The American Founding

Outline
I. Articles of Confederation
Treaty of Paris
Accomplishments
Problems

II. The Constitutional

Convention
The Virginia Plan
The New Jersey Plan
The Great Compromise

III.Provisions of the
Constitution
Separation of Powers
Checks and Balances

IV.Ratification
The Federalist Papers
The Anti-Federalist
Papers

The Articles of Confederation

Established by the First Continental Congress
Agreement of 13 colonies that establish
America as a ________________________________
and acted as the first Constitution
Sent to states for ratification 1777 but not
unanimously ratified until 1781

Treaty of ____________ 1783

Ended ________________________________
Provisions extended American territory past the
original colonies.
Boundaries span area from the Atlantic seaboard west
to the Mississippi River, and north to the Great Lakes

Treaty of Paris 1783

Negotiations led by ______________________(as French
ambassador to the States), ________________, and
___________.

Task: Balance American interest while maintaining

alliances with the French.

Treaty of Paris 1783

Key Provisions:
1. British __________________________________ of the United States
2. Colonies extended territory north of Florida, west to the
Mississippi River, and North to the Great Lakes
3. U.S. Received _______________________________________________
Newfoundland
Big win for the American Colonies!

Treaty of Paris 1783

Losers:
1. British Loyalists in the Colonies
Had __________________________________________
No requirement that properties confiscated during the war be
returned

2. _________________________________
No mention of Native Americans at all in the Treaty despite
their role in the war

Articles of Confederation
Provisions:
Established a national legislature with the power to
__________________
o No executive or judicial branch at the national level

Support for legislative proposals had to be

__________________ among the States
National government did not have the power to
_______________
Philosophy: Emphasized _____________________ Weak
national government with limited power

Articles of Confederation
Accomplishments of the Colonies under the
Articles of Confederation
1. The __________________________ Dealt with land in
the Northwest Territory
2. The Northwest _____________________ of 1787

_____________________1785
Encompassed what are now the states of Ohio, Indiana,
Illinois, Michigan, Wisconsin and partially Minnesota
Established a system of dividing and selling public land
1.Public land divided into _____________________
2.Each town was further divided into
________________________

Ordinance of 1785
Ordinance divides land into nice, square townships which could be bought
____________________________
Included a provision that reserved 1 section of land for public schools
_______________: Raise revenue for the ___________________ and public schools
Problem: Didnt raise ______________________________ as initially hoped

Ordinance of 1785
What did it do?
1. Establish a precedent by which public land
could be surveyed and sold publically
2. Created a ____________________________ for
landscape of the nation.

Northwest Ordinance of 1787

July 13, 1787
Known as: An Ordinance for the Government of the
Territory of the United States; North-West of the
River of Ohio; Freedom Ordinance; The
Ordinance of 1787
Created a system by which
_____________________________
_________________________________________.
Arguably the most important
accomplishment under the Articles of

Northwest Ordinance of 1787

How a state could be added to the Union:
1. Once a state reached _______________________________
(_____________) it would receive 1
_____________representative in Congress
2. A territory could apply for statehood when the total
population reached ____________________
Adopt a state constitution
a) Apply for statehood which would make it equal with other
states in terms of congressional representation

Northwest Ordinance of 1787

3. Protected Individual Liberties
a) ______________________________
b) Right to trial by jury of peers
c) Outlawed slavery in the Northwest territories

. The natural rights provisions of the Ordinance

foreshadowed the Bill of Rights
Side note: Before the passage of the Ordinance,
_________ _________________ proposed the creation
of 14 new states out of the Western lands using
a grid pattern and named one Metropotamia

Problems with the Articles of Confederation

1. Each State had only 1 votes regardless of size or
population
1 State 1 vote = ___________________________

2. Unanimous support was needed for major pieces

of legislation
Too difficult to get this done

3. Each state had ____________________ power and

authority
Each state had power to negotiate treaties, coin
money, and declare war

James Madisons Consolidation of

Grievances
Madison Writes: Deficiencies of the Confederation; Vices of the
Political System of the United States
#4 - Trespasses of States on rights of each other.
#5 Want of concert in matters where common interest requires it
#7 Want of sanction and of cohesion in the government of the
Confederacy
#8 Want of ratification by the people of the Articles of Confederation
Among others, multiplicity and mutability of laws

