Articles of Confederation: Defining the U.S. Government
Articles of Confederation is the document that set forth the terms under which the original thirteen states agreed to participate in a centralized form of government, in addition to their self-rule, and that was in effect from March 1, 1781, to March 4, 1789, prior to the adoption of the Constitution.
As the first official document that defined the United States government, the Articles of Confederation both reflected the ideals and philosophies of the American Revolution and highlighted the practical difficulties of democratic government.
The idea of a union formed for mutual defense began in 1643 with the founding of the first colonial union, called the New England Confederation. Recognizing that a union would help the colonists to defend themselves against the threat of Indian attacks and French invasion, this confederation established the idea that unified strength was an effective power on the North American continent.
As the governments of the colonies evolved and established more power, they continued to rely on unions for mutual defense. At the beginning of the French and Indian War in 1754, additional colonies attended the Albany Congress for the purpose of forming a unified defense strategy against the French and Indians. The colonists learned an important lesson from this experience, and began to instinctively rely on the power of unions any time their rights were abused during the pre-Revolutionary era.
The governing body that eventually created the Articles of Confederation was based on this tradition of defensive unions, but was formed in a time of peace—not actually preparing for war. However, the Second Continental Congress, originally formed for the purpose of mutual defense of the thirteen colonies, suddenly found itself in 1776 waging a full-scale war and governing a nation.
Congress managed to successfully direct the Revolution effort and to prevent domestic anarchy by relying more on improvisation than on any codified system of laws. Consensus
As the first official document that defined the United States government, the Articles of Confederation both reflected the ideals and philosophies of the American Revolution and highlighted the practical difficulties of democratic government.
The idea of a union formed for mutual defense began in 1643 with the founding of the first colonial union, called the New England Confederation. Recognizing that a union would help the colonists to defend themselves against the threat of Indian attacks and French invasion, this confederation established the idea that unified strength was an effective power on the North American continent.
As the governments of the colonies evolved and established more power, they continued to rely on unions for mutual defense. At the beginning of the French and Indian War in 1754, additional colonies attended the Albany Congress for the purpose of forming a unified defense strategy against the French and Indians. The colonists learned an important lesson from this experience, and began to instinctively rely on the power of unions any time their rights were abused during the pre-Revolutionary era.
The governing body that eventually created the Articles of Confederation was based on this tradition of defensive unions, but was formed in a time of peace—not actually preparing for war. However, the Second Continental Congress, originally formed for the purpose of mutual defense of the thirteen colonies, suddenly found itself in 1776 waging a full-scale war and governing a nation.
Congress managed to successfully direct the Revolution effort and to prevent domestic anarchy by relying more on improvisation than on any codified system of laws. Consensus