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The Secret Journal of the Hartford Convention, published 1823.
The Secret Journal of the Hartford Convention, published 1823.

The Hartford Convention was an event in 1814-1815 in the United States during the War of 1812 in which New England's opposition to the war reached the point where secession from the United States was discussed. The United States of America —commonly referred to as the The War of 1812 was fought between the United States of America and the British Empire, particularly Great Britain and her North American colonies History See also History of New England New England's earliest inhabitants were Algonquian -speaking Native Americans including the Secession (derived from the Latin term secessio is the act of withdrawing from an organization union or especially a political entity The end of the war with a return to the status quo ante bellum disgraced the Federalist Party, which disbanded in most places. The term status quo ante bellum comes from Latin meaning literally as things were before the war. The Federalist Party (or Federal Party) was an American political party in the period 1792 to 1816 with remnants lasting into the 1820s

Contents

Policies of Jefferson and Madison: cut off trade

Thomas Jefferson's anti-foreign trade policies, particularly the Embargo Act of 1807 and James Madison's Non-Intercourse Act of 1809, were very unpopular in the northeastern United States, especially among merchants and shippers. Thomas Jefferson (April 13 1743 – July 4 1826 was the third President of the United States (1801–1809 the principal author of the Declaration of Independence The Embargo Act " was a series of laws passed by the Congress of the United States between the years 1806-1808 during the second term of President Thomas In the last days of President Thomas Jefferson 's Presidency, the United States Congress replaced the Embargo Act of 1807 with the almost unenforceable Year 1809 ( MDCCCIX) was a Common year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common year Jefferson's successor, President James Madison, was even less popular in New England, particularly after his prosecution of the War of 1812, which ended legal trade with England. James Madison Jr (March 16 1751 – June 28 1836 was an American Politician, the fourth President of the United States (1809–1817 and one of the Founding The War of 1812 was fought between the United States of America and the British Empire, particularly Great Britain and her North American colonies The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom, the UK or Britain,is a Sovereign state located The opposing Federalist Party, formerly quite weak, regained strength especially in New England, and in New York where it collaborated with Mayor DeWitt Clinton of New York City and supported him for president in 1812. New York ( is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States and is the nation's third most populous DeWitt Clinton ( March 2, 1769 Little Britain New York February 11, 1828 Albany New York) was an early American politician

New England anger

When Madison was reelected in 1812 the fury in New England intensified. The war turned against the Americans, and the British effectively blockaded the entire coastline. Almost all maritime activity (apart from smuggling) was stopped and New England interests suffered. Forced at length to defend their own homes and firesides, Massachusetts and Connecticut now felt the repercussions of their opposition to Madison's position on relations with England. Instead of trusting their governors with the local defense as the administration had done with States which upheld the war, the President now insisted upon retaining the exclusive control of military movements. Because Massachusetts and Connecticut had refused to subject their militia to the orders of the War Department, Madison declined to pay their expenses. The United States Department of War, sometimes also called the War Office, was the department of the United States government 's executive branch Consequently, the cry was raised that Madison had abandoned New England to the common enemy. The Massachusetts Legislature appropriated $1,000,000 to support a state army of 10,000 men. Harrison Gray Otis, who inspired these measures, suggested that the Eastern States meet in convention in Hartford. Harrison Gray Otis ( October 8, 1765 &ndash October 28, 1848) was a businessman lawyer and politician becoming one of the most As early as 1804 New England Federalists had discussed secession from the Union if the national government became too oppressive. [1]

Secession was again in the air in 1814-1815; all but one leading Federalist newspaper in New England supported a radical plan to expel the western states from the Union. Otis, the key leader of the Convention, blocked radical proposals like seizing the Federal customs house, impounding federal funds, or declaring neutrality. Otis however did think the Madison administration was near collapse and that unless conservatives like himself and the other delegates took charge, the radical secessionists might take power. Indeed, Otis was unaware that Massachusetts Governor Caleb Strong had already sent a secret mission to discuss terms with the British for a separate peace. Caleb Strong ( January 9, 1745 - November 7, 1819) was Massachusetts lawyer and politician who served as the Governor of [2]

