Why Did The Articles Of Confederation Fail

The Articles of Confederation was the first successful effort of organizing the colonies of the United States. Prior to its establishment, all American activities that were rebellious to England were viewed in the same way that terrorism is viewed today. These rebel activities acted independently of a sovereign authority. As a result, the revolutionary forces in the United States couldn’t leverage or seek the assistance of other foreign governments., leaving them tactically and diplomatically weak against its British foe

The Articles of Confederation established a singular legislature, as opposed to the eventual bicameral ( having 2 chambers) system created by the Constitution. Voting power was delegated to states based on committees (consisting

There were no provisions made for an executive branch to enforce the laws nor for a national court system to interpret them. A legislative Congress was the sole organ of the national government, but it had no power to force the states to do anything against their will

. The states didn’t act immediately. It took until February 1779 for 12 states to approve the document. Maryland held out until March 1781, after it settled a land argument with Virginia.

2. The central government was designed to be very, very weak. The Articles established “the United States of America” as a perpetual union formed to defend the states as a group, but it provided few central powers beyond that. But it didn’t have an executive official or judicial

The central government couldn’t collect taxes to fund its operations. The Confederation relied on the voluntary efforts of the states to send tax money to the central government. Lacking funds, the central government couldn’t maintain an effective military or back its own paper currency.

7. States were able to conduct their own foreign policies. Technically, that role fell to the central government, but the Confederation government didn’t have the physical ability to enforce that power, since it lacked domestic and international powers and standing.

8. States had their own money systems. There wasn’t a common currency in the Confederation era. The central government and the states each had separate money, which made trade between the states, and other countries, extremely difficult.

9. The Confederation government couldn’t help settle Revolutionary War-era debts. The central government and the states owed huge debts to European countries and investors. Without the power to tax, and with no power to make trade between the states and other countries viable, the United States was in an economic mess by