One of the most significant events in United States history was the American Revolution. However, the significance of the event did not lay in the number of casualties or in Revolutionary wartime strategies. The importance of the Revolution lay in its effects of American Society. This landmark in American history has caused important changes to the government, affected vast and deep social changes, and altered the economic state of the newborn nation in the years of 1775 to 1800. From the American Revolution, the United States came to establish a strong government that functions to this day. The Articles of Confederation, written in 1777, was the first American Constitution. It was ratified in 1781. The Articles established that the
Slavery, a controversial topic of the time, was another issue that was met with change after and during the American Revolution. Gradually, slavery was beginning to be looked upon as morally wrong, and many states began to ban it, such as in Ohio (Doc. H). The Northwest Ordinance of 1787, which was instituted to raise money after the Depression of the 1780's, abolished slavery from the territories northwest of the Ohio River, and infringement of the law was to be met with punishment of varying degrees. Divided views on slavery and the advancement of the North towards the abolition of slavery created sectionalism, which would later serve as an important cause of the American Civil War. In addition, the relationship between Native Americans and Americans was another topic of change from 1775 to 1800. After the British defeat, Native Americans rested on shaky grounds with the Americans, as they had supported the British. Therefore, they approached Americans with hopes of reconciliation. However, their attempts were futile. A "Message to Congress from Chickasaw Chiefs" in 1783, signed the same year as the Treaty of Paris, reflected the Native American interests for better relations (Doc. C). Three years later, Native Americans realized their isolation from the Americans. In a Speech at the Confederate Council by the United Indian Nations in 1786, Native Americans expressed