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Shays’ Rebellion

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SHAYS’ REBELLION

The Event that Almost Destroyed America

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Background & Causes

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  • After 8 years of war, the American Revolution was over, and General George Washington retired to a hero’s welcome at his home in Mt. Vernon, Virginia.

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The new country under the Articles of Confederation had troubles

  • An empty treasury (Boke)
  • Crushing war debt
  • Depression
  • Economic crisis

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  • Soldiers of the Colonial Army had been promised back pay and pensions.

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  • However, there was no money to pay them for their service.

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  • Upon release from the army, soldiers were --
  • allowed to keep uniforms and their musket,
  • issued one month’s pay,
  • awarded worthless government certificates.

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Articles of Confederation-PROBLEMS ☹

  • Major problem….under the Articles the national government or Congress had no power to collect taxes.
  • They would have to rely on the states to give them money.
  • Congress was printing money that couldn’t be backed up with silver or gold.
  • Each state also printed its own money
  • No one knew what anything was worth. It caused a lot of confusion and arguing between states.

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Various Currencies from around the United States

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Failing Economy-Depression

  • The financial situation caused American businesses to decline and unemployment to rise causing an economic depression.
  • Great Britain passed laws making it difficult for American ships to enter its ports as a result many merchants found themselves in debt and shipbuilding and shipping industries declined.

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Could I please have $1000?

NO!

NO!

NO!

NO!

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What's a government to do?

Hmmmm....why don't I just print some more money?

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Money isn't worth the paper it's printed on!

Money is only worth what other people will give you for it!

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Paper money represents real things

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One piece of paper ($1)

One piece of gold

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Paper money represents real things

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One piece of paper ($1)

One can of soda

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Therefore...

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One piece of gold

One can of soda

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  • What if you don't have enough?
  • What if someone won't give you what you want for the piece of paper that you have?
  • Can you just print more paper?

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NO! It doesn't work that way!

Remember...paper money represents real things. You haven't changed the number of real things, just the number of pieces of paper!

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ACK! INFLATION!!!

Now your paper money is worth less!

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Soda used to cost $1. Now it costs $2!

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PRINTING MONEY NEVER SOLVES A GOVERNMENT'S PROBLEMS!

Inflation was so out of control in Germany that in 1923, it cost 4 million of their dollars to buy a loaf of bread!

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What we've learned so far...

  1. Money is only worth what people will give you for it.
  2. Printing more money doesn't solve your economic problems.

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PRINTING MONEY NEVER SOLVES YOUR PROBLEMS!

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SHAYS’ REBELLION

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SHAYS’ REBELLION

  • Massachusetts wanted to pay back war debt in three years by raising property taxes
  • However, businessmen and trade merchants saw little or no change in their taxes.
  • Unpaid taxes led to debtors’ court and seized property.
  • Meanwhile, judges, lawyers, and merchants made money from the auctioned property.

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Going Broke

  • Farmers are required to pay debts in gold
  • They have no money because they were not paid during the war
  • Farmers were taken into court, then to jail, and their land was taken away from them because they were in debt.
  • Wealthy lawmakers invested their money in the war too. And seek to get money from the farmers debts

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Daniel Shays

  • Retired Army Captain in the Revolutionary War
  • Farmer in Massachusetts
  • Could not pay his debts
  • DON’T PAY
  • Shays rallied and organized rebels into the actions in the fall of 1786

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Shays Rebellion

  • Poor farmers are not represented in the Mass legislature
  • Cannot pass debt relief laws
  • In 1786, an armed revolt by farmers against the state government took place.

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Shays Rebellion

  • The rebellion, led by Daniel Shays will…
    • Free debtors from prisons
    • Destroy courts that are hearing cases against farmers
    • Destroy records of debts

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The Congress can't help

  • Since the Articles of Confederation did not give Congress the power to raise a standing army, the federal government could not help stop the rebellion.

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Problems under Confederated Government

  • Both Congress and Massachusetts was unable to pay for a militia to stop the rebellion –
  • Privately paid forces had to do the job.
  • All this fueled the dissatisfaction with the Articles of Confederation.

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Results of Shays’ Rebellion

  • The Event that Almost Destroyed a New Nation
  • Shays’ Rebellion showed the leaders of America that the Articles of Confederation were too weak, and a stronger national government was needed.
  • A Constitutional Convention was called to solve the problem.
  • Shays’ Rebellion will prompt national leaders to create a stronger central government

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Americans are Fearful….

  • Americans now realized that the United States did not have an effective government.
  • Many believed it was time to either rewrite or throw out the Articles of Confederation.
  • The states will call for a CONVENTION to revise the Articles.