Disclosure: I realize this TL may not be received well by many on here. I will admit beforehand that I am a libertarian, or more accurately a Classic Liberal. As such, my political beliefs do influence this TL to a great extent. However, please realize that most TL's regarding the US on this board, and particularly the "Ameriwank" genre TL's tend to always have the US become more "progressive" and by that I mean the existence of "Progressive Era" legislation and reform in the TL. Though I respect those authors who choose to take this route, I wanted to create an alternative; an "Ameriwank" that sticks to the Classic Liberal principles that founded the US.
Having said that, I am not writing this TL to start a political flame war or convince anyone to change their political views; this project is simply for fun. I realize many of you will be opposed to some of the things mentioned in the TL or the overall libertarian feel to it; that's fine and I respect that. Please don't turn this thread into political debate as you will not convince me of Progressivism/modern liberalism and I will not convince you of my belief in true free markets and classic liberalism. Considering that almost every TL on here dealing with America has a Progressive feel to it and our very own history represents the Statist view of the world, see this as simply a thought experiment and alternative. Finally the basic premise of this TL may seem to completely contradict my political views; it will not by the end, I can assure you. Now, let the fun begin!
1782 – Martha Jefferson, wife of Thomas Jefferson, does not die several months after giving birth as in OTL. This leads to Jefferson not being appointed minister to France in 1786.
1785 – Thomas Jefferson and James Madison jointly author the Jefferson-Madison Manifesto calling for a Constitutional Convention to fix or replace the ineffective Articles of Confederation. The Manifesto calls for the States to send delegates to Philadelphia for the purpose of strengthening the federation between the States by voluntarily joining into a contract whereby some sovereignty is delegated (not given up completely) to a federal government created and ran by the States themselves. The Manifesto includes many principles enshrined in The Wealth of Nations by Adam Smith and Two Treatises of Government by John Locke and ties these together with the need for a voluntary association of free and sovereign States working together for mutual defense and benefit. Invitations are sent to many of the States’ leading politicians and important figures to convene a Convention. Patrick Henry, though suspicious of the aims of such a Convention, decides to attend the Convention due to Jefferson’s impassioned plea in a letter he wrote personally to Henry asking for his attendance.
1787 – The Constitutional Convention opens on May 2nd, but due to travel difficulties, many of the delegates arrive late and it isn’t until May 17th that a quorum of at least seven States was met to allow debate to go forward. Alexander Hamilton, the biggest supporter of a powerful federal government, based on the British model, does not attend the Convention due to illness. Several plans were considered and rejected, with most of the controversy is centered on the nature of the Senate, the Presidency, slavery, and the relationship of the States to the new federal government. The Virginia Plan was initially used to begin the proceedings, but eventually it was rejected as being too unlikely to restrain the power of the federal government by the “States Rights” lobby. Many delegates wanted specific language in the Constitution that would protect State sovereignty, as well as that of the People. In response, Patrick Henry and Thomas Jefferson proposed the Henry-Jefferson Plan that took pieces of each of the plans proposed up to that point and inserted specific language protecting the sovereignty of the States, the voluntary nature of the Union, the right of secession, and the right of nullification. The Plan also addressed the issue of currency and war in detail.
Toward the end of the convention, the topic of slavery threatened to end the proceedings altogether. Many of the Southern delegates refused to talk about ending of slavery and demanded representation for slaves in the House. Henry and Jefferson, though slave owners themselves, made impassioned speeches against the institution of slavery, stating that the peculiar institution is completely antithetical to the notion of individual liberty and sovereignty. Jefferson proposed a graduated emancipation and abolishment of slavery to be implemented over a number of years by a new federal government. The plan called for a gradual manumission of slavery in ten year stages over the course of three decades. The federal government would allocate the majority of its expenses (paid for by duties, imposts, and excise taxes) to compensating slave owners and helping them transition to a different way of life. Also, slaves would count as representation in the House. Though many Southern delegates were still not completely satisfied, many were persuaded by Jefferson and Henry’s pledges to free their own slaves without compensation as an example to the Convention body. Finally, a provision in the plan to resettle many of the freed slaves in a future territory in West Africa appeased some of the fears of the slave-owning delegates in attendance.
