Daniel Shays
At a glance:
- Series: Dictionary of World Biography: The 17th and 18th Centuries
- Categories: Government and Politics, Social Issues, Reform, and Protest, Military History
- Subcategories: American Revolution, Revolutionary War, Colonialism, Colonies, Settlements, Generals, Military Officers, Soldiers, Revolutions, Rebellions, Uprisings, Riots, Protests, Marches, Demonstrations, Rallies, Farms, Farming, Rural Life
- Curriculum: American Colonial History (1607-1775), American Revolutionary History (1776-1788), American Early National History (1789-1815)
Article abstract: In 1787, Shays led farmers in a rebellion against the state government of Massachusetts, protesting unfair debtor laws and inequitable taxation. The rebellion raised fears of anarchy among political leaders throughout the United States, motivating them to meet in Philadelphia, where they would draft the Constitution.
Early Life
Daniel Shays began life in obscurity, born around 1747 in the colony of Massachusetts to Patrick and Margaret Shays. For the first thirty years of his life, he remained relatively anonymous; like his father...
[The entire page is 1903 words long]
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