Topics on the Page
Articles of Confederation
Northwest Ordinance of 1787
Shays' Rebellion in Massachusetts
Weakness of the Federal Government Under the Articles
- The Virginia Plan
- The New Jersey Plan
Learning Plans and Primary Documents
CROSS-LINK: Failure of the Articles of Confederation
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eBook Link: The Articles of Confederation and the Bill of Rights
Focus Question:
How did the thirteen colonies govern themselves after the Revolutionary War and what challenges did the new nation face under the Articles of Confederation?
Articles of Confederation
The Articles of Confederation and Perpetual Union
- This link from the Office of the Historian, U.S. Department of State provides an overview of the creation of the Articles of Confederation.
- This is a kid-friendly website that provides information and interactive tools to learn about the Articles of Confederation.
- Timeline of events preceding the Articles, and leading up to the Constitutional Convention.
JSTOR article on the importance of the Articles of Confederation. Some high level theory, but could be suitable for high school students.
- Click here for John Green's Crash Course on the Articles of Confederation and the Constitution.
- Another short video overview of the Articles of Confederation
Podcast on the Articles of Confederation from Mike Duncan's Revolutions.
This website contains a lesson plan for using documents such as the Articles of Confederation.
- This page has a number of good learning questions and resources on The Articles of Confederation.
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| Portrait of John Dickinson, 1779 |
John Dickinson wrote the first draft of the Articles of Confederation.
Primary Source letters from John Dickinson
See the biographies and details of various women who lived during the tumultuous time period of the Rebellion
- Mary Harvey, a Deerfield resident whose husband refused the draft during the Revolutionary War.
Northwest Ordinance of 1787, Slavery and Native Americans
The Northwest Ordinance of 1787 established that all new territory in the western part of the continent would be admitted as equal states into the union, not to be held as colonies by existing states--one of the greatest successes under the Articles of Confederation.
The Northwest Ordinance outlined how towns would be created and settled from the territory lost by the Native Americans to the United States. It also highlighted the peaceful and unproblematic relationship colonizers and natives were supposed to have as it describes...
“The utmost good faith shall always be observed towards the Indians; their lands and property shall never be taken from them without their consent; and, in their property, rights, and liberty, they shall never be invaded or disturbed, unless in just and lawful wars authorized by Congress; but laws founded in justice and humanity, shall from time to time be made for preventing wrongs being done to them, and for preserving peace and friendship with them.” Northwest Ordinance Transcript
We will see how later on politicians will take advantage of this wording and manipulate Native Americans to give them "consent" to be moved. Many Natives of course didn't acknowledge the sovereignty of the states anyways.
The Northwest Ordinance also expelled any sort of slavery in these regions. We will see how that plays out with the further expansion west and the growing concerning "slavery question".
This website provides information on land ordinances and the Northwest territory, while highlighting the impact this would have on the spread of slavery
Shays' protestors are repulsed from the armory at Springfield, Massachusetts in early 1787
Shays' Rebellion
The rebellion occurred in and near Springfield, MA between 1786 and 1787, and involved Revolutionary War veteran Daniel Shays and his followers known as "Shaysites" fighting against taxation.
To some, the revolt was framed as following in the American revolutionary tradition, while others perceived it as the actions of dangerous rebels.
The Shaysites were angered at Massachusetts's manner of dealing with their high debt; namely, many farmers were suffering under debt and high taxes during an economic downturn.
In response to what they saw as the apathy of the new government, Daniel Shays and his followers revolted. They began by shutting down several Massachusetts court systems. One of their first objectives was to capture the Federal Armory in Springfield, which they failed in attaining.
The rebels were eventually stopped by armies organized by the state and Governor James Bowdoin. The important takeaway for the nascent Confederation was that there was a clear need for a stronger central authority in order to prevent and put down rebellions like this in the future.
This proved effective in the later Whiskey Rebellion under the new Constitution.
A helpful timeline of Shay's Rebellion can be found here.
A biography of Daniel Shays himself can be found at this website.
This video provides excellent insight into what drove Daniel Shays and his supporters to oppose the government, courtesy of the History Channel
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| Monument to Shays Rebellion |
This website provides a variety of links and information related to Shay's Rebellion.
This is a primary document written by George Washington in response to Shay’s Rebellion.
