ipl-logo

Shays Rebellion In The Post-Revolutionary United States

660 Words3 Pages

Farmers living in newly settled areas in central and Western Massachusetts struggled with high debt and heavy taxation as they were trying to start farms in the 1780s. Other state legislatures during this time responded to similar economic crisis by passing pro-debtor laws. These were laws that forgave debt and printed more paper money (Shays' Rebellion). However, in Massachusetts, this was not the case. Instead, the government seized the farms, and some farmers who couldn’t pay their debt were thrown into prison. The settlers were shocked at how the government was handling this situation, and decided to take that matter into their own hands. Shays’ Rebellion was the first armed rebellion in the post-Revolutionary United States, where settlers called for special meetings where they agreed on coordinated protests. …show more content…

When Daniel Shays took leadership of the rebellion, the events soon “flared into a full-scale revolt.” The members of the rebellion were soon named Shaysites, after Daniel Shays. Many saw them as heroes who stood up against the government for what they thought was right. But, many saw them as “dangerous rebels whose actions might topple the young experiment in republican government” (Shays' Rebellion). James Bowdoin, who was currently the governor of Massachusetts, decided to organize a military force that crushed the movement. The Shaysites quickly fell apart, but the social reasons on why this rebellion happened still remained. This made people realize that they needed to develop a stronger constitution. The Articles of Confederation was unable to keep this uprising from happening, which turned out to be a clear problem. This rebellion proved that the United States needed a strong central government that was able to handle uprisings before they got too out of

Show More
Related

Intolerable Acts DBQ

436 Words | 2 Pages

Shays' Rebellion is the name of protests by American farmers. The leader of the rebellion was Daniel Shay’s. Daniel would lead thousands of men against the State of Massachusetts, due to what was believed to be unjust economic issues. Shay’s Rebellion would go on to attempt to capture the largest Armory in the United States, located in Springfield MA.

Read More

Shays Rebellion Research Paper

270 Words | 2 Pages

Last night on February 4, 1787, General Benjamin Lincoln attacked members of the Shays’ Rebellion, and successfully captured 150 of the rebels. As a result, Daniel Shays left Massachusetts and fled to Vermont. Shays Rebellion was an armed rebellion consisting of 1,200 angry farmers from Massachusetts. They caused major chaos in this state. On December 26, 1786 Daniel Shays and the rebels revolted in Springfield, Massachusetts insisting that the state legislature address their issues, such as lack of money.

Read More

Compare And Contrast The Articles Of Confederation Shays Rebellion

330 Words | 2 Pages

The articles of confederation, shays rebellion, and the U.S. constitution are all related to each other in a certain way. The articles of confederation were approved by the congress then ratified by the states. It was an attempt to unite the new country and form a government. Shays rebellion revealed the article’s weaknesses. It showed that the country had economic difficulties and couldn’t raise an army.

Read More

Shay's Rebellion Dbq

148 Words | 1 Pages

Shays’ Rebellion was a pivotal moment in American history. Shays’ Rebellion, led by Daniel Shays, was an armed rebellion that took place from August of 1786 until early 1787, starting in Springfield, Massachusetts. Shays, a Revolutionary War veteran, was able to gather 1,500 farmers who all thought the same thing: taxes were too high and the government they had was unresponsive. By doing this, Shays was able to expose the weakness of the Articles of Confederation, which eventually led to many of the government’s leaders declaring that the Articles of Confederation were inadequate, as well as the ratification of the Constitution. In this essay, it will become clear just how important and necessary Shay's Rebellion was, and how it changed America

Read More

Examples Of Shaysite Grievances

626 Words | 3 Pages

What took place in Massachusetts during the years 1786 through 1787 shocked many. Shays’ Rebellion is directly linked to the high taxes and call for debt collection imposed by the government after the American Revolution (Danver 207). A group of newly settled farmers lead by a veteran of the Revolution, Daniel Shays, band together in hopes of changing the future; in hopes of living in a world without the economic injustices they were facing. It even wound up getting the attention of George Washington who stated that the rebellion played an integral role in his decision to attend the Philadelphia Convention (Danver 215). In a letter addressed to General Henry Knox, George Washington expressed his complete and utter shock regarding the recent uprising.

Read More

The Conestoga Massacre: The Regulator Movement

394 Words | 2 Pages

During the eighteenth-century, settlers in the back country resorted to armed insurrection to affect change in the political, economic, and social realms of their colonies and states. In 1763, there was a group known as the Paxton Boys. The Paxton Boys were formed to retaliate against American Indians and the Pontiac Rebellion after the French and Indian War. The Paxton Boys killed many Susquehannock, also known as Conestogas. This act was known as the Conestoga Massacre.

