Monday, November 12, 2012

Marbury v. Madison

John Adams attempted to appoint William Marbury as a Justice of Peace in D.C. in the "midnight appointments", but failed to do so before his presidency was over. As a federalist, John Adams attempted to appoint as many federalists to the cabinet of the United States President.
So, how did  Marbury v. Madison become to be? Well, an official appointment had to be made while the President's term was still active, but John Adams ' presidency ended before he could appoint Marbury. Expecting to be permitted as a Justice of Peace, Marbury assumed the role but was denied by Thomas Jefferson and James Madison; President and Secretary of State. They rejected the appointment by refusing to finalize the commission process.
Upset, Marbury brought the case to the Supreme Court. The Marbury v. Madison case was overseen by Chief Justice John Marshall. After the trial, Marshall said that article 3 of the Constitution  did not allow a branch of the government to force action on the part of another branch. John Marshall said that Marbury was eligible to the position of Justice of Peace, but the final decision belonged to Thomas Jefferson.

Dartmouth v. Woodward

In 1769 the King George III of England granted a charter to Dartmouth College. This document spelled out the purpose of the school, set up the structure to govern it, and gave land to the college. The state legislature of New Hampshire passed laws that revised the charter in 1816. These laws changed the school from private to public. They changed the duties of the trustees and how the trustees were selected.
The trustees filed a suit against the legislature. The trustees claimed that the legislature violated the Constitution. They argued that Article 1, Section 10, of the Constitution prevented a state from canceling a contract. The Court agreed with Dartmouth and it continued as a private college. Chief Justice Marshall said that the charter was a contract between the King and the trustees, and even though we were no longer a royal colony, the contract is still valid because the Constitution says that a state cannot pass laws to impair a contract.
This case was important because we know that the constitution does not allow a legislature to change the charter of a school, or anything for that matter, that is under a contract. Because of this we know what is protected by the "contract" clause of the Constitution.

Tuesday, October 16, 2012

Abraham Baldwin

 
Abraham Baldwin was born on November 23, 1754 in Guilford Connecticut. He represented Georgia at the Constitutional Convention. Baldwin distinguished how public service clearly demonstrated academic achievement and how it could open opportunities in early American society. He served in the Continental Army during the climactic years of the Revolution. There, close contact with men of widely varying economic and social backgrounds broadened his outlook and experience. Baldwin also displayed a strong sense of nationalism. Experiences during the war as well as his subsequent work in public education convinced him that the future well-being of an older, more prosperous state like Connecticut was closely linked to developments in newer states such as Georgia, where political institutions were largely unformed and provisions for education remained primitive. His later political career was animated by the conviction that only a strong central government dedicated to promoting the welfare of the citizens of all the states could guarantee the fulfillment of the ideals and promises of the Revolution.


Monday, August 20, 2012

indicate the similarities and differences among the southern colonies of virginia, maryland, north carolina, south carolina, and georgia

Tobacco was commonly grown everywhere, but North and South Carolinas grew a lot of rice as well.  Slavery was also common in all plantation colonies. Confrontations with native Americans was also common. Maryland depended a lot on Catholic religion as a way of life, and if you didn't have a religion, or were jew, then you would be killed. Unlike Maryland, Georgia, was meant to be a haven for wretched souls in debt. Viriginia had a self-government and North and South Carolina expanded by developing close economic ties with the West Indies.

describe the development of the Jamestown colony from its disastrous beginnings to its later prosperity

Jamestown was founded by 100 English settlers that disembarked from their ships. It was founded on May 24, 1607. Captain John Smith took over the town, in 1608, and brought discipline upon the colonists. The "starving winter" of 1609-1610 killed approximately 340 of the 400 settlers who came to Virginia, by 1609. in 1610, Lord De La Warr arrived to Jamestown with supplies and military. He started the First Anglo-Powhatan War, and the Chesapeake were defeated, again, in the Second war in 1644. The natives were banished and by 1685, they were considered to be extinct.

Sunday, August 19, 2012

state the factors that led England to begin colonization

Even though the Spanish had a lot of control in America, North America was unclaimed. Spain set up Santa Fe, France Quebec, and Britain Jamestown. Britain didn’t really colonize because of internal conflicts. King Henry VIII broke with the Roman Catholic Church and he launched the English Protestant Reformation. After Elizabeth I became queen, Britain became basically Protestant, and a rivalry with Catholic Spain grew more intense. The English crushed an uprising, in Ireland, and went to America, where they established power and colonization.

explain the developments in Europe and Africa that led up to Columbus's voyage to America

Europeans began to explore after Marco Polo returned with stories of China and its riches. First, they they went Africa where they colonized and used African slaves as plantation workers. Vasco da Gama reached India in 1498, which opened a sea route to the Far East. The dangers of this sea route influenced Christopher Columbus to sail to the west.  Because of this, he "discovered" the Americas. Although the Portuguese were first colonists in America, the Spanish became the dominant nation.