Evolution Of The Articles Of Confederation To The Constitution

The Evolution of the Articles of Confederation to the Constitution

The Articles of Confederation went into effect on March 1, 1781 and were later replaced by the Constitution on June 21, 1788. The Articles of Confederation was created in order to unite the New World states in the fight for independence from Britain. Fearing the oppression of the strong centralized British government, the Articles of Confederation was created to protect the people of the emerging United States and did not allow for a powerful central government. At the end of the American Revolution, the Articles desperately required amendment or replacement in order to promote an effective government. The major evolutionary step of the Articles of Confederation to the Constitution took place through the Great Compromise and the Three-Fifths Compromise at the Constitutional Convention in May 1787. The Second Continental Congress

The Articles of Confederation was put into practice in 1777 but not formally ratified by all thirteen states until March 1, 1781. Specifically, the Articles of Confederation contained 13 articles once ratified by all states, but the general summary is as follows: states would impose taxes to contribute nationally to the central government, each state had one vote regardless of size, delegates of congress were appointed by state legislature, and the confederation was named “The United States of America.” Most relevant to the American Revolutionary War, the Articles stated that the United States Congress is solely responsible for declarations of war and peace ("A Century of lawmaking for a new nation: U.S. Congressional documents and debates 1774-1875", 2006). While this aided in the American Revolutionary War, several problems with the articles emerged. Many states took issue with the point that each state had one vote regardless of size. This is easy to understand given the varying populations from state to state. For example, census data