Founding Fathers: Their Vision For America's Future

The Founding Fathers drafted the United States Constitution in 1787, seeking to form a more perfect union and address the shortcomings of the Articles of Confederation, America's first constitution. The Founding Fathers, former British subjects, rejected the British Parliament's model but drew inspiration from indigenous systems like the Great Law of Peace practiced by the Haudenosaunee (Iroquois) Confederacy. They aimed to create a stronger national government, resolving disputes over territory, war pensions, taxation, and trade that threatened to tear the young nation apart. The drafting process involved committees, revisions, and debates, culminating in the signing of the Constitution by 39 delegates on September 17, 1787. The Constitution's ratification process began, bypassing state legislatures and requiring approval from nine of the thirteen states, which it achieved, marking a significant step towards a new form of government for the United States.

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The Articles of Confederation were inadequate

Firstly, the Articles gave the Confederation Congress the power to make rules and request funds from the states, but it had no enforcement powers. This meant that the central government was weak and lacked the ability to effectively govern the states. The Articles also did not provide the central government with the power to regulate commerce or print money, which were essential functions for a functioning economy and a stable monetary system.

Secondly, the Articles did not adequately address the disputes between the states over critical issues such as territory, war pensions, taxation, and trade. These disputes were causing increasing tension and division among the states, and there was no mechanism in place to resolve them peacefully and collaboratively.

Thirdly, the Articles did not provide a clear and effective system for governing and leadership. The Founding Fathers were concerned about the potential pitfalls of democracy and the ability of the people to make wise choices for their nation's executive. They wanted to move away from the British model of a House of Lords and Commons, but there were few democratic models to emulate at the time.

Finally, the Articles lacked a bill of rights to protect the freedoms and rights of the people. This omission was considered a serious mistake by some of the Founding Fathers, such as Thomas Jefferson, who believed that a bill of rights was essential for safeguarding individual liberties and preventing government overreach.

As a result of these inadequacies, the Founding Fathers, including George Washington, James Madison, and Alexander Hamilton, feared that their country was on the brink of collapse. They convened a Constitutional Convention in 1787 to draft a new Constitution, creating a stronger central government and addressing the deficiencies of the Articles of Confederation. This new Constitution has endured as one of the longest-lived and most emulated constitutions in the world.

The country was on the brink of collapse

The United States Constitution was drafted in 1787 by the Founding Fathers, who were former British subjects. They rejected the British Parliament's model, particularly the House of Lords and Commons, but still drew some inspiration from European governments. The Founding Fathers were also influenced by indigenous systems, such as the Great Law of Peace practised by the Cherokee and the Haudenosaunee (Iroquois) Confederacy.

To address these issues, Alexander Hamilton helped convince Congress to organise a Grand Convention of state delegates to revise the Articles of Confederation. The Constitutional Convention, also known as the Philadelphia Convention, first assembled in May 1787, with General George Washington elected unanimously as its president. The convention was a challenging and often bitter process, with delegates representing wildly different interests and views. They grappled with the structure and powers of a new federal government, and the question of how to elect the president, reflecting their realistic concern about the provincialism of the "independent" states.

A Committee of Detail, composed of John Rutledge, Edmund Randolph, Nathaniel Gorham, Oliver Ellsworth, and James Wilson, was tasked with drafting a written constitution. After five weeks of debate, a Committee of Style and Arrangement, including Alexander Hamilton, James Madison, and Gouverneur Morris, distilled a final draft constitution from the approved articles. On September 17, 1787, the Constitutional Convention voted in favour of the Constitution, marking a significant step towards a more perfect union.

The Founding Fathers rejected the British parliamentary model

The Founding Fathers of the United States Constitution were former British subjects, and they rejected the British parliamentary model with its House of Lords and Commons. They were inspired by the democratic principles of the indigenous societies of the time, such as the Cherokee and the Haudenosaunee (Iroquois) Confederacy. The latter, established in 1142 CE, united five nations under the Great Law of Peace, which included assumptions foreign to European monarchies, such as leaders being servants of the people rather than their lords, and provisions for impeachment. Thomas Jefferson, critical of Europe's feudalistic governments, believed in limited government as a path to prosperity and admired societies like the Haudenosaunee, viewing their political systems as superior to European governments.

