The People's President: Andrew Jackson

Andrew Jackson, also known as "The People's President", has been controversial due to his nickname. He did act in the interest of the people, but not always. He would get into duels, give people positions in the government even though they may have criminal connections, and forced Native Americans to leave their land. The nickname "The People's President" isn't really deserved. He caused many problems in government, as we learned about in class. But he did some good things, such as acting in the interest of the people. Each group made presentations telling about the Indian Removal, the Spoils System, and the Bank War.

The Indian Removal forced natives off their land unless they refused to pay taxes and fight in the state militia. Eventually, they were forced out. The Bank War was an example of Jackson fighting for the people. The spoils system, however, made the government corrupt. More people got positions in government due to their support of the party, not on merit.

 

Democracy's Rise in America

Democracy plays a huge role in America. Democracy means having power in the hands of the elected who are elected by the people. In the 1800's, the U.S wasn't very democratic until people could elect legislatures. In class we read documents concerning the voting ability of the people, how Thomas W. Dorr helped Rhode Island adopt a new constitution within the state, and the requirements one had to meet to vote. We then were put into groups and created a poster.

Overview of the poster (Note: I was not able to rotate the pictures at this time)

Document relating to Thomas W. Dorr

Chart showing requirements to vote among states

The Role Race Plays in Revolutions

Race plays a huge role in the world we live in. But some fail to acknowledge human value because of race. For example, the case in Ferguson, Missouri. Race played a major part and still will. In the Latin American revolutions, race also played a huge role. The people who led the revolutions were from different racial groups. In class we recently learned about the Latin American revolutions. We then broke up into groups and learned more about the revolutions

Our group's timeline on the revolution in Gran Columbia

Between all the revolutions, there were some commonalities as well as differences. All three revolutions we learned about were all fighting to gain independence and they were all against European countries. However, not all revolutions resulted in a constitution formed, and 2 had the same racial group leading, while one had a different one. The higher up people were in terms of race back then, the bigger impact they had. All of the leaders came from the two highest groups in terms of ranking at the time.

Now, race is still an important factor in day to day life. For example, the Ferguson case that just got closed. A black teenager was killed by a white cop. People are still ignorant of the fact that race doesn't matter. We all were created or evolved (or whatever the theory that you believe for how humans were created) from the same thing. What it comes down to in the end is what kind of person they are. That is what matters, not race or color.

Toussaint Louverture: Leader of the Haitian Revolution (Haitian Revolution DBQ)

Throughout history there have been many great leaders who have accomplished many things. One of them was Toussaint Louverture. He fought for slaves independence and succeeded, led a rebel force on the island colony of Saint Domingue, became commander-in-chief of the army there after the French abolished slavery, and later led an army against Napoleon’s forces. He was later captured by Napoleon’s forces and died in jail. However Napoleon withdrew, and the colony of Saint Domingue became Haiti on January 1, 1804. Toussaint Louverture was a great leader and should be remembered as a liberator of slaves, and in the process led the most successful slave revolt, a brilliant military commander, and the ruler of Saint Domingue.

Toussaint Louverture helped to liberate the slaves of Saint Domingue and protect their freedom. When the slave revolt broke out in Saint Domingue in 1791, Toussaint joined as doctor and eventually led the revolt itself. When France abolished slavery Toussaint ordered the rebellion to stop, now that the slaves are free.(A) Eventually rumors reach the colony that France may reinstate slavery, to which Toussaint writes “Could men who have once enjoyed the benefits of liberty look on calmly while it is taken from them!”(B) Toussaint states that if the freedom of slaves is threatened, they will fight back. He states later that “There cannot exist slaves in this territory, servitude is therein forever abolished.”(C) This is showing that he has officially declared the slaves liberated. He helped to lead the slave revolt, which gave him experience as a military commander.

