The Constitution and the Articles of the Confederation Standard 4-4.1

The government that was developed under the Articles of the Confederation was a result of experiences under royal governors, the King of England, and the British government.

Sovereignty -- authority in government possessed or claimed by a state

Americans were fighting to preserve their colonial assembly rights to make decisions but wanted to unite to fight the Revolutionary War

According to the Articles of Confederation it was believed each state should make their own decisions for themselves. People should not be able to make any decisions just state government.

  The Continental Congress provided the model for the Articles of Confederation                                                                                                                                                                                

States were represented in one house-Confederation Congress with one vote per state.

According to the Articles of Confederation states were to form their own military, write their own laws and print their own money

According to the Articles of Confederation the Confederation Congress could make their own laws but not levy taxes to support itself—they would have to ask the states for money

According to the Articles of Confederation the government was made of one branch led by the president of the Congress—there wasn’t even a court system!!!

The United States Constitution was written to solve problems that arose as a weakness in the government under the Articles of the Confederation

The Constitution is based on the idea that the authority of the government comes directly from the people.

The Constitution starts with the statement We the People

Under The Constitution governing powers are shared between the states AND the federal government in a system known as federalism.

The national congress is comprised of two houses; the Senate and the House of Representatives.

The National congress makes up the legislative branch of the government

The national Congress is made of the Senate and House of Representatives

In the Senate the people of EACH state have equal representation – each state no matter its size or population would have 2 senators

In the House of Representatives the people of the state are represented by a number of representatives based on the state’s population

South Carolina has 6 representatives

The Constitution provides for separate executive, legislative, and judicial branches.

The Executive Branch of the government is led by the President and the Vice President

The 3rd and final branch is the judicial system run by the national courts

The Articles of Confederation and Constitution were alike because they both provided for the establishment of a government

The Articles of Confederation and Constitution were different because they differed in where power for the government rested and where the power of the national government should come from

Checks and Balances are a system that prevents any one branch from becoming too powerful.