Articles of Confederation

Britain Is Gone…What Now?

Articles of Confederation

The Declaration of Independence told the

world colonists were separating from

England and why, but it did not declare

America to be a single country.

The 13 colonies in fact, became 13

separate countries each with its own

government and laws.

They called themselves states.

Articles of Confederation

At the time, the idea of separate

independent states appealed to most

Americans.

The citizens of South Carolina, for

example, felt they had little in common

with the citizens of Connecticut.

A few Americans, however, wanted to

create a large central government of

their own.

Articles of Confederation

Although each state was well prepared and eager to govern itself, a state could not do some things on its own.

It could not raise and maintain a large army. The war against Great Britain could never have been won by 13 small state armies. A single, strong army under central control was necessary.

For this reason, the Second Continental Congress made plans for “a firm league of friendship” among the states.

Pair Share

At the end of the Revolutionary War how did

most people think of their citizenship?

Instead of being a single nation what did the

states agree to?

Articles of Confederation

The Articles of Confederation were the 1st

plan of government for the United States.

The Articles of Confederation did not unite

the states into a single country. It established

a system for cooperation among

independent states.

The Articles set up a (Legislative Branch) a

one-house legislature in which each stare

had one vote.

Articles of Confederation

Because of their bad experience with the

British government, the states refused to

let Congress have two important powers.

It had no power to tax and no power to

enforce its laws.

The Articles allowed the Congress to

ask the states for money, but not to

demand it.

Weaknesses of

the Articles of Confederation

By 1781 all 13 states had ratified or

approved the Articles of Confederation.

Within the next few years it became clear

that the Articles had some serious

problems.

Weaknesses of

the Articles of Confederation

To begin with, the Congress could not pass a law unless 9 states voted in favor of it. This made it very difficult for the Congress to accomplish anything.

Even when the Congress managed to pass laws, it could not enforce them.

Unlike the state Constitutions, the Articles did not provide for a president or for courts. If a state decided to ignore a law, the Congress could do nothing.

Weaknesses of

the Articles of Confederation

Unable to collect taxes the Congress had to borrow money to pay for the war against Britain.

The Congress also allowed the states to fall into debt. Doing business was difficult during the war against Britain. To make up for lost income each state placed heavy taxes on goods from other states and countries.

Some foreign countries refused to tradewith the American States.

Pair Share

What was the first plan of government for the

United States?

What is the word that means “to approve?”

In the Congress set up by the Articles of

Confederation how many votes did each

state have?

List 5 weaknesses of the government under

the Articles of Confederation.

Shays Rebellion

In 1786, a Massachusetts citizen named

Daniel Shays had fallen into debt because

of heavy state taxes.

Now the courts were threatening to take his

farm away as payment for his debts.

He felt the state had no right to punish him for

a problem the state had created.

Shay's Mob

In

Possession

Of A

Courthouse

January 1884

Shays Rebellion

A group of 1,200 farmers, led by

Shays, marched on federal

(U.S.) buildings in Springfield.

Fearing a riot, the governor

ordered state troops to break

up the march.

Shays and his followers were

defeated, but word of the

rebellion spread.

Call for a Convention

It had been clear for some time that the states needed a stronger centralgovernment.

In 1787, 12 of the states sent delegates to a meeting in Philadelphia.

Their purpose was to changethe Articles of Confederation. At the time, no one realized how sweeping those changes would be.

Pair Share

What was the event that caused people to

realize that the Articles of Confederation were

too weak?

What city hosted the delegates who were

supposed to revise the Articles of

Confederation?