Agenda Attendance Review HW Articles of Confederation notes

Agenda • • • Attendance Review HW Articles of Confederation notes “Farmers in Revolt” Petition to Congress

Objective: To examine the weaknesses of the Articles of Confederation. United States of America Articles of Confederation

Articles of Confederation • It was our 1 st Constitution: rules under which a government will operate • Adopted in 1777, during the American Revolution and approved in 1781. • However, it ended up failing • Why did it fail?

Why did the Articles of Confederation fail? I. Currency Issues • The United States did not have a common currency. • Americans carried money from the federal government, state governments, and foreign nations.

• Merchants stopped accepting money from outside of their own state, causing a lot of money to become worthless. • This caused an increase in inflation and hurt the economy.

Why did the Articles of Confederation fail? II. Debt • Congress could not tax the people directly and depended on money from the states. • Therefore, the U. S. was unable to pay its debts! Examples: - The U. S. owed money to France, Holland, and Spain for loans made during the Revolutionary War. - The U. S. had not paid many of their own soldiers!

Why did the Articles of Confederation fail? III. International and Domestic Problems • The U. S. lacked the military power to defend itself against Great Britain and Spain. • Congress couldn’t draft troops. Dependent on states to contribute. Example: - Connecticut and Virginia almost went to war over land claims! • States acted as individual countries and seldom agreed.

Why did the Articles of Confederation fail? Courts (Judicial Branch) • The nation lacked a national court system. • Could not resolve issues between states Supreme Court

Why did the Articles of Confederation fail? President (Executive Branch) • The nation did not have a President, or Chief Executive. • There was no one to lead the country or make tough decisions in times of crisis. White House

Why did the Articles of Confederation fail? Congress (Legislative Branch) • Congress had one house-unicameral • Laws were difficult to pass, needing the approval of nine states. • Congress was responsible to the states, not the people. • Congress had no power to collect taxes, regulate trade, coin money, or establish a military. • To amend(change) the Articles, all states had to agree.

Things it did well • Under the Articles some things did go well – Won the Revolutionary War and – Negotiated a peace treaty – They established post offices – Set up rules for settling the new territories. Northwest Ordinance of 1787.

Discontent Under the Articles of Confederation • Reference “Indians/Blacks in the Revolution, ” “Farmers in Revolt, ” and the associated questions that you answered. Then, using this info create an infographic that shows how the following groups were discontented (unhappy) under the Articles of Confederation: – – – 1. 2. 3. Poor Whites Farmers Black Slaves Native Americans Veterans Reference your reading and find out why/write down why each group was unhappy Plan out your infographic, be creative! Make your infographic. These will be turned in next class.

What’s an infographic? • Info: Information • Graph: Draw/Picture