Articles of Confederation

Do Now

Brainstorm what type of government you would want to put in place in 1776

Imagine you’re from that time

Strong or weak government?

Democracy? Monarchy? Oligarchy?

Who gets to vote? What powers should the states have?

Main Ideas

Fear of monarchy and tyranny

Limit central government

Emphasis on state sovereignty

Unicameral Legislature (One House Congress) Each state gets 1 vote

Written in 1777, ratified in 1781 Was used even before ratification Government was needed to fight

Revolutionary War

Needed 9 out of 13 states to pass a bill (Supermajority)

Unanimous vote to change the Articles

“firm league of friendship” among states

Strengths

Treaty of Paris 1863 signed

Had the power to declare war and peace

Print money (not standard throughout colonies)

Make treaties

Settle state disputes (no way to enforce them)

How should the US add more states?

Once again, think about how new states should be added to the United States. Should they be added? What are the requirements? Slave or free? Make existing states bigger?

Western Lands Land

Ordinance of 1785 Land in

west set up into 6 mile blocks

Northwest Ordinance

How could a territory become a state? 5,000 males Own 50 acres Can start a government

Population of 60,000 could become a state

Promised No slavery Education Freedom of religion Trial by jury

What was the Northwest?

Weaknesses

Congress couldn’t collect taxes Depended on states Couldn’t pay war debts Couldn’t pay Continental soldiers

Congress couldn’t regulate foreign or state trade

Could print money but so could the states No common currency: trade down in federal, state

and foreign money Merchants were able to decided which currency

they’d accept

Laws needed a supermajority (9 out of 13 states) to pass Hard to get

No court system

Could establish military – but was not allowed to raise money

States acted as countries Looked out for their own best interests

Congress could not enforce laws

One vote per state gave smaller states more power

Shays’ Rebellion

Western Massachusetts

Economic depression

Daniel Shays – Revolutionary War veteran Farmers must pay debt in gold Not paid during war Farmers are poor

Don’t own land, rent land No say in Massachusetts legislature

Acts of Rebellion

Farmers free debtors from prison

Close courts that are hearing cases against farmers

Mass militia called to stop

Legacy of Shays’

Maybe the United States needs a stronger central government?

If you were a politician at the time, what would your reaction to Shays’ Rebellion be? Think, write, Discuss as a class

Reactions to Shay’s

Sam Adams “Rebellion against a king may be

pardoned, or lightly punished, but the man who dares to rebel against the laws of a republic ought to suffer death”

Riot Laws – prohibits more than 12 people from gathering Gives government power to shoot rioters

Same guy from Boston Massacre?

Thomas Jefferson "A little rebellion now and then is a good

thing. It is a medicine necessary for the sound health of government. God forbid that we should ever be twenty years without such a rebellion."

George Washington “if three years ago any person had told me

that at this day, I should see such a formidable rebellion against the laws & constitutions of our own making as now appears I should have thought him a bedlamite - a fit subject for a mad house.” He wrote that if the government “shrinks, or is unable to enforce its laws . . . anarchy & confusion must prevail.”

Issues that had to be addressed after

Revolutionary War Shay’s Rebellion

Trade with foreign countries

Foreign relations Countries that had been established and had

allies for hundreds of years, America was brand new

Relationship between states Competition No central government to enforce anything