Question

What national event in 1786 brought to America's attention the need for a stronger central government?

Answer 1

Hint: It was a brutal insurgency in the Massachusetts countryside in 1786 and 1787, sparked by a monetary debt crisis at the conclusion of the American Revolutionary War. Despite the fact that Massachusetts was the epicentre of the depression, other states faced similar economic difficulties.

Complete answer:
- Court decisions are causing poor rural farmers to lose their ground. Due to a lack of "hard money," the farmers were unable to pay their debts and therefore lost their property.
- Farmers led by Daniel Shay took up arms in response to the courts' actions. Armed rebels forced the courts to close down, refusing to allow them to meet. There was genuine concern that the insurgents would attempt to seize an army base in order to add to their arsenal.
- Since the central government lacked the power to print or mint gold, there was no foreign currency.
- Also, the central government lacked the funds and authority to maintain a permanent army, so it had to rely on state militias. When the militia in Massachusetts was called out to put down Shay's revolt, the militia failed to fight the rebels.
- The country was terrified by Shay's Rebellion. The Articles of Confederation established a corrupt central government incapable of dealing efficiently with the Rebellion. Rebellions like these, it was feared, would expand and ruin the new republic.
- The need for a stronger national or federal government arose as a result of Shay's Rebellion.

Note: Daniel Shays, a Revolutionary War veteran, led an armed insurrection in Springfield, Massachusetts in August 1786 to oppose what he saw as the Massachusetts state legislature's oppressive economic practises and official corruption.