Source 1
“The development of the first American party system was not a mere squabble between ambitious elites, but a fundamental ideological battle over the soul of the new republic. On one side stood Alexander Hamilton and the Federalists, who envisioned a centralized empire guarded by a robust federal government. On the other side, Thomas Jefferson and the Democratic-Republicans championed an agrarian democracy, fearing that Hamilton’s financial programs would recreate the very British tyranny they had just fought to overthrow. Political parties emerged as essential vehicles for citizens to defend competing, deeply held philosophies about liberty and authority”
Arthur M. Schlesinger, Jr., historian, The Age of Jackson, 1945
Source 2
“The rhetoric of liberty and tyranny used by early American politicians masked a far more practical reality: the first political parties were organized primarily to protect distinct regional economic interests. Northern merchants, speculators, and urban elites coalesced around the Federalist banner to secure federal protections for manufacturing, shipping, and public credit. Conversely, Southern planters and Western farmers aligned under the Democratic-Republican name to shield their agrarian-based economies from federal taxation and commercial interference. Ideology was the language used to mobilize voters, but regional economic preservation was the engine”
Charles A. Beard, historian, An Economic Interpretation of the Constitution
of the United States, 1913
Respond to parts (A), (B), and (C)
(A) Describe one major difference between Schlesinger’s and Beard’s historical interpretations of the origins of American political parties.
(B) Explain how one specific event or development from the period from 1789 to 1800 can be used to support Schlesinger’s argument about the origins of American political parties.
(C) Explain how one specific event or development from the period from 1789 to 1800 can be used to support Beard’s argument about the origins of American political parties.
ANSWERS – Let’s take a look!
