The Articles of Confederation Who was involved? What happened? Summarize the event!

Answer 1

The Articles of Confederation involved the thirteen original states of the United States, which were Connecticut, Delaware, Georgia, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, and Virginia. They were involved in drafting and ratifying the Articles of Confederation between the years 1777 and 1781.

The Articles of Confederation established the first form of government for the newly independent United States after the American Revolutionary War. The government created was a loose confederation of states, where power resided primarily with the individual states rather than a centralized national government. It provided a weak national government that lacked authority over crucial matters such as taxation and commerce regulation.

Under the Articles, each state had only one vote in the "Congress of the Confederation," which served as the national legislative body. The Congress was responsible for making laws, declaring war, entering treaties, and handling various other national affairs. However, it lacked the power to enforce its decisions or raise revenue, leading to widespread financial and economic issues for the young nation.

This weakness in the national government became increasingly evident, as it struggled to maintain unity among the states and faced challenges in resolving disputes between them. Additionally, the lack of a centralized authority hampered the country's ability to address pressing issues and secure its independence, such as dealing with foreign powers and maintaining a standing army.

As a result, the weaknesses of the Articles of Confederation led to calls for a stronger central government, eventually leading to the Constitutional Convention of 1787 and the drafting of the United States Constitution. The Articles of Confederation were ultimately replaced by the Constitution, which established a more robust and centralized federal government while still valuing and preserving the rights of the states.