...The Connecticut Compromise, also known as the Great Compromise concluded the highly controversial issue of representation that was presented at the Constitutional Convention from May 25, 1787-September 17, 1787 at the Pennsylvania State House in Philadelphia. The Great Compromise attempted to balance power between large and small states in the new Congress. Delegates often disagreed about how many representatives each state should be allowed to have. The larger states favored the Virginia Plan. According to the Virginia Plan, each state would have a different number of representatives based on the state's population. The smaller states favored the New Jersey Plan. According to the New Jersey Plan, the number of representatives would be the same for each state. Roger Sherman, a delegate from Connecticut, suggested a legislature consisting of a Senate and a House of Representatives. The Senate would have an equal number of representatives from each state (The Dirksen Congressional Center, 2008). This would satisfy the states with smaller populations. The House of Representatives would include one representative for each 30,000 individuals in a state (The Dirksen Congressional Center, 2008). This pleased states with larger populations. It was decided that there would be two chambers in Congress: the Senate and the House of Representatives. The House of Representatives would be based on population. The Senate would be based on equal representation of two seats...
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...COMPROMISES OF OUR CONSTITUTION America was built on compromises. What you lose in compromise, you gain by collaboration. A compromise means an agreement reached by opposing claims. (1) There were several compromises that were made to help form the Constitution of the United States. There were three main conflicts the new nation had to be resolve. The main ones were: The Great Compromise, The 3/5ths Compromise and also The Slave Trade Compromise. Even though there were conflicts over a strong central government, and states’ rights, the members in the Philadelphia Convention overcame their differences to form a democratic government that is for the people, and meets the needs of our nation. (2) The original document established for the United States to govern the people was adopted in 1777. It was called, the Articles of Confederation. It was outdated and it needed to be tweaked. Congress had very limited power to regulate national affairs, no authority to tax, or to regulate commerce. As a result of a weak central government, in 1787, the United States went bankrupt. With credit and debt problems, the states convinced the delegates to meet. So, they met in May, at the Convention, in Philadelphia. Rather than fix a broken system, the Virginia plan modeled a whole new government system, it had Federal and National Features. States would have power but submit to a national supreme authority. (3) The Great Compromise was very important. The Virginia plan had the structure...
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...American lives in 1861-1865. Many people believe that the only true cause of the civil war was because of slavery but the war itself was fought over something much bigger than just slavery it was fought over the great political difference between the North and South. The actions of the Democratic politicians from the South and Republican politicians from the North kept the conflict between the states at the center of the political debate for years and made the war inevitable. Key political causes of the civil war include the acts congress passed, the split that happened throughout the years between congress, and most importantly the election in 1860 that elected Abraham Lincoln as president. Congress, throughout the years since America won independence passed laws they believed would help their nation. But as slavery became more of a problem in the nation, acts passed by congress became more important and affected the outcome of the American nation and its citizens much greater. Congress passed many acts throughout the years leading to the Civil War, but some very important ones that both held off the civil war and pushed the civil war are the Missouri Compromise of 1820, the Connecticut Compromise of 1850 and the Kansas – Nebraska Act of 1854. The Missouri Compromise was passed in 1820 after Missouri requested in 1819 to be part of the Union as a slave state. Missouri’s request may have seemed like a simple request but this small request shocked the whole nation and caused an...
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...Historical Essay #1: Confederation and Constitution Anthony Snow DeVry University 08/01/2015 HISTORICAL ESSAY #1: CONFEDERATION AND CONSTITUTION As with anything in this world there are always strengths and weaknesses when people are comparing two different items, as no one item can be a perfect solution; there are always compromises. The same happens when we are comparing the Articles of Confederation and the New Constitution of 1787. Both of theses two solutions each have their own strengths and weaknesses. First we have the Articles of Confederation that when written gave each state a lot of individual powers, and because of this was one of the main reasons for the New Constitution, and I want to show how these two solutions are different, and how the New Constitution uses some of the same concepts that make up the Articles of Constitution. I would first like to take a look at the Articles of Confederation, and explore some of the strengths and weaknesses that came as a result of adopting it. The Continental Congress adopted the Articles of Confederation on November 15, 1777. One of the main weaknesses of the Articles of Confederation was that although it was able to produce a confederation of sovereign states, it was also responsible for weakening the central government, as the Articles of Confederation gave almost all of the power to the individual state governments. With the individual state gaining more power, the national government found it extremely difficult...
