CHAPTER 5 NOTES
From Confederation to Nation
Section 1
New State Governments
A) States Create Governments and Constitutions
1) Following Old Patterns
- new states were strongly influenced by their past
- the new states already had governments operating since the
provincial assemblies continued to meet after the war began
- main desire was to change certain features of the old colonial
governments, so they could never become tyrannical
- government derives “their just powers from the consent of the
governed
2) Ways of Constitution Making
- in most states the existing assemblies drew up the constitutions
- Concord, MA., wanted a separate assembly to draw up constitution
-believed that if regular legislature made constitution, it make it
easy for them to challenge it in the future
-Massachusetts first constitution was rejected b/c they did not listen
to Concord
- all of the new state constitutions were written
-Americans believed their rights would be safer if they were written
for all to see and remember
3) The New Constitutions
- all began with a brief declaration of independence, followed by a
statement of their rights
- Most states had a governor (all but one), and all but Pennsylvania
had a two-house legislature
- All colonies attempted to weaken the powers of the governor
B) Equality For All
1) Equality in the States
- although it was stated that “all men are created equal”, there were
many ways that this was untrue in the new nation
- in every colony a man had to own property or have a certain
income in order to vote
-women were not allowed to vote or hold office
-slaves did not even have civil rights
2) Movement against Slavery
- 1774- Rhode Island passed a law free all slaves in that state
- Continental Congress passed law that no slaves were to be imported
after 12/1/1775
- 1783- slave sues for freedom in Massachusetts and wins; this ends
slavery in that state
- Virginia and North Carolina pass laws that allowed owners to free
their slaves
Section 2
The Continental Congress
- Illegal Assembly
-2nd Continental Congress assumed all powers of government at the
start of the Revolution
- Young Congressman
-most members were just over 40 years of age
-of the 56 members, 25 were lawyers, 8 were merchants, 6 were
doctors, and 5 were farmers
- Successes and Failures
1) Successes of Congress
-established the army, navy, and marines
-appointed George Washington as leader of the army
-kept army supplied
2) Failures
-greatest failure was financing the war
-congress could not tax the states and when they asked for
money many states would not contribute
Section 3
-A Weak Confederation
A) The States and Congress
- congress had to cope with the jealousy of states
- states wanted a new government strong enough to serve them but
not so potent that it might dominate them
- announced a “perpetual union” of the states and a “firm league of
friendship”. Preserved for each state “its sovereignty, freedom, and
independence, and every power and jurisdiction and right”
- each state had just one vote in congress
B) The Powers of Congress
- congress given sole power to deal w/ foreign nations, to settle
disputes between the states, to decide admiralty cases, to declare
war, and to make peace, ran postal system, and control currency
-
could coin money, run the postal service, establish weights and
measures, and trade with the Indians outside the states
many people feared that the congress would become to powerful
-congress actually had no way of enforcing its decisions, except for
begging and pleading
C) Western Lands
1) Small States vs. Large States
- small states were concerned w/ the vast land that large states
claimed in the west
- small states refused to agree to a general government until the large
states gave up claims
-concerned that land rich states would be able to pay their war
debts and day-to-day cost through sales of western lands
-would allow land rich states to keep taxes low
- land poor state (small states) wanted congress in control of western
lands
- 1781-Virginia agrees to cede its lands to congress, and eventually
Maryland agrees and Articles of the Confederation is signed by all
2) West becomes the treasury of the U.S.
