Forming a New Government
Articles of Confederation and
the US Constitution
Human and Social Impacts of the
War
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The war costs the US about 7,000 men
killed.
Another 18,000 die of disease,
starvation, exposure to the elements,
etc.
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Equal or higher losses for the British
1,000 Hessians are killed
5,000 Hessians stay in the US
What America gets
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Many loyalists flee to Canada
Treaty of Paris (1783)
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The US Earns its independence
Also gets all land east of the
Mississippi River (except for Canada).
• France pays a large cost of the war.
Why the colonists fought the war
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The Colonists had just fought a war
against tyranny
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They were afraid of giving all of the
power to just one person (like the
king) or a small group of people (like
royal governors).
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They had just fought a long war for
individual freedom so the new
government they made would be very
weak.
America Creates a New
Government
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Following the signing of the
Declaration of Independence, the
Continental Congress realizes the
need to have some sort of organized
government.
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The Articles of Confederation were
passed by the Continental Congress
in 1777, but not put into effect until
1781, when all thirteen colonies
signed.
• “Confederation” – a loosely organized
group of states
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South Carolina was the first to sign
New York and Virginia refused to sign
for a while because of a conflict over
western land.
• The Articles were designed to be weak
intentionally.
Problems with the Articles of
Confederation
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The biggest problem with the Articles
were that they were too weak (what a
surprise)
Examples of the Article’s
weaknesses
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The government could not create a
national army or navy.
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The national government could not
tax the new states to get revenue
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The government could not create a
common currency
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States each had their own money
This makes trade between states very
complicated and expensive.
Trade reduces greatly
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The government could not regulate
trade
They could not create exchange rates
for money, pass import taxes, etc.
Other things the Articles were
missing
•
No Judicial Branch
–
No national courts to try criminals or
determine if laws were fair
No executive branch
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No “president” or single commander
–
People were afraid of them becoming a
tyrant.
Very unfair legislative branch
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Each state was given one vote
regardless of the population.
Rhode Island (70,000 people) and
Virginia (750,000 people) had the
same power.
Things get really complicated
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Shay’s Rebellion
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The war takes a large toll on New
England farmers.
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Some colonies create high taxes and
strict laws.
Many farmers were bankrupt and their
land was going to be seized by the
government.
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Many farmers, and former minutemen,
join together in 1787 under the
leadership of Daniel Shays
They open up debtor’s prisons and
protest throughout Massachusetts
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The National government does not
have the power to raise an army to
put down the riots.
Local militias do the job, but it takes a
while.
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Points out the weaknesses of the
Articles of Confederation.
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Delegates agree to meet in
Philadelphia later that year to fix some
of the problems with the Articles.
The One thing that is accomplished
under the Articles…
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The Northwest Ordinance of 1787
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Land to the west of the Appalachian
Mountains was claimed by numerous
states.
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Previously, a state continued
expanding west without order.
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If this continued, some states would
control huge territories while others
would have very small land holdings.
– Virginia and New York claimed most of
the western lands.
– Other states, like Delaware and New
Jersey had no claim.
•
Delegates from Virginia and New York
agreed to give up claims and set up a
system for admitting new states.
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Land in the northwest was divided
into equal sized areas called
townships.
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Once a territory had 60,000 people,
they could write a constitution and be
admitted as a state.
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The states of Ohio, Indiana, Illinois,
Michigan and Wisconsin come from
this territory.
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Slavery was outlawed in these areas
and colonists were supposed to pay
Native Americans for their land.
America Creates (Another) New
Government
• Delegates did not meet with the
purpose of creating a new government,
rather, they wanted to fix the problems
with the old one.
Need to fix the following
problems…
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No national army
No common currency
No ability to tax
No ability to regulate trade
No strong leader
Who fixes them?
• Delegates from every state except
Rhode Island.
• All are white males
• A variety of professions but most are
rich and well-educated.
When and where?
• Delegates meet in May of 1787 in
Philadelphia.
How do they fix it?
• They decide to give out specific rights
to the national, state and local
governments.
The Constitution
Balance of Powers
• To prevent a single person or group of
people from gaining power, three
branches are created.
Executive Branch
• Contains the office of the President and
his cabinet.
• Their job is to enforce and pass laws
Legislative Branch
• Consists of a congress of elected
officials
• Their job is to create laws
Judicial Branch
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Consists of the Supreme Court and
other federal courts
Their job is to see that laws are fair.
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To prevent one branch from taking
over the others, a system of “checks
and balances” is created.