Annapolis Convention
Madison argues that Articles of Confederation reduces
the Union to a mere _______________ of semi-sovereign
nations
Call for convention in Annapolis, Maryland in 1786
Meeting of the Commissioners to Remedy Defects of the
Federal Government
Only 12 delegates showed up to revise the Articles of
Confederation from New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania,
Delaware and Virginia
Meanwhile

Shays Rebellion
Involved farmers in western Massachusetts
dealing with __________________________ a result
of the inconsistent monetary regulation under
the Articles of Confederation
1. Economic Depression from the Revolutionary
war
2. Aggressive debt and tax collection
3. States ___________________________

Shays Rebellion
2,000 Angry men lead by Revolutionary War
veteran ____________________ shut down county
courts in 1786 to stop any further foreclosures
and judicial hearings for tax and debt
collection.
The mob was stopped by it proved that the
national government was far ______________
SO

The Constitutional Convention of

1787

The Constitutional Convention of

1787
A second call to revise the ___________________________was
called in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Took place from May 25, 1787 to September 17, 1787
Was intended to ______________ the Articles of
Confederation, the intention from the outset of the
delegates (________________
_______________________) was to _________ a new system of
government rather than fix the old one!
Delegates elected _________________________to preside over
the proceedings

The Constitutional Convention

Fun Facts:
55 Delegates from 12 of the 13 colonies were represented (_________________
boycotted the event)
And only 39 of the delegates signed (3 delegates were unsatisfied with the Constitution and
refused; 14 men already left Philadelphia)

Greatest collection of minds gathered under one roof Thomas Jefferson called it ______
________________________
Deliberations were held in secret so the general population couldnt influence the
voting patterns of the delegates.
They literally put shades over the windows so people couldnt see it (________________!)

The man who handwrote the Constitution was not a delegate.

____________________________________ was paid $30 and given only 2 days to write the 4, 543
word document on four sheets of parchment
Between the final article and the delegates signature is a section called errata which listed
the typographical errors in the document and their corrections

The Constitutional Convention of

1787
Issues debated:
1._________________________ May 29, 1787 by James
Madison
Favored large states

2.________________________ June 15, 1787 by William

Paterson
Favored smaller states

3.The Great Compromise (__________________________)

June 11, 1787 by Roger Sherman with Benjamin Franklin

The Virginia Plan

Elements included:
1. National government divided into
__________________
The legislature would be the most powerful of the three
branches
2. Two chambers ____________________________________

. Responsibilities of the national legislature would be limited

to only those listed in Article 1 8 of the Constitution

3. Proportional Representation
. Representation in the legislature branch was determined
__________________ by a states population.

The Virginia Plan

Controversies:
Representation based on population favored __larger
states______________
Large states held more power in Congress
Small states stood to lose power and their citizens would not be
sufficiently represented

The New Jersey Plan

Elements:
1. A unicameral legislature
1 vote per state regardless of size or population

2. Added to existing powers of federal government :

Raise funds via taxes and tariffs

3. Congressionally elected a leader

Consisted of multiple people who cannot be re-elected
Could be recalled by Congress

The New Jersey Plan

Problems:
1 vote per state in a unicameral legislature took
power away from large states.
Delaware 60,000 vs. Virginia 750,000
Both had same weight in congress despite massive
difference in population

Gave more power to the Federal government

The Great Compromise

The Great Compromise

The conneticut or Shermans Compromise
bicameral- Broke Congress into two houses
with different forms of representation
a) House of rep based on population
b) senate equal representation

Introduced the controversial 3/5th

compromise
) To determine population, established that 1
slave would calculate 3/5th of one person
Formed the foundation of Americas political system

The Constitution
Most Important Provisions:
1. Seperation of Powers
Each branch (Executive, Legislative, Judicial) has separate and
distinct functions that are enumerated in the Constitution
o To provide limits on federal power

2. External Checks and Balances

Each branch would serve as a check on each other to prevent
the accumulation of power among the branches.
Ambition would be made to counteract ambition james
Madison, federalist papers no.51
Main Goal: To individual liberty

Ratification of the Constitution

Sent to the States for ratification on September 28,
1787
o Delaware ratified first on December 7, 1787 unanimously
followed by Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Georgia, Connecticut,
Massachusetts, Maryland, South Carolina
o New Hampshire state to ratify the Constitution on June 21,
1788 Officially establishing the new Constitution

The first Federalist Papers emerged in New York

October 27, 1787
George Washington is selected as first President and
inaugurated April 30, 1789

What did the treaty of paris do? ended the rev.

war
what was the first state was admitted under the
nw ordiance ohio
what state boycotted the constitutional
convention- rhode island