Americans developed many types of "national" governments between 1775 to 1789. Each of these variations in centralized governments served different purposes through out this time period. They also represented the ideologies and fears of the people in how they were regarded, empowered, and organized.

One of the first unified fronts that the colonial states presented in a form of centralized governments was the formation of the Second Congress. The Second Congress met on May 10, 1775 in Philadelphia. It had many of the same restrictions that the First Congress had when it met in September 1774. Their purpose was to perform in two contradictory ways. First they had to raise money for an army. All the while negotiating a reconciliation with England.

Some of the delegates included, John Hancock, John and Samuel Adams, John Dickinson, George Washington, Benjamin Franklin, and James Madison. Although these delegates were, for the most part, of the same mind in 1775, times would later change them: influencing all of them in different political directions.

This Congress had virtually no power. They did not have any a

Economic problems come from the simple fact that all thirteen states printed their own money. Some states (with strong economies: Virginia and New York) relied on taxes solely to repay their portions of the war debt quickly. While other states that had poor economies simply printed more money to compensate for monetary fluctuations. One theory was that if a unified economy could be established it would help ease the situation and growing tensions. But to have that you would need a unified national government, one with more powers than the present Congress had to manage it.

Prior to the revolution the ideology that prevailed was that government should be local, and directly represent the people. If a government was to be too large and to far from the people it served, it had the potential to become a dictatorship in its management of country affairs. But because of the economic strain of the war, the thirteen different economies and monetary systems were not adequate. Nor could they stabilize the economics of the confederacy.

Morris originally proposed a five-percent impost tax on all imported goods into the country. But most coastal states already had impost taxes, which they used to pay for their potions of the war debt. Also Congress did not have the authority to impose such taxes on the states populations according to the Articles of Confederation. Nor did they have any means of enforcing compliance of such tax laws. This proposal was soon dropped.

To amend the Articles, all states had to unanimously agree to the changes. Again the second class powers given to the national government was due to the states fear of an all-powerful central government. For it could potentially jeopardize the freedoms of the people it governed. Just like it had when the king of England and Parliament passed various revenue generating taxes on the colonies without representation.

During the time it took for a quorum to gather, Madison and the Virginian delegates drafted a fifteen-point plan, which totally restructured the confederation. Once the seriousness was reveled of what was really under discussion, it was unanimously decided to keep all of the proceedings completely confidential. To help keep order, George Washington was elected to preside over the convention.

This caused many to arm themselves again, in protest against the hardships that the government was imposing on them. Daniel Shays was the leader, who was a farmer, and also had served as a captain in the Continental army during the revolution. Shays, with 2,500 other, marched on the courts of Massachusetts. James Bowdoing, governor of Massachusetts at the time, quickly put the rebellion down. Later this uprising would be called Shays Rebellion.

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Approximate Word count = 2270
Approximate Pages = 9 (250 words per page double spaced)