How Did The Articles Of Confederation Influence The Constitution

The constitution was able to address the problems with the Articles of Confederation. The Constitution created a Federalist government with a strong central government at the national level and weaker governments at state and local levels. It gave the national government the power to tax, draft troops, control interstate commerce, etc. Also because of the failure of the Articles of Confederation the Bill of Rights was established. With the Bill of rights in place and all the news laws into order the constitution was able to repair the failure that the Articles of Confederation

The Articles of Confederation is made up of a preamble and then it has 13 articles to follow. This was created by the 13 colonies and they created it to set up a central and strong government (Funk & Wagnalls New World Encyclopedia, 1p. 1). The United States Constitution was needed because during this time period none had a set of rules that said what they could and couldn’t do. They didn't have a simple set of laws. Since they didn't have any rules the country was complete chaos.

The Articles of Confederation were the first set of guidelines for the government in America that was ratified in 1781. The Articles of Confederation limited the powers of the government, gave most of the control to each individual state, did not require a president, and was quickly found to be ineffective. It left America at risk to be invaded by other countries or to suffer from economic problems. If another country wanted to conduct business in America, they had to deal with each state individually. Any amendment required unanimous approval (Evans & Michaud, 2015).

Between July 1775 and November 1777, there was the drafting of the Articles of Confederation which followed a slow state ratification process, delaying ratification of the Articles of Confederation until the 1st March of 1781. Congress later on convened and held conferences until the 4th day of March in 1789 after which the Federal government took over within the confines of the constitution. Understanding that the Articles of Confederation did not stay in place for too long, we cannot overlook their contribution in terms of paving way for a longer lasting Constitution. These articles of Confederation had their similarities to the Constitution as well as differences; most of these differences thus constitute the Articles’ weaknesses as shall be discussed below. The Articles of Confederation came to relate so much to the Constitution and would later be adopted.

The Articles of Confederation were approved on November 1777, which left many constraints on the federal government. The people were so worried about corruption, that they left the government powerless on all affairs, including foreign relations, military, Indian issues, and interstate disputes. In addition it denied Congress the power of taxation, the states were supposed to donate money to the government, which rarely occured. Each state had only one vote in Congress, but could send as many as seven delegates or as few as two, but if they divided equally on an issue the state lost its vote. There was not a President or independent executive and no veto over legislate decisions.

The Articles of Confederation was the first written constitution of the united states. It gave great power to the State governments. The states had numerous rights to run their State the way they wanted to without consent from the national government. The States were not responsible for paying taxes to the central government, which led to lack of resources for a military among other necessities.

The founding father’s idea when they created the Constitution was to prevent a centralized government. As expressed by James Madison in Federalist No. 51, they believe that the power surrendered by people would be divided between the federal and state governments, creating balance of power that would enable both governments to control each other. Over time, the balance of power between the federal and state governments has shifted in favor of the federal government and this has taken place with the help of the Constitution and by enactments of Congress. The role that Chief Justice John Marshall played in defining the power of the federal and state governments during the early 19th century is important to mention because he shaped the nation.

When the Articles of confederation were ratified in 1781 they appeared to have fulfilled the best interests of the framers and other white men who owned slaves and plundered lands. Seven years later in 1789 the U.S. Constitution was ratified and remains the fallacious essence of national policy. The demise of The Articles Of Confederation was due to the lack of control the federal government had over the 13 colonies. The colonies had become separate entities from the weak federal government. Under The Articles of Confederation, the federal government had no power to control military service.

Before the U.S. Constitution there was the Articles of Confederation. The document could declare war, negotiate treaties, and control foreign affairs. It couldn’t enforce laws, tax, and raise its own army. What the Articles Of Confederation lacked was a strong central government. Alexander Hamilton called for a constitutional convention in 1786, and it took place in Philadelphia on May 14, 1787.

After the Declaration of Independence in 1776, the thirteen Colonies finally gained its freedom from Great Britain, Even though the thirteen States were independent they did not know what would be the specific prohibition on the government power. The Continental Congress adopted the Article of Confederation in which listed specific function to the National government. The Articles of confederation was a total disaster, because the Federal government was too weak to enforce any of the its laws. The thirteen States now decided that they needed a stronger central government and created the U.S Constitution, It was signed on September 17, 1787. The Constitution created a national government, laws, and guaranteed certain rights for its citizens.