U.S. History
Chapter 9
“Creating a Nation”
Articles of Confederation
• Continental Congress created the
Articles of Confederation on Dec. 15,
1777
– required all states to ratify (approve) it.
• Not ratified until 1781
– Maryland refused to ratify until then.
– Virginia claimed large amounts of land in
the west and Maryland felt that this made
them to powerful.
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Rights of Citizens
• White property owners were given full
rights.
• Rights varied from state to state.
• Many thought it difficult to declare “all
men are created equal” in a society with
enslaved people
– Some states questioned slavery.
– By 1804 all states north of Maryland passed
laws freeing all African American slaves.
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Articles of
Confederation
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Articles Ratified
• Articles of Confederation was the first constitution of the
United States of America
• It was:
– loose affiliation of the states
– NO strong central government b/c the people feared one.
• Congress had these rights:
– Declare War, Raise army and navy, make treaties, borrow
money, establish postal system, and conduct business with Native
Americans and other countries.
• Weaknesses:
–
–
–
–
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Could make laws but couldn’t enforce them.
No Court System
Each state had one delegate regardless of size or pop.
Could wage war, but did not have any money to finance the war
National Govn’t received money through state donations.
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Western Lands
• In the 1780’s and 1790’s many Americans moved
westward.
• Congress passed the Land Ordinance of 1785. They
divided lands north of the Ohio River into
Townships. Each township had 36 sections.
Congress sold each section for $1 per acre.
• Northwest Ordinance, passed in 1787, made
provisions to govern this land. It said:
– At least 3 but no more than 5 territories would be made.
– A governor and 3 judges would run the territory until 5,000
white males lived there. Then they could have a territorial
legislature.
– When pop. was 60,000 they could write a constitution and
petition Congress to become a state.
• This was the first time that a nation provided a
system for its colonies to one day become equals.
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America’s Economy Fails
• After the war the U.S. economy dropped.
• U.S. owed millions of dollars but Congress did not
have the power to tax the people, so it had no
money to repay these debts.
• Continental money was worthless b/c it was not
backed by gold or silver.
• Every state had their own currency.
– no one knew the proper value of it
– some states would not accept other states currency.
– Many states resorted to bartering, or trading goods as
currency.
• Also, Great Britain banned Americans from
trading in the West Indies and many British ports.
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Shays Rebellion
• Demand for food dropped after the war
• Many farmers could not pay their debts.
– Many lost their farms and were sent to prison.
• In Massachusetts in Sept. 1786 Daniel
Shays, a farmer, led a rebellion.
• In early 1787 he marched 1,000 farmers
toward an arsenal at Springfield.
• Massachusetts militia killed the rebellion.
• Shays Rebellion raised concerns about the
Articles of Confederation.
• They did not work and America looked like
it would collapse
• State leaders called a convention to rewrite
the Articles of Confederation.
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Shay’s Rebellion
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Constitutional Convention
• Delegates from 12 of 13 states met in
Philadelphia in May 1787 to revise the
Articles of Confederation
• These men became known as the “Founding
Fathers”
• George Washington was chosen as President
of the Convention
• James Madison kept the best record that we
have of the Convention.
– He is known as the “Father of the Constitution”
b/c of his ideas and input.
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The State House in Philadelphia, 1778.
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Washington
during the
convention
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Convention Begins
• It was agreed that the details of the
Convention would be secret
• It was also realized that the Articles
could not be revised.
• A new Constitution was needed
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Virginia Plan
• James Madison created this plan for
Government
• Called for a strong National Govn’t with 3
branches
– Legislative – lawmaking body
– Executive – carried out laws
– Judicial – determined if laws are carried out
fairly
• Legislature would be two house system with
representation based on population.
• The small states opposed this b/c they
wanted equal representation (like the
Articles)
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New Jersey Plan
• Small states countered with the New Jersey
Plan
– 3 branch Government
– Congress would have one house with equal
representation.
• Large states supported the Virginia Plan
• Small states supported the New Jersey Plan
• Debate raged for two weeks and the
Convention almost fell apart.
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The Great Compromise
• A committee was formed, led by
Benjamin Franklin, to solve the
problem.
• They proposed a two house Congress.
– Upper House (Senate) equal
representation.