Delegations

On October 10, 1814, the Massachusetts state legislature called for the Hartford Convention, ostensibly to discuss several constitutional amendments necessary to protect New England's interests. Events 680 - Battle of Karbala: Shia Imam Husayn bin Ali, the grandson of the Prophet Muhammad, is decapitated Year 1814 ( MDCCCXIV) was a Common year starting on Saturday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common On December 15, 1814, delegations from all five New England states were to meet in Hartford, Connecticut. Events 533 - Byzantine general Belisarius defeats the Vandals, commanded by King Gelimer, at the Battle of Year 1814 ( MDCCCXIV) was a Common year starting on Saturday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common Official delegations were sent by Massachusetts, Connecticut, and Rhode Island. Connecticut ( is a state located in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. Rhode Island ( officially named the State of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations, is a state in the New England region of the United States

Twelve delegates were appointed by the Massachusetts Legislature, chief of whom were Cabot and Otis. In Connecticut, whose legislature denounced Monroe's conscription plan as barbarous and unconstitutional, a delegation of seven was made up — Chauncey Goodrich and James Hillhouse, at the head. For the clergyman and lexicographer see Chauncey Allen Goodrich. James Hillhouse ( October 20, 1754 &ndash December 29, 1832) was an American lawyer real estate developer and politician from Rhode Island's Legislature added four more to the list. So deep-rooted, however, was the national distrust of this movement that Vermont and New Hampshire shrank from giving the convention a public sanction. New Hampshire had a Republican council; while in Vermont the victory at Plattsburgh stirred the Union spirit; Governor Martin Chittenden himself having changed in official tone, after the war became a defensive one. The Battle of Plattsburgh, also known as the Battle of Lake Champlain, ended the final invasion of the northern states during the War of 1812. Martin Chittenden ( March 12, 1763 &ndash September 5, 1840) was Governor of Vermont during a crucial portion of the War of 1812 Violent county conventions representing fractions of towns chose, however, three delegates, two in New Hampshire and one in Vermont, whose credentials being accepted by the convention, the whole number of delegates assembled at Hartford was twenty-six.

The following lists the states that attended and the names of the attendees. [3]

Secret meetings

In all, 26 delegates attended. Daniel Waldo ( September 10, 1762 &ndash July 30, 1864) was an American Clergyman. George Bliss may refer to George Bliss (pedicab designer George William Bliss (1918&ndash1978 Pulitzer Prize-winning Journalist For the clergyman and lexicographer see Chauncey Allen Goodrich. John Treadwell ( November 23, 1745 - August 19, 1823) was an American politician and the fourth Governor of Connecticut. James Hillhouse ( October 20, 1754 &ndash December 29, 1832) was an American lawyer real estate developer and politician from Zephaniah Swift ( February 27, 1759 &ndash September 27, 1823) was an American jurist author and politician from Windham Connecticut Calvin Goddard ( July 17, 1768 – May 2, 1842) was a United States Representative from Connecticut. Roger Minott Sherman, (1773-1844 he was the youngest of six children of Rev Samuel Ward (American statesman (1725–1776 was an American merchant and a delegate to the Continental Congress from Rhode Island Benjamin West RA ( October 10, 1738 – March 11, 1820) was an Anglo - American painter of historical William Hall Jr is a film and stage actor who has been involved in acting since the early 1970s The meetings were secret and no records of the proceedings were kept. Meetings continued through January 5, 1815. After choosing George Cabot as president, and Theodore Dwight as secretary, the present convention remained in close session for three continuous weeks. George Cabot ( January 16, 1752 &ndash April 18, 1823) was an American merchant seaman and politician from Boston Massachusetts Theodore Dwight may refer to Theodore Dwight (elder (1764–1846 Federalist member of U Surviving letters of contemporaries show that representative Federalists labored with these delegates to procure the secession of New England. Assembling amid rumors of treason and the execration of all the country west of the Hudson, its members were watched by an army officer who had been conveniently stationed in the vicinity. Cabot's journal of its proceedings, when it was eventually opened, was a meager sketch of formal proceedings; he made no record of yeas and nays, stated none of the amendments offered to the various reports, attached the name of no author to a single proposition. It is impossible to ascertain the speeches or votes of individual delegates.

