Jeffersonian & Jacksonian Democracy Comparison
Questions
Political
To what extent was universal white
manhood suffrage achieved?
Which citizens were considered
eligible for office holding?
How were candidates for president
chosen?
Which section of government did
they support?
Economic
In what way did Jackson expand the
concepts of the “chosen class”?
How did each man view
industrialization?
How did the Charles River Bridge v.
Warren Bridge decision affect the
access to corporate charters prevalent
in Jefferson’s time?
What was each man’s attitude toward
the Bank of the United States?
Social
What was each man’s attitude toward
slavery?
What was each man’s attitude toward
equality for women & American
Indians
How did each man view education?
How did each hope to remove
obstacles to upward social mobility?
Religious
To what extent was separation of
church and state accomplished in
each period?
Jeffersonian Democracy
Believed property requirement was a test of
character that man of initiative should be able to
meet
Believed the educated elite should rule, although he
proposed education for all to prepare poorer
individuals for public office
Candidates were chosen by caucuses of political
leaders
Congress/Legislative
Yeoman farmer as the “chosen class”
Originally feared the consequences of
industrialization
In J’s time corporate charters were granted to
favorites of state legislators & often implied
monopoly rights to a business
Both disapproved – originally at least, disagreed
with a loose interpretation of the elastic clause
Owned slaves, saw slavery as an evil that time
would eradicate
Neither man saw women or American Indians as
equals
An educated man himself, believed education was
necessary for office-holding and for preparing
citizens for participation in a democracy
Education & ambition were keys to success;
however, he was never able to build support for his
proposed system of public education
Most state constitutions had eliminated established
churches after the Revolution;
Jacksonian Democracy
Property requirements for voting had been
eliminated
Believed all men were qualified to hold office and
that political positions should be rotated
Nominating conventions were introduced during
Jackson’s time
Executive
Jackson included planters, farmers, laborers, and
mechanics in “chosen class”
Accepted industry as essential to American
economy
Roger Taney, Jackson’s appointee as Chief Justice
of the Supreme Court, ruled in Charles River
Bridge decision that corporate charters should be
available to all who chose to risk starting a business
Jackson saw Bank as a monopoly of the rich
Owned slaves, but seemed little interested in
abolition
Had a particularly negative attitude toward Native
Americans
Had little education & believed education was
relatively unimportant
Ended the Bank & with it, control over credit, CRB
decision opened opportunities for individuals to get
corporate charters & thus rise on both economic and
social ladders. Jackson, a self-made man, believed
his economic progress had accounted for his own
upward social mobility & others could follow his
example
Massachusetts, the last state to maintain an
established church, ended the practice in 1834
 War of 1812
Dates 1812-1814

President James Madison

Causes Impressment of sailors

Freedom of the seas threatened.
U.S. hoped to gain Canada from England
War Hawks’ Pressure

Important Military Events England burned Washington

Plattsburg battle
Battle of the Thames
Siege of Baltimore
New Orleans

Treaty Ghent
Terms No resolution of original disputes
No territory gained for either side
Importance War promoted American nationalism and patriotism
Crushed Indian resistance in South and West
Federalist Party died
Industrialization began in New England
Era of Good Feelings began

You should be able to:

 Explain Jefferson’s “Revolution of 1800” and discuss his goals as president
 Explain the causes of the War of 1812
 Understand the outcomes of the War of 1812 and the development of American nationalism
 Describe the development of the American national economy
 Explain how the decisions of the Marshall Court reinforced nationalism
 Describe and explain the growth of the “new Democracy” that occurred in the wake of the
War of 1812
 Discuss the ways in which the “rise of the common man” led to the development of mass
politics
 Describe the “winners and loser” (including Native Americans) in the Jacksonian age

Extra: https://www.slideshare.net/capesociology/a-comparison-of-jeffersonian-and-jacksonian-concepts-about-democracy-30167113