On October 12th, 1787, the final version of the Constitution, based on the amended Henry-Jefferson Plan was signed by 54 of the 62 delegates (all of those refusing to sign were Southern delegates disagreeing with the Slavery Provisions) attending the Convention. The main differences with the OTL Constitution are as follows:
1. Executive made up of three “Consuls”: one elected by an Electoral College (as in OTL), one elected by the Senate, one elected by the House. All three Consuls are limited to a single, six year term. Laws become official when 2 out of the 3 Consuls sign a bill passed by Congress. There is no Vice Presidency.
2. Supreme Court judges are nominated by the House and appointed by the Senate.
3. OTL Bill of Rights are included in the main body and specifically apply to the federal government, not the State governments
4. A list of State rights are included as well, including specific language on the voluntary nature of the Union, the right of secession and nullification, and that the States are sovereign and only delegating authority to a federal government and therefore they may take it back, through amendment or dissolving the Union at any time
5. Explicitly forbids the executive from signing treaties or initiating war, leaving both of these as express powers of Congress and the signing of treaties specifically to the Senate
6. Article 3, establishing the Supreme Court, specifically forbids the practice of judicial review, limiting the scope of the Court’s jurisdiction to the specific language and original intent of the Constitution
7. War debt is forbidden and a system of raising money for defensive wars is established whereby the cost is shared by both the States and the federal government. A provision allowing the Congress to save money for future wars (so as to avoid foreign loans and debt) is also added
8. A militia/army system is established whereby the independent State militias are federalized during wartime (though States can refuse to have their militia federalized if they wish, should they oppose a particular war) and de-federalized during peacetime. The federal government is restricted to having a professional, standing army of no more than one-half the size of all the State militias combined, even during wartime (though the Senate may, through a unanimous vote expand the army to a larger size, though such a measure is only temporary for the term of the war). A draft is specifically prohibited at the federal level.
9. The navy is set up in much the same way as the army, though there is no restriction on the size of the federal navy. The States may create navies which can be federalized during wartime. Both the States and the federal government share the cost of the federal navy.
10. A central bank is specifically prohibited, as is a paper/fiat currency. Gold and silver are established as the only legitimate currencies at the federal as well as State levels.
11. The principles of a free market/free banking system are specifically mentioned
12. Specific language limits Congress to the enumerated powers in Article 1
13. Congress is granted the power to buy and sell land to foreign powers
14. Territory gained by the US is under the jurisdiction of Congress, not the executive
15. The regulation of Commerce within the US by Congress is limited to making trade “regular” among all the States equally (States cannot tax or embargo each other, the establishment of free trade, etc.); language is inserted to protect the States’ rights to regulate trade within their borders, including rivers and bodies of water
16. Slavery will be ended in three stages, each lasting ten years (starting in 1790). Slave owners will be compensated for manumission of slaves, slaves will count for purposes of representation, and an initiative will be created for the return of most freed slaves back to Africa in return for the abolition of the slave trade, no fugitive slave law, and the abolition of slavery, with full rights under the Constitution for those freed, by the year 1820. No new slave States may be added to the Union.
17. A mandate is given to Congress to purchase and establish a colony in Africa for returning freed slaves.
18. The federal government is specifically prohibited from funding internal improvements within the States or bribing the States with money.
19. The only process for proposing amendments is a Constitutional Convention held by ¾ of the States complete with a ¾ quorum of those States holding the Convention to pass amendments. The States do not have to petition Congress for such a Convention to occur. Amendments are stated as the only way to change the Constitution.
