Articles of Confederation and Constitutional Convention

Articles of Confederation

• The first governing document of the newly formed United States had significant weaknesses
• All power in the legislature; each state had one vote and a supermajority (9/13 states) was required for changes
• Difficult to manage change
• Unregulated westward expansion led to conflict with Native Americans
• Economic issues; farmers burdened with debt led to hardship and unrest resulting in Shays’ Rebellion
• National weakness; The Articles were ineffective in responding to internal conflicts and external pressures

Northwest Ordinance of 1787

• Addressed some weaknesses of the Articles and regulated the Northwest Territory
• Outlawed slavery in the Northwest Territory
• Established a process by which territories could become states

Constitutional Convention

• Was called to address the shortcomings of the Articles of Confederation
• 55 delegates from various states met to reshape the government
• Debate on the structure and function of the newly formed federal government
• Various plans were proposed, including:

  Virginia Plan

  • Favored a strong centralized government and a bicameral legislature based on population

  New Jersey Plan

  • Favored small states and a unicameral legislature based on equal representation from each state

Bicameral Legislature

• Means a two-house legislature
• House of Representatives- representation is based on state population
• Senate- each state receives equal representation (two senators)

The Three-Fifths Compromise

• Issue of whether slaves should be counted in the population
• Compromise decided that each slave would count as three-fifths of a person
• Gave Southern states more representation in the House of Representatives
• Was controversial as it meant slaves were not fully considered citizens

Voting for Representatives

• Representatives in the House of Representatives were elected directly by the people
• Senators were elected by state governments

Election of the President

• President was elected by the electoral college

Federalist vs. Anti-Federalist Debate

• Debate over the Constitution’s ratification led to two opposing political parties

  Federalists

  • Wanted ratification and argued that the Constitution provided a balance of power and protection for citizens

  Anti-Federalists

  • Opposed ratification and worried about the concentration of power in the federal government and the lack of protection for individual rights
• Ratification required 9 out of 13 states to ratify before it could go into effect
• The Bill of Rights was added to appease Anti-Federalists

Federalism

• The U.S. Constitution established a system of federalism
• Article 6 of the Constitution declares federal laws superior to state laws when both attempt to address the same issue

Causes of the American Revolution

• Soldiers often deserted because they didn't want to protect lands other than their own
• British General William Howe arrived in New York with 10,000 trained British soldiers and 60,000 loyalists
• Washington waged a war of attrition
• Washington offered freedom to enslaved people who fought on their side
• Most black people fighting were free and supported the patriot cause
• Key Battles:

  Battle of Trenton

  • Washington crossed the Delaware River

  Battle of Saratoga

  • Benjamin Franklin convinced France to support the American cause

  Battle of Yorktown

  • French naval support enabled Washington to decisively defeat the British
• Treaty of Paris established America as an independent nation, its western boundary on the Mississippi River

Influence of Revolutionary Ideals on American Society

• People started to question societal inequalities and injustices
• The Continental Congress prohibited the importation of enslaved peoples and abolished slavery in Northern states
• The opening of state and national government to a more democratic influence
• Women's roles expanded as men fought at war

Shaping a New Republic

• The Constitution embodies federalism
• Separation of powers; Legislative, Executive, and Judicial
• Checks and balances
• Presidential veto

George Washington's Presidency

• Unanimously elected
• Established executive departments
• Alexander Hamilton established a national bank
• He used the Elastic Clause, arguing that no power was prohibited by the constitution for the government to create a national bank
• French Revolution broke out during his Presidency
• Issued a Proclamation of Neutrality, deciding that the US was too young to get involved in the European wars
• Edmond Genet came to America to convince Americans to help France and became an American citizen
• British ships were seizing American ships and impressing American crews
• Washington sent John Jay to negotiate Jay’s Treaty, Britain gave up its posts in the West, but nothing changed about the seizures of American ships

Global Society

• Ladies Association of Philadelphia supplied troops with clothing, bandages, and bullets
• Women dressed up as men and fought in the war
• Republican motherhood highlighted the importance of women's education
• French Revolution stemmed from a very poor economy, with commoners lacking political power
• Haitian Revolution saw the French Revolution and resulted in enslaved people rising against their masters
• Latin American countries rebelled against existing colonial powers

Articles of Confederation

• Served as the first constitution of the newly formed United States
• Influenced by existing state constitutions
• Focused political power within the legislative branch
• Did not create a strong central executive or a president, or supreme court

Early Conflicts and Consolidation

• Spain worried as America expanded westward
• Pinckney Treaty defined the border between the US and Spanish territory and allowed for use of the Port of New Orleans
• Land-hungry Americans desired westward movement
• The British might have been supporting Native Americans against US expansion
• Battle of Fallen Timbers was a decisive victory for the US army
• Whiskey Rebellion occurred when the government imposed a whiskey tax, quelled by the US Army