Toussaint Louverture was a brilliant military commander when it came to planning out the battle and in combat. During the slave revolt, he trained his men in both guerrilla and European style warfare, allowing his troops to have more tactics to chose from in combat. When uprisings occurred after he had been ruler of Saint Domingue for some time, he handled the situation by “... he ordered the mutineer regiments on parade and summoned certain men to step out of the ranks and blow their brains out.”(E) He made sure that people understand his power as a military commander. When Napoleon sent troops to retake Saint Domingue, Toussaint ordered cities burnt to the ground to prevent the enemy from using them. He also had his troops moved into the mountains since it was an advantage. “Toussaint and his generals at once abandoned the towns, and betook themselves to the mountains, those citadels of freedom in St. Domingo, where the blacks had always proved too much for the whites.”(F) This shows Toussaint’s brilliancy as a military commander through tactics and strategy. Due to his skill as a military commander, he was also appointed the ruler of Saint Domingue.

As the ruler of Saint Domingue, Toussaint Louverture created many new laws and policies. Since Saint Domingue was still a French colony, he knew that it was vital to keep the plantations going as they were a main source of income. The former slaves wouldn’t want to work back at the plantations, so Toussaint made sure that they would be paid. The constitution stated that “The colony being essentially agricultural cannot suffer the least disruption in the works of its cultivation.”(C) further backing up Toussaint’s reasons for keeping plantations going. He made sure everyone was working the moment they could. He proclaimed “As soon as a child can walk, he should be employed on the plantation according to his strength in some useful work.”(D) He is making sure that everyone does their part to support the economy.

Toussaint Louverture was an incredible person. He fought and helped protect slaves’ freedom using his talents as a military leader and using his position of the ruler of Saint Domingue. His brilliancy as a military commander enabled him to win battles against Napoleon’s army. He should be remembered as the liberator of slaves, a brilliant military commander, and as the ruler of Saint Domingue.

 

Sources:

Document A: created from various sources

Document B: Toussaint Louverture, “Letter to the French Directory, November 1797.”

Document C: The Saint Domingue Constitution of 1801. Signed by Toussaint Louverture in July 1801.

Document D: Toussaint Louverture, “Proclamation, 25 November 1801.”

Document E: Madison Smartt Bell, Toussaint Louverture: A Biography, 2007.

Document F: William Wells Brown, “A Description of Louverture,” from The Black Man, His Antecedents, His Genius, and His Achievements, 2nd edition, 1863. Engraving of Toussaint Louverture, 1802.

Successes and Failures: The Revolutions of 1830 and 1848

Revolutions have come and go throughout history. They have been called both successes and failures. The revolutions of 1830 & 1848 have been called failures by historians. But some were successes. In class we just finished learning about those revolutions. We were split into groups and assigned a revolution. My group was assigned the revolution of 1830 France. We then had to make a SurveyMonkey with questions relating to the revolution we were assigned.

The revolution in 1830 was due to Charles X abolishing the constitutional monarchy. He gave up his crown and Louis Philippe was crowned king. What started this revolution was something called "The July Ordinances", which basically said that Charles X had the right to remove the freedom of press, abolish the Chamber of Deputies, and prevent any law changes he disagreed with. People were displeased with this and the lack of rights they had, such as the right to vote. Later, the Chamber of Deputies decided that Louis Philippe should be the new king. A revolution ensured, and in the end more people got rights from it, but the voting population was still mainly the upper-upper class.

Some of the revolutions were a complete failure, like the Decembrist Revolt, which ended with bloodshed after the new Tsar of Russia ordered his own troops to fire upon fellow soldiers to prevent an uprising. The French Revolution of 1830 was almost a full success. The French Revolution of 1848 was a mix since the new leader would bring down the empire. The revolutions were a mix of both success and failure.

A Congress of Europe: Congress of Vienna 1814-1815

The Congress of Vienna took place after Napoleon's first downfall. The goal of it was to create a way for people in power remain in power when threatened, and what they should do if their power was threatened. It was held in Austria by Prince Klemens von Metternich. The goal was to create a balance of power. We read documents and watched videos about the Congress of Vienna in class.

Borders redrawn by the Congress of Vienna
(Found in public domain on wikimedia)

One concept created at the Congress of Vienna was the Principle of Intervention, which stated that the great powers of Europe had the right to send troops into a country to stop revolution and restore monarchs. This allowed monarchs to stay in power by having allies who could assist them if they were losing power because of a revolution. Great Britain did not agree to this however, and would not send in troops to help monarchies. The Congress of Vienna was a conservative ideology form of government. Power was restored to the monarchs and little to no power for the citizens. This would lead to revolutions which would test how effective the Congress of Vienna was.

