Articles of Confederation
Why were the Articles of Confederation so weak?
AoC writers disliked…
So under the AoC…
Taxation without
representation
The federal government
could not tax
A large central government States didn’t have to follow
that had absolute power
federal laws and treaties
Having to follow British
legislation
States had their own laws
and didn’t have to follow
other states’ laws
Lots of power was in the
king’s hands
No executive branch or
national court system
The king could change
laws at any time
Any amendment required
all 13 states’ approval
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What was the Problem?
• Since the federal government could not
tax, it was very difficult to raise money
• Since states didn’t have to follow laws and
treaties, the federal government had no
assurance that individual states would
follow them
• Each state had its own laws, which made it
difficult for the country to act in a united
way. Congress couldn’t pay back debts
from the revolution and couldn’t get states
to work together to encourage commerce.
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What was the Problem?
• Since there was no executive branch, the
government could not defend its borders.
• Since there was no executive branch and
national court system, the government
could not enforce its laws
• Any amendment required all 13 states’
approval, so the AoC was very difficult to
modify
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Textbook Questions
1. What happened in Shay’s rebellion?
2. How is it connected to the Articles
of Confederation?
3. According to the textbook, how did
Americans respond?
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Discussion Questions
What are the pros and cons of a
strong central government?
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Discussion Questions
Why might Jefferson oppose
having a strong central
government?
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Discussion Questions
Why would the idea of poor
farmers rebelling be scary to
many of the people at the
Constitutional Convention?
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Discussion Questions
Do you agree with Jefferson’s
assertion about the “tree
of liberty?”
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Discussion Questions
How does this letter challenge
or expand the textbook’s
account?
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Discussion Questions
Why might many textbooks
make it seem like everyone
wanted a strong central
government after Shays’
Rebellion?
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