Articles of Confederation

Sarah Hirst

Articles of Confederation

            The Articles of Confederation went into effect in 1781 and spread across New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut, New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Georgia. The Articles of Confederation were then abolished in 1787.

            The Articles gave rights to both the state and federal government, however it was created to be a weak government. The colonists were afraid to have a strong central government because of what their government was like in Britain. They did not want the government to have to ability to get too powerful and become an anarchy like their previous one had. Because of the loose connections, The Articles of Confederation has been described as more of a “firm league of friendship”(Article III).

            The Articles of Confederation failed because it failed to hold a strong and organized system. Under the Articles, the government could not collect taxes and could only amend articles with a unanimous vote from all states. There was only one house of a body of delegates, and no matter the size of the population, each state would, "have one vote"(Article V)..The Articles made is so that they could only discuss issues that were affecting all 13 states at the same time and that to pass a vote, it required nine of the thirteen states. The only thing the government could firmly do was declare war, conduct foreign affairs, and make treaties with other nations.

            The Articles of Confederation where abolished because America needed a sturdier platform to run our government on. We needed a strong government with more regulations, thus the Constitution was drafted shortly after.  Without a stronger government, the nation would not have been able to succeed. 

Why we have a government

Sarah Hirst

American Government

            The United States government was created to limit the power of a single person but to also make the United States a nation for the individual rights of citizens. When the colonists arrived to America from England they were living in a country with kings and queens, where one person was the sole controller of the entire nation. There was no democracy or voting, just a monarchy.

            The citizens that came here from Great Britain wanted freedom to be who they are and freedom to elect who runs their country. The constitution was first drafted in 1787, which in turn created the federal government when George Washington took office as the first United States President. The goal of having a government and an elected president was for the nation to constantly be in check so that one person does not have total control. America wanted to have a government that was the complete opposite of what Britain had.

            The government was created to. “To form a more perfect union, establish justice, insure domestic tranquility, provide for the common defense, promote the general welfare, and secure the blessings of liberty.”  Citizens wanted to be apart of a nation that was of the people for the people.

            A country without a government is a country without rules and regulations. If the United States had no established government then our nation would not be able to function. The government provides us with schools, health care, insurances agencies, hospitals, security, and other nation wide necessary jobs. Without a government the country would be chaotic.  The federal security would not exist to protect our nation, and neither would public schools (government funded establishments). Without a government America would not be as much as a prosperous nation as it has become with the government. Although the government is not as favorable to some as it is others, having no government would result in a failure to organize freedoms and succeed as a nation.