Date of Award
9-26-2012
Document Type
Thesis
Degree Name
History, MA
First Advisor
Gary Edwards
Committee Members
Dennis Rousey; Joseph Key
Call Number
LD 251 .A566t 2012 C31
Abstract
In 1798-99, the Kirchenleute, or "Church-People," in eastern Pennsylvania rebelled in response to the passage of the first direct tax on property and the Alien and Sedition Acts of 1798. Named Fries' Rebellion for the leader, John Fries, this rebellion happened due to the unique development and language of the Kirchenleute's popular constitutionalism. Fries' Rebellion contributed to a further understanding of the powers of the federal government under the Constitution of 1787 and also to the collapse of the Federalist Party in the election of 1800. "Popular constitutionalism" in the context of the Kirchenleute is the theory that groups of people have the right to nullify a law or act of government. This thesis will argue that the popular constitutionalism of the Kirchenleute was essentially incorrect and void as it was not based on any written constitution but rather on their past experiences in Germany and America.
Rights Management
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
Recommended Citation
Conley, Nathaniel Payton, "The Kirchenleute Argument and the Evolving Language of Protest: Popular Constitutionalism or "Licentious Liberty?"" (2012). Student Theses and Dissertations. 826.
https://arch.astate.edu/all-etd/826