Read More

How Did Thomas Paine Create A Decentralized Government

907 Words | 4 Pages

Despite their effort to create a new government different from Britain's following their Independence in 1776, America’s executive branch paralleled Britain’s. One of the main concerns many Revolutionists had with Britain’s government was that it had too much unregulated power. To avoid this, America wrote down its laws clearly in the Articles of Confederation and ratified it among the colonies in 1781, creating a decentralized government. Through practice, the colonists realized the Articles of Confederation needed tweaking; Massachusetts farmers saw the prices for crops plummet in 1786 but the government still demanded they their mortgages. Shay’s rebellion followed, in which the farmers insisted that it was the government’s job to assist

Read More

Shay's Rebellion Do To Be Put In Jail

677 Words | 3 Pages

Shays Rebellion “The people who have stepped up to demand rights for themselves and others are likely to be put in jails from home.” Why would they be put in jail? What did Shays rebellion do to be put in such a harsh condition? You might be asking these questions, but surprisingly enough, there is plenty of evidence to prove why Shays Rebellion should have been put in jail for their actions. Although many believe that Shays and his followers were freedom-fighters, they were actually rebels because they could have handled the situation better,they were not logical about the situation and they caused many riots.

Read More

Compare And Contrast Shays Rebellion And Whiskey Rebellion

1002 Words | 5 Pages

This is because Shays rebellion took place because the poor farmers were fighting against the outrageous taxes which were leaving them without land and in prison with no means of supplying food for their families. In many states at the time if someone didn't have land they weren't able to vote because in the governments eyes they had no power. These taxes were taking away the farmers land which then also took away their right to vote which left them powerless and made their options pointless. Poor farmers ended up in jail which left their families out on the streets begging for money and a means to survive. Just like the whiskey rebellion farmers were left without a way to supply for their family because the demand of whiskey was way down after the government increase the tax by 25%.

Read More

Analyzing The Crisis Of The 1780's Helped Shaped The United States

685 Words | 3 Pages

Between 1786 and 1787 in the United States the Articles of Confederation were being tested by political issues. The main crisis was the Shays Rebellion led by Daniel Shays. The rebellion was a revolt against the state's taxing large amounts towards farmers causing them to foreclose. The farmers were unable to pay the high taxes and feared to lose their

Read More

Thomas Jefferson Modern Day Protest Analysis

155 Words | 1 Pages

Thomas Jefferson will support modern day protest because of his beliefs on how a government should act. According to the Declaration of Independence Jefferson does not like having a King or a strong central government, "He has dissolved Representative Houses repeatedly...". Later, in 1787 Shay's Rebellion took place in Massachusetts, Jefferson responded in a letter saying that it was good to rebel. According to the letter, "Let the people take arms.". Also, Jefferson's letter stated that he worries the Constitutional Convention will write a new Constitution.

Read More

What Were The Causes Of Shays Rebellion

563 Words | 3 Pages

Shays’ Rebellion During Shays’ Rebellion, what were the farmers considered? Farmers were being taxed 1000% more after the Revolutionary War and since they weren’t able to pay they went to jail. 1,500 men decided to break into the government’s arsenal and steal weapons. All of that triggered the local militia which led them to killing four farmers. Although people think of the farmers as rebels, nevertheless the farmers were freedom fighters because they fought against unlawful punishment, stepped up to demand rights, and fought for money that they weren’t given.

Read More

John Hancock's Rebellion

236 Words | 1 Pages

The Massachusetts government arrested many Shaysites for treason, but was later forced to pardon all but two because so many people had been involved. Massachusetts’ new governor, John Hancock, realized he could not punish such a large number of citizens without instigating further restlessness. So many insurgents had been involved that the government was forced to let most of them off without penalty. Starkey reveals one of the many lessons of the rebellion: “Government was not to be amended by force of arms. The inefficacy of that kind of textual criticism had been amply proved, and there must be no more rebellions.

Read More

How Did The Articles Of Confederation Lead To The American Revolution

603 Words | 3 Pages

During Shay’s rebellion, a person who fought in the revolution was unhappy with the government and thought that his rights were not being met. As a result, he had the right to start an uprising, which was a major problem for the government. They were not allowed to raise an army, and could have prevented the situation if they did. The country would have more trouble if another nation attacked, as they would have a much larger and more advanced military than a nation that is just starting out. Although the issue regarding military was a large factor in the failure of the Articles of Confederation, there was something that was much more important to the rejection of this document.

Read More

Pros And Cons Of Treason Clause

1680 Words | 7 Pages

The locals used whiskey not only for drinking but also for cooking and medicine. To the people apart of the Whiskey Rebellion, whiskey during the eighteenth century was as valuable as gold. The uproar took a turn for the worse in 1791 on October when the rebellion disguised themselves as farmers snatched a federal tax collector from his bed, marched him five miles to a blacksmith shop where they stripped him of his clothes, and burned him with a poker (Frear, 1999). Over the next three years that followed the locals in the rebellion kidnaped dozens of tax collectors. The rebels beat, shot, tarred, feathered, and terrorized dozen federal tax collectors.

Read More

More about Shays Rebellion In The Post-Revolutionary United States

Open Document