Articles of Confederation

Articles of Confederation

UPDATE YOUR JOURNALIn your Table of Contents:Page 62-63 Articles of Confederation

After the end of the war, the founding fathers needed a plan for our country and they needed one FAST!

Many feared creating a strong central government would threaten their rights.

They created a “league of friendship” called the Articles of Confederation.

It created a loose group of 13 independent states, NOT a UNITED 13 States.

Articles of Confederation

THE FIRST WRITTEN PLAN OF GOVERNMENT IN THE US.

• State governments were stronger than the

national (federal) government

• Could not collect taxes or enforce laws

• Could not regulate trade between states

• State and national govt’s created their own

money…14 different currencies!

Weaknesses

• No national court system

• No chief executive (president)

• No national army or navy

• One state one vote in Congress

• Required all 13 to pass amendments

Weaknesses

• Land given to America in the Treaty of Paris was causing problems.

• Settlers were moving onto land and disputes broke out. These disputes clogged the courts.

• Passed the Land Ordinance of 1785. It organized the Northwest Territory into smaller territories.

It divided the land into townships.

Now the problem was what to do with them. Would they be colonies or states?

Land Ordinance of 1785

Created rules for the new territory to become future states.

Once a territory had 5000 settlers, they could form a government. have

60,000 free citizens to become a state.

Northwest Ordinance

Shay’s Rebellion

Under the AOC, there were serious money problems.

• These problems were hardest on farmers.

• Judges ordered farmers in Massachusetts to sell their land and livestock to pay off debts.

Daniel Shays led an uprising of debt ridden Massachusetts farmers against the Mass. Govt.

There was no national govt. or army to stop the rebellion

Finally stopped by a militia.

The weaknesses of the Articles of Confederation led to the realization that a new government must be created.

Shays rebellion

A monument erected in 1987 to commemorate Shay’s Rebellion bears the following line in its inscription:

"True Liberty and Justice may require resistance to law."

Why would this line be included in the monument’s inscription?

Closing

Respond to this question in your journal under yesterday’s closing:Why would the idea of poor farmers rebelling be scary to many of the men working to create a new government for the United States?

Opening

After Shay’s Rebellion, a convention was called to discuss “the situation of the United States”

Issues to be debated• Should we create a Strong or Weak Federal

Government?• Will the new government continue the “one

state one vote” or will it be based upon population?

• What will we do about the Slavery issue…?

Constitutional Convention

Pennsylvania State House

Independence Hall

When? May 25, 1787

Constitutional Convention

Who? 55 delegates: federalists, antifederalists and James Madison.

What? Our founding fathers came together to write the Constitution.

Professional backgrounds◦ About half were lawyers◦ Others were farmers, merchants, and doctors

¾ had been representatives in the Constitutional Convention. These delegates are what we call “The Founding Fathers” George Washington James Madison – called the Father of the Constitution

because of his preparation and participation in it’s creation.

Constitutional ConventionWho’s Who

Legislative branch had two houses

House based on population

Supported by larger states

Three branches of government

New Jersey Plan Virginia Plan Legislative branch

has one houses

House has one state/one vote

Supported by smaller states

Unable to come to any sort of agreement, a committee met and came up with a compromise.

It set the government up as follows:◦ 3 branches of government◦ 2 houses in Legislative branch◦House of Representatives based on population◦Senate – 2 votes per state (equality)

Great Compromise

Slaves should NOT count towards taxation.

Slaves should count for representation.

North South Slaves should

count for taxation = property

Slaves should NOT count as citizens for Representation

How will slaves affect taxes and population?

Because the issue of slavery was preventing the ratification (approval) of the Constitution, the delegates came up with yet another compromise.

In the 3/5ths Compromise, slaves would count as 3/5 of a person for population counts when setting taxes and representation. 5 slaves = 3 people

Although they reach a compromise for the Constitution, the North and South still did not agree on the issue of slavery.

Slavery will continue to be a widely debated topic for many more years.

3/5ths Compromise

Federalists – DEBATED FOR RATIFICATION

Wanted: Strong Central Government Powerful Executive Branch To ratify the Constitution AS WRITTEN. James Madison, Alexander Hamilton, John

Jay

Federalists

Anti-Federalists – AGAINST RATIFICATION Wanted stronger states (state’s rights) More people’s rights DEMANDED BILL OF RIGHTS BE ADDED

TO PROTECT PEOPLE FROM THE GOVERNMENT!!!

Thought the proposed constitution didn’t do enough to ensure people’s rights.

Patrick Henry and George Mason

Antifederalists

Federalists wrote a series of newspaper essays pointing out the weaknesses of the Articles of Confederation

Federalist Papers

The states each hold conventions to vote on whether or not to ratify (approve) the Constitution.

The first states ratify it in December 1787. The last state doesn’t ratify the constitution

until 1790!

Now, the British Colonies are officiallyThe UNITED States of America!

Ratifying the Constitution

When? 1791 At the same time that seven of the states

ratified the Constitution, they asked that it be amended to include a bill of rights.

Why? They believed it was needed to protect people against the power of the national government.

What? These amendments gave certain rights (unalienable rights) specifically to the people of the US and to the states.

Bill of Rights

1st

2nd

3rd

4th

5th

6th

7th

8th

9th

10th

Bill of Rights (on back), leave room for something else

Q: In your own words, explain why you think that the Antifederalists felt that it was absolutely necessary for the Bill of Rights to be added to the Constitution? If you had to live during this time, what would your stance have been? Why?

On the back of your notes