10 Jan 2009 Revolutionary Hero Green Mt. Boy Captured Ft. Ticonderoga Ethan Allen Feb 1789

Ethan Allen Ethan Allen (January 10, 1738 – February 12, 1789) was an early American revolutionary and guerrilla leader who fought against the Province of New York's settlement of Vermont, and later for Vermont's independence during the American Revolutionary War. Ethan Allen served in the colonial military during the French and Indian War. In the early 1770s, he emerged as the military leader of Anti-New York dissidents, known as the Green Mountain Boys, who were fighting New York over the New Hampshire grants. He and The Green Mountain Boys successfully carved out the Republic of Vermont (1777–1791) and later the State of Vermont. A warrant was issued for his arrest by the government of New York, for a substantial reward of 100 pounds. In the spring of 1775, following the beginning of the American Revolutionary War, Allen and Benedict Arnold led a raid to capture Fort Ticonderoga. The relative roles of Allen and Arnold are not entirely clear, nor is it clear to what extent the campaign was formulated by the anti-British faction in Connecticut, or to what extent it was the idea of the Green Mountain Boys headquartered at the Catamount Tavern in Bennington. What is clear is that the rebels moved north, managed to get a few dozen men across Lake Champlain (they had considerable trouble finding a boat and the one they found was quite small).

Daily Spark

Today Lack of Respect Trouble with Trade Economic Problems at home

Lack of Respect Under the Articles o Confederation, Congress could not force states to provide soldiers for an army. Without an army, the national government found it difficult to protect its citizens. It was also difficult to enforce the terms of international treaties. For instance, the Treaty of Paris of 1783 called for the British to leave their American forts, They were very slow in doing so.

Closing the Mississippi The Spanish also took advantage of the weakness of the US. In 1784, Spanish officials closed the lower Miss. River to US shipping. Many state leaders began to criticize the weak Confederation. It showed them that the national government needed more power.

Trouble with Trade The US also faced economic problems involving England. Before the war, colonials traded greatly with England, but after the Treaty of Paris Britain closed its ports to US ships. In addition Britain forced the US to pay high taxes on US exports. (rice, tobacco, tar)

US Farmers US farmers could no longer export their goods to the West Indies, they had to hire British ships to carry their cargo, which was very expensive. British trade goods on the other hand, could sell in the US without taxes and at lower prices which hurt American businesses.

Tariffs The Confederate Congress could not fix the problem because it did not have the power to pass Tariffs-taxes on imports or exports. If one state passed a tariff, the British would just sell to a different state. The US tried to sell in new markets: Denmark, France, China but England was a necessary trading partner.

Economic Problems at Home In addition to trade problems internationally, trade among the states became a major problem. Congress had no power to regulate interstate commerce- trade between two or more states. It made it difficult for merchants whose business crossed state lines.

War Debt The ability for states to print their own money caused more problems. Most states had trouble paying of war debts. They also struggled to collect overdue taxes. To ease hardships, some states printed large amounts of paper money What is the result of having too much money circulating? What’s it Called

Inflation The result is inflation- increased prices for goods and services combined with the reduced value of money. Congress had no power to stop states from issuing more paper money. So they could not stop inflation

Debtors/Creditors Inflation did have some benefits. Debtors- people who owed money were happy, they could pay back their debts with paper money worth less than the coins they had borrowed. However, creditors- people who lend money, were upset by the prospect of being paid back with worthless money.

Depression The rising inflation faced by the states combined with the loss of trade with Great Britain caused a depression. A depression is a period of low economic activity combined with a rise in unemployment.