The Articles of Confederation - Mr.Nick Sullivanmrnicksullivan.weebly.com/.../3/17330980/unit_3_lesson_1_the_articles_of_confederation.pdfThe Articles of Confederation were the the

The Articles of Confederation

U.S.A.’s First Govt.

I.  Following the end of the American Revolution the newly created U.S.A. needed a government

A.  Previous government was Great Britain B.  Independence leads to the need for self-government

II.  The United States will create: THE ARTICLES OF CONFEDERATION to serve as the first government of the U.S.A.

Research a confederation???

The USA Learned Bad Govt.

I.  The USA learned a bad system of government from experience

A.  Great Britain = strong government/tyrannical/dangerous

II.  Following their independence the last thing the colonists want is another strong government to tax and control them

III.  While creating their own system of government they will

make sure to make it weak/not powerful A.  They touched the hot stove à not doing it again!!!

DO NOW A.  Read a copy of the Articles of Confederation (Student

Friendly) and answer the following questions:

①  Which governments have the most power under the Articles of Confederation?

②  How many votes does each state get in the national Congress?

③  What are five powers granted to the National Congress?

④  T/F the national Congress has the power to levy taxes

⑤  How many states are needed to make a law? How many are needed to change the AofC?

The Articles of Confederation

I.  The Articles of Confederation were the the first government used by the United States of America

II.  The A of C were created in 1776 by the

Continental Congress, and finally approved by all the states in 1781.

A.  Following the end of the American Revolution the A of C were put in place to govern the USA

B.  U.S.A. needs a government now that they are independent

The Articles of Confederation

I.  Americans were afraid of a strong national government. A.  After all, they had fought a war to get rid of a strong government B.  So the USA created government that was weak. C.  This would ensure that the same situation wouldn’t happen again

II.  The national government under the Articles did not have the power to tax or enforce laws.

III.  The national government had the power to wage war, but

since they couldn’t tax they couldn’t pay for war

IV.  The government could also issue money, but the states didn’t have to use it. The states had their own money.

Structure of the A of C

I.  The A of C gave nearly all governmental power to the state governments

II.  States sent delegates to the national Congress where each state is given ONE vote no matter population

III.  Congress elects a president who has no authority whatsoever

IV.  There is no national court system and no way for Congress to enforce the laws that it makes

Weaknesses of the Articles

I.  Since the national government could not tax, and the national money was worthless, debt became a huge problem.

A.  Debt = owing money II.  The biggest problem was that the soldiers who had

fought the war, had not been paid, and they were mad.

III.  The American government couldn’t pay former soldiers since it had no money (collects no taxes)

IV.  Most of the soldiers were unable to pay their debts and

grew unhappy with the new government

Strengths of the Articles

I.  The Treaty of Paris 1783 was signed

II.  The Northwest Ordinance was passed

III.  Had the power to declare war and peace, print money, make treaties and settle state disputes

New Lands

I.  The Land Ordinance of 1785, stated that land in the west was to be surveyed using a grid system to establish 6 mile blocks

II.  The Northwest Ordinance assisted in the

expansion of the United States, it outlined a plan for applying for statehood to western territories

A.  5,000 free males who own 50 acres can start govt B.  Population of 60,000 could become a state

Settling Western lands

I.  The Northwest Ordinance provides the process for new states to be created & settled

II.  Northwest = new state

STRENGTHS WEAKNESSES

The Articles of Confederation

Congress was given the power to:

America’s 1st Constitution 1781-1789

Declare War &

Establish an Army/Navy

No Power to Draft Soldiers

The Articles of Confederation

Congress was given the power to:

America’s 1st Constitution 1781-1789

Make Peace & Sign Treaties

No Power to Enforce Treaties

The Articles of Confederation

Congress was given the power to:

America’s 1st Constitution 1781-1789

Borrow Money No Power to Collect Taxes

from the States

The Articles of Confederation

Congress was given the power to:

America’s 1st Constitution 1781-1789

Organize a

Post Office

The Articles of Confederation

Congress was given the power to:

America’s 1st Constitution 1781-1789

No Chief Executive

No national court system

No Power to Regulate Interstate Commerce

No National Currency

Difficult to Pass laws (2/3 vote)

The Articles of Confederation

Congress was given the power to:

America’s 1st Constitution 1781-1789

Difficult to Amend

(unanimous vote needed to change the

articles)

STRENGTHS WEAKNESSES

Problems With the A of C

I.  The A of C was a weak system of government A.  It was designed to be weak

II.  The A of C made it incredibly difficult for the national Congress to make laws:

A.  9 of 13 states was required to make a law

III.  The A of C had no executive (president/someone in charge) so enforcing laws was nearly impossible

IV.  The A of C is nearly impossible to change (amend) since all 13 states must agree to change the A of C

The Articles of Confederation

I.  The A of C were the U.S.A.’s first system of government

II.  The A of C was a very weak system of government but this was done on purpose to protect America from strong governments

III.  The A of C has many weaknesses that will lead to future conflict