Articles of Confederation Timeline

1776

The Second National Congress appointed a committee to create a plan for a national government.

The committee counted one delegate from each state. The delegate from Pennsylvania, John Dickinson, served as chief author.

June 12, 1777

On this day the Congress adopted the nation's first constitution, the Articles of Confederation. However, before it could go into force it had to be ratified by all the states.

Disputes over the western lands

The ratification process was delayed by the disputes over the western lands, which stretched from the Mississippi River to the Appalachian Mountains. Small states feared that larger states with claims to the western lands would become too strong and overpower them, hence they did not approve the Articles.

Approval of the Articles

The authors of the Articles eventually changed their plan and granted the Confederation control over western lands. This modification satisfied the smaller sates and the Articles were approved.

Treaty of Paris

In 1783 with the Treaty of Paris the Thirteen Colonies (the future U.S.A.) became independent from Britain.

The Congress had now to face many challenges, but proved unable to face them. Calls for a new plan of government began to arise.

Challenges facing the Congress

• War debts - Congress had borrowed money from foreign powers as well as stronger colonies to pay for the war. Furthermore, it owed wages back to soldiers. However, Congress did not have the power to tax citizens so it did not have a steady stream of income. For this reason Congress was not able to repay the debts.
• Sluggish economy - The economy was slow to recover from postwar depression. Many farmers lost their farms and creditors feared debtors would never be able to repay their loans.
• Uncooperative states - Many states pursued their own interests and ignored the laws passed by Congress. Others negotiated directly with foreign powers and disregarded the terms of foreign treaties set by the Congress. Some states even raised their own armies.

Mount Vernon meeting

In March 1785, George Washington invited at his home at Mount Vernon delegates from Virginia and Maryland. The aim of the meeting was to discuss resolving a trade dispute between the two states.

September 1786

Encouraged by the success of the Mount Vernon meeting, James Madison organized a second, larger, meeting in Annapolis, Maryland, to discuss regulating commerce between all the states. Eventually, only 5 states out of 13 showed up. Because of the scarce attendance, the authority of the convention was limited. However, more and more people started calling for a new meeting to discuss the Articles.

September 1786 - February 1787

In September 1786, a group of Massachusetts farmers led by Daniel Shays began rebelling at the prospect of losing their farms and attacked courthouses to prevent judges from foreclosing on them. Massachusetts legislature asked Congress for help, but Congress had nothing to offer. In the end the state legislature assembled a militia and managed to scatter the rebels.

The rebellion showed how powerless the Confederation Congress was and made it clear that the Articles needed to be revised.

The Northwest Ordinance

The Northwest Ordinance represents the Congress's greatest success. It created a system for admitting new states to the union and established a plan for settling the Northwest Territory, which included some of the disputed western lands. It also banned slavery in the territory and included a bill of rights.

February 1787 - May 1787

Madison persuaded the Confederation Congress to endorse a meeting in Philadelphia. The aim of the meeting, which started in May 1787, was to revise the Articles. However, the outcome was a brand new plan of government, the Constitution.

Bibliography

Images:

• “Articles of Confederation.” Douglas MacArthur, www.u-s-history.com/pages/h361.html
• Bathroom Reader. “6 Failed Amendments to U.S. Constitution – The Bathroom Reader – Medium.” Medium, Medium, 11 Feb. 2017, medium.com/bathroomreader/6-failed-amendments-to-united-states-constitution-614358b86583
• “Constitutional Convention (United States).” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 30 Sept. 2018, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Constitutional_Convention_(United_States)
• Engle, John. “Is There a New Constitutional Convention on the Horizon?” Being Libertarian, 4 Oct. 2017, beinglibertarian.com/new-constitutional-convention-horizon/
• “List of 27 Amendments to the U.S. Constitution - Summary of 1-27.” Totally History, 17 Apr. 2013, totallyhistory.com/list-of-27-amendments-to-the-u-s-constitution/
• McNeer, John. “Shay's Rebellion: A Little Revolt with Big Repercussions.” History Arch, 29 Aug. 2018, historyarch.com/2018/03/09/shays-rebellion-a-little-revolt-with-big-repercussions/
• “Mount Vernon Estate.” Samuel De Champlain, www.sonofthesouth.net/revolutionary-war/lithographs/mount-vernon-estate.htm

Content:

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