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Period: to
Events leading the the Constitution
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Articles of Confederation
The Articles of Confederation were the United State's first attempt at a constitution and had many similarities with our current constitution . However it soon showed that it had numerous shortcomings that made it hard to govern thre country effectively as it had no power to raise taxes or control trade between the states and other countries picture source (2009). Articles of Confederation. Retrieved from https://www.history.com/topics/early-us/articles-of-confederation -
Treaty of Paris
The Treaty of Paris ended the American Revolutionary War. Hostilities were finally ended and a new government could be formed in peace. The potential for future peaceful interaction between the U.S and Britain were established with various trade concessions in the treaty -
Shay's rebellion
A rebellion over high taxes was eventually put down by the state militia. The militias response to the rebellion lead to many at the constitutional convention arguing for a stronger central government -
Annapolis Convention
Convention regarding trade between the states eventually evolved into a call for a new constitutional convention the next year -
Great Compromise of 1787
This compromise combined two different ideas for the congress into one. One part of congress would be given representation based on population and the other gave two representatives to each state -
The Commerce and Slave Trade Compromise
Confirmed the power of the central government to be able to oversee and legislate interstate trade and trade with other countries -
Constitutional Convention
The convention was called to address and correct the weaknesses in the articles of confederation, which ended up strengthening the federal goverment -
Federalist Papers
Articles written by some of the countries founding fathers such as James Madison and Alexander Hamilton which expressed their views that the constitution should be the basis of the United States government and should be ratified by the states. -
Bill of Rights
The first 10 amendments to the Constitution. It guaranteed many individual liberties such as freedom of speech, religion, and the right to bare arms -
First Bank of the United States
The creation of a federal bank by alexander Hamilton allowed the federal government to stethen its power by allowing it to issue loans, collect taxes, and ensure a federal currency
