1. The Articles of Confederation: America’s First Government
1783
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The Articles of Confederation: America’s First Government

2. THINKING ABOUT GOVERNMENT
Americans began to develop an independent system of government even before the Revolution ended. This new government would draw on many political and intellectual traditions. Some of these traditions came from English history. In English nobles had forced King John to sign the Magna Carta.

3. This was a document that limited the power of the king or queen
This was a document that limited the power of the king or queen. It declared that the monarch could not collect taxes without the consent of an advisory body. This began parliamentary democracy in England. The English Bill of Rights of 1689 also declared that the king or queen could not make or suspend any law, create any tax or maintain an army in without the consent of Parliament.

4. without the consent of Parliament.
The Enlightenment also influenced American political ideas. Growing out of the scientific revolution, Enlightenment philosophers used reason to investigate and to try and improve government and society. One example was the book the Social Contract written by Jean-Jacque Rousseau.

5. He studied many forms of government and determined the best form
was when everyone was equal. There
was also a strong tradition
of self government in the colonies.
New England town meetings were
composed of ordinary citizens who
voiced their opinions on important issues.
Everyone is =

6. STATE GOVERNMENTS AND CONSTITUTIONS
Patriot leaders, during the
Revolution, wanted to transform the colonies into independent states in order to remove British political controls. To create this new state colonial leaders either revised their old royal charter or wrote

7. a new state constitution. A constitution is a set of laws
that defines the basic structure and powers of a government. The Massachusetts Declaration of Rights was drafted in 1779 and adopted in It was written by John Adams and his cousin Samuel Adams. It is the oldest constitution still in use

8. in the world today. The United States Constitution has many similarities to the Massachusetts Constitution and was modeled in part on it.

9. Under the new constitutions, powerful state legislatures replaced the colonial assemblies. Most people feared government abuses and put some controls over these new legislatures. For example, many established short terms of office so that voters could quickly get rid of unpopular representatives.

10. The power of the state's
executive and judicial
branches were limited by
placing them under the
control of the legislature.
An important safeguard of
citizens rights and
freedoms were included in
many of these state
constitutions. These were
known as a Bill of Rights.

11. Americans desired a republican form of government
Americans desired a republican form of government. A republican form of government is one in which the people hold the power and give elected representatives the authority to make and carry out laws. The constitutions also greatly expanded suffrage for white men. (suffrage = voting rights.)

12. In Pennsylvania all white men who paid taxes could vote, African Americans could vote in some northern states, and women even had the right to vote in New Jersey until 1807.
Suffrage varied from state to state. I n P e n n s y l v a n i a a l l w h i t e m e n w h o p a i d t a x e s c o u l d v o t e , A f r i c a n A m e r i c a n s c o u l d v o t e i n s o m e n o r t h e r n s t a t e s , a n d w o m e n e v e n h a d t h e r i g h t t o v o t e i n N e w J e r s e y u n t i l

13. THE ARTICLES OF CONFEDERATION
1754
It was easier to set up the state governments than to form a central structure. The Albany Plan of Union was was a proposal drafted by Benjamin Franklin in He hoped that it would permanently unite the colonies, but at the time his plan attracted little support.

14. The growing tensions between the colonies and the British government in the 1760’s and 1770’s began to change peoples minds. For example, two ways the colonists banded together during these troublesome times were the formation of the Stamp Act Congress and the boycott of British goods.

15. In his attempt to argue for colonial unity Ben Franklin was quoted as saying:
“We must all hang together, or assuredly we shall all hang separately.”

16. The Second Continental Congress
The Second Continental Congress. By November 1777 Congress had also written a constitution called the Articles of Confederation. It was America’s first national constitution. The Articles stressed the independence

17. of the separate states. The United States was a loose alliance of states who had a “firm league of friendship.” This was very different than our modern federal government The Articles created a legislative body called the Confederation Congress and generally gave powers that had been granted to the Second Continental Congress.

18. Each of the 13 states had one vote in Congress
Each of the 13 states had one vote in Congress. The Articles had serious weaknesses. It could not declare war or make treaties without approval by nine states. Also, the Articles did not specify how Congress could enforce many of the powers it did have.
war
Treaties

19. One important example of this was that Congress could decide how much money it needed and how much each state should pay but it could not make each state pay. The states reserved (kept for themselves) other powers such as the printing of money. They also established their own policies for interstate commerce, or business and trade between states.

20. Formal approval or ratification of the Articles of Confederation was held up because of rivalries between certain states. The Second Continental Congress decided that the Articles could not go into affect until all the states had accepted it.

21. Smaller states who had no large land claims to the area beyond the Appalachian mountains refused to ratify the Articles until large states like Virginia agreed to turn these land claims over to the new United States. Maryland and Virginia continued to fight over this issue until January when Virginia finally agreed to give up some of its claims in

23. favor of national unity. Maryland then ratified the Articles soon after.