The Aoc and the Constitution

The Articles of Confederation vs. the U.S. Constitution

By: Taylor Witherspoon

The Articles of Confederation were created by the delegates of the Second Continental Congress and was ratified by all thirteen states in 1781. The Articles were replaced by the U.S. Constitution in 1789. The Articles and the Constitution are similar in many ways, such as they both gave power to the people and both were influenced by enlightenment thinkers, like Locke and Montesquieu. Despite their similarity, the Constitution offered a Bill of Rights and a strong central government with the power to tax the citizens. Thus, the Constitution was a radical departure from the Articles of Confederation.

The Articles of Confederation created a national government body with a unicameral legislature. That meant that there was only one representative house in the government. The Articles gave the government the power to wage war, make treaties, and borrow money to pay taxes. However, the Articles did not permit the government to tax the states, build a militia, or regulate commerce. Because the government was not allowed to tax, the government could not pay its debts, and people such as farmers were not receiving the money they were promised. When one farmer in particular, Daniel Shay, did not get the money he was promised, he and a band of other farmers came together and demanded tax and debt relief. The event became known as Shay’s Rebellion. Private citizens paid an army to stop the rebellion. However, this event helped expose the government’s weakness and vulnerability.

Seeing the flaws in the Articles of Confederation, state representatives assembled to create a new governing document, the U.S. Constitution. Under the Constitution, the main body of government was a strong, centralized government. Alexander Hamilton felt that the states needed a stronger government whose powers exceeded those of the states, so a bicameral legislature was established. This means that there...