20. Congress is given the express authority to negotiate and sign treaties with the Native American nations
21. Federal/national police are prohibited
22. Impeachment trials remain in the courts
23. No General Welfare or Necessary and Proper clauses
1787-1788 – The ratification process went to the States (9 being required for ratification). Unlike OTL, the main division between those supporting and those opposing the new Constitution were those supporting the Slavery Provisions in Article 8 and those opposed. Initially, Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Georgia were opposed to ratification. Jefferson, Henry, and Madison authored a set of essays collectively called the The Liberty Papers in support of the Constitution generally and arguing for the Revolutionary-era principles of individual liberty and God-given natural rights. Those opposed responded with economic arguments that abolishing slavery would destroy the slave States and marginalize the economic system in the South. Henry, Jefferson, and Madison, all from Virginia, were able to move the Virginia legislature in support of ratification by freeing their own slaves with no financial help. This act and their impassioned speeches before the legislature throughout June 1788 led to Virginia ratifying the Constitution on July 5th, 1788. Similar speeches before the North Carolina legislature were not successful in turning the opinion of the legislators and the Georgia and South Carolina assemblies refused to hear speeches in favor of the Constitution. By October 1st, 1788, the required nine States had ratified the new Constitution, making it officially the Law of the Land.
Following the official ratification, the Succession Crisis of 1788 began with a joint declaration by Georgia and South Carolina that they were opposed to the Constitution and left the Union on December 13th, 1788. North Carolina remained in the Union until March 3rd, 1789 when that State seceded from the Union as well. Georgia, North Carolina, and South Carolina were recognized as free and sovereign nations by the other States. The US retained the Mississippi territory.
1789 – Several European nations recognize the independence of Georgia, South Carolina, and North Carolina. Connecticut becomes the 10th and last State to ratify the US Constitution. In May, the French Revolution begins. George Washington [EC], Thomas Jefferson [H], and James Madison are elected the first Consuls of the US on February 4th and elections for the House of Representatives are held. The US Department of War is created and Congress authorized the creation of an army and navy. The army initially consisted of 48,000 men as the combined strength of the various State militias at this time was estimated at roughly 110,000 men. The US sent requests to their embassies in various countries on Continental Europe for training of the new professional army in exchange for free land and life-time pensions upon retirement. Several Prussian generals express interest in this and Frederick II allows them to move to the US. Several French generals, worried about the increasing violence in France, opt to move to the US and help train the army and the navy. Lafayette, though interested in the proposal, decides to remain in France for now to direct the Revolution. Friedrich von Steuben, though retired and living in the US, comes out of retirement to help train the army as well.
Having said that, I am not writing this TL to start a political flame war or convince anyone to change their political views; this project is simply for fun. I realize many of you will be opposed to some of the things mentioned in the TL or the overall libertarian feel to it; that's fine and I respect that. Please don't turn this thread into political debate as you will not convince me of Progressivism/modern liberalism and I will not convince you of my belief in true free markets and classic liberalism. Considering that almost every TL on here dealing with America has a Progressive feel to it and our very own history represents the Statist view of the world, see this as simply a thought experiment and alternative. Finally the basic premise of this TL may seem to completely contradict my political views; it will not by the end, I can assure you. Now, let the fun begin!
Imperium Libertatis: The Reign of Classic Liberalism
A Different Kind of "Ameriwank"
A Different Kind of "Ameriwank"
1782 – Martha Jefferson, wife of Thomas Jefferson, does not die several months after giving birth as in OTL. This leads to Jefferson not being appointed minister to France in 1786.
1785 – Thomas Jefferson and James Madison jointly author the Jefferson-Madison Manifesto calling for a Constitutional Convention to fix or replace the ineffective Articles of Confederation. The Manifesto calls for the States to send delegates to Philadelphia for the purpose of strengthening the federation between the States by voluntarily joining into a contract whereby some sovereignty is delegated (not given up completely) to a federal government created and ran by the States themselves. The Manifesto includes many principles enshrined in The Wealth of Nations by Adam Smith and Two Treatises of Government by John Locke and ties these together with the need for a voluntary association of free and sovereign States working together for mutual defense and benefit. Invitations are sent to many of the States’ leading politicians and important figures to convene a Convention. Patrick Henry, though suspicious of the aims of such a Convention, decides to attend the Convention due to Jefferson’s impassioned plea in a letter he wrote personally to Henry asking for his attendance.
