The Articles of Confederation - Weeblydyermpms.weebly.com/uploads/8/6/0/5/86057832/articles_of_confed… · •The Articles of Confederation (a plan for government) were sent to the

The Articles of

Confederation

1777-1787

During the American Revolution

• States organized their governments and

adopted their own state constitutions.

• But, Americans needed to establish their

own national government now that

they were no longer under British rule.

• Americans wanted the country to be a

republic. A republic is a government

with elected representatives.

• The Articles of Confederation (a plan for

government) were sent to the states

(colonies) in 1777 for approval. These

articles were America’s first constitution.

• Ratification was delayed until 1781

because of western settlement disputes

amongst the states.

During the American Revolution

• Leaders met to decide what this new plan

of government should look like, and in

their discussions, they had 8 very

important questions to answer…

During the American Revolution

Question #1

Which level of government

should have the most power,

state or national? Why?

• Most Americans favored a weak central

government and strong independent

states.

• Because…people were reluctant to

replace one powerful government with

another (fear of tyranny)

• Each state kept, “its sovereignty,

freedom, and independence”.

Question #2

Which branches will be

included? Why?

• The decided on a unicameral (one house)

legislature – just one lawmaking group.

• Because…they didn’t want a large national

government.

• This one branch legislature would be called

Congress.

• There would be NO executive, chief

executive, King, or President (again, fear of

tyranny).

Question #3

How will states be represented

in the legislative branch? Why?

• The Articles decided there would be

equal representation – each state gets

the same number of votes (1).

• Because…they wanted each state to

have equal power.

• States could determine how many

representatives they were able to

send.

Question #4

How will representatives be

selected? Why?

• They decided there would be indirect

elections, and representatives would

be chosen by state government

officials.

• Because…they didn’t trust the average

citizen to make the right choice.

• Most of the power was in the hands

of state officials.

Question #5

How long will representatives

serve? Why?

• They decided representatives would

serve one year terms.

• Because…they were trying to prevent

tyranny and corruption.

Question #6

How will laws be passed? Why?

• They decided that at least nine of the

13 states must approve a law for it to

be passed.

• Because…they believed that laws

would only be effective with strong

support from the states.

Question #7

How will the government raise

money? Why?

• They decided that they would ask the

states for money.

• Because…they didn’t want the

national government to have a lot of

power when it came to taxing – they

would rather rely on state support.

Question #8

How will the national

government’s powers be

limited? Why?

• They decided that the national

government’s powers would be

limited by state powers – the states

would be more powerful than the

national government.

• Because…they wanted to prioritize

state needs over national needs, and

again, they wanted to prevent

tyranny in the national government.

In summary, the Articles of

Confederation called for:

• A limited central (national) government.

• One branch legislature called Congress.

• No executive, chief executive, king, or president.

• No national courts.

• All states would have equal representatives AND

one single vote.

• 9 states had to agree before a bill became law.

• All 13 states had to ratify the Articles (1781).

According to the Articles, the national

government can/did:

• Create a plan of government – The

Articles of Confederation.

• Negotiate treaties especially the Treaty

of Paris of 1783; successfully ending the

American Revolution

• Declare war

Successes

According to the Articles, the national

government can/did:

• Make peace

• Create new land policies

• Run the national postal office

• Conduct foreign relations with other

countries & Native Americans

Successes

According to the Articles of Confederation, the

national government had almost no power. It

could NOT:

• regulate trade amongst the states;

• amend (change) the Articles unless all 13

states gave its consent;

• force citizens to join the army nor pay

for it;

• pass a law unless nine states voted for it;

Weaknesses

According to the Articles of Confederation, the

national government had almost no power. It

could NOT:

collect taxes. They had to ask the states for

money to pay for the army and war debts;

and each state had their own currency -

confusing.

And…each state had one vote in Congress.

State population did not matter, although

larger, more populated states believed that

they should have more votes.

Weaknesses

To Rewrite or Not to Rewrite? That

is the question…

•By 1786, chaos ensued. The economy was in

trouble, states were quarreling over boundary lines

& rebellions in Massachusetts (Shay’s Rebellion)

demonstrated the government’s inability to

maintain law & order.

• In 1787, Alexander Hamilton organized a meeting

of the Continental Congress in Philadelphia. It was

time to make some changes to the Articles. It was at

this meeting that the delegates threw out the

Articles & developed the Constitution.