The Articles of Confederacy and the Basics of the Constitution

A Failed System and a “Perfect” One?

Articles of Confederacy

• First system of govt. in the U.S.– We had this system during (and after) the

Revolutionary War

• In this system, the states had all the power– The central govt. was very weak– In the central govt. nearly all decision-making

power was in the Congress.

Articles of Confederacy• Some Problems:– Very difficult to pass laws in the Congress• Most laws required all states to agree• Creating new taxes was a nightmare (made it difficult to

pay off our debt from the Revolutionary War)

– Congress had a lot of control over judges and courts, which could lead to unfair outcomes.

– Each state had control over it’s own army/militia

The 1787 Constitutional Convention

• Leaders of the states met in 1787 to see if there was a way to fix the Articles– They quickly decided to try writing a new

constitution instead– This new constitution would do a better job

balancing out the three branches of government

The 1787 Constitutional Convention

• Like the Dec. of Indep., our Constitution shows some Enlightenment principles– Social Contract: the Preamble suggests that the

government and the citizens are agreeing on how to handle citizens rights.

– Certain rights are protected in Article I• Ex. The right to a court trial when arrested

Preamble of the Constitution

“We the people of the United States, in order to form a more perfect union, establish justice, insure domestic tranquility, provide for the common defense, promote the general welfare, and secure the blessings of liberty to ourselves and our posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America.”