1. Articles of Confederation

2. WE WON!!! NOW WHAT? Now that the revolution is over
what has to be done next?
What problems will have to be solved?

3. united States of America
States First
State citizenship; not Country citizenship
States become “individual countries”
Reluctant of a strong central government
Republic
A government ruled by representatives chosen by the people
Each state was represented in the Continental Congress by 1 vote

4. Second Continental Congress
When:
June 1776 – 1781
Accomplishments:
Steered the Colonists through the War
Drafting the Articles of Confederation
Land Ordinance of 1785
Northwest Land Ordinance of 1787
Members: John Hancock, Benjamin Franklin, Thomas Jefferson, John Dickinson

5. Articles of Confederation
Weaknesses of the Articles
Gov’t couldn’t create taxes
Gov’t couldn’t regulate trade
Each State had only 1 vote in Congress
2/3rds Majority was needed to pass laws
Amendments on laws need full approval
No executive branch to enforce the laws
No judicial branch to settle disputes
13 separate states that lacked national unity

6. Shays’ Rebellion Massachusetts Post-Revolution Poor economy
Farmers unable to pay debts
Debtors thrown in jail
Farms being auctioned off
If lost land also lost right to vote

7. Shays’ Rebels Called “Shaysites” or “Regulators” Led by Daniel Shays
Poor farmers, many ex-war vets
Decide to close down debtor courts
Aug 29th 1786 to Jan. 1787
Eventually rebellion put down

8. Aftermath Rebellion showed just how weak the national gov’t was!!!
Realized Articles of Confederation needed to be amended
Caused the Constitutional Congress to meet (1787)
Eventually Art. Of Confed. scrapped and the Constitution is adopted

9. Shays’ Rebellion and the Articles of Confederation
Use the Matrix for Analyzing Features of the Articles of Confederation to determine which Features Shays’ Rebellion exploited.
What is the final result of the rebellion? Why was this such a crucial event in the development of the United States?