Coming up with a Government Part I: Confederation US History

Coming up with a Government Part I: Confederation

US History

Why is the founding of this country such a big deal?

• The first country in modern times with a government DESIGNED and RUN according to democratic principles.– Democracy: demos (Gk: people); cracy:

(Gk: rule)

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The Idea of Democracy

• Am colonists didn’t invent it.– It came from earlier ideas and traditions:

• philosophical ideas: – John Locke’s concept: if a govt can’t protect life,

liberty and property, you have the right to change it.

• Institutional traditions:– Parliament in England > Assemblies in the colonies

• And tons of English history….

Idea of Democracy• English history!

– 1650s Cromwell’s Commonwealth republic--written constitution and no king!

– 1660s-70s Restoration: Parliament alone makes laws and controls the ruler’s purse.

– 1688 Glorious Revolution: Notion of rights from English Bill of Rights.

– Even earlier: Magna Charta (1215)



Transformation during the Revolutionary War

• From 1776 on, colonial govts converted themselves into state govts (like countries).– Colonial charters were

rewritten into constitutions.



Elections: Vehicle for Change

• Idea came from Locke: “right of revolution”– Let people regularly cast ballots

to show satisfaction / dissatisfaction with govt.

– Some state broadened participation in govt by changing the property requirements.

• Yes, you have to own land in order to vote!



“Keeps” and Changes

• Every state (except PA) kept bicameral legislature.

• Legislators were answerable to electorate (voters) not to king.

• Legislators had short terms:– Makes them more responsible to voters.

• Governors [executives] had short terms (2 years) to limit power.

• Legislatures had more power than governors.

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Rights• States added bill of rights to

their constitutions.– Guaranteed…

• …freedom of speech• …freedom of worship• …protected property ownership.• …right to bail if accused of crime.• …right to trial if accused of crime.



The Dilemma: Whole or Sum of Parts?

• Situation– States are countries unto

themselves.– BUT they are acting

together!

• Big question:– How do you establish

central govt but also preserve SOVEREIGNTY (power and authority) of states.



One Solution: Confederation• John Dickinson (remember him?)

from in 1777: “Articles of Confederation”– Meaning:

• Federation from Latin foederatus: “league”

• Confederation: “togetherness league”• Essentially, a loose union with shared

power between states and national central govt.

– It took 4 years to ratify [pass] it during the Continental Congress!

– Lasted from 1781 to 1789: “The Critical Period” in American history.



Characteristics of Confederation

•Weak central govt•Why? Fear of big, distant power running things from afar.•Power was close to home…in the states.

•Central govt had difficulty exercising powers.•Laws required 2/3 majority vote to pass.•Amendments to Articles of Confederation (the written document) needed unanimous approval.

•Few powers it had:•Make war.•Negotiate treaties•Borrow money.•Resolve conflicts between states.

Biggest problems…

• No “power of the purse”– It couldn’t raise taxes.

• Limited sovereignty in central govt.– It couldn’t regulate commerce (business).– It couldn’t raise troops.– No separate executive officers, only secretaries

answerable to congress.– No “national” courts to settle disputes or prosecute

offenders of central govt laws.



Functioning smoothly depended on cooperation

• With so few powers in the central govt, it relied on good will of states to work– To get funding.– To make “central laws”

work.



Problem Situations

• Several situations pointed up the problems with the Articles of Confederation…

Trade got worse

• At the end of the war and afterward, free trade with the rest of the world (China, France, French West Indies, Spain, etc.) NOT AS GOOD AS with Britain.



Frontier

• Army was poorly equipped to protect settlers into the Ohio River Valley.– Br forces were still

stirring up problems.



Economy

• Horrible!– Central govt couldn’t raise taxes – > very little money in treasury– > no faith in the money issued by govt.

• States issued money, but people didn’t trust that either.

• They used Br, Fr, Dutch, and Sp coins (hard currency)!

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Shays’ Rebellion• In Massachusetts…

– Farmers who owed lots of money were forced by merchants to pay in hard currency.

– 1785 New England merchant-bankers pushed overtaxed farmers into bankruptcy.

– In Western Mass former Rev War vet Captain Daniel Shays was forced into prison for debts.

• Outrage! Political meetings! Petitions to the Mass assembly!

• “We want tax relief and printing of more paper money.”



Shays’ Rebellion• Response by Mass assembly:

silence.– Go figure: merchants dominated

the assembly.

• Mobs got ugly and threatened tax collectors and courts.– Gradually it became a rebellion

and spread throughout the state.– The governor called out troops

to break up mobs.– Shay and friends fled to

Vermont…



Impact of Shays’

• George Washington and others blamed – the weakness of the central govt.– disputes between states.– economic crisis.– mob outburts like Shays’.



Conflicts among states

• And then the states started quarrelling…– States started imposing taxes on each

other’s goods.

Let’s talk

• James Madison (VA) and Alexander Hamilton (NY) called a meeting of state delegates to discuss interstate trade.– Sadly, only 5 states

showed up in Annapolis, MD.



So, they made a date.You are invited to a meeting to discuss dealing with trade and other problems.

When: Next year, 1787.

Where: Philadelphia.

Why: To deal with trade and stuff…

What to wear: wigs.

Regrets only

Documents

Coming up with a Government Part I: Confederation US History