Convention report

The convention ended with a report and resolutions, signed by the delegates present, and adopted on the day before final adjournment. The report said that New England had a "duty" to assert its authority over unconstitutional infringements on its sovereignty — a doctrine that echoed the policy of Jefferson and Madison in 1798 (in the Kentucky and Virginia Resolutions), and which would later reappear in a different context as "nullification. Constitutionality is the status of a law, a procedure or an act's accordance with the laws or guidelines set forth in the applicable Constitution. The Kentucky and Virginia Resolutions (or Resolves) were important political statements in favor of States' rights written secretly by Vice President Thomas "

The Hartford Convention's final report proposed several amendments to the US Constitution. The Constitution of the United States of America is the supreme Law of the United States. These attempted to combat the policies of the ruling Republicans by: 1) Prohibiting any trade embargo lasting over 60 days; 2) Requiring a two-thirds Congressional majority for declaration of war, admission of a new state, or interdiction of foreign commerce; 3) Removing the three-fifths representation advantage of the South; 4) Limiting future Presidents to one term; 5) Requiring each President to be from a different state than his predecessor. In international Commerce and politics, an embargo is the prohibition of commerce A supermajority or a qualified majority is a requirement for a proposal to gain a specified level or type of support which exceeds a simple Majority in order to have The Three-Fifths Compromise was a compromise between Southern and Northern states reached during the Philadelphia Convention of 1787 in which (This provision was aimed directly at the ruling Virginia Dynasty. The Virginia dynasty is a term sometimes used to describe the fact that four of the first five Presidents of the United States were from Virginia. )

Negative reception

The Hartford Convention or LEAP NO LEAP by William Charles
The Hartford Convention or LEAP NO LEAP by William Charles

The Republican Congress would never have recommended any of New England's proposals for ratification. William Charles (1776-1820 was a Scottish -born Engraver who immigrated to the United States and is now known best for his Political cartoons Hartford delegates intended for them to embarrass the President and the Republicans in Congress—and also to serve as a basis for negotiations between New England and the rest of the country.

Some delegates may have been in favor of New England's secession from the United States, and forming an independent republic, though no such resolution was adopted at the convention. Historian Samuel Eliot Morison rejected the notion that Hartford was an attempt to take New England out of the Union and give treasonous aid and comfort to Britain. Samuel Eliot Morison, Rear Admiral, United States Naval Reserve ( July 9, 1887 – May 15, 1976) was an American Morison wrote, "Democratic politicians, seeking a foil to their own mismanagement of the war and to discredit the still formidable Federalist party, caressed and fed this infant myth until it became so tough and lusty as to defy both solemn denials and documentary proof. " [4]

Massachusetts actually sent three commissioners to Washington, D. C. to negotiate these terms. When they arrived in February, 1815, news of Andrew Jackson's stunning victory at the Battle of New Orleans, and the signing of the Treaty of Ghent, preceded them and, consequently, their presence in the capital seemed both ludicrous and subversive. Andrew Jackson (March 15 1767 June 8 1845 was the seventh President of the United States (1829&ndash1837 The Battle of New Orleans took place on January 8, 1815, and was the final major battle of the War of 1812. The Treaty of Ghent ( signed on December 24 1814, in Ghent, currently in Belgium, was the peace treaty that ended the War of 1812 They quickly returned. Thereafter, both Hartford Convention and Federalist Party became synonymous with disunion, secession, and treason, especially in the South. The party was ruined, and survived only in a few localities for several more years before vanishing entirely.

Somewhat ironically, the embargo and War that New Englanders hated so much was a large reason the region industrialized much earlier than the rest of the country, and subsequently the New England states, especially Massachusetts and Connecticut, became among the wealthiest in the country, a status they still hold in the present day.

References

  1. ^ Schouler, History of the United States vol 1
  2. ^ Morison (1969) 362-70
  3. ^ Lalor, Cyclopedia of Political Science
  4. ^ Morison 1969 p 394
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