- congress sold the land to raise money for the Revolution
- Land Ordinance of 1785 – provided that the land be carefully
surveyed into townships
3) Northwest Ordinance of 1787 (Thomas Jefferson’s idea)
- an add-a-state plan
- every part of the “public domain” would become a state of the
Union
- 5000 adult free men = a legislature to make laws; 60,000 free men =
application for statehood
- ordinance provided that each of the new states should be very big
b/c they thought the land was so poor
- New Englanders settle along the Ohio River
-the Ohio Company settle in Ohio and name the first settlement
Marietta
-Indians raided small parties who attempted to go off and settle
alone
D) Successes and Failures of the Confederation
1) Successes
- charting the vast western domain was the greatest domestic
achievement
- bringing the Revolution to an end was the greatest military
achievement
- the peace treaty with England was the greatest foreign policy
achievement
2) Failures
- U.S. was not taken seriously abroad
-England would not grant a commercial treaty
-France did not take the confederation seriously
- experienced diplomatic problems out west
-G.B. held on to fur trading post in the northwest
-Spain hoped to coop up the lands beyond the Appalachians
-Spain closed mouth of the Miss. River in an attempt to force
western settlers into joining the empire
3) Great Depression
- end of the war brought a financial depression
- began to import from England
-bought more than they could pay for
- each state issued their own paper money
-no one knew how much each others money was worth compared to
others
-paper money was refused and people hoarded gold
4) Shay’s Rebellion
- during and right after the war many farmers went into debt to
improve their farms, or by more land
- the depression meant that they could only sell their crops at very
low prices
- farmers were unable to pay off debts, and many were taken to court
- Daniel Shay leads a rebellion around Massachusetts
-demanded more paper money, tax relief, relief for debtors, and an
end to imprisonment for debts
-Shay and his followers are eventually captured
- rebellion swung many people over to demanding changes in the
national government
Section 4
-Writing a Nation’s Constitution
-before independence the colonies could not live w/ a strong central
government, now as states they could not live w/o one
1) The Annapolis Meeting (1786)
- meeting, requested by Virginia, to discuss the regulation of
commerce
- only 12 men (representing five states) came to the meeting
- Alexander Hamilton, one of the 12 reps at the meeting, thought
that the nation would never prosper until they formed a strong
union; demanded that all 13 states send delegates to a larger
meeting
2) The Philadelphia Convention
- states responded to Hamilton’s call
-55 delegates representing 12 states met at Independence Hall in
the summer of 1787
-Rhode Island ignored the convention
- objective was to remodel the Articles of Confederation
3) Federal vs. National
- a federal union in those days meant a group of sovereign states
which made treaties with one another to work together
- they needed a national union in order to do the job they needed
to do; they needed a union similar to France and England
- to make this possible each of the sovereign states would have to
give up some of it “sovereign” powers
4) Need to Compromise
- the 13 states were all very different
- what prevailed in 1787 was the practical spirit of compromise
- no one knows what was actually said during the convention, but
we do know what came from it and that is the Constitution
which we live under today
- The Great Compromise
- dealt with the matter of representation
- finally decided to have two houses; one house w/ equal amount
of representatives from each state (Senate), and one house w/
number of representatives based on population of state (House
of Reps)
- 3/5 Compromise and the Commercial Compromise
- 3/5 of the number of slaves would be counted both for
representation in congress and for levying taxes
5) Partly National and Partly Federal
- to satisfy the “national” supporters, the government was given
the power to tax, to control commerce, to make war, to build
military, and to conduct foreign affairs
- to satisfy the ”federal” supporters, the constitution gave each
state the power to make laws to control daily life and all the
powers not expressly given to the central government
- the central government was referred to as the United States
- had three separate branches with its own special duties and
powers
-Executive, judicial, and legislative
- Executive Branch
-Commander-in-chief of armed forces
-power to negotiate treaties
-could appoint officials (some had to be approved by Senate)
- Legislative Branch
-each house given special powers
-House had power to initiate bills for raising revenue
-Senate could approve treaties and certain appointments
- Judicial Branch
-created to hear all cases raised under the constitution and
the laws of the U.S.
Section 5
-The States Ratify
A) Bypassing the States
- convention submitted Constitution to congress and asked for it to be
sent to state conventions for approval
- needed the approval of 9 of the thirteen states
-meant to keep a few from sabotaging the work of the cooperative
many
B) The Fight for Approval
-great public interest in what the Constitution said since the convention
did its work in secret
- Federalist = those who supported the constitution
- Anti-Federalist = those who opposed
-feared that the new constitution would create a super-government
- hard work and political tricks by the Federalist brought about
ratification
-Delaware first state to ratify (by unanimous vote)
-Pennsylvania Federalist rushed through approval by buying up
newspapers so that the Anti-federalist could not be heard
-New Jersey, Georgia, and Connecticut quickly followed
-Massachusetts becomes key state
-Anti-federalist seem to have majority
-Federalist made promises to John Hancock to swing his vote
-Hancock suggested amendments to protect citizen’s rights
-South Carolina and New Hampshire also ratify with suggested
amendments
-Virginia and New York seal victory
-nine states had already ratified constitution, but the new
government could not exist w/o Virginia and New York
-Washington’s support pushed constitution through by narrow
margin in Virginia
-Federalist Papers, essay of why freedom-loving people needed a
strong central government, helped ratify constitution in New York
-North Carolina and Rhode Island finally ratify after constitution
was in operation
-Federalist promise to add Bill of Rights
C) A Government in Skeleton
- constitution merely provided a skeleton for a government
- it was up to the first President, Congress, and Supreme Court to
add the flesh to the government
- Why has the Constitution survived?
-shortness of the document allowed for flexibility in adding to it and
applying it