The Two-Party System

• Federalists led by Alexander Hamilton, favored a strong central government and urban elites
• Democratic-Republicans led by Thomas Jefferson and James Madison, championed states’ rights and rural farmers

Presidential Leadership and Foreign Relations

• Washington’s Farewell Address warned against political factions and entangling alliances with European powers
• John Adams’ Presidency; facing conflicts with France (XYZ Affair), Adams pursued a neutral stance
• In the XYZ Affair, French agents demanded bribes from the US
• Alien and Sedition Acts allowed for the deportation of non-citizens and criminalizing criticism of the government
• Virginia and Kentucky Resolutions asserted the right of states to nullify federal laws they deem unconstitutional

The Development of American Identity

• Cultural changes (1754-1800)
• Women's expanded roles were seen as crucial to the nation's success

Taxation without Representation

• The British incurred high costs for maintaining the colonies and were increasingly in debt
• American colonists were being taxed but did not have representation in the British Parliament
• The British government argued that the American colonists should contribute to the cost of the Seven Years’ War
• British government enforced existing laws, such as the Navigation Acts
• Colonial resistance

American Revolution

• John Locke influenced the Revolution with ideas of natural rights
• Jean Jacques Rousseau influenced the Revolution with ideas of power to govern in the hands of the people
• Baron de Montesquieu inspired colonial leaders about republican government
• Americans believed they were blessed with liberty
• Thomas Paine’s Common Sense encouraged colonial thoughts about British rule
• 2nd Continental Congress formally declared independence.
• The Declaration of Independence had Enlightenment ideas
• British were the strongest nation
• Division among colonists; some were patriots, some were neutral, and some were loyalists opposed to independence
• The Continental Congress appointed George Washington as general due to his prior fame in the French-Indian War
• In the first six months, the Continental Army did not win any conflicts

Stamp Act Congress

• 27 delegates from 9 colonies met to petition the British government to repeal the Stamp Act
• Colonists believed the British government did not have the right to tax the colonies

Stamp Act Petitions

• Colonists began petitioning to avoid tyranny

Declaratory Act and Townshend Act

• The Declaratory Act stated that Parliament had the right to tax the colonies
• The Townshend Act imposed taxes on paper, tea, and glass

Boycott of British Goods

• Colonists boycotted British goods
• They made their own clothes and tea
• Both men and women participated

Boston Massacre

• In 1770, a confrontation occurred between British soldiers and colonists that led to the deaths of 5 colonists
• Fueled anti-British sentiments

Boston Tea Party

• The Sons of Liberty dumped 45 tons of British tea into Boston Harbor

Intolerable Acts

• The British government responded to the Boston Tea Party with the Intolerable Acts
• They included closing Boston Harbor and imposing stricter laws

Philosophical Foundations of Revolution

• Colonial attitudes shifted towards revolution
• Continental Congress deliberated over British legislative tyranny
• Colonists sought to resist violations but initially did not completely want a revolution
• British refusal to negotiate led colonists to view their actions as rebellion

French and Indian War

• British vs. French and Native American groups
• A smaller conflict within a larger global conflict between Britain and France known as the Seven Years’ War
• Took place on American soil

French and Indian War (1754-1763)

• French expansion into the Ohio River Valley, claimed by the British
• Lieutenant Colonel George Washington sent by Virginia militia to warn the French
• Washington's initial success in a battle with French, but later lost
• The war was a series of disputes over the Ohio River Valley
• Albany Congress/Convention: colonial delegates met to plan defense against French and Native Americans
• Discussions at the Albany Congress included trade and westward expansion
• Attempts to ally with the Iroquois Confederacy by the British
• Native Americans allied with the French to gain leverage against the Europeans
• Ben Franklin's Albany Plan of Union: proposed a unified council of representatives, but not adopted
• French initial advantage in the conflict
• British military practice of impressment in colonial homes
• King George II concerned about the cost of the war, leading to peace negotiations
• Peace of Paris (1763):
  • France ceded Florida to Great Britain
  • France withdrew from North America
  • Spain received land west of the Mississippi River
  • British gained territory east of the Mississippi River
• Colonial desire to expand west of the Appalachian Mountains
• Native American threat by colonial expansion contributing to Pontiac's Rebellion
• Ottawa Chief Pontiac, led military raids on British forts in Virginia and Pennsylvania
• Proclamation Line of 1763 banned colonial settlement west of the Appalachian Mountains
• Colonial resentment over the Proclamation Line

Explore the Articles of Confederation, the weaknesses that led to internal strife, and the subsequent Northwest Ordinance of 1787. Learn how these events set the stage for the Constitutional Convention aimed at reshaping the U.S. government. This quiz covers critical elements of early American governance and law.