Omar Bennett
The first attempt at a constitution for the United States was the Articles of Confederation, which served as the nation's first formal governing document. The Articles were submitted to the 13 states for ratification in 1777 and ratified in 1781. They created a loose confederation of states and a weak central government, with most of the power left to the state governments. The Articles lacked enforcement powers, couldn't regulate commerce, and didn't provide the central government with the power to collect taxes or enforce a common currency. Divisions among the states and local rebellions threatened to tear the young country apart, leading to calls for a stronger central government and ultimately, the Constitutional Convention of 1787, which resulted in the creation of the US Constitution.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| First attempt at a national government | Weak and ineffective |
| Legislative procedures | Each state had one vote |
| Required a "super majority" on important issues | |
| Established requirements for representatives | |
| Regulations for trade | Domestic and international |
| Creation of a national currency | |
| Power to request soldiers and funds from states | States were not required to honour those requests |
| Amendment | Required unanimous consent from all 13 states |
| Central government | Couldn't collect taxes to fund its operations |
| Lacked domestic and international powers | |
| Couldn't enforce states to follow a common foreign policy | |
| Lacked enforcement powers | |
| Couldn't regulate commerce | |
| Couldn't print money | |
| No national power of taxation | |
| No bill of rights | |
| No protection for people |
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What You'll Learn
The Articles of Confederation
The limitations of the Articles of Confederation became apparent in the years following the Revolutionary War, as disputes between the states over territory, war pensions, taxation, and trade threatened to tear the young country apart. The lack of a strong central government and the inability to amend the Articles led to calls for revision and ultimately, replacement.
The Constitutional Convention of 1787 in Philadelphia effectively ended the era of the Articles of Confederation, as delegates from the 13 states worked on revising and eventually replacing the Articles with the US Constitution. The drafting of the Constitution, often referred to as its framing, was completed at this convention, which assembled at Independence Hall in Philadelphia between May 25 and September 17, 1787.
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The need for a stronger central government
The Articles of Confederation, America's first constitution, was adopted by the Continental Congress on November 15, 1777, and ratified by the states on March 1, 1781. The Articles created a loose confederation of sovereign states with a weak central government, leaving most of the power with the state governments.
The Articles of Confederation gave the Confederation Congress the power to make rules and request funds from the states, but it had no enforcement powers, couldn't regulate commerce, collect taxes to fund its operations, or print money. The states' disputes over territory, war pensions, taxation, and trade threatened to tear the young country apart.
The Articles also allowed the central government to request soldiers from the states, but there was nothing requiring the states to honour those requests, which often went unfulfilled. This lack of power led to calls for revision and eventually replacement at the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia in 1787.
The Federalists, who believed that a strong central government was necessary to face the nation's challenges, played a crucial role in the push for a stronger central government. They argued that a strong central government was needed to address the nation's problems effectively. The Anti-Federalists, on the other hand, opposed the Constitution as it created a powerful central government that reminded them of the one they had just overthrown, and it lacked a bill of rights.
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The Federalists and Anti-Federalists
The Federalists
The Federalists were supporters of a strong national government and an expansive interpretation of congressional powers. They believed in a more centralised form of government, with weaker state governments and a preference for representative democracy. The Federalists included big property owners, conservative small farmers, businessmen, wealthy merchants, clergymen, judges, lawyers, and professionals. They were also known as nationalists, and their beliefs were influenced by Treasury Secretary Alexander Hamilton's aggressive fiscal policies. The Federalists were well-organised and had strong support in the press, which helped them prevail in the state ratification debates.
The Anti-Federalists
The Anti-Federalists, on the other hand, advocated for a more decentralised form of government with greater protections for individual rights and stronger state representation. They were concerned that the national government under the Constitution would become too powerful and threaten individual liberties and state sovereignty. The Anti-Federalists included small farmers, landowners, shopkeepers, and labourers, and they generally came from rural areas. They favoured direct democracy, the direct election of government officials, short term limits for officeholders, and accountability to popular majorities.
The Anti-Federalists wrote under pseudonyms such as "Brutus" and "Cato", and they brought their concerns to light through speeches and articles. They believed that the Constitution needed a Bill of Rights to guarantee specific liberties. While they opposed the ratification of the Constitution, they were successful in influencing the formation of the Bill of Rights, which helped assuage their concerns about the violation of liberties.
