DBQ-Articles of Confederation

A detailed Summary of DBQ-Articles of Confederation


After the American Revolution ended, life in America was different. States reduced the property holding requirement for voting and got rid of primogeniture. The aristocratic leadership was weakened. The Quakers founded the first antislavery society in 1775. Individual states could trade freely with foreign nations. The states also wrote their own constitutions. Even though they were written for separate states, they had a few things in common. They all called for the annual election of legislators and most included a bill of rights. In 1776 Congress called for a committee to draft a written constitution for America; the result was the Articles of Confederation. Adopted in 1777, it was not enforced until 1781 when Maryland finally ratified it. These articles set in motion a system of government which, even though it had some good points, seemed to take its toll on the newly named United States of America.

The states were united in a "firm league of friendship" (Article 3) but retained their sovereignty and independence. This meant that each state could do what it wanted without concern to what the other states thought. The Articles of C


Representation of the states in Congress was limited to between two and seven members per state, based on population. This gave the larger states more of an advantage when it came to voting in Congress. Smaller states, such as Delaware and Rhode Island, complained that this advantage was unfair. They wanted an equal number of representatives for each state. The Rhode Island assembly sent a letter to Congress in 1782 regarding "their unanimous resolution to reject the recommendation of Congress [because].... It would be unequal...bearing hardest on the most commercial states...and introduces officers unknown to them.... The proposed impost is repugnant to the liberty of the United States" (Document A).

In addition to commerce, military was also out of the reach of Congress. Under the Articles of Confederation, these were left up to the individual states. Congress could not call the state militias to action, nor could they have a military of their own. States set up their own trade relations, tariffs, and currency systems. The Congress had set up taxes but could not enforce them to actually collect money. This led to the Land Ordinance of

Some common words found in the essay are:
American Revolution, Articles Confederation, Rhode Island, Rebellion Farmers, Confederation Congress, John Jay, Europe Mediterranean, Confederation Adopted, Land Ordinance, Antifederalists Federalists, articles confederation, left individual, rhode island,

Approximate Word count = 777
Approximate Pages = 3 (250 words per page double spaced)

Category: History

join now Save Paper

Related Essays



Saved Paper

Save your papers so you can locate them quickly!

Newest Essays

Testimonials

  • "Thank You So Much!!! You have saved me once again!!!"
    Jack M.
  • "With so many papers to chose from, I was able to get ideas to help me with all of my classes. Thank You!"
    Brian P.
  • "I've used this site for the last 3 years to help me come up with ideas for my papers."
    Sara J.
  • "I use this site every week to help me write my own papers!"
    Rachel W.
  • "I love this site!!!"
    Marie N.
Home Join Now Support
Acceptable Use Policy About us FAQ
All papers are for research and reference purposes only!
© 2002-2009 DirectEssays.com. All Rights Reserved.