1787 – The Constitutional Convention opens on May 2nd, but due to travel difficulties, many of the delegates arrive late and it isn’t until May 17th that a quorum of at least seven States was met to allow debate to go forward. Alexander Hamilton, the biggest supporter of a powerful federal government, based on the British model, does not attend the Convention due to illness. Several plans were considered and rejected, with most of the controversy is centered on the nature of the Senate, the Presidency, slavery, and the relationship of the States to the new federal government. The Virginia Plan was initially used to begin the proceedings, but eventually it was rejected as being too unlikely to restrain the power of the federal government by the “States Rights” lobby. Many delegates wanted specific language in the Constitution that would protect State sovereignty, as well as that of the People. In response, Patrick Henry and Thomas Jefferson proposed the Henry-Jefferson Plan that took pieces of each of the plans proposed up to that point and inserted specific language protecting the sovereignty of the States, the voluntary nature of the Union, the right of secession, and the right of nullification. The Plan also addressed the issue of currency and war in detail.
Toward the end of the convention, the topic of slavery threatened to end the proceedings altogether. Many of the Southern delegates refused to talk about ending of slavery and demanded representation for slaves in the House. Henry and Jefferson, though slave owners themselves, made impassioned speeches against the institution of slavery, stating that the peculiar institution is completely antithetical to the notion of individual liberty and sovereignty. Jefferson proposed a graduated emancipation and abolishment of slavery to be implemented over a number of years by a new federal government. The plan called for a gradual manumission of slavery in ten year stages over the course of three decades. The federal government would allocate the majority of its expenses (paid for by duties, imposts, and excise taxes) to compensating slave owners and helping them transition to a different way of life. Also, slaves would count as representation in the House. Though many Southern delegates were still not completely satisfied, many were persuaded by Jefferson and Henry’s pledges to free their own slaves without compensation as an example to the Convention body. Finally, a provision in the plan to resettle many of the freed slaves in a future territory in West Africa appeased some of the fears of the slave-owning delegates in attendance.
On October 12th, 1787, the final version of the Constitution, based on the amended Henry-Jefferson Plan was signed by 54 of the 62 delegates (all of those refusing to sign were Southern delegates disagreeing with the Slavery Provisions) attending the Convention. The main differences with the OTL Constitution are as follows:
1. Executive made up of three “Consuls”: one elected by an Electoral College (as in OTL), one elected by the Senate, one elected by the House. All three Consuls are limited to a single, six year term. Laws become official when 2 out of the 3 Consuls sign a bill passed by Congress. There is no Vice Presidency.
2. Supreme Court judges are nominated by the House and appointed by the Senate.
3. OTL Bill of Rights are included in the main body and specifically apply to the federal government, not the State governments
4. A list of State rights are included as well, including specific language on the voluntary nature of the Union, the right of secession and nullification, and that the States are sovereign and only delegating authority to a federal government and therefore they may take it back, through amendment or dissolving the Union at any time
5. Explicitly forbids the executive from signing treaties or initiating war, leaving both of these as express powers of Congress and the signing of treaties specifically to the Senate
6. Article 3, establishing the Supreme Court, specifically forbids the practice of judicial review, limiting the scope of the Court’s jurisdiction to the specific language and original intent of the Constitution
7. War debt is forbidden and a system of raising money for defensive wars is established whereby the cost is shared by both the States and the federal government. A provision allowing the Congress to save money for future wars (so as to avoid foreign loans and debt) is also added
8. A militia/army system is established whereby the independent State militias are federalized during wartime (though States can refuse to have their militia federalized if they wish, should they oppose a particular war) and de-federalized during peacetime. The federal government is restricted to having a professional, standing army of no more than one-half the size of all the State militias combined, even during wartime (though the Senate may, through a unanimous vote expand the army to a larger size, though such a measure is only temporary for the term of the war). A draft is specifically prohibited at the federal level.
