Causes And Effects Of The Whiskey Rebellion

The Whiskey Rebellion was caused by a new federal tax on liquor that was levied by Alexander Hamilton in 1791. The farmers were outraged by the tax was because liquor was their most profitable commodity since Americans drank very much of it very often. In the area west of the Appalachian Mountains, liquor made from grain and fruit was the primary cash commodity. Due to a combination of these facts, farmers throughout the backcountry resisted the taxes. By the summer of 1794, a full out rebellion broke out in western Pennsylvania which resulted in the death of many federal officers who were trying to arrest warrants. A major effect of the rebellion was how President George Washington handled it, which was by issuing a proclamation which ordered the insurgents home and requesting 12,900 troops from different states.

The rebellion also lead to somewhat of a victory for the farmers, as the tax was repealed years later. Like the Whiskey Rebellion, Shay's Rebellion was also an outcome of unfair taxes. New state taxes were very high because war debts had to be payed off, but farmers weren’t able to afford the taxes. Unlike the Whiskey Tax, these taxes were from the state government and not the federal government and since this rebellion took place in 1787, the Articles of Confederation were still in place. Because of this, a Revolutionary War veteran named Daniel Shay led around 1,200 farmers to an arsenal in Springfield, Massachusetts. As a response to this rebellion, the state government sent 4,400 militia men to stop the uprising. However, the federal government was not able to help since the Articles of Confederation were so weak. This rebellion led to conversations regarding the Articles of Confederation and, like the Whiskey Rebellion, the elimination of some of the