Page 218 - US History

208 Chapter 7 | Creating Republican Governments, 1776–1790
Key Terms
Anti-Federalists those who opposed the 1787 Constitution and favored stronger individual states bicameral having two legislative houses, an upper and a lower house
checks and balances the system that ensures a balance of power among the branches of government
Connecticut Compromise also known as the Great Compromise, Roger Sherman’s proposal at the Constitutional Convention for a bicameral legislature, with the upper house
having equal representation for all states and the lower house having proportional representation
conservative Whigs the politically and economically elite revolutionary class that wanted to limit political participation to a few powerful families
coverture the legal status of married women in the United States, which included complete legal and economic dependence on husbands
democracy a system of government in which the majority rules
Electoral College the mechanism by which electors, based on the number of representatives from each
state, choose the president
Federalists those who supported the 1787 Constitution and a strong central government; these advocates of the new national government formed the ruling political party in the 1790s
majority rule a fundamental principle of democracy, providing that the majority should have the power to make decisions binding upon the whole
manumission the freeing of a slave by his or her owner
monarchy a form of government with a monarch at its head
proportional representation representation that gives more populous states greater political power by allowing them more representatives
radical Whigs revolutionaries who favored broadening participation in the political process
three-fifths compromise the agreement at the Constitutional Convention that each slave would count as
three-fifths of a white person for purposes of representation unicameral having a single house (of legislative government)
Summary
7.1 Common Sense: From Monarchy to an American Republic
The guiding principle of republicanism was that the people themselves would appoint or select the leaders who would represent them. The debate over how much democracy (majority rule) to incorporate in the governing of the new United States raised questions about who was best qualified to participate in government and have the right to vote. Revolutionary leaders argued that property holders had the greatest stake in society and favored a republic that would limit political rights to property holders. In this way, republicanism exhibited a bias toward the elite. George Washington served as a role model for the new republic, embodying the exceptional talent and public virtue prized in its political and social philosophy.
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