The Second Continental Congress, formed in the early stages during the development of America, consisted of prestigious individuals, such as John Adams, Samuel Adams, and Benjamin Franklin. This group convened after declaring independence from Britain in 1776 with the goal to form a new system of government for the country to follow. On November 15, 1777, two and a half years after the start of the Revolutionary War, the Articles of Confederation were adopted. Adjustments were made for the next number of months, until the final copy was completed on July 9, 1778 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. However, it wasn’t until 1781 when the Thirteen Articles were officially set into motion after being ratified in each of the thirteen states. The document
…show more content…
This group consisted of the authors of the Articles of Confederation, the majority of which were prestigious individuals. For example, John Adams graduated as a lawyer from Harvard. Similarly, Samuel Adams was also a Harvard graduate, and in addition he also worked as a tax collector before joining the Continental Congress. Not to mention, he too promoted republicanism, “A social philosophy that embraced representative institutions (as opposed to monarchy), a citizenry attuned to civic values above private interests, and a virtuous community in which individuals work to promote the public good” (Roark et al., 2015, p. G-12). Benjamin Franklin, had a broad range of work experience from a printer and publisher to a scientist. Likewise, he received a college education, instead at the Universities of Edinburgh and Oxford, but also in the law field; and before being elected to the Continental Congress, he also served as an agent to Europe for four U.S. colonies (ushistory.org, 2015). Overall, the composers of the Articles of Confederation were wealthy, educated, white …show more content…
However, there were also exceptions to this rule within Article Six (VI). They involved state boundaries being crossed by invaders, such as pirates and Indians. The claim was that if the attacks by these groups were going to be dangerous, then individual states could handle the situation themselves since assembling Congress would be time-consuming. Furthermore, Article Nine (IX) says “no State shall be deprived of territory for the benefit of the United States” (Continental Congress, 1781). These articulated the authors’ additional desires to acquire wealth, since owning land was a necessity in order to earn money. Not only that, but these Articles rejected rulings created by Britain, like the Proclamation of 1763, which prohibited American settlement further west. The Treaty of Fort Stanwix and the organization of admitting the territories into the Confederation as states through the Northwest Ordinance was an example of ignoring British notions. These examples help to explain that the Confederation wished for expansion, and thus freedom from Britain, during the composing of the Articles.
The country wished for freedom, not only to move about the continent freely, but they also desired freedom from excessive taxation laws. Under the Articles of Confederation, the citizens received an excessive amount of freedom from these laws,
This group consisted of the authors of the Articles of Confederation, the majority of which were prestigious individuals. For example, John Adams graduated as a lawyer from Harvard. Similarly, Samuel Adams was also a Harvard graduate, and in addition he also worked as a tax collector before joining the Continental Congress. Not to mention, he too promoted republicanism, “A social philosophy that embraced representative institutions (as opposed to monarchy), a citizenry attuned to civic values above private interests, and a virtuous community in which individuals work to promote the public good” (Roark et al., 2015, p. G-12). Benjamin Franklin, had a broad range of work experience from a printer and publisher to a scientist. Likewise, he received a college education, instead at the Universities of Edinburgh and Oxford, but also in the law field; and before being elected to the Continental Congress, he also served as an agent to Europe for four U.S. colonies (ushistory.org, 2015). Overall, the composers of the Articles of Confederation were wealthy, educated, white …show more content…
However, there were also exceptions to this rule within Article Six (VI). They involved state boundaries being crossed by invaders, such as pirates and Indians. The claim was that if the attacks by these groups were going to be dangerous, then individual states could handle the situation themselves since assembling Congress would be time-consuming. Furthermore, Article Nine (IX) says “no State shall be deprived of territory for the benefit of the United States” (Continental Congress, 1781). These articulated the authors’ additional desires to acquire wealth, since owning land was a necessity in order to earn money. Not only that, but these Articles rejected rulings created by Britain, like the Proclamation of 1763, which prohibited American settlement further west. The Treaty of Fort Stanwix and the organization of admitting the territories into the Confederation as states through the Northwest Ordinance was an example of ignoring British notions. These examples help to explain that the Confederation wished for expansion, and thus freedom from Britain, during the composing of the Articles.
The country wished for freedom, not only to move about the continent freely, but they also desired freedom from excessive taxation laws. Under the Articles of Confederation, the citizens received an excessive amount of freedom from these laws,