US Government Unit Two Part Two

Our 1 st Constitution The Articles of Confederation – Written by John Dickenson at the same time Jefferson and Adams were composing the D-o-I in Philadelphia in 1776 – Congress adopted a modified version (one that protected states rights) in 1777 and submitted it for ratification by the state legislatures – After a long debate over the officially unclaimed western lands, the VA and NY were the last to ratify the Articles in 1781

The Articles Structure – Established a central government that consisted of one body, a congress The government was unicameral (one-house) Each state was given one vote – 9 out of 13 required to pass important laws Amendments to the Articles had to pass unanimously

The Articles Powers of the congress – Wage war – Make treaties – Send diplomatic representatives on behalf of the United States – Borrow money $$$

The Articles Powers NOT given to the congress – To regulate commerce – To collect taxes To finance any decision, the Congress depended on essentially getting donations from each state – Had no executive power to enforce any of its laws

The Articles Accomplishments – Winning the war with Britain Help create a unified fighting force for the colonies Negotiated peace treaty terms with Britain – Land Ordinance of 1785 Established a policy for selling the western lands Set aside land in each township for public education – Northwest Ordinance of 1787 Granted limited self-government to the developing territory between the Great Lakes and the Ohio River Prohibited slavery in the territory

The Articles Problems with the Articles – The plan of the 13 states was to have a weak central government… and it was, which created 3 problems Problem 1: Financial – Congress had no taxing power, and could only request states to donate – There was no centralized monetary system, so the paper money that was issued by the states and even congress was worthless

The Articles Problem 2: Foreign – Due to the inability to pay its debts, the United States lost respect with European nations – Inability to quickly and effectively organize against threats to the new nation Britain and Spain quickly began to expand their territory on the western lands of the continent

The Articles Problem 3: Domestic – Inability to quickly organize and respond to domestic uprisings and rebellions – Shays Rebellion In 1786, Captain Daniel Shays, a Massachusetts farmer and Revolutionary War veteran led a uprising against high state taxes, imprisonment for debt, and lack of paper money The rebel farmers stopped the collection of taxes and closed debtors’ courts. In January 1787, Shays and the rebels attempted to break into the Springfield armory, but were finally stopped by the Massachusetts state militia

The Articles The United States first constitution would be replaced by a new and better constitution beginning in the summer of 1787, with final ratification coming in May of 1790