HIST 190 Chapter Notes - Chapter 7: Self-Ownership, Onehouse, Empowered
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The first written constitution of the united states was the articles of confederation, drafted by congress in 1777 and ratified by the states four years later. The articles sought to balance the need for national coordination of the war of independence with widespread fear that centralized political power posed a danger to liberty. It explicitly declared the new national government to be a perpetual union : resembled less a blueprint for common government than a treaty for mutual defense- a. Under the articles, the 13 states retained their individual sovereignty, freedom, and independence . The national government consisted of a one-house congress, in which each state, no matter how large or populous, cast a single vote. There was no president to enforce the laws and no judiciary to interpret them. Major decisions required the approval of nine states rather than a simple majority. The only powers specifically granted to the national government by the articles of.