The Congress of Vienna did not make the right choice in the end. Many rebellions would break out across Europe like a bad rash. The better solution was one that would allow people to have a say in power, like a constitutional monarchy that divided power well, not retaining to much, but not having little power.

Political Ideologies: Liberalism, Nationalism, and Conservative

Recently we learned about ideologies in 19th century Europe. In 19th century Europe, there were 3 major political ideologies, which were Liberalism, Nationalism, and Conservative. In class we looked at some articles to learn about each ideology. Then we split into 6 groups, with 2 groups being assigned the same ideology. We then used different video applications to show the other groups what we learned about our ideology.

Here is our YouTube video:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jpyw8AVGr6Y&list=UU2UjVlAbk83TSCHhVK-RmYw

The ideology we were assigned was liberalism. Liberalism helped to create governments that were based more on freedom, rights, and merits. People were allowed to climb the social and economic ladder. It was mainly for middle class people. In Italy, liberalism restricted the power of the clergy. This happened in other Roman Catholic Church countries, like Spain and France.

The other two ideologies were nationalism and conservative. Nationalism governments united smaller states into a whole country, like Italy. The states shared common bonds like beliefs, traditions, and languages. Many nationalist governments helped unite the states to fight a common enemy, such as a foreign ruler. Conservative governments believed that the government should be monarchy since it was tradition, and tradition worked best. Aristocracy, church power (Roman Catholic), and monarchies held the power.

Napoleon Bonaparte: How he impacted the social, economic, and political systems in Europe

Napoleon Bonaparte

Napoleon Bonaparte was a French military/political leader. No, he wasn't Napoleon Dynamite and no, he did not wear a Vote for Pedro shirt. Napoleon was in power from 1804 until 1814, and briefly in 1815. He changed a lot in Europe, such as giving more people the rights to property and education. He also helped to balance the Bank of France. Nobility and serfdom were abolished, as well as Chirch privileges. He allowed the poor to climb the social ladder. Those that were close to him respected him and  helped lead his armies to victory. Others resented him and were exiled by him. Everyone thinks he was either a hero or a villain. I think he was a bit of both. He gave people new ideas, allowed America to expand by selling the U.S. the Louisiana territory, and gave people positions based on their merit (Meritocracy). However, he got rid of what everyone was used to for government and also stole a lot of money and precious artwork from Italy. 

Demonstrating types of governments with chocolate: Choconism

In class we recently did an experiment to demonstrate 3 different forms of government; Capitalism, Socialism, and Communism. Our teacher distributed Hershey Kisses to the class. Some students got 8, while most got 2. We then played rock, paper, scissors to gain more or lose more. This was our simulation of capitalism. Those with more to start with lasted longer. Some of those with more gave extra to those who had little or none to allow them to keep playing. We then had our teacher collect the Hershey Kisses, and they gave everyone two each, while they ate multiple Hershey Kisses out of the bag. This angered some and this simulated Socialism. Then the teacher put the bag away and stopped eating. This simulated Communism.

Karl Marx wrote the Communist Manifesto, which stated that in Capitalism there is class struggle and workers will revolt. It states in Socialism that the aim is for a classless society. In true Communism there is a successful classless society. In Adam's Smith's Wealth of Nations, he states that the "invisible hand" will help the poor since it states competitors have to offer something better than the other to get business, generating revenue and allowing the poor to afford things.

I feel that neither Socialism or Communism will work. The "invisible hand" seems to work the best in helping the poor. However, a system that can help the poor but still have competition among business would work better as a third option. One that can still keep business going and help the poor would be best.

Great Britain V.S. Lowell: Industrial Revolution Factory Experiment

When the Industrial Revolution came to England and the U.S., mill working conditions was something that would change. In England, conditions were horrible. Disease was spreading and people were hungry. In addition, people were dying due to accidents. The workers in Lowell were better off. They got pay, somewhat less hazardous conditions, and an education. However, eventually, wage cuts and increased payments on board led to protests against the mill owners.

Seeing the other side of the Atlantic

Recently in class we did a Google hangout with MOSI ( The Museum of Science and Industry) in Manchester, England to learn more about the Industrial Revolution. We researched sources on their website. We also watched a video sent to us by on of the museum guides, named Jamie. The terms that were used in the video were researched and by doing this we learned more things about the machines used the Industrial Revolution.