Abigail Adams letter on Shays' Rebellion
Shays' Rebellion and the Making of a Nation is a great website. Interactive and fun!
Podcast on Shays' Rebellion from "Ben Franklin's World: A Podcast About Early American History"
Shays' Rebellion: A Massachusetts Farmer's Account from the Constitutional Rights Foundation.
How Did the Leaders of the American Revolution View Shays' Rebellion University of Maryland, Baltimore County
After Shays' Rebellion, America in Class, National Humanities Center
Good article entitled "Blacks in Massachusetts and in Shays' Rebellion" on the role of blacks in the Rebellion and in the time period.
Shays' Rebellion (1786) was important because it:
a) led many people to believe that the central government was too weak
b) led to the end of public support for the First Bank of the United States
c) made many people fear the tyranny of the president more than the tyranny of England
d) convinced many people in the North that slavery should be expanded to new territories
Correct Answer: A (National Assessment of Education Progress; 59 percent of 12th graders got this question correct)
Weaknesses of the Original Government
The newly created Articles of Confederation purposefully created a weak central government. The country had just broken away from England's monarchical rule and the founders wanted no part in recreating such a government. In short, the government under the Articles of Confederation was not really a direct government of the people. The members of Congress represented the states, not the people, and each state (regardless of population) got one vote. Additionally, any single state could practically veto any important measure, making it extremely difficult to act unless all were in agreement.
The Congress had no power to raise troops or to tax. It depended on the states, and hoped that the states would contribute both money and men. Additionally, the central government was powerless to handles disputes between states since either of them involved could prevent an unfavorable resolutions.
Education Portal has a great video that summarizes the weaknesses of the Articles as well as the events leading up to Shay's Rebellion.
Click here for a lesson plan on the weakness of the Articles of Confederation from iCivics
This link is a powerpoint that contains information on the impact of the Articles of Confederation and makes sure to highlight the impact they had on slaves and women:
This website depicts the social impact of the Articles of Confederation on both slavery and the role of women:
Additional notes on Problems with the Articles of Confederation:
Faltering:
- Each state had a single vote, so that some 68,000 Rhode Islanders had the same voice as more than ten times that many Virginians
- All bills dealing with subjects of importance required the support of nine states; any amendment of the Articles themselves required unanimous ratification
- Unanimity was almost impossible, thus making the amending process unworkable
- Need at the time was not for a loose confederation, but a tightly knit federation
- This would mean the yielding by the states of their sovereignty to a completely recast federal government, which in turn would leave them free to control their local affairs
Found in The American Pageant 13th Edition. 20 March 2011.
- A time to revise the Articles of Confederation – a stronger central government
- The Constitutional Convention began in 1787 with 55 delegates from all states
- The delegates gave up trying to revise the Articles of Confederation and decided to form a whole new government
- Major debates over national power and state representation took place
- Virginia Plan – two house legislature with representation based on state population
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| Diagram of the VA Plan |
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| Diagram of the NJ Plan |
A comparison the Virginia and New Jersey Plans of the http://oll.libertyfund.org/pages/1787-virginia-and-new-jersey-plans
A comparison of the Articles of Confederation versus the Constitution can be found here.
James Madison engraving
From "A History of The United States," Alma Holman Burton, 1899
This website provides links to a multitude of primary documents from the Constitutional Convention.
The Federalist Papers were an effort by the Federalist delegates at the Convention to convince all states to vote for a stronger federal government.
- Federalist #10 deals with the suppression of future rebellion, a direct response to Shays' Rebellion and others like it.
A lesson plan on the Federalist Papers.
- Click here for a youtube video "What Were the Articles of Confederation: Fact vs. Fiction"
- Click here for a link that contains videos pertaining to the creation of the United States Government around the time of the Constitutional Convention.
Sources:
**http://www.historywiz.com/secondcontcongress.htm**
|http://www.ourdocuments.gov/doc.php?doc=3
**http://www.oah.org/pubs/magazine/judicial/marcus.html**
http://gwpapers.virginia.edu/index.html
**http://gwpapers.virginia.edu/education/life/life7.html**
Souza, Christopher A. Lesson: The New Nation’s Start, Johnston, RI, October 11, 2005.
Souza, Christopher A. Lesson: The New Nation Starts and Expands, Johnston, RI, October 13, 2005.
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