The revolutionary war in America
As America was forming as a nation, several factors came into play, causing the success of this process. Among such factors are money and religions whose influences are reflected in the significant events that occurred during the formation process. It is worth noting that the formation of American as a nation took place in the last half of the 16th century when there was little civilization colonization was high in America with the colonists controlling political, economic, and social aspects of the country. The task at hand to realize development was through seeking independence. The quest for independence sparked issues such as the revolutionary war in America which became new barriers for development. However, money and religion proved as recurring themes that brought success.
The revolutionary war in America was a battle between Great Britain and its colonies. Through the war, Americans overthrew the British rule and established the United States of America. After the revolution, American leaders convene a meeting to discuss the way they could form a political unit that would drive their agenda of forming a new nation. In the meeting, they decided to establish a constitution that would provide guidance on all the country’s activities. The constitution was then written, and it became the basic law that riveted it together as one political unit. The people behind the establishment of the constitution in the United States of America include James Madison, George Washington, Benjamin Franklin, and Alexander Hamilton, just to mention but a few.
Religion played a significant role during the revolutionary war in America. Religious leaders such as Jonathan Mayhew of West Church situated in Boston offered moral sanctions to the war preaching the opposition of the British, citing that it was a right Christian duty to do so. Some church leaders were made chaplains in the Military to pray for them and give them moral support as they for in the battle. James Cladwell, a Presbyterian Minister, served in the Battle of Springfield, where at one point, he took a pile of hymn books from a nearby church to be used for making the paper that helps hold the powder in the barrel of a gun. Religious leaders helped in the war a great deal, a proof that the religion had a significant impact on the major events that are behind the formation of America.
Religion plays a significant role in the American Revolution. Religious leaders from different ministries participated in more clerical responsibilities. For instance, John Witherspoon served as a political Parson and in the Continental Congress in New Jersey. He also chaired more than a hundred committee meetings during the revolutionary process in the country. His signature is found in the Declaration of independence when finally, America had managed to remove its colonizers from power. American leaders valued ministers of religious ministers on the formation of the nation. The fact behind this is that they have high moral standards and cannot engage in any misconduct behavior that may bar the country from achieving its objectives. Therefore, they were chosen to represent the slowly forming government in many activities, both locally and internationally.
In 1787, about 55 delegates met in Philadelphia for a constitutional convention in which they discussed the foundational document that would form the basis of the development of the political system in the newly formed United States. It is clear that the delegates therein had individual differences since they came from different cultures and works of life. However, all believed in the existence of God, and that religion promotes good moral values in society. During the convention, the founding fathers and the American citizens embraced the concept of religious liberty, which was then included in the constitution. The law provided that the state does not have any power to establish a church or force citizens to subscribe to any religion. Religious liberty aims to give citizens the freedom to choose the religion they are believed in.
Before the American Revolution, there were three currencies used in the states. They include coins, paper money, and commodity money. The colonies controlled all of them. After the war, the Continental Congress started issuing paper money called Continental currency denominated in dollars. However, the continental currency had depreciated during the war rendering it worthless. The problem arose due to ineffective coordination between the Congress and the states. Money played a significant role at that time in that it allowed the exchange of goods and services. This was essential for the newly formed nation as it would boost its economy. During the 1790s, America was already an independent nation. Therefore, the economy of the country largely depended on the economic policies made by the concerned authority.
After the continental currency collapse, Congress puts Robert Morris in charge of the Finances of the United States. The goal here was to restore the Continental currency so that. Morris proposed the creation of banks through which loans from other countries could be channeled into America. The money received in loans could be invested in projects that would help the newly formed nation create jobs for its citizens and generate revenue for driving up the economy. Another vital role of money in the country after the war was to facilitate the collection of taxes from citizens. Morris succeeded in restoring Continental currency. However, the country went through a difficult experience a few years later when the country was surprised by inflation. By that time, the concept of inflation was strange to many economies and could detect the likelihood of its occurrence or the possible ways to mitigate it.
During the Congress meeting on the constitutional convention in the city of Philadelphia, the delegates discussed the power of money in establishing the newly formed nation. They wrote down that the Congress shall reserve the authority to control money and control its value thereof and the value with which they will exchange it internationally. Money is a critical factor that is impossible to be overlooked in the constitution. The new America could need to trade with other countries since it could not produce all the goods it needed. Money was, therefore, an essential medium of exchange in this case. Consequently, they included in the constitution the possible ways of protecting the value of the country’s currency were a step forward in stabilizing the new America.
World War I
World War I, also referred to as the Great War, is remarkable in Military history due to the massive loss of lives. During this time, America was still in the early stage of development economically, politically, and socially. Religion was taking another turn at this time in the country. Minister from Anglican and Presbyterian were preaching everywhere in the country, even in the Military as chaplains. They encouraged the soldiers to be courageous in the war as religious books promote courage. Some soldiers had already subscribed to one of the faiths in the country. Some scholars pointed out that during the war, soldiers belonging to the same denomination remain united and motivated each other. Whereas some believed in religion, others did not, and this created differences among the soldiers.
