Diplomatic Diplomatic NationalismNationalism

Young America Asserts Itself in Young America Asserts Itself in World AffairsWorld Affairs

1797-18231797-1823

Washington’s Farewell Address• Washington’s final legacy to the young republic was his Farewell Address (published in 1796), in which he warned against both political factionalism and “foreign entanglements”

• Washington’s advice has often been used (wrongly) by American isolationists to justify restraining America’s overseas activities and commitments

• Washington foresaw a time when the U.S. would become a great power but also knew that, until then, it needed to time to grow and prosper unmolested by foreign powers and the temptation to adventurism on the part of some

• Would Americans follow his advice?

The Quasi-War with France (1798)

• As war continued in Europe, Britain and France failed to respect American neutrality on the high seas, seizing ship cargoes and impressing sailors (even some U.S. citizens)

• U.S. efforts to negotiate with the French resulted in the XYZ Affair (1797), in which the French demanded a bribe before they would even speak with American diplomats

• Resulting furor at home led to an undeclared naval war with France (Quasi-War of 1798) and creation of the U.S. Navy and Marines by President John Adams (Federalist)

• Washington and Hamilton were even called upon to lead a revived “wartime” army

The Alien & Sedition Acts (1798)

Federalists in Congress and President Adams responded to Republican criticisms and suspected disloyalty with passage of the Alien & Sedition Acts, which:(1) allowed expulsion of aliens suspected of subversion,(2) lengthened the residency requirement for naturalization as a citizen from 5 to 14 years, and(3) gave the federal government power to arrest and imprison anyone charged with sedition (aimed squarely at muzzling the Republican press and eroding First Amendment rights)

Republicans responded with the Kentucky & Virginia Resolutions (1798) asserting states’ rights to protect their citizens against tyrannical federal authority

Contributed to Federalist defeat in the Election (“Revolution”) of 1800, in which Republicans took over control of Congress and Jefferson defeated Adams for the presidency

Jeffersonian Diplomacy

Despite his views on limited executive power, Jefferson pursued an activist foreign policy:

1801: He ordered a naval squadron to compel the Barbary Pirates (Algiers, Tunis, Tripoli) to halt their extortion of American vessels; by 1805, these states agreed to a treaty favorable to the U.S., the operation impressed European states

1803: Louisiana Purchase made possible by Napoleon’s desire for ready cash ($15 million) and Jefferson’s realization that the

deal was too good to pass up (strict interpretation of the Constitution notwithstanding); result: U.S. size doubles and

Lewis & Clark go west and make first U.S. claim to Oregon

American Neutrality Under Threat

• With the start of the Napoleonic Wars (1805), British and French naval vessels resumed impressment of American sailors and seizure of cargoes bound for enemy ports

• Jefferson’s response was the ill-advised Embargo Act (1807) that halted all trade with foreign nations in the expectation that Britain and France would be compelled to desist and agree to negotiate with the U.S. (they didn’t and New England suffered an economic depression, angering the Federalist opposition)

• James Madison (Jefferson’s hand-picked successor) signed Macon’s Bill #2 (1810) stating that, if either Britain or France agreed to respect American rights, the U.S. would cut off trade with the other country

• France agreed and the U.S. cut off trade with Britain in 1811, thus prompting a British blockade of U.S. ports

• Smart diplomacy or JUST PLAIN STUPID? You decide.

The War Hawks• Meanwhile, back on the trans-

Appalachian frontier, Native Americans (led by such tribes as the Shawnee and Creek), resisted westward settlement by American pioneers

• Britain supplied the Shawnee leader, Tecumseh, with money and weapons

• Newly-elected “War Hawks” in Congress, such as Henry Clay of Kentucky and John C. Calhoun of South Carolina, called for an invasion of Canada to break the back of the British-Native American alliance

• Congress declared war on Britain on June 18, 1812; Madison called up the army

The War of 1812 (1813, 1814, & 1815)

“Mr. Madison’s War” (as the Federalists called it) was a comedy of errors that almost resulted in defeat:

1. Attempted invasions of Canada failed miserably2. Tecumseh wreaked havoc on the Northwest

frontier, until defeated by General Harrison in late 1813

3. British expeditionary force captured Washington and burned the White House and the Capitol (1814)

Bright Spots (we won! - a nearly-fatal military draw): 1. “The Star-Spangled Banner” (F. Scott Key)2. Andrew Jackson’s defeat of the Creek and his

victory over the British at New Orleans after the war formally ended (January 1815)

3. Treaty of Ghent secured British recognition of American interests and helped ensure survival

Diplomatic Consolidation

John Quincy Adams, who had helped to negotiate the Treaty of Ghent, served as President Monroe’s Secretary of State (1817-1825) and masterminded an American diplomatic revolution.

He helped to protect U.S. long-term interests by negotiating three major treaties (& helping to initiate long-term peace with UK):1. Rush-Bagot Treaty (1817) demilitarized the Great Lakes.2. British-American Convention(1818) set the boundary between the U.S. and Canada (at the 49th parallel) and created the longest unguarded border in the world.3. Adams-Onis Treaty (1819) – Spain ceded Florida to the U.S. in exchange for defined boundaries in the west and abandonment of the U.S. claim to Texas (right).

Adams also helped to formulate the Monroe Doctrine (1823) that established our policy with regard to Latin America; no foreign intervention in the affairs of the Western Hemisphere.