History

Essay Signs of the first party system began during the Declaration of Independence. George Washington did not want any form of separation; however, from the time of the Declaration of Independence there was a separation of political views. These views are now what we know as Federalist and Republicans. The first signs of party-like activity began with the Patriots and the Tories (Loyalists). The Patriots were loyal to their country; which is America. The Tories were loyal and kept their loyalty to Britain. The emergence of the first party system began during George Washington’s administration. In this party system you had the Federalist and the Antifederalist. Alexander Hamilton was the architect of the Federalist Party. Thomas Jefferson on the other hand was an Antifederalist. As mentioned before Alexander Hamilton was a Federalist. He is one of the main reasons that the factions increased. He created what was called Hamilton’s Fiscal Plan. The First Component was Assumption which meant that the central government would assume individual debt of the state. The Second Component was to create a Bank of the United States and for every one to have one set currency. The Third Component was National Industrial Economy and Federal Political Coalition. The Federalists were proponents of the Constitution and still sided with Britain. These men in the Federalist Party were wealthy men, not middle wealth farmers. The Federalist wanted the capitol closer to the South in the Chesapeake. They endorsed the Neutrality Proclamation because they didn’t want to be pulled into the war with England and France; they didn’t want to have to choose sides. They also supported Jay’s Treaty because they felt Britain had more to offer to the country. They wanted a strong national government and wanted everything centered around the government. The Republicans wanted to block the Constitution; they felt that it gave the government way too much power. They believed in strict construction. They were made up of Southern planters and Northern farmers. Thomas Jefferson wanted everyone involved in the government, not just those with money. They supported the French Revolution despite the violent excesses because the French was a democratic society and they helped America in the war. The Republicans opposed the Alien and Sedition Acts for the same reason that they wanted to block the Constitution. These Acts violated the First Amendment of the Constitution. They wanted the Bill of Rights to be made because they wanted to make sure that the people’s rights were not taken away. Once again the Republicans did not want the majority of the power to be centered around the government. Although Washington did not want factions involved, they were already there before he came to presidency. There would always be a political split because not everyone would be satisfied. The Federalist and the Republicans were as different as night and day on most issues, however, both parties tried to do the best that they felt necessary for their country.