The American Republic Since 1877 © 2007

Chapter 4: Federalists and Republicans, 1789—1820

Web Lesson Plans

Introduction
Students have read about how differences between the Federalists and the Republicans fostered the development of the first political parties. In this activity students will review a lesson about the first transition of executive power from one political party to another.

Lesson Description
Students will use information from the White House Historical Society Web site to learn about the election of 1800 and the first transition of executive power from one political party to another. They will read about the development of differences between the Federalists and the Republicans, the problematic influences of political parties on the election of 1796, the campaign of 1800, and the transition of power after the inauguration of Jefferson. Students will then answer four questions and apply this information by sketching a political cartoon that illustrates the tensions between the first political parties.

1. Students will analyze how political differences fostered the development of the American political party system and how the development of the party system affected the early government.
2. Students will be able to use this knowledge to sketch a political cartoon that illustrates the tensions between the early political parties.

1. Leading Federalists included George Washington, Alexander Hamilton, John Adams, and Charles C. Pickney. Republican leaders included Thomas Jefferson, James Madison, and Aaron Burr. The separate parties emerged during Washington’s administration over disputes involving taxation and banking and the United States’s involvement in the French Revolution. Later the parties had opposing views on the constitutionality of the Alien and Sedition Acts and the rights of states to nullify federal laws.
2. Americans had never witnessed a transition of power from one political party to another. Since the campaign was so heated, and the issues were so divisive, some feared that the inauguration of Jefferson would tear the country apart.
3. The writers of the Constitution, without foresight of the emergence of political parties, designed elections so that the candidate with the second largest electoral vote would be vice president. In the 1796 election, the Federalist candidate, Adams, won the presidency while the Republican candidate, Jefferson, won the vice presidency. Political parties confused the 1800 election when Jefferson and his running mate, Aaron Burr, both Republicans, received the same number of electoral votes. The House of Representatives elevated Jefferson to the top post one week and thirty-six ballots later.
4. Jefferson faced the task of trying to unify the country behind his presidency. In his inaugural speech he tried to evoke a spirit of calm by saying, "We are all republicans, we are all federalists." He also did not remove Federalists from office.
5. Students' political cartoons will vary.