Jamie, our tour guide

We learned that the automatic machines made the process easier, but more dangerous. Many people died from accidents. In addition, many had their families work in the mills. The accidents could kill a family member. Faster is not always safer, as many people know.

I feel that this experience is something that should take place more often. I enjoyed learning from an expert in a certain field. I feel that this helped me get a better understanding of what happened during the Industrial Revolution. This would benefit other students in the future.

Creating an Exhibit

One of the most important things to keep in mind when you create an exhibit, for school or professionally, you want to keep in mind that it has to be appealing. In class, we recently made an exhibit on the Industrial Revolution, and this one was about the pollution caused by it. One thing we did is make sure what we put up was true, and we did this by checking that our documents were correct. I felt that what people would see in our exhibit was the huge negative impact on nature from the Industrial Revolution.

These are the other exhibits:

Spinning a City: Many women were now working in the textile mills, which surprised me since women didn't really have equal right until the 1900s. In addition, the steam engine allowed better production in textile mills.

Steam Powered Transportation-Now we're getting somewhere: The creation of steam engines allowed easier travel and transport for both people and goods. In addition, steamboats made travel on the ocean easier.

Condemning the Innocent-Child Labor in the Industrial Revolution: The idea of child labor was used throughout the Industrial Revolution. However, the working and living conditions got bad and many children got sick and died from the conditions.

Spinning into Slavery: The amount of cotton needed in textile mills increased the amount of slavery on cotton plantations. This eventually lead up to the huge issue with slavery, which then helped lead to the Civil War. 

The revolution caused by advances in technology and transportation: The Industrial Revolution

This is another assignment for my history class. We recently learned about what was "revolutionary" about industrialization. Many advancements were created and improved life in general.The Industrial Revolution allowed advancements in technology. One of these improvements was the creation of steam engines and railroads. This allowed manufactures to transport goods in areas where waterways didn't exist. Iron and coal became easier to get and extract. Advancements were made so iron was produced for less and had a better quality.

Transportation advancements were steam boats and steam engines. Steam engines were faster and more reliable than water transport, and could go where boats couldn't. Steam powered freighters had an increased cargo capacity by 2000%. Steam powered boats meant water transportation no longer relied on the weather. Railroads became popular due to the ease of access.

How Can Media Be Used Responsibly?

This is another blog post required by my 10th grade history class. A few days ago we did A Google a Day and looked at a website about the Pacific Northwest Tree Octopus. By doing this, we learned more about how we should use search engines and use sources responsibly.

A Google a Day is a game where you must answer three questions and they vary in type of question. You must search for the answer and the Google engine only finds things from before the creation of the game. The frustrating part of it is that the answers can be really obscure. But it is fun to try and find them. I learned you can multi-layer searches.

The Pacific Northwest Tree Octopus website is about a fake animal, the tree octopus. It provides no sources and the site overall is comical. Accuracy is important when researching a topic. This means that the info is updated regularly. Authenticity means the info is real. One example of something that is real and has updated info is the Renaissance. Reliability means can you rely on the source. Wikipedia is a source you can and cannot rely on. If the site ends in .edu or .gov, it is reliable. The tree octopus site shouldn't be used as a source in school because it is unreliable, not real, and not accurate. Other websites mention it and claim it is fake.

Why we should use our education to give back to the world

Hello and welcome. This is a blog for my high school history class. Something that a lot of students ask is what makes a teacher good. Some may say easy classwork and homework, while others may say one that can challenge them with certain tasks, but not other tasks. A good teacher is one that can challenge you but not make it too difficult on you. Challenges make learning interesting, which is why it is one of my favorite qualities in a teacher. One thing I want my teachers to understand is that I'm not someone who goes over the top with writing assignments. So I would like my teachers to give me feedback on rough drafts of assignments before I do a final draft.

John Green has said that students should use their education to give back to the world. I agree and I hope to give back to the world since my goal is to become an engineer after college. My goal this year is to gain a better understanding on how the world works. Each day everything changes and I want to understand the cause of the changes. I plan on attaining this by researching current events.