Lauri Krause
November 12, 2016
HIS 131 01
The Articles of Confederation After the United States declared independence from Britain, members of the Continental Congress wanted to create a permanent national government with a written constitution. John Dickinson was given the task to draft the Articles of Confederation. This draft made it clear that Dickinson supported a strong central government, and thus the states debated and revised the Articles of Confederation for over a year creating a weak central government instead. The desire for a weak central government with most of the power given to the individual states stemmed from the tumultuous relationship the United States had with Britain under Britain’s rule. Eventually the Continental …show more content…
The national government could conduct foreign affairs and did limit the states’ rights to do so under Article VI of the Articles of Confederation. However, this was difficult to enforce as proved by Georgia when they engaged in their own foreign policies and threatening war against the Spanish in response to Native American attacks and harboring slaves. Furthermore, the Articles prevented the national government from being able to enforce the Treaty of Paris of 1783, which the states ignored paying back pre-Revolutionary debts to Britain and in turn British forts remained occupied in the Great Lakes region.
The Northwest Ordinance of 1787 proved to be the most important provision under the Articles of Confederation. The Northwest Ordinance created a structure and process for territories to be admitted into the United States as a state. Slavery was prohibited in the Northwest territory, which southern states supported and food production took off in that region. The most significant part of the Northwest Ordinance was the protection and freedoms for eligible people through a bill of rights. These rights are found today under the Bill of Rights, which are the first 10 amendments of the United States …show more content…
This convention had low attendance with only representatives from five states attending. This did not stop the members at this convention from discussing the flaws of the Articles of Confederation. Shay’s Rebellion was recently put down and fresh in everyone’s mind, and was a strong indicator to Congress that the Articles of Confederation needed to be amended. During the Annapolis Convention, Alexander Hamilton called for another convention to amend the Articles of Confederation due to its numerous defects. The Constitution Convention met in Philadelphia in May 1787 and it was there that Congress decided to create a new form of government that would be stronger under a completely new constitution, drafting the United States Constitution. The United States’ first attempt at government under the Articles of Confederation failed. However, without the countless flaws and headaches experienced under the Articles, the United States Constitution would not be as great as it is and the world’s oldest written constitution still in
November 12, 2016
HIS 131 01
The Articles of Confederation After the United States declared independence from Britain, members of the Continental Congress wanted to create a permanent national government with a written constitution. John Dickinson was given the task to draft the Articles of Confederation. This draft made it clear that Dickinson supported a strong central government, and thus the states debated and revised the Articles of Confederation for over a year creating a weak central government instead. The desire for a weak central government with most of the power given to the individual states stemmed from the tumultuous relationship the United States had with Britain under Britain’s rule. Eventually the Continental …show more content…
The national government could conduct foreign affairs and did limit the states’ rights to do so under Article VI of the Articles of Confederation. However, this was difficult to enforce as proved by Georgia when they engaged in their own foreign policies and threatening war against the Spanish in response to Native American attacks and harboring slaves. Furthermore, the Articles prevented the national government from being able to enforce the Treaty of Paris of 1783, which the states ignored paying back pre-Revolutionary debts to Britain and in turn British forts remained occupied in the Great Lakes region.
The Northwest Ordinance of 1787 proved to be the most important provision under the Articles of Confederation. The Northwest Ordinance created a structure and process for territories to be admitted into the United States as a state. Slavery was prohibited in the Northwest territory, which southern states supported and food production took off in that region. The most significant part of the Northwest Ordinance was the protection and freedoms for eligible people through a bill of rights. These rights are found today under the Bill of Rights, which are the first 10 amendments of the United States …show more content…
This convention had low attendance with only representatives from five states attending. This did not stop the members at this convention from discussing the flaws of the Articles of Confederation. Shay’s Rebellion was recently put down and fresh in everyone’s mind, and was a strong indicator to Congress that the Articles of Confederation needed to be amended. During the Annapolis Convention, Alexander Hamilton called for another convention to amend the Articles of Confederation due to its numerous defects. The Constitution Convention met in Philadelphia in May 1787 and it was there that Congress decided to create a new form of government that would be stronger under a completely new constitution, drafting the United States Constitution. The United States’ first attempt at government under the Articles of Confederation failed. However, without the countless flaws and headaches experienced under the Articles, the United States Constitution would not be as great as it is and the world’s oldest written constitution still in