The Whiskey Rebellion

In the eighteenth century, settlers resorted to violent protest to express their disagreements. Before the occurrence of the violent protests, the country was still recovering from the aftermath of the French and Indian War. The country was subject to the payment of debt from Britain who declared that the colonies were in protection of Britain during the war, also known as parliamentary sovereignty. Along with the debt, there were tensions with the natives in the land due to the decreasing space in proportion to the British expansion of territory. The Treaty of Paris of 1763 was also signed, giving French control over Canada to Britain. While there were still disputes over how government revenue should be raised, the occurrence of these events
The Whiskey Rebellion was caused by a tax on whiskey that was imposed by Congress, which was set in place by Alexander Hamilton. The tax was set in place to assist the government in paying back the national debt that accumulated from the Revolution. The rebellion started March 3, 1791 and the reaction against the levy was incredibly overwhelming to the government. Whiskey is a byproduct of corn and had a better market than the original grain, which profited the farmers greatly until the tax was in place. The liquor was the main source of revenue in the west and the product was used as the people’s currency for government officials. The people were already conflicted with the government concerning the disputes in the Northwest Territory and the leadership of Tecumseh. The whiskey farmers formed a resistance to the tax in a meeting during July of 1791, and the collectors of the tax were often humiliated, tarred and feathered, or ambushed. Over the course of a few years, the resistance gained strength and momentum. George Washington commanded an army that consisted of over 13,000 militiamen who would march into western Pennsylvania to put an end to the rebellion. Along with the army, the President issues an act instructing the rebels to disperse and return home. The rebellion soon ended as word arrived of the army and the tax remained through the Federalist Era. The rebellion was the first resistance to federal authority in the country concerning government and the abilities that allow taxation on the nation. The effects of the rebellion were that the government now had the ability to exert its power. The government’s power was not something greatly observed until the Whiskey Rebellion and was an effect because of the tax on whiskey, which was another topic of debate at the time. A later alliance with France would become problematic because of the issues going on