During the war, some women created a group called women of faith. This made them very influential at that time. They started offering emotional, physical, and spiritual aid to soldiers in need. They created the positions that were not available to them before but proved essential in the society considering its significance to the soldiers involved in the violence. Women from Catholic Faith are remembered for assisting a priest who had been overwhelmed by the physical and spiritual requests from the people who wanted to subscribe to the faith. Women in the Protestant Faith also did the same, but their assistance was focused on soldiers where they provide them with care packages. They even assisted the pastors of parishes to discharge their duties effectively.
Before World War I, America enjoy economic growth, technological advancement, and expansion of the communication network. However, the country experiences significant changes after the war. Other countries started imposing restrictions on movement into and outside the country, thus crippling the global trade that had to thrive and benefited New America a great deal. The economic growth started declining and went and fell sharply afterward as the world experienced the Great Depression. The U.S tax man increased taxes to be able to meet its expense requirements because the foreign earning reduced significantly due to the war. U.S army at that time had grown, and for protection purposes, the go0vernment deployed many soldiers to Europe, thus spending a lot of money on a war that later affected the global economy.
Second Great Awakening
The Second Great Awakening is a movement is a protestant revival movement that was started in 1790. The campaign promoted rapid church growth in America and went an extent higher to influence the country’s political system. In 1800, the movement gained momentum leading to the emergence of other denominations such as Methodists and Baptists. The Second Great Awakening attracted many people, and statistics show that millions of Americans joined the movement. The movement introduced abolitionism and temperance aimed at eliminating the evils of society. Members of the movement opposed the war, strongly citing that it was against the will of God to save the world through his son Jesus Christ. The Second Great Awakening movement promoted the concept of religion in the new America.
With the Second Great Awakening, revivalism consumed the entire nation. Preachers started organizing open-air crusades from one town to another, village to village and house to house. They thought people about the need to believe in the Supreme Being who is God and his son. The promoted the reading of the bible at the workplace and home. The preachers encouraged people to bear values such as honesty, love, humility, and charity. With the advancement in the gospel, preachers encouraged people to share their belongings with others who do not have. This period of revival, saw people contributing money to build churches and assist the poor. The teachings from this revival movement discouraged holding too much money when others were living in abject poverty.
The era of Good Feelings
Federalists were strong opponents of the war. However, the National Euphoria that followed the Victory at New Orleans damaged the Federalists’ prestige rendering them insignificant in the political landscape of America. During this time, the Bank of the United States had collapsed due to the failure of President Madison and other republicans to respond when they had predicted its failure. However, he decided to give a charter to the Second Bank of the United States in 1816 with the help of foreign bankers. The main aim of re-establishing the Bank of the United States was to help provide money that could be channeled into war. Any war requires considerable amounts of money. That is for buying ammunition, food for soldiers, transport and many other activities. Therefore, the existence of the Bank of the United States was essential in the country.
The era of good feelings marked the beginning of the period of focusing on the sense of national purpose and unity in America. This comes after the terrible experience of war in the country that made people desire peace and harmony. It is an era that witnessed the Federalists party collapse and the end of the partisan dispute between the party and the Democratic-Republican Party. James Monroe decided to make his nominations by downplaying the partisan affiliation so that he may be able to promote national unity and eliminate the political parties. The era is closely associated with the rule of Monroe, of which his administrative goals focused on national peace and cohesion. Many historians convey the designation of the period as good feelings, ironically citing that several divisive factions characterized it.
The period was named an era of Good feelings when Monroe pay a goodwill visit to Massachusetts. The administrative style of Monroe in the country was significantly influenced by his religious affiliation. Monroe was born in Virginia and baptized in the Church of England. However, when the thirteen colonies in the country became independent, they encouraged the believers of the church to change the name, and in response, they adopted the term Episcopal. Throughout the colonial period, the Church of England was attended by Colonial Virginians, who were born to the Anglican faith. The believers of the Anglican faith promoted Christianity in the country and encouraging people to adopt messianic values contained in the bible.
James Monroe attended schools that were affiliated with the Anglican Faith. There, students were required to follow the provisions of their faith. For instance, each morning and evening, Monroe could go for prayers in a special room constructed in the school. Within the week, there was a day in which a service that closely resembles the Anglican Church service was held in the school presided over by the representative of the church. Monroe went to the college of William and Mary in Williamsburg that was led by the clergy of an Established Church. All this showed that Monroe’s leadership was based on the religious values he acquired throughout his academic journey, and that is the reason behind the coining of the name Era of Good Feelings.
Money and religion acted as a recurring theme as America was forming as a nation. During the revolutionary war, the era of Good Feelings, constitutional amendments, the Second Great Awakening, and Word War I, we saw the significance of the two factors. Religion during these events served to instill moral values that are very crucial in society. Monroe’s leadership style was greatly influenced by his religious beliefs and his and administrative goals focused on the attainment of national unity, which is the teachings of many religions. Money, on the other hand, manifested in such events as a vital economic factor that a country needs to emphasize strongly. When the delegates in Philadelphia, they wrote a constitution that included ways of protecting the value of the country’s currency from going low. All in all, money and religion are recurring themes in the society’s events.