The Articles of

Confederation

Unit 3: The Constitution

Government Terms to Know

Branches of Government

Executive: Carries out the law (President, Governor, Mayor)

Legislative: Writes the law (Congress, General Assembly, City Council

Judicial: Interprets the law (Courts)

Federal: Relating to the National Government

The Democratic States

States remained powerful, as people were

scared of a strong central government

Representative democracies

But, states did have different preferences and

structures for their systems

Voters chose Governors and legislatures

Freedom of Religion

The Articles of Confederation (1781-1789)

The United States’ first plan of Government

Ratified during the war, in 1781

Loose confederation of 13 states

“Each state retains its freedom, sovereignty,

and independence”

The Articles of Confederation: Structure

One legislative branch: Congress

Delegates chosen by state legislatures, could send up to 7

States had one vote each

No executive (No President)

The Articles of Confederation: Powers

Declare and conduct war, negotiate peace (but can’t draft soldiers)

Regulate foreign affairs and Indian affairs (but can’t enforce treaties)

States kept EVERY OTHER POWER

Congress COULD NOT TAX

9/13 votes needed for approval

To make a change to the government, all 13 states had to agree

The Articles of Confederation: Powers

WHY did the Articles look like this?

The Founding Fathers feared a

strong central government would

create tyranny and stamp out the

people’s natural rights

Fear of being too much like the King

The Articles’ Success Story: Western Lands

New Northwest Territories- Congress

planned to expand the country and

raise revenue

Worried about fights with natives and

independence

Passed laws to control settlement

The Articles’ Success Story: Western Lands

Land Ordinance of 1785

System to distribute land: Divided into townships,

sq miles

“The Grid”= carefully measured land distribution

Northwest Ordinance of 1787

Created government for the territory

Governor, assembly, rights, no slavery, process

for statehood

Shays’ Rebellion (1786)

After the war, the economy suffered and creditors tried to collect money owed to them

Farmers in debt, could not pay

Lawsuits against poor farmers- threatened to take their land, animals, etc

War veteran Daniel Shays led 1000 men in gathering weapons and marching to shut

down courts, stop lawsuits

MA had to raise an army to put down the rebellion, printed extra paper money

SHOWS WEAKNESSES OF THE ARTICLES

Weaknesses of the Articles

Structural Weaknesses

Trouble passing laws (9/13)

No executive to ensure laws were followed

No courts to interpret law or carry out justice

Could not be changed without unanimous vote

Weaknesses of the Articles

Could not regulate trade between states

Could not levy taxes

Could not establish a stable, nationwide currency (States used their own)

With no money, could not pay off war debt

Could not put down unrest

Poor foreign relations

The Constitutional

Convention

Unit 3: The Constitution

The Constitutional Convention

By 1787, most agreed the Articles

needed to be revised

Delegates met in Philadelphia to

revise the federal government

Instead, they create an entirely

new Constitution

The Constitutional

Convention

May 25, 1787, delegates met at Pennsylvania State House

Independence Hall

Proceedings kept secret: doors and windows closed

despite the hot summer

So delegates could speak freely

Each state had 1 vote in convention, simple majority ruled

Delegates at the Convention

Educated white males, many wealthy land owners

Young (although Ben Franklin was 81)

Many had helped write state Constitutions

7 Governors

21 War Veterans

8 Declaration of Independence signers

Elect George Washington as President of Convention

Leaders of the Convention

Alexander Hamilton

Conservative, favored the British constitution with King and House of Lords

Thought government like Britain’s would have power over citizens and impress

other countries

James Madison

Wanted a large republic with educated men to lead

“Father of the Constitution”

Created blueprint for Constitution and took notes during Convention

The Virginia Plan

Separation of Power between three branches: Legislative, Executive, Judicial

Bicameral legislature

Seats in House of Reps and Senate based on population

Could tax and regulate commerce

Strong President, chosen by the legislative branch

Elected for one seven-year term

Preferred by large and growing states

The New Jersey Plan

Unicameral legislature (One House)

Each state would have equal representation, no

matter the population

Still have the power to tax and regulate commerce

Executive committee, not a President

Multiple people elected to act as the executive

Preferred by small states

~Constitutional Convention Simulation~

The Great Compromise

Also known as the Connecticut Compromise

Convention reached deadlock, states threatened to leave

Franklin creates special committee to find a Compromise

Compromise proposed by Roger Sherman of Connecticut

Took VA Plan but adjusted representation

States equally represented in Senate, House based on population

The 3/5 Compromise

Do slaves count in population?