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Power is “delegated”
“Delegated”- specifically given to
someone
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Each branch has power over the other
two
Executive powers
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Signs bills into
law, can veto bills
Veto – to reject a
law
• Appoints judges to
courts
Legislative powers
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Can impeach
president or pass
bills over the
president’s veto
Impeach - to bring
a politician up on
charges
•
Approves
nominees to the
court
Judicial Powers
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Judges
impeachment trials
• Declare laws
unconstitutional
• power is called
“judicial review”
The Debate over Ratification
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Nine out of thirteen states are
required to ratify the Constitution in
order for it to become legal.
9/13
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Since the states varied greatly in
population, size and social
foundations, a lot of compromise was
needed.
The Compromises
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Conflict over the Legislature (The
Great Compromise)
The Virginia Plan
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Creates a bicameral legislature
Bicameral – two houses
The Virginia Plan
• Membership is based on a state’s
population.
• Favored by larger states
The New Jersey Plan
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Creates a unicameral legislature
Unicameral – one house
The New Jersey Plan
• One vote is given to every state, no
matter the population.
• Favored by smaller states
The Great Compromise
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Proposed by Roger Sherman of Conn.
Created a bicameral legislature
The Great Compromise
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The upper house (Senate) is given
two representatives per state.
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Representatives are appointed by state
governments.
The lower house (House) has
membership based on population.
Conflict over slavery
• Should slaves be counted as
population for the appointing of
representatives to the House?
• The North said no, arguing that the
slaves were equivalent to horses in
their ability to wield power.
• The South said yes, arguing that
government policies impacted them.
• It is later agreed that each slave would
count as 3/5 of a person when counting
populations for representation in
congress.
The Slave Trade Compromise
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Since congress had the power to
regulate trade, this included slaves.
Congress agreed to not abolish the
slave trade until 1808.
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It is agreed that the Constitution will
be the “supreme law of the land”.
In other words, it will count for more
than state or local laws.
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Certain powers are given specifically,
or delegated, to the Federal
government.
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These powers include the ability to raise
taxes, raise an army, regulate interstate
trade and negotiate with foreign powers.
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Other powers, which are not
specifically listed, are reserved to the
states.
known as the “implied powers”
Includes the establishment of
schools, hospitals, fire and police
departments, etc.
Leaders at the convention
(Most of them from Virginia)
George Washington
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His celebrity status makes him an
obvious choice to be the president of
the Constitutional Convention.
So does the fact that he is from
Virginia
James Madison
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Known as “the Father of the
Constitution”
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Often led debate and kept high quality
notes on the proceedings.
Designed the Virginia Plan
Later was responsible for writing
much of the Bill of Rights
Thomas Jefferson
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Writes the Virginia Statute of
Religious Freedom
Provides for the foundation of
freedom of religion in the US, as well
as the separation of church and state.
George Mason
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Creates The Virginia Declaration of
Rights
Mason feared that a government
would trample people’s natural rights
unless those rights were specifically
outlined.
Parts of it are used by Jefferson in the
Declaration of Independence and later
are used in the Bill of Rights.
The Origins of Political Parties
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The power of the government was a
hot topic, as well as what rights
should be guaranteed to the people.
Two sides, representing the extreme
views, start collecting followers.
The Federalists
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Where in favor of a strong
Constitution and wanted the national
government to have a lot of power.
They were opposed to the system of
checks and balances
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They wanted a strong government
who could regulate interstate and
foreign trade and provide for a strong
army.
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They also opposed listing specific
rights, because that would make it
easier to discriminate against rights
not listed.
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Members included Alexander
Hamilton, John Adams, John Jay and
James Madison.
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Major publications included the
Federalist Papers
Anti-Federalists
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Wanted a weaker Constitution where
the states had more of the power
They favored the system of checks
and balances.
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They thought that a strong national
government would take rights away
from the people.
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They wanted a Bill of Rights, which
would outline people’s natural rights.
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Members included Patrick Henry,
Thomas Jefferson and Thomas Paine
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Major publications included Letters to
the American Farmer.
Ratification
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The Constitution is finished and
submitted to the states on Sept. 17th,
1787
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Delaware becomes the first state to
ratify it, on December 7th, 1787.
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New Hampshire’s ratification on June
21st, 1788 makes the Constitution the
law of the land.
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Virginia follows four days later.
The passage by Virginia (a large and
powerful state) attaches importance
to the document and helps it survive.