The rebellion was a result of several historical factors mostly related to the aftermath of the American Revolution. Wiki User 2008-10-06 15:51:07 Study now See answer (1) Best Answer Copy Yes, because the governemnt was not as strong afterwards so they could'nt deal with it a better way and not let it go on. The armory housed nearly four hundred and fifty tons of military stores and over seven thousand small-arms with bayonets4. "[2], The rebellion was closely watched by the nation's leaders, who were alarmed at what they saw as an effort to "level" the inequalities the new nation was experiencing in the aftermath of the Revolution. The disruption of law and order in the rural areas of Massachusetts alarmed many officials in other states and officials in the federal government. Nothing highlighted this weakness better than the outbreak of Shays Rebellion and the powerlessness of the federal government to respond and react. The primary cause of Shays' Rebellion was that combination of citizens, especially farmers, were extremely impoverished and Massachusetts was increasing the already high tax rate. This article abides by terms of the Creative Commons CC-by-sa 3.0 License (CC-by-sa), which may be used and disseminated with proper attribution. The financial situation was dire in Massachusetts. They surrounded courthouses and state buildings and prevented government officials from following through with evictions and arrests. What was the outcome of the Stono Rebellion? There he died in obscurity and poverty in 1825. Shays' Rebellion was the first major armed rebellion in the post-Revolution United States. Did the Declaration of Independence lead to the Revolutionary War? What happened between the end of the Revolution and the drafting of the United States Constitution? The constitutional Convention was thus formed and George Washington served as the president for the meetings. BA in Political Science with Emphasis on Social Studies Education at Brevard College, 6 years experience (2 years online) teaching Economics, Personal Finance, APUS Government and more. However, with the end of the Revolutionary war, the several states no longer had a common goal, and looked increasingly to their own interests. Later, many of these same militias meant to quell the rebellion would go on to join the rebels in their quest for justice. The rebel force quickly faltered and scattered into the countryside. The rebellion started on August 29, 1786. Shays' Rebellion was an armed uprising in the state of Massachusetts that exposed the weakness of the early American government. Given the federal governments reputation of not paying troops, few willingly accepted a federal commission and efforts to fund the additional troops in state legislatures fell short. On November 13 1787, Thomas Jefferson wrote a letter to New York senator William S. Smith saying, A little rebellion now and then is a good thing. Eventually, however, George Washington was coaxed out of retirement and elected as president of the Constitutional Convention. A farmer called Plough Jogger conveyed the complaints of the rural population in a meeting attended by aggrieved commoners. I would definitely recommend Study.com to my colleagues. Only as a last resort did Shays Rebellion turn to violence. In 1782, he organized a protest against the state government of Massachusetts where residents prevented the process of tax collection by physically blocking the officers. http://www.historydoctor.net/Advanced%20Placement%20Unite How did Shays' Rebellion help lead to significant changes in the USA? The rebellion led by war veteran Daniel Shays along with 4000 rebels after the American Revolutionary War is called Shays Rebellion. To make their demands heard, they organized protests and prevented the proceedings of courthouses to create a sense of chaos and disorder. This final confrontation sent the leaders of Shays Rebellion fleeing into hiding among the woods of Vermont and New Hampshire to avoid punishment for their actions. The only difference was that now they were writing to the state government in Boston, not the Parliament in London. In the direct aftermath of Shays Rebellion, influential leaders such as Alexander Hamilton and James Madison called for a constitutional convention to discuss improvements to the Articles of Confederation. Throughout 1786, the Regulators broke people out of debtors' prisons and prevented judges and sheriffs from entering the courts. As a result, to meet their debts, many small farmers were forced to sell their land, often at less than one-third of fair market price to eastern Massachusetts speculators. Shays' Rebellion was an armed uprising in rural Massachusetts where farmers were protesting against high state taxes. The militia sympathized with the protesters, many of whom were their own neighbors and friends. (Credit: Getty Images) Feeling aggrieved by their government, the Massachusetts farmers relied on a tactic that they had successfully employed against their British rulers in 1774. It was a major factor in frightening the elites of the early US into doing away with the more democratic Articles of Confederation and coming up with the new, more republican Constitution. There's no way to know what would have happened if Shays' Rebellion had succeeded. How many people were involved in Shays' Rebellion? They organized 4000 men to march on Springfield