American Revolution, State Sovereignty, and the American Constitutional Settlement, 1765-1800

This book examines the ideological political contexts of the Founding era from the drafting of the Articles of Confederation to the ratification of the Constitution and the Federalist–Jeffersonian political conflict. The author highlights the constitutional and theoretical importance of state sovereignty during the Revolutionary period.

Aaron N. Coleman is associate professor of history and chair of the History and Political Science Department at the University of the Cumberlands.

Introduction Part I: Establishing the Revolutionary Settlement Chapter 1: King-in-Colonial Assembly: The Background to State Sovereignty Chapter 2: Establishing and Debating the Nature of State Sovereignty: Articles of Confederation and the Politics of Early 1780s Chapter 3: Trying to Altering the Settlement: The Critical Period and the Constitutional Convention Chapter 4: Ratification the Constitution and Continuation of the Settlement Part II: Defending the Revolutionary Settlement Chapter 5: Preserving State Sovereignty: The Judiciary Act and the Tenth Amendment Chapter 6: Breaking the Promise: Hamiltonianism Chapter 7: The Settlement Defended: Republican Counter-Attack and the Eleventh Amendment Chapter 8: The Settlement Secured: Kentucky and Virginia Resolutions and the Defeat of the Federal Common Law Conclusion