– Lower House (House of Representatives)
representation based on population
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Three-Fifths Compromise
• Debate began over whether or not
slaves should count towards population
– Southern states wanted slaves to count for
representation, but not for taxes
– Northern states did not want slaves to
count for representation, but did want them
to count for taxes
• It was agreed that Three-Fifths of
slaves would count for both.
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Constitution Signed
• On Sept. 17, 1787 the Constitution was
signed by 39 of the delegates.
• It was submitted to the states.
• 9 of the 13 states had to ratify it before
it went into effect.
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Signing the Constitution
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Washington’s
Chair
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Constitution
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Articles vs. Constitution
• Main difference between the Articles of
Confederation and the Constitution was the
strong national government
• Division of power between the state and
national government is called Federalism
– therefore the national government became
referred to as the Federal Government
– Under the Constitution, the National
Government had more power.
– but the states were given certain powers
• When the National Government and states
disagree, the Constitution is the law of the
land
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Separation of Powers
• the Constitution separate the powers of
the Federal Government into 3 branches
– Legislative Branch
– Executive Branch
– Judicial Branch
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Legislative Branch
• Makes Laws
• Two houses
– Lower House is the House of
Representatives
• Members are called representatives
• serve two year terms.
• Representation is based on population
– Upper House is called the Senate
• Members are called Senators
• serve six year terms
• Representation is equal (all states have two)
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Senate
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The Elastic Clause
Article I, Section VIII of the
Constitution
“Congress shall have the power "to make
all laws which shall be necessary and
proper for carrying into execution...powers
vested by this Constitution in the
government of the United States."
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Executive Branch
• Carry out the laws
• The President is the:
– Chief Executive Officer of the country
– Commander in Chief of the Armed Forces
• Also includes
– the Vice President
– all advisers (secretary of state, treasurer,
etc..)
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White House Rear
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White House Front
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Judicial Branch
• Main duty is uphold the US
Constitution.
• Contains the Supreme Court
– the highest court in the land.
– Hear cases that involve constitutional
rights, disputes between states, and laws
passed by Congress
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Supreme Court
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Electing The President
• The Constitution created an Electoral
College to elect the president.
• Electors represent voters in each state.
• Number of electors from a state is the
number of Senators and Representatives
combined.
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Electoral College
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Electoral College Map
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Checks & Balances
• Checks & Balances prevents one single
branch from having too much power.
• This means that each branch controls certain
aspects of the other branches.
• For example:
– Congress passes bills, but they do not become
law until the President signs them into law.
– The President has the power to create treaties
with other countries, but they must be approved
by the Senate.
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The system of checks and balances is best
illustrated by the power of
1.
the President to veto a bill passed by Congress
2.
Congress to censure one of its members
3.
a governor to send the National Guard to stop a riot
4.
state and Federal governments to levy and collect taxes
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Ratifying the Constitution
• 9 of the 13 states needed to ratify the
Constitution before it took effect.
• Debates and votes were held in each
state.
• Those favoring the Constitution were
called Federalists.
• Those opposing it were called AntiFederalists.
• By June 1788, nine states ratified the
Constitution and it went into effect.
• All states ratified it by 1790.
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Federalists & Anti-Federalists
• Famous Federalists:
– James Madison, Alexander Hamilton, and
John Jay.
– Wrote essays supporting the Constitution
called the Federalist Papers.
• Famous Anti-Federalists:
– John Hancock, Samuel Adams, and
Patrick Henry.
– Felt that the Constitution took too many
rights away from the people and the
states.
– They wanted to keep the Articles of
Confederation
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Federalist Leaders
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Federalist Papers
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The Bill of Rights
• The First Congress under the
Constitution created 12 amendments to
the Constitution.
• The first 10 amendments are known as
the Bill of Rights.
• The Bill of Rights guaranteed certain
rights to the people and the states.
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The Bill of Rights
1. Freedom of press, speech, religion,
assembly, and petition.
2. Right to keep and bear arms.
3. No quartering of soldiers
4. No Illegal search and seizures.
5. Due process / double jeopardy
6. Speedy and public trial
7. Trial by jury.
8. No excessive bail or unusual punishment
9. Rights not mentioned are guaranteed
10. Powers not delegated belong to states /
people
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