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...The Constitutional Convention was assembled in Philadelphia in 1787 to discuss and revise the Articles of Confederation. Fifty-five delegates, including James Madison and George Mason, were compiled from several states and the meeting was supervised by George Washington. During this assembly, two different plans of action were set forth to improve upon the existing government: the Virginia Plan and the New Jersey Plan. After the proposals of the Virginia and New Jersey plans, the Constitutional Convention was forced to settle on the Great Compromise in order to end disputes between the states and maintain independence for both the national government and the states. The Virginia Plan was authored by the Virginian delegates, including James Madison. It departed from the government system created by the Articles and gave states power while still holding up the federal government as the supreme authority. It was composed of a single executive with two houses (an upper and a lower) as well as a new court system. Representation of the states was based on state population. The authors of the Virginia Plan believed that the delegates would prefer a general grant of authority to a long list of enumerated representatives. The Virginia Plan was fought against by representatives from the small states and a new solution was created to...
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...By 1787 it was obvious that the federal government lacked sufficient authority under the Articles of Confederation, leading to the calling of the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia. Per the Congress, the purpose of this convention was to "revise the Articles of Confederation" not to abolish them altogether. However, all the representatives agreed that the articles had to be scrapped and a new governmental document had to be written. As a result, the U.S. Constitution produced "bundle of compromises" because delegates had to give ground under various circumstances to construct a Constitution that was acceptable to each of the 13 states. One of these compromises includes The Great Compromise or the Connecticut Compromise, which combined...
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...The Articles of Confederation was the first written constitution of the United States. “ Stemming from wartime urgency, its progress was slowed by the fears of central authority and extensive land claims by states before it was ratified on March 1, 1781” ( Articles of Confederation). Eleven years after the Declaration of Independence was adopted the United States constitution was created (weatherman). After the United States had finally won their independence from Great Britain, they spent their early years governed by the Articles of Confederation( weatherman) . The Constitutional Convention was A meeting with delegates from every state except Rhode island to discuss problems of the weak government and also the Articles of Confederation. In 1787 the Constitutional convention held a meeting to discuss...
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...To replace the British system of government, the new nation needed to form a governing body and begin to rebuild the colonies after the Revolutionary War. The first attempt at providing the new fledging nation with such a government was established around The Articles of Confederation. The Articles of Confederation were developed and written in Philadelphia at the second meeting of the Continental Congress in 1777. The Articles were ratified and became effective in 1781. However, their existence was short lived as major flaws, limitations and discrepancies were mounting. These gave way to the Articles being scrapped altogether and a new governing document being written called the U.S. Constitution. Many have called the Articles of Confederation America's first failure at government. Unification The articles of the confederation was a weak attempt at best, by a new country to try an unite itself and form a government of its own after overthrowing the British tyranny of the previous decade. Under the Articles of Confederation each state had the right to make its own rules and laws, separate from the central government. There was no taxing powers given to Congress, Congress had no power over interstate or foreign commerce. Each state had one vote in Congress, regardless of the states size or population. That in itself was a problem for the larger states who had bigger populations, who were expected to contribute more but still only had one vote. Any amendments...
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...Confederation and Constitution United States History Professor: 9/30/12 The Articles of Confederation were a great start to shaping and unifying our country, but it was just that, a “start”. It needed to take the country as a whole into consideration in order for it to hold this unity in place. The Articles of Confederation led to the Constitution of the United States. Although similar in some aspects, very different in others. The articles had many weaknesses that were changed in the Constitution. There were many compromises made between the states in order to effectively draft the Constitution. Roger Sherman’s Plan kept the Constitutional Convention together which was later known as the Great Compromise. The fight for the Constitution had just begun and the ratification processes needed to take place. Even with some states being in favor of the Constitution it would take time to get the nine states needed to complete this process. The states in favor would called themselves The Federalist and those opposed were called the Anti-Federalist. The Federalist set out to change the mind of the remaining states with a series of letters that were written to newspapers. The Articles of Confederation were used as a base for the Constitution. The ideas from the Articles of Confederation were used in the writing of the Constitution. Both the Articles and the Constitution established “federal” systems of multiple sovereigns whose continued existence was constitutionally...
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...Constitution Paper Alexandra Davis Bourda HIS/110 March 9, 2015 James Halm The Constitution has addressed many problems in the Article of Confederation and Declaration of Independence. Some took more time than others but they got fixed either way. As you know every problem comes with a solution. If the problem did not have a solution then things would be different in today’s world. The weakness that the Constitution addressed in the Articles of Confederation were Congress did not have enough power under the Articles. They could not raise an army, collect taxes, regulate trade between states or foreign trade, and force states to follow laws. The way they address it was that the constitution gives congress enumerated powers. Enumerated is a power that is specifically listed. An example for it is that congress has the power to raise taxes. Another way the address the problem was that the constitution also gives provides the congress with wiggle room. General welfare clause says that congress has the power to make laws that provide for the well being of its citizen.. Necessary and proper clause – congress has the power to make laws necessary and proper to enact enumerated powers. The other weakness was that the states had more power in the national, central, federal government. Federalism - The US constitution divides power between the Federal/National government and state government. Some powers are given specifically to the federal government (declare war and make treaties)...
