Articles of Confederation - Angelfire



Articles of Confederation

1) No separate executive – This fact was important because the nation’s powers were not vested in a single person. It avoided previous problems like those with the British monarchy.

2) Northwest Ordinance 1785/1787 – The Ordinance of 1785 created a system of surveying and selling western lands. In 1787, the NW Ordinance dissolved the Ordinances of 1784 and 1785; it created a single NW Territory divided in 3-5 regions capable of statehood with 60,000 pop., having freedom of religion, trial by jury, and no slavery.

3) One vote per state – States had equal representation in Congress.

4) No federal courts – The Congress had no way to deal with interstate issues without a federal court.

5) Shay’s Rebellion – Daniel Shays led an uprising of farmers in 1786-1787; he demanded paper money, tax relief, a debt moratorium, state capital relocation, and abolition of debt imprisonment.

6) British retention of forts in NW – The British were an obstacle because they had promised to leave American soil, yet they were still illegally on the land. The articles did little to enforce the peace treaty of 1783, in which the British agreed to leave America.

7) Non-regulation of interstate commerce – Without national trade policies, it gave states to levy taxes for interstate trade, which led to economic trouble.

8) Boundary disputes between states -

9) No power to tax – Allowed states to have the right to levy taxes. The national treasury depended on the will of the states, which often ignored federal bills, and caused more economic debts.

10) States taxed each other’s goods – This relates to the federal non-regulation of interstate commerce. The taxation was not definite, which led to tax wars between states, hurting the already ravaged economy.

11) Kept states together - Forming a union was important to keep the country politically and economically stable and strong.

12) Treaty of Paris (1783) - This peace treaty officially ended the war between Britain and the American states. The result was an international recognition of independence and acquisition of territorial cessions from Britain.

13) Federal aid to education (NW Ordinance 1785) – the revenue from the sale of land allowed the federal government to invest money in creating public schools.

14) No national currency – This forced states to issue paper money at desperate times, to increase money supply and make it easier for people to pay off their debts.

15) Members often failed to attend Congress – By failing to attend Congress, the critical 9/12 ratification may not have been possible, affecting political and economic decisions.

16) Inability to protect settlers from Indians – Since the government couldn’t protect settlers from Indians, who occupied the west, it slowed westward expansion. It was a way for the government to control the western territories.

17) Barbary pirates raided shipping – Article 6; This only allowed a state use a naval fleet to secure shipping in the case that pirates attack. It affected trade with foreign nations.

18) Inability to repay French loans – Even though the reparations were ignored, this would add to the national debt, further damaging the economy

19) Spanish denial of right to deposit in New Orleans – New Orleans was key to the access to the Mississippi. The denial was detrimental to both foreign and national trade since New Orleans was a port city.

20) Little trade with Britain – Even though Britain was their enemy, much of their trade depended on Britain; therefore, they wanted little trade with them.

Categorizing the Facts:

|Political |Economic |Social |

|No separate executive |NW Ordinance 1875/1787 |Shay’s Rebellion |

|NW Ordinance 1875/1787 |Shay’s Rebellion |Federal aid to education (NW Ord. 1785) |

|One vote per state |Non-regulation of interstate commerce |Members often failed to attend Congress |

|No federal courts |No power to tax | |

|British retention of forts in NW |States taxed each other’s gov’t | |

|Boundary disputes between states |No national currency | |

|Kept the states together |Inability to repay French loans | |

|Treaty of Paris 1783 |Spanish denial of right to deposit in New | |

|Inability to protect settlers against from |Orleans | |

|Indians |Little trade with Britain | |

|Barbary pirates raided shipping |Barbary pirates raided shipping | |

|Members often failed to attend Congress |Members often failed to attend Congress | |

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