The political divide between the Federalists and Anti-Federalists was complex and intense, and it shaped the early political landscape of the United States. The debates between the two factions highlighted the importance of freedom of speech and the press, even before the adoption of the Constitution and the Bill of Rights.
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The Constitutional Convention of 1787
The United States Constitution, as it stands today, is the product of a long and complex historical process. The first attempt at establishing a constitution for the nation was the Articles of Confederation, which served as the nation's first formal governing document. However, it faced significant challenges and ultimately led to the Constitutional Convention of 1787.
The Articles of Confederation were adopted by the Continental Congress on November 15, 1777, and ratified by the states on March 1, 1781. The Articles established a loose confederation of sovereign states with a weak central government, giving most of the power to the state governments. While it provided a framework for governance during the Revolutionary War, its limitations became increasingly apparent in the years that followed.
The Articles lacked enforcement powers, could not regulate commerce, and did not provide the central government with the power to collect taxes or print money. This led to divisions among the states and threatened to tear the young nation apart. Recognizing these issues, founders like George Washington, James Madison, and Alexander Hamilton advocated for changes to the Articles.
In 1786, delegates from five states met in Annapolis, Maryland, to discuss revisions to the Articles. This led to the calling of the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia in 1787. The convention, which assembled at Independence Hall, was attended by delegates from 12 of the 13 original states, with Rhode Island being the only state that refused to send representatives.
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Ratification and amendments
The Articles of Confederation, America's first constitution, was sent to the 13 states for consideration on November 17, 1777. It took until February 1779 for 12 states to approve the document. The Articles of Confederation gave the Confederation Congress the power to make rules and request funds from the states, but it had no enforcement powers, couldn't regulate commerce, or print money. The states' disputes over territory, war pensions, taxation, and trade threatened to tear the young country apart.
The Articles of Confederation also allowed the burgeoning nation to request soldiers and funds from the states, but there was nothing that required the states to honour those requests, which often went unfulfilled. The first attempt at a national government lacked enough power to be effective, which ultimately led to calls for a revision and then for replacement at the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia in 1787.
The Constitutional Convention assembled in Philadelphia in May 1787, with the initial purpose of amending the Articles of Confederation. However, the convention ultimately resulted in the proposal and creation of a completely new form of government. On September 17, 1787, the convention concluded with the signing of the new U.S. Constitution by 38 out of 41 delegates present. Under Article VII, it was agreed that the document would not be binding until its ratification by nine of the 13 existing states.
The first state to ratify the Constitution was Delaware on December 7, 1787, followed by Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Georgia, and Connecticut. The ratification campaign was a close call, but the tide turned in Massachusetts, where the "vote now, amend later" compromise helped secure victory. The constitution was subsequently ratified by Massachusetts, Maryland, South Carolina, and, finally, New Hampshire. After ratification, Congress set dates for the first federal elections, which were held from December 15, 1788, to January 10, 1789, and the new government was set to begin on March 4, 1789.
Even after the Constitution's ratification, amendments were proposed and ratified. In 1789, James Madison introduced 17 amendments to the Constitution, of which Congress adopted 12 to send to the states for ratification. Ten of those amendments, known as the Bill of Rights, were ratified on December 15, 1791. The Constitution was not ratified by all states until May 29, 1790, when Rhode Island finally approved the document. The Bill of Rights was not ratified to become part of the Constitution until the end of 1791.
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Frequently asked questions
The Articles of Confederation, adopted on November 15, 1777, was the first US Constitution.
The Articles of Confederation were adopted during the Revolutionary War, which saw 13 separate entities unite against a common enemy. The “free and independent states” wanted to retain their autonomy and feared yielding too much power to a central government.
The Articles of Confederation created a loose confederation of states with a weak central government, giving most of the power to state governments. It provided for a weak executive branch, no national power of taxation, and voting by states.
The Articles of Confederation had several limitations. The central government lacked enforcement powers, could not regulate commerce, collect taxes, or print money, and had no ability to enforce policies on states that conducted their own foreign policies and maintained their own money systems.
The limitations of the Articles of Confederation became apparent in the years following the Revolutionary War, as disputes between states over territory, war pensions, taxation, and trade threatened to tear the young nation apart. This led to calls for a revision and, ultimately, a replacement of the Articles. The Constitutional Convention of 1787 in Philadelphia effectively ended the era of the Articles of Confederation and resulted in the drafting of the US Constitution.
