Ms. Valentine's Notes
Unit 1
Articles of Confederation
• Presented in 1777 by a committee appointed by Congress, the Articles of Confederation were not ratified by all 13 states until March 1781.
The Second Continental Congress and the states had two major problems accepting the Articles of Confederation
• 1.) From dealing with Britain, there was a fear of a strong national government. The Founders believed that a central government was necessary but they believed that the British government deprived Americans of their rights and they thought this was likely to happen with any central government.
• 2.) The fear that some states might dominate others in the national government. Each state wanted to make sure that the national government would be organized in such a way that it would not interfere in their states interests.
The resulting government was comprised of a unicameral Congress, no executive and no national courts. Disputes among the states were settled by Congress. Congress only had the powers that were expressed in the Articles, basically foreign affairs and defense.
Congressional powers under the Articles of Confederation
l Congress could: make war and peace
l Send and receive ambassadors
l Enter into treaties
l Raise and equip a navy
l Maintain an army by requesting troops from the states
lAppoint senior military officers
lFix standards of weights and measures
l Regulate Indian affairs
l Establish post offices
lDecide certain disputes among the states
Weaknesses of the Articles
l Congress could not levy or collect taxes.
l Congress did not have the power to regulate trade.
l Congress could not force anyone to obey the laws passed or abide by the Articles.
lLaws had to be approved by 9 of the 13 states.
lAmending or changing the Articles required consent of all 13 states.
l No executive branch. This meant there was no unity in policy making and no way to coordinate the work of the different committees.
l The government had no national court system.
Achievements of the Articles of Confederation
o The greatest was the establishment of a fair policy for development of lands west of the Appalachians. Individual states ceded their claims to the national government. From this we got the Northwest Ordinance of 1787.
o Peace Treaty with Great Britain in which Britain recognized American independence.
oCongress set up the Departments of Foreign Affairs, War, Marine, and the Treasury.
oProvided that each state give “full faith and credit” to the legal acts of the others and treat each other’s citizens without discrimination.
Growing problems
n The states began to quarrel, mainly over boundary lines and tariffs.
n States began to deal directly with foreign nations.
n The government owed $40 million to foreign governments and American soldiers.
n The states began facing financial troubles.
n Economic troubles led to rebellion.
Shays’ Rebellion
n Daniel Shays was a former Army Captain and a farmer.
n He like several other men left their farms and businesses to fight in the Revolutionary War.
n When they returned home they found they no longer owned their farms and business because they were sold to pay debts accrued while off fighting.
n The national government had no money to pay the soldiers, and now they had no means to earn money.
n Daniel Shays led a band of 1200 men that closed the Massachusetts state supreme court.
nThe justices offered them no help, so they advanced on the federal arsenal in Springfield.
n The rebellion was put down by the Massachusetts militia.
n This and other rebellions prompted many Americans to call for a strong national government.
ØIn 1785, George Washington invited the representatives from feuding Maryland and Virginia to Mount Vernon.
Ø The success of the meeting prompted the delegates from Virginia to call for a meeting of all the states to be held in Annapolis, Maryland.
Ø Only five states sent delegates and they decided to call another convention to be held in Philadelphia in May 1787 with the purpose of regulating commerce and amending the Articles of Confederation.
The Constitutional Convention
ØThis convention began on May 25, 1787.
ØAll states except Rhode Island sent delegates.
Ø74 delegates were appointed and only 55 attended.
Ø8 delegates signed the Declaration of Independence.
Ø6 signed the Articles of Confederation.
Key Players
Ø George Washington – unanimously chosen to preside over the meetings.
Ø Benjamin Franklin – now 81 years old.
Ø Gouverneur Morris – wrote the final draft.
ØJames Madison – often called the “Father of the Constitution” because he was the author of the basic plan of government that the Convention adopted.
Organization & Agreements
n Each state would have one vote on all questions.
n A simple majority of the states present would make the decisions.
n No meetings unless delegates from 7 of the 13 states were present.
n Keep the public and the press out.
nAbandon the former government and begin again.
n Keep the ideas of limited and representative government.
n Divide the national governments powers between Executive, Legislative and Judicial branches.
n Limit the states power to coin money or interfere with creditors’ rights.
n STRENGTHEN the national government.