After Georgia becomes an independent state, Georgia needed a new permanent
constitution and an organized government. What 1st constitution was established?
______________
Of
______________
Because of this
document,
The 12 colonial parishes became 8
____________________.
State Government under the Georgia Constitution of 1777 consisted of:
1. A one house legislature called The House of Assembly. The House of
Assembly had much of the power. It could:
a. Appoint judicial members (courts)
b. Appoint the executive (governor)
c. Accept or reject any bills proposed by governor
2. A weak executive branch. Under this executive branch:
a. Governors were limited to a term of one year
b. Governor were selected by legislature not elected by people
c. A 12 member “executive council” monitored the governor
There were weaknesses under the Georgia Constitution of 1777. (See notes for
weaknesses.) Because of the weaknesses in the Georgia Constitution of 1777, changes
were made.
While living as independent states with their own constitutions, they also self governed,
under a confederation. In the confederation, the states had the power to govern. The way
the confederation government operated was outlined by this document:
___________________
Of
___________________
This document
- was adopted in 1777
-is the first constitution of the
United States.
The government under the Articles of Confederation consisted of:
1. A of unicameral legislature (Congress)
2. No chief executive and no national court system
3. Founding Fathers intended central government to be weak (avoid reemergence of govt. like Great Britain)
The Articles of Confederations had many weaknesses. (See notes for weaknesses and
strengths of Articles of Confederations.) The central government found in the Articles of
Confederation was weak. The central government needed to be able to:
- _______________________________ so it could pay its debts and keep the
respect of other countries and its own citizens
- Negotiate effectively with Great Britain, France, and Spain and improve its
relationship with the Indians (p 310)
Because of the weaknesses within the Articles of Confederation a meeting was called.
This meeting was called: The Constitutional Convention of 1787
The Constitutional Convention of 1787 (Philadelphia)
 Conventions start in May in Philadelphia
 55 delegates sent from each state to attend (RI did not attend)
 Georgia sent Abraham Baldwin and William Few
 Georgia was interested in the convention because it hoped that changes in the
central government would help Georgia in its negotiations with the Native
Americans
 Two plans of a new government were discussed during the convention:
1. Virginia Plan (introduced by James Madison and was supported by
Georgia) wanted to do away with the Articles of Confederation
2. New Jersey Plan wanted to keep the Articles of Confederation
Discuss the Plans: p. 312
Virginia Plan: (larger states)
____ branches of govt’
____ houses of legislature
(Senate and House
Of Representatives)
Votes based on ___________.
Stronger national govt’
New Jersey Plan: (smaller states)
_____ house of legislature (Congress)
Each state had one vote; votes based
on equality
There was a debate over both plans, but the delegates finally reached an agreement
called the GREAT COMPROMISE (Connecticut Plan) in which there was a
mixture of both of the Virginia Plan and the New Jersey plan.
-
-
GREAT COMPROMISE
Established the lower house of Congress
*House of Representatives –numbers of representatives from each
state based on population
Established the upper house of Congress
*The Senate- which would have 2 senators from each state regardless
of state size (equality)
There was a problem with how to count the population of each state. Why, because
slaves were a large part of the population in the South. Slaves made up ______ of
the population. The North did not want to count slaves. Why did the South want to
include slaves in the population count?
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
What fraction of slaves was agreed on to be counted as population? ________
(Slaves still couldn’t vote.)
Separation of Powers: How the Government will be organized …
Legislative  1.) House of Representatives 2.) Senate = Congress Makes Laws
Executive  1.) President = Carries out laws
Judicial 
1.) Court System = Interpret Laws/settles conflict
What started as a convention to amend the Articles of Confederation, ended with
the establishment of an entirely new document to present to the public for
ratification (approval): The United States Constitution