Tax purposes vs. Representation

Debates between Southerners and Northerners

The Three-Fifths Compromise

Slaves count as 3/5 person for representation purposes

Considered property, so cannot vote

Gave Southern states more power than they would otherwise have

Slavery in the Constitution

SC and GA delegates threatened to leave if Constitution did not

protect slavery

So, the Constitution protected Slavery

Congress could not stop the importation of slaves for 20 years

All states had to return fugitive slaves to their owners

The Constitution:

Key Principles

Unit 3: The Constitution

The Constitution: Structure

The Preamble

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yHp7sMqPL0g

The Articles

Article I: The Legislative Branch

Article II: The Executive Branch

Article III: The Judicial Branch

Articles IV-VII: States, Changes/Additions, Ratification

Later, the Amendments

Principles of the Constitution

Republicanism

Representative democracy

People express their will through elected representatives

(Congressmen)

State legislatures voted for Senators and electors

Electoral college elects the President

Principles of the Constitution

Popular Sovereignty

People have the right to rule

All government comes from the

people

People elect their leaders and

can reject ones who serve poorly

Principles of the Constitution

Limited Government and Rule

of Law

The government can only do

what the people allow

Law applies to everyone,

even the leaders

Principles of the Constitution

Separation of Powers

Division of authority into 3 branches

Legislative

Executive

Judicial

Principles of the Constitution

Checks and Balances

To keep any one branch

from becoming too

powerful, each has ways

to check (limit) and

balance (even out) the

powers of the others

Principles of the Constitution

Federalism

Power is shared by Federal and State government

Principles of the Constitution

Supremacy Clause

Article VI of the Constitution

Says the Constitution is the

Supreme Law of the Land

The Federal government has

higher authority than State

governments

Principles of the Constitution

Necessary & Proper Clause

“Elastic clause”

Grants Congress the power to pass laws on issues not stated in

Constitution

Creates “implied powers”: Powers of the federal government not

specifically listed in the Constitution

Ratification

Ratify: To officially approve a document

Constitution would go into effect when 9 states ratified it

States had to use specially elected conventions to vote on

ratification

State legislatures would not vote to take away their own power

Federalists vs.

Anti-Federalists

Unit 3: The Constitution

Federalists vs. the Anti-Federalists

Two groups begin to emerge

Debate whether or not to approve the

new Constitution

Federalists: Supported the Constitution

Anti-Federalists: Against the Constitution

Who were the

Federalists?

Supporters of the Constitution

Want a strong, centralized government

James Madison, Alexander Hamilton, George Washington, Ben Franklin

Large farmers, merchants, and businessmen

Believed the Articles had been too weak

Who were the

Anti-Federalists?

Opposed the Constitution

Believed they defended principles of the Revolution

Samuel Adams, Patrick Henry, and small farmers

Believed Constitution gave Central Government too much power

No protection for people’s rights

Distant, far away leaders making choices instead of local and state

governments

Federalists Gain Support

Many Americans did not trust the new Constitution

Gaining support

George Washington and Benjamin Franklin convince many to change their

minds

Western farmers supported Constitution, to protect them from Natives

Federalists popular in cities, hoped Constitution would expand trading

The Federalists coordinated their campaign to convince people, the Anti-Feds

did not

The Federalist Papers

Series of 85 Essays printed anonymously in New York newspapers

Pen name Publius (James Madison, John Jay, Alexander Hamilton)

Explained why the new Constitution should be approved

Strong central government

Separation of power into 3 branches

Checks and balances

Federalists make Promises

Constitution signed in 1787, sent to states to ratify

Constitution ratified in 5 states to begin with

Federalists then promise to amend the Constitution, adding a Bill of Rights

Convinces 4 more states to ratify

Constitution goes into effect in 1789

NC and RI still had not signed

NYC chosen as temporary capital

Bill of Rights

and Ratification

Unit 3: The Constitution

The Bill of Rights

The first 10 Amendments to the Constitution, added 1791

Drafted by James Madison

Guaranteed rights to individuals and states

The Bill of Rights

1st Amendment

Guarantees freedom of

Religion

Speech

Press

Assembly

Petition

The Bill of Rights

2nd Amendment

Protects the right to

bear arms, which

means the right to

own a gun

The Bill of Rights

3rd Amendment

No one can be forced to house or quarter soldiers

The Bill of Rights

4th Amendment

Protection from

unreasonable searches

and seizures

Police must have a warrant

to enter our homes

Need probable cause

The Bill of Rights

5th Amendment

Rights of the accused

You cannot be held for a crime unless you have been officially

accused

You may not be tried twice for the same crime (double jeopardy)

You don’t have to testify against yourself in court (self-incrimination)

You have the right to remain silent (‘I plead the fifth”)

The Bill of Rights

6th Amendment

Guarantees a speedy trial (you can’t be in jail for over a year

with no trial)

An Impartial Jury

The accused must be allowed to have a lawyer

The Bill of Rights

7th Amendment

Right to a speedy CIVIL trial

8th Amendment

No cruel and unusual punishments, no

extraordinarily large fines

The Bill of Rights

9th Amendment

All rights not stated in the Constitution and not forbidden by the

Constitution belong to the people

10th Amendment

Any power not granted to the federal government belongs to the

states or to the people