1787 - Political Events

Political Events

Shays' Rebellion continues in western Massachusetts, where 1,200 desperate and embittered farmers attack the federal arsenal at Springfield January 25 (see 1786). Armed only with pitchforks and barrel staves, they seek weapons to defend themselves against an army advancing from Boston under the leadership of General Benjamin Lincoln, now 54, but militia defending the arsenal suddenly open fire with cannon, killing four of the rebels and wounding 20. General Lincoln arrives in time to chase Daniel Shays' men into neighboring towns, and Thomas Jefferson writes to James Madison January 30, "I hold it that a little rebellion now and then is a good thing, and as necessary in the political world as storms in the physical. Unsuccessful rebellions, indeed, generally establish the rights of the people which have produced them. An observation of this truth should render honest republican governors so mild in their punishment of rebellions as not to discourage them too much. It is a medicine necessary for the sound health of the government." General Lincoln marches his men through a snowstorm and takes the rebels by surprise at Petersham February 3; Shays escapes to Vermont; most of the rebels take advantage of a general amnesty and surrender; Shays himself will be pardoned next year. But although hard-money interests in maritime Boston win out over inflationary-minded farmers Governor Bowdoin loses to John Hancock in the June election.

British general and former military governor of Massachusetts Thomas Gage dies in England April 2 at age 65.

A Constitutional Convention that has been meeting for 6 months at Philadelphia draws up a document whose preamble states, "We the people of the United States, in order to form a more perfect Union, establish justice, insure domestic tranquility, provide for the common defence, promote the general welfare, and insure the blessings of liberty for ourselves and our prosperity do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America." George Washington has presided over the convention since May 25, citing Shays' Rebellion in Massachusetts as reason for a strong central government, and Virginia delegate James Madison, now 36, has been the driving force behind the creation of the new frame of government. Standing only five feet four and weighing scarcely 100 pounds, Madison saw the weaknesses of the Articles of Confederation while serving in the Continental Congress during the War of Independence. He has studied the governments of European countries past and present, learned of their weaknesses, and determined that the United States must have an effective central authority. Madison's Philadelphia-born Princeton classmate Gunning Bedford, Jr., 40, represents Delaware at the convention and threatens to seek "some foreign ally of more honor and good faith" unless small states receive congressional representation that reflects more than their population. "I do not, gentlemen, trust you," he thunders, but Madison settles differences between proponents of a strong central government and proponents of absolute rights for the separate states. Washington resists efforts to make him king. The Virginia Plan approved by a vote of seven to three in the Convention June 19 calls for a balance of powers between the federal government (borrowing the idea of federalism pioneered by the Iroquois Confederation in 1570) and state governments, and the Constitution signed by 39 delegates from 12 states September 17 safeguards the institution of property from financial disruption and taxpayer rebellions such as those in Massachusetts.

The Constitution establishes a bicameral legislature rather than a parliament, with the lower house to have representation proportionate to population and an upper house with two members from each state (a system based on the "Connecticut Compromise" introduced by Roger Sherman, 66, and Oliver Ellsworth, 42, both of Connecticut); it provides for a chief executive to be elected for limited terms rather than for life. The chief executive may, in fact, be impeached for treason or bribery, and also for "high crimes and misdemeanors," an addendum that Madison initially opposed on grounds that it was too vague but that he has finally accepted. Scottish-born jurist James Wilson, 45, has played a leading role at the Convention, emphasizing the need for a central authority and proposing direct election of a president while at the same time preserving the local rights demanded by the separate states and citizens. Madison has opposed direct election of the chief executive lest it hurt the South, whose free citizenry would be outnumbered, and has backed creation of an Electoral College, whose membership is based on the population of the various states. The Convention adopts a "three-fifths rule" as a compromise to settle differences between Northern and Southern states over the counting of slaves for purposes of representation and taxation (Southern delegates have wanted slaves to be counted along with whites, Northern delegates have opposed their being counted at all). Each slave is to be counted as three-fifths of a free man for both purposes; the rule gives Virginia and the other Southern states a competitive edge (see Twelfth Amendment, 1804). The chief executive may propose legislation but cannot make laws, laws enacted by Congress are subject to review by the Supreme Court, and although the president is the nation's commander in chief he may not declare war; no provision is made for political parties or a standing army.

"Federalist Papers" explaining the new Constitution appear under the name "Publius" in the New York Independent Journal beginning October 27; addressed to the people of New York State, they will run for 7 months. New York lawyer Alexander Hamilton, now 32, writes the first one and will write 50 more; James Wilson, James Madison, and foreign affairs secretary John Jay, now 41, will write 34 papers between them, and their arguments will help give shape to a form of government that represents the world's first true democracy since ancient times (see 1788).

Delaware ratifies the Constitution by unanimous vote of its legislature December 7, becoming the first state of the Union. On December 12 Pennsylvania votes 46 to 23 to ratify the Constitution. New Jersey ratifies the Constitution by unanimous vote December 18.

A Northwest Ordinance adopted by Congress sitting at New York July 13 provides for a government of the Northwest Territory, a frontier area lying west of Pennsylvania, north of the Ohio River, east of the Mississippi, south of the Great Lakes, and embracing much of what later will be Ohio, Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, and Wisconsin. Congress adopted the Report on Government for Western Territory submitted in 1784 and another in 1785, but this one supersedes its predecessors, and it serves notice on the world that the territory heretofore off limits for development will not only be settled but will eventually become part of the United States: each district is to be governed by a congressionally appointed governor and judges until it has a population of 5,000 adult free males, whereupon it can become a territory and form its own representative legislature. When a territory has a population of 60,000 it may apply for statehood, with at least three states (but no more than five) to be created; no slavery is to be permitted (although slavery already in existence is not abolished), civil liberties are to be guaranteed, education is to be provided, and the Native American population is to be accorded decent treatment.

South Carolina cedes its western lands to the federal government, and the Ohio Company that was established last year signs a contract with the Treasury Board of Congress to buy lands on the Ohio River (see Losantiville, 1788). The company's negotiating agent is Manasseh Cutler, who is credited by many with having written the paragraphs in the Northwest Ordinance that prohibit slavery and encourage public education.

Thomas Paine sails for Europe, where he will remain for the next 15 years agitating for revolution and universal suffrage (see 1791).

Austria goes to war with the Ottoman Empire in a Balkan conflict that will continue until 1791. Field Marshal Gideon von Loudon will be recalled next year to command an Austrian army (see Belgrade, 1789).

Vietnam's Later Le dynasty ends after 360 years as the ruling family is overthrown by the Tay Son brothers, who have led a peasant revolt since 1771 and reunite the country, with Nguyen Hue ruling in the north as the emperor Quang Trung while his brother Nguyen Nhac rules in the south (see 1782). Missionary Pierre-Joseph-Georges Pigneau de Béhaine voyages home to France, persuades Louis XVI to sign a treaty with the Vietnamese prince Nguyen Anh, fails to obtain the armaments and troops needed to reinstate his friend, but returns to India and gains support for Nguyen Anh's cause from French merchants (see Chinese invasion, 1788).