The Federalist Party Implodes! | The Hartford Convention and War of 1812

In this episode, we discuss how and why the Federalist Party disintegrated after the War of 1812, taking America’s First Party System down with it. By the end of the Thomas Jefferson’s presidency, there was little left to separate the Hamiltonian Federalists from Jefferson’s Democratic-Republicans because Jefferson had flat-out adopted most of the Federalist agenda.

Then James Madison and the War Hawk faction of his party launched a foolish war against Great Britain that burned the first party system down. After a disaster of a war that saw the British burn the White House, the Federalists then blundered into the political disaster of the Hartford convention that made the party look like a den of traitors and successionists. The Federalists imploded, destroying America’s First Party System.

The collapse of the First Party System taught America it’s first lesson about how and why political parties and party systems break. With the great ideological debate over the early republic now in practice dead, there was little left to unite Federalists and Democratic-Republicans into a party. With party binds so weak, all it took was one damaging scandal to see a political coalition break as ambitious politicians, with nothing left to hold them to an empty and meaningless party brand now turned toxic, fled the doors.

Check out the book: https://www.amazon.com/Next-Realignment-Americas-Parties-Crumbling/dp/1633885089

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Видео The Federalist Party Implodes! | The Hartford Convention and War of 1812 канала Frank DiStefano