The Founding Fathers also took inspiration from the democratic principles of the Six Nations of the Iroquois Confederacy, which influenced the structure of the Constitution. The confederation of the original Thirteen Colonies into one republic was explicitly modelled on the Iroquois Confederacy, and many of the democratic principles were incorporated into the Constitution.

The Founding Fathers were also wary of centralized power and loyal to their states, so they created a powerful central government that represented a compromise between wildly different interests and views. They wanted to ensure that the national government did not infringe on the power of the states, so they bypassed the state legislatures and called for special ratifying conventions in each state. This meant that ratification by 9 of the 13 states was required to enact the new government.

The Founding Fathers also wanted to address the shortcomings of the Articles of Confederation, which was America's first constitution. The Articles gave the Confederation Congress the power to make rules and request funds from the states, but it lacked enforcement powers, could not regulate commerce, and could not print money. The states' disputes over territory, war pensions, taxation, and trade threatened to tear the young country apart. The Founding Fathers aimed to create a stronger national government that could effectively address these issues.

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The need for a strong central government

The founding fathers drafted the US Constitution in 1787, seeking to establish a strong central government to address the shortcomings of the Articles of Confederation, the nation's first constitution. The Articles had granted the Confederation Congress rule-making and funding powers, but it lacked enforcement authority and the ability to regulate commerce or print money. This led to disputes between the states over territory, war pensions, taxation, and trade, threatening the young nation's stability.

The founding fathers, including George Washington, James Madison, and Alexander Hamilton, recognised the need for a stronger central government to hold the country together. They convened the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia in May 1787 to revise the Articles of Confederation. However, the delegates ultimately abandoned the Articles and drafted a new Constitution, creating a more robust national government.

The delegates to the Constitutional Convention represented diverse interests and views, and they crafted compromises to bridge their differences. They understood the importance of a strong central government but were also wary of centralised power, reflecting their loyalty to their individual states. This delicate balance resulted in a powerful central government while ensuring that certain powers were retained by the states.

The Constitution's ratification process further emphasised the need for a strong central government. Rather than seeking approval from state legislatures, the founders called for special ratifying conventions in each state. They recognised that state legislators might be reluctant to cede power to a national government. By bypassing the state legislatures, the founders ensured that the new Constitution and the strong central government it established could take effect with the ratification of nine of the thirteen states.

The founding fathers' experience with the weaknesses of the Articles of Confederation and their commitment to creating a durable nation led them to draft a Constitution that established a strong central government. This government had the authority and power necessary to address the challenges facing the young country and provided a foundation for the United States' long-term stability and success.

The influence of indigenous systems

The US Constitution was drafted to revise the Articles of Confederation, which was America's first constitution. The Articles of Confederation gave the Confederation Congress the power to make rules and request funds from the states, but it lacked enforcement powers, the ability to regulate commerce, or print money. The Founding Fathers, including James Madison, Alexander Hamilton, and George Washington, feared that disputes over territory, war pensions, taxation, and trade threatened to tear the young country apart.

While the US Constitution was primarily influenced by European thought and political theories, it was also shaped by the Founders' familiarity with and admiration for Indigenous systems of governance. Many of the Founding Fathers who signed the Constitution had a deep familiarity with Native nations, having negotiated treaties or engaged in diplomatic relations with them. Benjamin Franklin, for instance, was closely involved in negotiating and printing treaties with the Iroquois Confederacy and studied their systems of governance.

The Iroquois Confederacy, in particular, has been argued by historians to have wielded a significant influence on the US Constitution. The Confederacy, which consisted of the Mohawks, the Onondaga, the Cayuga, the Oneida, the Seneca, and later the Tuscarora nation, formed a multi-state government while maintaining their own individual governance. This stacked-government model influenced the constitutional framers' thinking, providing a real-life example of the political concepts they were interested in adopting.

The Founding Fathers were also influenced by the democratic principles of Indigenous governments, which were the most democratic forms of government that any of the convention members had personally encountered. These governments generally separated military and civil leadership, guarded certain personal freedoms, including freedom of religion, and included somewhat democratic policies. However, it is important to recognize that most Native peoples rejected the Constitution and the political system it offered, and they were forcibly included within the nation.

In conclusion, while the US Constitution was primarily influenced by European political theories, Indigenous systems of governance also played a significant role in shaping the document, particularly through the Founding Fathers' familiarity with and admiration for the democratic principles and federalist models of Native American nations, such as the Iroquois Confederacy.

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