical problems.The main reason for this is because since the Federal government could not tax the states they had no money.One example of this is great Britain's practice of over crowding the American markets with goods which resulted in an unstable balance of trade and had a bad effect on the nations economy.Another thing was that roads and all other transportation routes had been put aside because the federal government had no money to construct them.This made the structure of transportation insufficient for trade.Further more the new country didn't have a uniform currency which made it also hard for trade. Another thing is that the states had the power to taxes their citizens.This was bad because the sates could tax what ever they wanted, which might lead to one being richer then the other.The most recognized rebellion of this time is Shays rebellion.Shay and fellow farmers thought to shut down courts to prevent their farms from being foreclosed.In the end Shay and his fellow farmers were pardoned and the sate law was modified.



Problems for the new form of government were not just about domestic issues. There was also a problem with foreign affairs. The relationship between the Americans and British quickly started to decline. The United States started to fail to obey the treaty of Paris. They did this by not compensating the loyalists and paying foreign debts. An addition to that, the Spaniards decided to take advantage over the United States by quarreling over the undefined northern boundary of Florida, which also resulted in disputes over Mississippi navigation rights. On account of these events the nations foremost political leaders wanted to revise the AOC.



The Articles of Confederation was the first governing document for the original thirteen colonies. It was adopted as the basic law of the country in 1781.This form of government was weak because of the desire of democracy. One fault in the government was that it had no uniform national currency. This was a major reason why trade was inefficient and the united states economy was declining. Another point is that nine out of the thirteen states had to approve a law before it was passed. This can be considered a weakness because bigger states would have a major affect in decisions. And lastly congress had no authority to impose taxes. This is bad because federal government had no way to raise money for infrastructures.





Overall the aritcles of confederation were extremely ineffective and feeble. Because of its weaknesses it resulted in the economy's decline, disputes against other countries, and inadequate features of the AOC. On the other hand because of the United States being a new country, the AOC was a good starting round. It also paved the way to what we call today the Constitution of America.