Armory. The United States had its new system of government. Shays' Rebellion was a popular uprising that took place in western Massachusetts in 1786 and 1787. Wealthy vs poor, strong federal government vs strong state governments, urban vs rural, and pro-British vs pro-French relations were all major dividing issues of the time, among others. Learn the result of Shays' Rebellion. Did John Adams fight in the American Revolution? copyright 2003-2023 Homework.Study.com. The state then began chasing down and arresting the leaders of the movement including Job Shattuck. Was the Boston Tea Party after the Quartering Act? In the aftermath of the American Revolution the new United States faced many challenges and difficulties. As a result local sheriffs seized many farms and some farmers who couldn't pay their debts were put in prison. The forces led by Shays and Parsons were surprised and fled immediately to Amherst, Massachusetts. History in Charts is a website dedicated to writing about historical topics and diving deeper into the data behind different events, time periods, places, and people. When the federal government attempted to defend the armory with federal troops, they found themselves powerless. Another protest of the same nature took place in Worcester Massachusetts on September 5. 2023 eNotes.com, Inc. All Rights Reserved. God forbid we should ever be twenty years without such a rebellion. Its like a teacher waved a magic wand and did the work for me. George Washington, for example, exchanged dozens of letters through the fall and early winter of 178687, and it can be argued that the alarm he felt at the rebellion in Massachusetts was a strong motivation to bring him from retirement and work for a stronger central government. The rural communities held peaceful conventions and made demands of the government to aid in debt relief. Rather than beginning and leading the rebellion, the protestors gravitated towards Shays due to his leadership qualities and experience in the revolution. With help from the Federalist Papers, the constitutional convention would directly lead to the new Constitution that greatly enhanced the powers of the federal government. Some of the nation's leaders had long been frustrated by the weakness of the Articles of Confederation. By September of 1786, other states were facing similar issues though no military action was taken towards the protests. As a result, when Daniel Shays and Elias Parsons charged on the Springfield Armory, they were met by William Shepherd and his heavily armed militiamen. When these actions failed, more direct means ensued, including preventing courthouses and legislative bodies from assembling. The group of protestors seized the property from the constable and gave it back to its owners. What was the relationship between Shays' Rebellion and the calling of the Constitutional Convention? Samuel Adams passed the Riot Act which allowed the state to arrest and imprison any person without a trial. SHAYS'S AND WHISKEY REBELLIONS. The Americans realized they'd have to get over their fear of a centralized government. What rebellion showed the weakness of the Articles of Confederation? Governor Bowdoin had strong control of the government. There was only one man who all Americans genuinely trusted, and he was retired. These farmers rebelled against the unjust collection of excessive taxes and seizure of property when taxes went uncollected. What was the outcome of the Canadian Confederation? However, most of the rebels were eventually pardoned and laws were passed in Massachusetts placing a moratorium on both taxes and debts in order to ease the financial burden faced by farmers. The part which is wrong will be discontented, in proportion to the importance of the facts they misconceive. Per the Articles of Confederation, the federal government could not raise an army of its own nor levy taxes to pay for federal troops. Some were indicted however, they too were pardoned if they pledged their allegiance to the state. In Rhode Island, matters were differently resolved as the Country Party got control of the legislature in 1786. The rebellion was a major influence on the passing of the new Constitution. In 1786, debt-ridden Massachusetts farmers under the leadership of Daniel Shays began closing courts and releasing debtors from prison. Did the Declaration of Independence end the Revolutionary War? Shays' Rebellion was unsuccessful at overthrowing the government of Massachusetts through armed insurrection. Under the Articles of Confederation, Congress had extremely limited powers. John Hancock sensed that the refusal of the wealthy merchants to empathize with the farmers would lead to a violent uprising and so he resigned early in 1785. Get access to this video and our entire Q&A library, Weaknesses of the Articles of Confederation and Shays Rebellion. Certified Gifted/Talented Teacher. Why Did Napoleon Sell the Louisiana Territory? At the Constitutional Convention of 1787, a new, stronger government would be created under the United States Constitution. Neither side provided an easy way to resolve the crisis. "How significant was Shays's Rebellion of 1786?" George Washington was terrified. What problem did Shays' rebellion bring to light? All rights reserved. This was intentional; the Americans were terrified of creating a strong central government, which they equated with monarchy. His arrival in the office of the Governor was met by resistance. Farmers and rural citizens in Massachusetts were already extremely impoverished and the state decided to raise taxes with the penalty of seizing their land put in place in case they did not pay taxes. As a result, the American merchants made the same demand from their local business partners. It was a true national emergency, leading to the Constitutional Convention and the creation of the Presidency just a few months later. 