1. The New Nation
Notecards for Unit 5

2. What were the Accomplishments Under the Articles of Confederation?
Winning the Revolutionary War
Signing the Treaty of Paris, of 1783
Setting procedures for new states entering the nation
Naming the country

3. What were the weaknesses Under the Articles of Confederation?
Weak national government
Most of the power was held by the states
Lacked ability to tax states / to raise funds to operate
Lacked power to regulate interstate commerce
States all had one vote regardless of population
No common currency with which to trade equitably
No executive or judicial branch
No system of checks and balances
Weaknesses in the Articles led to the need for a new convention for a new constitution.

4. Describe the Constitutional Convention.
The need for a totally new constitution was evident. Revising the Articles of Confederation was not going to work.
Delegates from all states except Rhode Island met in Philadelphia
George Washington served as President of the Convention
James Madison Served as Secretary

5. Was a representative to the Convention from Virginia
Who was known as the “Father of the Constitution” and was a great compromiser?
James Madison
Was a representative to the Convention from Virginia
He served as secretary of the Convention and took copious notes.
He was also the author of the Bill of Rights

6. What was George Washington's role at the Convention?
Was elected President of the Convention
Was a representative to the Convention from Virginia

7. What was Benjamin Franklin’s role at the Convention?
He was a unifying presence at the Convention
He advocated for the abolition of slavery
He was a great compromiser who gave passionate speeches

8. Describe the key issues debated at the Constitutional Convention.
The powers of the new government had to be debated and defined
A fair system of representation needed to be worked out.
Agreement on representation and taxation concerning the enslaved population had to be reached
Deciding how to elect a president

9. What was the Northwest Ordinance of 1787?
Established the Northwest territory which included the areas that are today Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Ohio, Minnesota, and Wisconsin
Banned slavery in this territory
Created a system for bringing new states into the Union.
Divided land into smaller territories and gave each a governor appointed by Congress
When a territory reached 60,000 in population it could draft its own state constitution and ask to join the Union

10. What was the Three-fifth’s Compromise?
Southern delegates wanted slaves to be counted in their representation numbers so that they would have more representation and power in Congress
Northern delegates wanted slaves to be counted when determining taxes a state should pay, but not in representation
The Three Fifths Compromise stated that only 3/5 of the slaves would count towards representation. The idea of taxation was not addressed.

11. What was the Great Compromise?
The delegates disagreed about how the issue of representation in the legislative body should look and had difficulty coming to a consensus.
There were two proposals:
Proposal #1-The Virginia Plan and #2-The New Jersey Plan
After extensive debate a compromise was reached “The Great Compromise” and the agreement to create a two-house legislature was reached: a bicameral legislature was created in which the Senate would have two representatives from each state and the representation on the House of Representatives would be determined by the population in each state. (This was The Connecticut Plan).

12. What was the Virginia Plan?
The central government would be more powerful than the states.
There would be a bicameral legislature (2 houses).
The number of Representatives from each state would be based on the population of the state. The more people living in the state the more representatives it would have in both houses.

13. What was the New Jersey Plan?
The central government would have power limited to taxing citizens and regulating interstate commerce.
There would be a unicameral legislature (1 House).
Each state would have the same amount of representatives, giving each state the same number of votes.

14. Nine out of the thirteen states had to ratify the Constitution.
What was the required vote in order for the constitution to be ratified?
Nine out of the thirteen states had to ratify the Constitution.

15. What was the organizational framework for the new government under the Constitution?
There were three equal branches of government which allowed for a balance of power:
Legislative branch-made the laws
Executive branch-made sure the laws were carried out
Judicial Branch-interpreted the laws according to the Constitution

16. What was the “Bill of Rights”?
They were made up of the rights which where mentioned in the Declaration of Independence
They were added to the Constitution after the Convention, written by James Madison
They were based on the Virginia Declaration of Rights written by George Mason and the Virginia Statute for Religious Freedom written by Thomas Jefferson
They became the first 10 Amendments to the Constitution
They were written to guarantee individual rights such as freedom of religion, freedom of speech, and freedom of the press

17. What were the accomplishments of George Washington’s administration?
The federal court system was established during his administration.
Benjamin Banneker, a free African American, completed plans for a national capital in Washington, D.C.
The Bill of Rights was ratified during his time in office

18. What were the accomplishments of John Adams’ administration?
A two-party system emerged
The Alien and Sedition Acts were passed and implemented