The Nationalist Ferment: The Origins of U.S. Foreign Policy, 1789-1812

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Ohio State University Press, 2004 - 274 pages

This book was published in June 1994 by a French publisher and became the winner of the Organization of American Historians foreign language book prize.

The Nationalist Ferment contributes significantly to the renewal of early U.S. diplomatic history. Since the 1980s, a number of diplomatic historians have turned aside from traditional diplomatic issues and sources. They have instead focused on gender, ethnic relationships, culture, and the connections between foreign and domestic policy.

Rossignol argues that in the years 1789-1812 the new nation needed to assert its independence and autonomous character in the face of an unconvinced world. After overcoming initial divisions caused by foreign policy, Americans met this challenge by defining common foreign policy objectives and attitudes, which both legitimized the United States abroad and reinforced national unity at home. This book establishes the constant connections between domestic and international issues during the early national period.

 

Contents

The Quest for Sovereignty
3
The Rise of Partisan
25
The Division of the Nation
45
Commercial and Territorial Expansion
69
Rejecting the Other
119
American Expansion
141
Conclusion
195
Notes
201
Bibliography
249
Index
265
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About the author (2004)

Marie-Jeanne Rossignol is professor at Université de Paris VII-Denis Diderot. Marie-Jeanne Rossignol is professor at Université de Paris VII-Denis Diderot.

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