Differences Between The Articles Of Confederation And The Constitution

The Articles of Confederation and the Constitution The Articles of Confederation served as the first constitution of the United States before it was replaced by the Constitution of 1787, which is the current constitution of the United States. The Articles of Confederation were in effect for only six years, during the formative years of the United States. The Articles of Confederation when compared with the Constitution of 1787 reveal several key differences in ideas and goals between the two documents, primarily in the nature of the sovereignty of states and the powers granted to a centralized government. The Articles of Confederation were initially designed to support state sovereignty. The United States of America was initially envisioned as a confederation of states, meaning that each state had its own independent and autonomous government. State autonomy was the primary concern. The newly formed United States was wary of a centralized government that would reduce the power or exploit an individual territory. This wariness stemmed from the conflict that resulted in the American Revolution, which was a direct reaction against the centralized British government that was seen to be exploiting the American …show more content…
Larger states favored representation based on population, while smaller states believed that states should have equal representation regardless of population. Slaves would also contribute to population, as being considered 3/5 the value of an inhabitant. Roger Sherman created the solution to the issue in what is known as the Great Compromise. In the Great Compromise, a bicameral congress would have both population-based and equal representation by creating a Senate and a House of Representatives. The Senate would have equal representation, with each state providing two senators, while the House of Representatives would have a number of representatives based on