9. The navy is set up in much the same way as the army, though there is no restriction on the size of the federal navy. The States may create navies which can be federalized during wartime. Both the States and the federal government share the cost of the federal navy.
10. A central bank is specifically prohibited, as is a paper/fiat currency. Gold and silver are established as the only legitimate currencies at the federal as well as State levels.
11. The principles of a free market/free banking system are specifically mentioned
12. Specific language limits Congress to the enumerated powers in Article 1
13. Congress is granted the power to buy and sell land to foreign powers
14. Territory gained by the US is under the jurisdiction of Congress, not the executive
15. The regulation of Commerce within the US by Congress is limited to making trade “regular” among all the States equally (States cannot tax or embargo each other, the establishment of free trade, etc.); language is inserted to protect the States’ rights to regulate trade within their borders, including rivers and bodies of water
16. Slavery will be ended in three stages, each lasting ten years (starting in 1790). Slave owners will be compensated for manumission of slaves, slaves will count for purposes of representation, and an initiative will be created for the return of most freed slaves back to Africa in return for the abolition of the slave trade, no fugitive slave law, and the abolition of slavery, with full rights under the Constitution for those freed, by the year 1820. No new slave States may be added to the Union.
17. A mandate is given to Congress to purchase and establish a colony in Africa for returning freed slaves.
18. The federal government is specifically prohibited from funding internal improvements within the States or bribing the States with money.
19. The only process for proposing amendments is a Constitutional Convention held by ¾ of the States complete with a ¾ quorum of those States holding the Convention to pass amendments. The States do not have to petition Congress for such a Convention to occur. Amendments are stated as the only way to change the Constitution.
20. Congress is given the express authority to negotiate and sign treaties with the Native American nations
21. Federal/national police are prohibited
22. Impeachment trials remain in the courts
23. No General Welfare or Necessary and Proper clauses
1787-1788 – The ratification process went to the States (9 being required for ratification). Unlike OTL, the main division between those supporting and those opposing the new Constitution were those supporting the Slavery Provisions in Article 8 and those opposed. Initially, Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Georgia were opposed to ratification. Jefferson, Henry, and Madison authored a set of essays collectively called the The Liberty Papers in support of the Constitution generally and arguing for the Revolutionary-era principles of individual liberty and God-given natural rights. Those opposed responded with economic arguments that abolishing slavery would destroy the slave States and marginalize the economic system in the South. Henry, Jefferson, and Madison, all from Virginia, were able to move the Virginia legislature in support of ratification by freeing their own slaves with no financial help. This act and their impassioned speeches before the legislature throughout June 1788 led to Virginia ratifying the Constitution on July 5th, 1788. Similar speeches before the North Carolina legislature were not successful in turning the opinion of the legislators and the Georgia and South Carolina assemblies refused to hear speeches in favor of the Constitution. By October 1st, 1788, the required nine States had ratified the new Constitution, making it officially the Law of the Land.
Following the official ratification, the Succession Crisis of 1788 began with a joint declaration by Georgia and South Carolina that they were opposed to the Constitution and left the Union on December 13th, 1788. North Carolina remained in the Union until March 3rd, 1789 when that State seceded from the Union as well. Georgia, North Carolina, and South Carolina were recognized as free and sovereign nations by the other States. The US retained the Mississippi territory.
1789 – Several European nations recognize the independence of Georgia, South Carolina, and North Carolina. Connecticut becomes the 10th and last State to ratify the US Constitution. In May, the French Revolution begins. George Washington [EC], Thomas Jefferson [H], and James Madison