7794. 35 chapters | The measures suggested by the Country Party forced the merchants to exchange debt instruments for devalued currency. The discontent of the rural population widened due to the unresponsiveness of the state to their demands. Governor Bowdoin was angry and denounced the actions of the protestors in a proclamation issued on September 2. Introduction. Massachusetts did grant general amnesty to many of the participants but arrested several rebel leaders and executed a few that had performed other criminal actions. Accessed 28 June 2023. Who are the experts?Our certified Educators are real professors, teachers, and scholars who use their academic expertise to tackle your toughest questions. Farmers and other small landholders unfortunately bore the brunt of these new taxes. Was the Bolivian War of Independence successful? The rebellion made the elites fear that the masses of people had too much power and were set to take more power still. Under the Articles of Confederation, they didn't actually enough legal or practical power to amass an army, especially since no one had actually declared war on the United States. Farmers, who already had little to no income, was still owed by the Federal government. Shays' Rebellion was an important event in the history of America. 40, no. It is its natural manure.[4]. Nothing. This was utterly false, but it did the trick. How does Shays' Rebellion compare to recent economic events that have happened in the United States. The farmers organized into a militia and marched on the courts, which they closed. The debtors' discontent was widespread and similar actions occurred on a smaller scale in Maine (then still part of Massachusetts), Connecticut, New York, and Pennsylvania among others places. What were the consequences of the Stono Rebellion? Four years later, they completely scrapped their young government and started over. National leaders felt compelled to act to put an end to such popular actions that took place beyond the bounds of law. August 1786 - February 1787 Location: Massachusetts United States Key People: James Bowdoin Benjamin Lincoln Daniel Shays See all related content Shays's Rebellion, (August 1786-February 1787), uprising in western Massachusetts in opposition to high taxes and stringent economic conditions. It was even suggested that the state legislature should print more paper money to depreciate the currency. It did not have the authority to fund troops to suppress the rebellion, nor was it empowered to regulate . Shays went unpaid for his five years of service, and was one of those most affected by personal debt and the tax collections. Of all the difficulties, Shays Rebellion was perhaps the most important. This is why they rejected all proposals made by the farmers and the war veterans. The rebellion was part of the 1780s crisis that led to the Federal government having to come in to assist Massachusetts. It was only a matter of time before the disgruntled citizens rallied together to protest the injustice of the situation. The Annapolis Convention held in Annapolis, Maryland, September 11 to September 14, 1786, initially earned the acceptance of eight of the states, but several, including Massachusetts, backed out, in part due to suspicion at Virginia's motives. In February 1787, once Shays' Rebellion had been quelled, Knox reported to Washington on Lincoln's successful operations. John Adams, one of the founding fathers and the second president of the USA had said at the time that the taxes were simply too unbearable for the people. However, there were rumblings among the growing number of protestors that the Massachusetts government needed to be overthrown. What was the state level response to Shays' Rebellion? So, why do we care about it? Since Congress had no money, many soldiers were never paid for their service in the Revolution. This caused great hardship for the rural people who had also served during the war. In August 1786, the Massachusetts state legislature had ignored a large number of petitions from citizens concerned with the financial crisis they were facing. To make matters worse, states required citizens to pay taxes in cash to help replenish the money supply from the war. A. This website shares the stories of some of the men and women who lived through this event and its aftermath. Did the Boston Massacre lead to the Revolutionary War? Shays Rebellion began on August 29, 1786 when rural farmers massed together to prevent courthouse officials in Northampton, MA from sitting and issuing judgment on eviction cases. Timeline of the History of the United States, The Result and Impact of Shays Rebellion, timeline of the history of the United States, George Washington to Henry Knox, 25 February 1787, Discover the Impact: The Significance of the Chesapeake-Leopard Affair, The Death Toll During the Plague of Justinian.
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