Articles of Confederation

The Articles of Confederation and Perpetual Union, commonly known as the Articles of Confederation, formed the first governing document of the United States of America. They combined the colonies of the American Revolutionary War into a loose confederation. The second Continental Congress adopted the Articles on November 15, 1777, after 16 months of debate. The Articles then languished for another three years before ratification was completed on March 1, 1781. The Articles were replaced by the United States Constitution on June 21, 1788, when the 9th state, New Hampshire, ratified the Constitution.

Article Summaries

Even though the Articles of Confederation and the Constitution were established by much of the same people, they were still very different. The Articles contain 13 articles, a conclusion, and a signatory section.

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• Establishes the name of the confederation as "The United States of America"
• Explains the rights possessed by any state, and the amount of power to which any state is entitled
• Establishes the United States as a league of states united "...for their common defense, the security of their liberties, and their mutual and general welfare, binding themselves to assist each other, against all force offered to, or attacks made upon them..."
• Anyone can pass freely between states (excluding fugitives from the law) and be entitled to the rights established by the state into which he or she travels. If a crime is committed in one state and the perpetrator flees to another state, he will be transported to and tried in the state in which the crime was committed.
• Allocates one vote in Congress to each state, which was entitled to a delegation of between two and seven members. Members of Congress were appointed by state legislatures; individuals could not serve more than three out of any six years.
• Limits the powers of states to conduct foreign relations and to declare war.
• When an army is raised for common defense, officers below the rank of general will be named by the state legislatures.
• Expenditures by the United States will be paid by funds raised by state legislatures, and apportioned to the states based on the real property values of each.
• Defines the rights of the central government: to declare war, to set weights and measures (including coins), and for Congress to serve as a final court for disputes between states.
• Defines a Committee of the States to be a government when Congress is not in session.
• Sets rules for new states requiring nine state approval, preapproves Canada, if they apply for membership.
• Reaffirms that the Confederation accepts war debt incurred by Congress before the articles.
• Declares that the articles are perpetual, and can only be altered by approval of Congress with ratification by all the state legislatures.

Still at war with the Kingdom of Great Britain, the colonists were reluctant to establish another powerful national government. Jealously guarding their new independence, the Continental Congress created a loosely structured unicameral legislature that protected the liberty of the individual states at the expense of the confederation. While calling on Congress to regulate military and monetary affairs, for example, the Articles of Confederation provided no mechanism to ensure states complied with requests for troops or revenue. At times this left the military in a precarious position, as George Washington wrote in a 1781 letter to the governor of Massachusetts, John Hancock.

Related Topics:
Kingdom of Great Britain - Unicameral - George Washington - 1781 - Massachusetts - John Hancock

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