Comparison Between the Articles of Confederation and the United States Constitution

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Towards the end of the Revolutionary War, the people felt they needed a document to secure their independence from Britain. This document was the Articles of Confederation. Shortly after that, a new document was formed to what we know as the Constitution of the United States. These documents were similar but more different at the same time with each other, and each granted specific powers to the national government. By throwing off the British monarchy it left the states without a central government. The states needed a new government and fast, which paved way for the first constitution, the Articles of Confederation. The Articles of Confederation was started on November 15th 1777, and was in force on March 1, 1781. It was written to bring a union between the 13 states: New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut, New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Georgia. The article was written in the early part of the American Revolution by the committee of the second continental congress, because of the wars with Great Britain and the experience they have had with them. They wanted to give the states as much independence as possible, and this independence greatly limited the power of the federal government. The articles helped the struggling states in the process and exercise of self-government. During the articles, the national government consisted of a single house of congress. There was no judicial branch of government, only authority to mediate. The government, formed by the articles, was more of a friendship between the states; this government was also very dependent on the states. The Articles of Confederation left great concerns with the people of th... ... middle of paper ... ...otection of rights specifically enumerated in the constitution. The Tenth and final amendment gave powers of states and the people. We can see the people needed a strong central government which was given to them with the Constitution of the United States. The Articles of Confederation which was a good starter for the Constitution, but was deemed to be too weak to allow the American people to feel secure with their independence. The Constitution seemed to be a far more superior and detailed government allowing the people to gain there freedom and give America what we have today. Works Cited en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_Constitution - www.ushistory.org/documents/confederation.htm www.whitehouse.gov/our-government/the-constitution www.pjjune.net/constitution/ The American Pageant fourteenth edition en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Articles_of_Confederation

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