Simone Lawson
On March 11, 1861, delegates from South Carolina, Mississippi, Florida, Alabama, Georgia, Louisiana, and Texas adopted the Permanent Constitution of the Confederate States of America. The constitution was drafted and adopted in Montgomery, Alabama, and resembled the Constitution of the United States, repeating much of its language. However, it was more comparable to the Articles of Confederation in its delegation of extensive powers to the states. The Confederate Constitution also contained substantial differences from the U.S. Constitution, particularly in its recognition and protection of slavery in slave states and territories.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Date | March 11, 1861 |
| Location | Montgomery, Alabama |
| Delegates | South Carolina, Mississippi, Florida, Alabama, Georgia, Louisiana, Texas |
| Nature of the Constitution | Resembled the U.S. Constitution, but with more power delegated to the states |
| Amendments | Could be modified through a two-thirds majority in two-thirds of the state legislatures |
| Presidential Terms | Six years, with no successive terms |
| Slavery | Recognized and protected in slave states and territories |
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What You'll Learn
The Confederate Constitution was written in Montgomery, Alabama
The Confederate Constitution closely resembled the United States Constitution, repeating much of its language. However, there were crucial differences in tone and legal content, particularly concerning slavery. The Confederate Constitution explicitly recognised and protected slavery in states and territories, with three-fifths of all slaves being counted in each state's population total. In contrast, the US Constitution referred to "persons held to Service or Labour", which included white people and Native Americans.
The Confederate Constitution also included references to God and emphasised the sovereignty and independence of each state, with a perpetual government. It provided for six-year terms for the president and vice president, with the president ineligible for successive terms. The power of the central Confederate government was limited, as it depended on state consent for utilising funds and resources.
The individual states gained some new authorities under the Confederate Constitution. Amendments could be made through a two-thirds majority in two-thirds of the state legislatures, and states could impeach federal officials acting locally through super-majorities in state assemblies. However, the president could also dismiss state officials at will, impacting the separation of powers.
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The US Constitution was written in Philadelphia
The convention was originally intended to discuss and draft improvements to the existing Articles of Confederation, which had been the initial post-Revolutionary War US constitution. However, once the convention began, most delegates agreed that the goal would be to create a new system of government, not just a revised version of the Articles of Confederation.
The delegates debated several broad outlines for the new government, including Madison's Virginia Plan and William Paterson's New Jersey Plan. The Virginia Plan, which called for a supreme national government, was chosen as the basis for the new government. The delegates quickly reached a consensus on a general blueprint of a federal government with three branches: legislative, executive, and judicial.
The final report of the committee, which became the first draft of the Constitution, was the first workable constitutional plan. It included an agreement between northern and southern delegates to empower Congress to end the slave trade starting in 1808. The Constitution was then ratified in 1788 and went into effect in 1789.
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The Confederate Constitution was ratified on March 11, 1861
On March 11, 1861, the Constitution of the Confederate States of America was adopted. A provisional constitution had been written on February 4, 1861, by a Congress of Delegates from the seceding Southern States in Montgomery, Alabama. The Confederate Constitution was written at the capitol in Montgomery, Alabama, by delegates from South Carolina, Mississippi, Florida, Alabama, Georgia, Louisiana, and Texas.
The Confederate Constitution resembled the United States Constitution, repeating much of its language, but was more comparable to the Articles of Confederation in its delegation of extensive powers to the states. The Confederate Constitution differed from the U.S. Constitution in its explicit protection of slavery, which was "recognized and protected" in slave states and territories. The Confederate Constitution also included references to God, a perpetual government, and the sovereignty and independence of each state.
The Confederate Constitution provided for six-year terms for the president and vice president, and the president was ineligible for successive terms. The power of the central Confederate government was sharply limited by its dependence on state consent for the use of any funds and resources. The Confederate Constitution also prohibited persons "of foreign birth" and "not a citizen of the Confederate States" from voting "for any officer, civil or political, State or Federal."
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The US Constitution was ratified in 1787
The US Constitution was ratified on June 21, 1788, when New Hampshire became the ninth state to approve the document. This was just over a year after the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia, PA, which began on May 25, 1787, and concluded on September 17, 1787, with 38 or 39 of the 41 or 55 delegates endorsing the Constitution.
The Constitution was then submitted to the states for ratification. The document would only become binding once it had been ratified by nine of the 13 existing states. Delaware was the first state to ratify the Constitution on December 7, 1787, followed by Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Georgia, and Connecticut.
The remaining states to ratify the Constitution were Massachusetts, Maryland, South Carolina, and finally, New Hampshire. The Constitution was not ratified by all states until May 29, 1790, when Rhode Island approved the document. The Bill of Rights was ratified on December 15, 1791.
The US Constitution is the oldest and longest-standing written and codified national constitution in force in the world. It introduced a completely new form of government, dividing federal government into three branches: the legislative, consisting of the bicameral Congress; the executive, consisting of the president and subordinate officers; and the judicial, consisting of the Supreme Court and other federal courts.
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The Confederate Constitution was a near-copy of the US Constitution
On March 11, 1861, delegates from the newly formed Confederate States of America agreed on their own constitution. The Confederate Constitution was based on the United States Constitution, with most of its provisions being word-for-word duplicates. The Confederate Congress operated in a similar fashion to the United States Congress, and the Supreme Court system was also very similar. Senators and representatives served under circumstances that were very similar to rules in the U.S. Constitution. The Confederate Constitution also had a Bill of Rights, which incorporated most of the rights in the U.S. Constitution’s original Bill of Rights.
However, there were some crucial differences between the two documents in tone and legal content, primarily regarding slavery. The Confederate Constitution authors set out to give a different feel to the new preamble, which included references to God, a perpetual government, and the sovereignty and the independence of each state. The Confederate version used the word “slaves,” unlike the U.S. Constitution, and included several passages related to slavery that differed from the U.S. Constitution. One article banned any Confederate state from making slavery illegal, another ensured that enslavers could travel between Confederate states with their slaves, and another required that any new territory acquired by the nation allow slavery. The Confederate constitution also accounted for enslaved people as three-fifths of a state’s population, and limited the right to vote to citizens of the Confederate States.
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Frequently asked questions
The delegates from South Carolina, Mississippi, Florida, Alabama, Georgia, Louisiana, and Texas met in Montgomery, Alabama, to write the Constitution of the Confederate States of America.
The meeting took place on March 11, 1861.
The purpose of the meeting was to adopt the Permanent Constitution of the Confederate States of America, which superseded the Provisional Constitution in 1862.
The final Constitution provided for six-year terms for the president and vice president, and the president was not eligible for successive terms. It also included references to God, a perpetual government, and the sovereignty and independence of each state.
