During the war for independence in America, there were several attempts to form a government system in the colonies. The Articles of Confederation was designed in 1777, but not ratified until 1781. There have been many differences of opinion regarding whether or not the Articles of Confederation provided America with an effective, national government system. They are viewed by many as promoting a weak central government, but can be seen as a blueprint to the Constitution of the United States.
The Articles of Confederation was America’s first written constitution which went into effect in 1781, establishing what could be referred to as a "league of friendship" for the states that were self-governing and independent subsequent to the American Revolution. The national government was weak with authority to make treaties, carry out military and foreign affairs and request states to pay their expenses, but not much else. Most power is given to the states, while the national government handled postal service and regulating weights and measures. The legislature was unicameral with between two and seven members per state, each state received one vote in Congress and all Congress members were appointed by state legislators. There was no chief executive in the Articles. Congress had the power to declare war and make peace, coin money, make loans, and negotiate treaties but did not have the power to tax, regulate commerce, or raise an army. Laws required 2/3 states approval and amendments to the Articles required unanimous consensus by the states. There were no federal courts, all laws were enforced by state courts. The Constitution, supreme law of the land, was ratified in 1788 and brought many changes. …show more content…
The central government was much stronger with the power to collect taxes, regulate foreign commerce and raise armies. There would now be three branches of government: executive, legislative, and judicial. The executive branch would be a President and Vice President chosen by Electoral college. In the Electoral college each state had a number of electors equal to that state’s representation in Congress, the candidate with the highest number of electoral votes would be elected president and candidate with the second highest number of votes would be elected vice president. The legislature would be bicameral, divided into the House of Representatives and the Senate. Each state would have two Senators and Representatives allotted according to the population of each state. Judicial authority was given to the Supreme Court and inferior federal courts, which were also given authority over the state constitutions. Laws required unanimous consent of the states and amendments ¾ of all states. In September of 1786, delegates from 5 states met in Annapolis, Maryland to work on revising the Articles of Confederation after Shay’s rebellion, a protest by farmers in western Massachusetts over foreclosures and heavy state taxes, made the national government seem powerless. Since so few states attended, the group decided to meet in Philadelphia the following spring. In May of 1787, twelve of the thirteen states were in attendance to revise the Articles at what would become known as the Constitutional Convention, but it became obvious that some delegates wanted it changed completely. Two plans were presented for contemplation, the Virginia plan and the New Jersey plan. The Virginia plan, also known as the large state plan, would put in place a bicameral legislature with representation based on population, two houses – lower elected by the people, upper elected by the lower house, chief executive, federal court system and give congress the power to tax and regulate interstate commerce. The small state plan, New Jersey plan, would be a revision preserving the unicameral congress, adding a plural executive branch and federal court system, and giving congress the power to tax and regulate interstate commerce. The biggest hurdle was the issue of representation in Congress, with small states favoring equal representation and large states preferring to base it on population. The whole thing seemed to be falling apart until a proposal by Roger Sherman of Connecticut. The main thing that helped preserve the Constitution was the Connecticut Compromise, also known as the Great Compromise. This compromise brought together the two sides by making up one house of legislature, the Senate, of two equal representatives
The Articles of Confederation was America’s first written constitution which went into effect in 1781, establishing what could be referred to as a "league of friendship" for the states that were self-governing and independent subsequent to the American Revolution. The national government was weak with authority to make treaties, carry out military and foreign affairs and request states to pay their expenses, but not much else. Most power is given to the states, while the national government handled postal service and regulating weights and measures. The legislature was unicameral with between two and seven members per state, each state received one vote in Congress and all Congress members were appointed by state legislators. There was no chief executive in the Articles. Congress had the power to declare war and make peace, coin money, make loans, and negotiate treaties but did not have the power to tax, regulate commerce, or raise an army. Laws required 2/3 states approval and amendments to the Articles required unanimous consensus by the states. There were no federal courts, all laws were enforced by state courts. The Constitution, supreme law of the land, was ratified in 1788 and brought many changes. …show more content…
The central government was much stronger with the power to collect taxes, regulate foreign commerce and raise armies. There would now be three branches of government: executive, legislative, and judicial. The executive branch would be a President and Vice President chosen by Electoral college. In the Electoral college each state had a number of electors equal to that state’s representation in Congress, the candidate with the highest number of electoral votes would be elected president and candidate with the second highest number of votes would be elected vice president. The legislature would be bicameral, divided into the House of Representatives and the Senate. Each state would have two Senators and Representatives allotted according to the population of each state. Judicial authority was given to the Supreme Court and inferior federal courts, which were also given authority over the state constitutions. Laws required unanimous consent of the states and amendments ¾ of all states. In September of 1786, delegates from 5 states met in Annapolis, Maryland to work on revising the Articles of Confederation after Shay’s rebellion, a protest by farmers in western Massachusetts over foreclosures and heavy state taxes, made the national government seem powerless. Since so few states attended, the group decided to meet in Philadelphia the following spring. In May of 1787, twelve of the thirteen states were in attendance to revise the Articles at what would become known as the Constitutional Convention, but it became obvious that some delegates wanted it changed completely. Two plans were presented for contemplation, the Virginia plan and the New Jersey plan. The Virginia plan, also known as the large state plan, would put in place a bicameral legislature with representation based on population, two houses – lower elected by the people, upper elected by the lower house, chief executive, federal court system and give congress the power to tax and regulate interstate commerce. The small state plan, New Jersey plan, would be a revision preserving the unicameral congress, adding a plural executive branch and federal court system, and giving congress the power to tax and regulate interstate commerce. The biggest hurdle was the issue of representation in Congress, with small states favoring equal representation and large states preferring to base it on population. The whole thing seemed to be falling apart until a proposal by Roger Sherman of Connecticut. The main thing that helped preserve the Constitution was the Connecticut Compromise, also known as the Great Compromise. This compromise brought together the two sides by making up one house of legislature, the Senate, of two equal representatives