The Critical Period

1. The Critical Period U.S. History 1781-1789

2. Treaty of Paris  1783 • Negotiated on behalf of the U.S. by Benjamin Franklin, John Jay and Samuel Adams • Great Britain formally acknowledged the independence of the thirteen American colonies • set the boundaries of the new nation at the Atlantic Ocean in the east, the Mississippi River in the west, Florida in the south, and Canada in the north.

3. John Dickinson

4. John Dickinson •  served as a delegate from Pennsylvania to the Second Continental Congress • became part of the committee assigned to author the first draft of the Articles of Confederation. • had extensive writing experience, was chosen as the chairman and the primary author of this document,

5. John Dickinson • Although he had been one of the delegates who did not sign the Declaration of Independence. Favoring a strong central government similar to that of Great Britain, • Much of Dickinson's draft was changed before ratification, • Although his insistence on a strong central government resurfaced later in his support of the U.S. Constitution

6. Richard Henry Lee

7. Richard Henry Lee • An influential planter and statesman from Virginia • proposed the resolution that led both to the formulation of the Declaration of Independence and the Articles of Confederation. • He served as a delegate to the Second Continental Congress, once serving as its president,

8. Richard Henry Lee • Was one of a committee of three to review the Articles of Confederation for completeness before it was sent to the states for ratification. • He later served as a delegate to the Constitutional Convention and received credit for drafting the 10th Amendment, which guaranteed states' rights.

10. The Search for a National Government

11. 1st form of government for the U.S. Adopted in 1777 Congress was the only institution of National Authority The Articles of Confederation

12. The Articles of Confederation • Confederacy  -  A confederacy is a form of government in which independent states are loosely joined • Typically for common defense • Each independent state maintains power over the majority of its own affairs.

13. The Powers of the Articles

14. The Powers of the Articles Congress had the Power to: • Conduct Wars and Foreign Relations • Appropriate, borrow and print $$ (States could also print their own $$) • Conduct a Postal Service

15. Weaknesses of the Articles • http://school.cottondew.net/USGovernment/images/BookScans/WeaknessesOfTheArticlesOfConfederation.jpg

16. Weaknesses of the Articles Congress did NOT have the power to: • Regulate Trade • Draft troops • Levy direct taxes on the people • Had to make a formal request for troops and tax revenue • States had the right to refuse these requests • Unable to payoff foreign debts (Unwilling or Unable) • Printed $$ to payoff debt, $$ was worthless • Borrower vs. Lender

17. Other issues with the Articles • Each states had a single vote in Congress • Over representation (Small States) and under representation (Large States) • Unanimous vote by state leg. needed to change (Amend) the Articles

18. Land Ordinance of 1784 • Proposed by Thomas Jefferson just a month after Virginia officially handed over western lands to congress, • This ordinance established the process by which new lands would be divided into states • The process for surveying and sale, and the qualifications of new states to enter into Congress. • This ordinance set the precedent to prohibit any attempts to colonize newly ceded lands.

21. Northwest Ordinance of 1787 • A revision of the earlier Land Ordinance of 1784 • refined some of the earlier qualifications for statehood. • It further provided that a certain amount of land had to be reserved for public education • that slavery was to be prohibited in this territory north of the Ohio River.

22. Accomplishments of the Articles • Negotiated an end to the revolution (Treaty of Paris 1783) • Provided a system of organizing and surveying new territories (Land Ordinance of 1784) • Provided a plan for statehood (Northwest Ordinance of 1787) • Slavery was to be prohibited in this territory north of the Ohio River.

23. Jay-Gardoqui talks  -  • John Jay, as diplomat to Spain • attempted to negotiate for American access to trade along the Mississippi River. • Threatened by Americans moving westward, the Spanish diplomat Diego de Gardoqui recommended.

24. Jay-Gardoqui talks • instead that Spain would establish trade with eastern U.S. ports, • assist in removing Great Britain from the Great Lakes • assist in combating the Barbary Pirates • Southern and Western delegates in Congress viewed with contempt this plan that seemed to sacrifice their interests to the commercial interests of the Northeast

25. The Southern Response to the Idea

26. Even their dogs didn’t like it

27. Annapolis Convention •  Held in September 1786 at the request of Virginia • this meeting of the states aimed to improve the uniformity of commerce. Only twelve delegates came • they proceeded to call a second meeting, to be held in May of 1787, for the purpose of revising the Articles.

28. Shays' Rebellion

29. Shays' Rebellion

30. OOPS! We need another Government

31. Shays' Rebellion •  Daniel Shays organized farmers throughout New England to protest legislation that increased taxes and demanded immediate debt-repayment. • When the state legislature refused to respond, • Shays and his armed followers closed the courts in western Massachusetts in protest of foreclosed properties.

32. Shays' Rebellion • The rebellion came to a head when Shays was defeated while trying to seize a federal arsenal of weapons in Springfield, Massachusetts, on January 25, 1787. • This rebellion demonstrated the weaknesses of the Articles of Confederation, and convinced many states of the need for a stronger central government.