The United States of America was founded as a republic, defined as a government in which the people hold sovereignty over the government and rule through elected representatives. During the first few decades of the country’s existence, the people of the United States were united in their support of republican ideals and institutions. However, after the War of 1812 and the Missouri Compromise, the nation began to drift toward a more fragmented political system. This development was particularly true in the South, where slavery became an integral part of the economy and society.
The early Republic’s escalation of partisan political affairs is somewhat of a paradox. The First Party System saw a significant conflict between Hamiltonianism and Jeffersonianism. As the Federalist-Republicans slowly gained power throughout the first half of the nineteenth century, the Democratic-Republicans, who supported the Jeffersonian Democratic-Republicans, are losing ground (Moss, 2020). As Andrew McCrary points out, the main reason behind the partisan politics of the period is the lack of adequate checks and balances. While the Federalists had the most power, they had no apparent keeping that power.
On many matters, the Whigs and the Democratic-Republicans had opposing viewpoints. The Whigs demanded a powerful national bank and hefty tariffs to assist their industries and manufacturing in the North. The Democrats, on the other hand, sought low taxes and state banks to guarantee that they could earn as much as possible from cotton exports to other nations, as their southern economy was built on agriculture (Moss, 2020). Furthermore, they differed on the scope of the federal government’s authority. Like the Jacksonian democrats’ exploitation of cheap workers through slavery, the Whigs employed children as a cheap labour source.
The Whig Party was the party of the ruling elite; it represented the interests of the wealthy, educated, and businessmen. The Whigs were a political party that emerged in opposition to the policies of President Andrew Jackson and played a crucial role in building a national network of Western states. The Democrats, by contrast, were a party that emerged in support of the policies of President Franklin D. Roosevelt and played a significant role in building a national network of Northern states.
The United States was founded primarily due to the pro-slavery and anti-abolitionist beliefs of the early colonists. Those who supported the practice of slavery argued that blacks were an inferior race and that it was right and natural for them to be enslaved. Meanwhile, those who opposed slavery alleged that all populaces are created alike and that it was immoral to enslave another person.
The American frontier was a place where individuals could risk their money, lives, and freedom searching for new opportunities. This westward expansion brought new opportunities, such as opening new lands for farming and ranching. Still, it also brought new challenges, such as the threat of violent conflict with Native Americans. The expansion of the frontier was a significant factor in the increasing sectional tensions in the United States (Moss, 2020). The discovery of new lands and the need to secure them from Native Americans put pressure on the federal government to expand its territory at the expense of the states.
The Civil War, the conflict that ultimately destroyed the union, began with a series of significant events. The first was the Compromise of 1850, which attempted to resolve a series of long-standing issues between the North and South, including slavery in the territories. The compromise was vehemently opposed by people in the South, who felt the North was trying to steal their domains. The settlement failed to resolve the issue, and the South became even more determined to leave the union.
References
Moss, R. F. (2020). Barbecue: The History of an American Institution. University Alabama Press. Web.