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...The Articles of Confederation vs. the Constitution DeVry University The Articles of Confederation and the United States Constitution are the historical documents that have been the building blocks of democracy that America is known for today. The Articles of Confederation are in many way an extension of what makes up the United States Constitution. In 1777, there wear a combination of thirteen states that came together to mold a type of government document that the United States could determine as “central” style of government. These states included New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut, New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Georgia. By late 1787, the Articles of Confederation were replaced by a more complete United States Constitution. There are several differences and similarities that lead to this American government transformation. The origination of the Articles of Confederation were a dynamic that was set into place in order to safeguard the union of states from any foreign control. It was a time in which the newly born states were yearning to be a set of sovereign states but stay independent from British colony control. Thus, the Articles of Confederation were originated. There were several important aspects of the Articles of Confederation that helped the United States reach a somewhat government goal. In the articles, states were allowed to collect taxes from its citizens...
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...The Creation of the United States Constitution In 1787 Americans were finally through the revolution and officially independent from England. The need for change to unite and strengthen the new nation was apparent. Though there were many varying opinions of what that change would be, it was unanimous that the Articles of Confederation had to be revised. After the revolution the country’s great minds called a convention, debated over what this new government would be, and in the end ratified a document that would forever be the backbone of the United States. There were many reasons revolving around the decision to hold a convention to revise the Articles of Confederation. In the aftermath of the Revolutionary War the new country was in shambles. The economy was in trouble because of the enormous debt they had collected during war, and under the Articles of Confederation it was nearly impossible for the federal government to collect taxes from the states because the states had more power than the federal government. “Congress was attempting to function with a depleted treasury; paper money was flooding the country, created extraordinary inflation…” (Constitution of the United States- A History). The weakening economy had an especially adverse effect on small farmers, some were being thrown in jail for their unpaid debts and others were getting their land seized from them. Shay’s rebellion in 1786, where farmers tried to fight back against the government, was a grim reminded...
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...Should There be Another Constitutional Convention? The Articles of Confederation was he first federal “constitution” to be upheld in the thirteen colonies. Unfortunately, under the Articles, Congress was given no power over the states so that the country could grow into an actual functioning society, though there were certain things that they did have control over, such as create war and peace time, conduct foreign affairs and etc. But under the Articles, “But Congress could not collect taxes and enforce laws directly; it had to rely on the states to provide money and enforce its laws. . .”(Dye 61). Essentially, the states did what they felt was right beneath their own respective state level government. “No respect is paid to the federal authority. Not a single state complies with the requisitions[submitted by Congress]” (Nardo 18). The Founding Fathers were disturbed by the utter discord the nation seemed to be in. Deciding that enough was enough in May of 1797, twelve of the thirteen colonies delegates, 55 delegates, gathered together in the State House of Philadelphia to, originally, fix and tweak the bugs out of the Articles of Confederation. But instead of fixing the Articles, James Madison decided that it would be better to scrap the whole document and create a whole new federal constitution. James Madison was intent on drafting a new constitution that would create a stronger, central government: The Virginia Plan. “. . . he by no means wanted that government to be so...
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...Oliver Ellsworth was a founding father who played a key role in how the United States of America is today. He was born on April 29, 1745 to Capt. David and Jemima Ellsworth in Windsor, Connecticut. He went to Yale University but eventually transferred to Princeton, or the college of New Jersey. Ellsworth studied theology and got his A.B. degree after 2 years. After he earned his A.B. degree, Ellsworth switched to the law. After 4 years of study, he was admitted to the bar in 1771. In 1777 Ellsworth became Connecticut's state attorney for Hartford County. He was also picked to be one of Connecticut's representatives in the Continental Congress. He served six terms until around 1783. Oliver Ellsworth was one of the five men who supervised Connecticut's war expenses. In 1779 he became a member of the council of safety, which controlled all military measures for the state....
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...| Historical Essay: | Confederation and Constitution | | Jason Sherman | | | The Articles of Confederation, the first constitution of the United States, was adopted by the Continental Congress on November 15, 1777. However, sanction of the Articles of Confederation by all thirteen states did not occur until March 1, 1781. The Articles created a loose confederation of sovereign states and a weak central government, which resulted in most of the power residing with the state governments. The need for a stronger Federal government soon became apparent and eventually led to the Constitutional Convention in 1787. The present United States Constitution replaced the Articles of Confederation on March 4, 1789 (Researchers, 2013). Some weaknesses of the Articles of Confederation that ultimately resulted in failure were the fact that each state only had one vote in Congress, regardless of size, Congress did not have the power to tax, Congress did not have the power to regulate foreign and interstate commerce, there was no executive branch to enforce any acts passed by Congress, there was no nation court system, Amendments to the Articles of Confederation required a unanimous vote, and laws required a 9/13 majority to pass in Congress. Under the Articles of Confederation, states often argued amongst themselves. They also refused to financially support the national government, who was also powerless to enforce any acts it did pass. Some states began making agreements...
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