The Continental Congress adopted the Articles of Confederation, the first constitution of the United States, on November 15, 1777. However, ratification of the Articles of Confederation by all thirteen states did not occur until March 1, 1781. The Articles created a loose confederation of sovereign states and a weak central government, leaving most of the power with the state governments. The need for a stronger Federal government soon became apparent and eventually led to the Constitutional Convention in 1787. The present United States Constitution replaced the Articles of Confederation on March 4, 1789. Show
The Articles of ConfederationThe Continental Congress adopted the Articles of Confederation, the first constitution of the United States, on November 15, 1777. However, ratification of the Articles of Confederation by all thirteen states did not occur until March 1, 1781. The Articles created a loose confederation of sovereign states and a weak central government, leaving most of the power with the state governments. The need for a stronger Federal government soon became apparent and eventually led to the Constitutional Convention in 1787. The present United States Constitution replaced the Articles of Confederation on March 4, 1789. Library of Congress Web Site | External Web Sites | Selected Bibliography Digital Collections A Century of Lawmaking for a New Nation: U.S. Congressional Documents and Debates, 1774-1875
Documents from the Continental Congress and the Constitutional Convention, 1774 to 1789
James Madison Papers, 1723 to 1859
Printed Ephemera: Three Centuries of Broadsides and Other Printed Ephemera
Thomas Jefferson Papers, 1606 to 1827
America's Library Jump Back in Time: The Articles of Confederation Were Adopted, November 15, 1777 Exhibitions Creating the United States
The Teachers Page American Memory Timeline: Policies and Problems of the Confederation Government
Today in History November 15, 1777
September 17, 1787 External Web Sites Articles of Confederation, Avalon Project at Yale Law School Articles of Confederation, National Archives and Records Administration Our Documents, Articles of Confederation, National Archives and Records Administration Selected Bibliography Hoffert, Robert W. A Politics of Tensions: The Articles of Confederation and American Political Ideas. Niwot: University Press of Colorado, 1992. [Catalog Record] Jensen, Merrill. The Articles of Confederation: An Interpretation of the Social-Constitutional History of the American Revolution 1774-1781. Madison: University of Wisconsin Press, 1970. [Catalog Record] -----. The New Nation: A History of the United States during the Confederation, 1781-1789. New York: Knopf, 1950. [Catalog Record] Wood, Gordon S. The Creation of the American Republic, 1776-1787. Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina Press, 1969. [Catalog Record] Younger Readers Callahan, Kerry P. The Articles of Confederation: A Primary Source Investigation into the Document that Preceded the U.S. Constitution. New York: Rosen Primary Source, 2003. [Catalog Record] Feinberg, Barbara Silberdick. The Articles of Confederation: The First Constitution of the United States. Brookfield, Conn.: Twenty-First Century Books, 2002. [Catalog Record] Price Hossell, Karen. The Articles of Confederation. Chicago: Heinemann Library, 2004. [Catalog Record] Roza, Greg. Evaluating the Articles of Confederation: Determining the Validity of Information and Arguments. New York: Rosen Pub., 2006. [Catalog Record] Why are the Articles of Confederation significant?The significance of the Articles of Confederation is that it provided enough of a structure for the nation to survive during those eight years, while the American people learned about the requirements to run an effective national government.
What are the articles of confederations?The Articles of Confederation were adopted by the Continental Congress on November 15, 1777. This document served as the United States' first constitution. It was in force from March 1, 1781, until 1789 when the present-day Constitution went into effect.
What is the Confederation?confederation, primarily any league or union of people or bodies of people. The term in modern political use is generally confined to a permanent union of sovereign states for certain common purposes—e.g., the German Confederation established by the Congress of Vienna in 1815. Confederation, Articles of.
What is the most significant fact about the Articles of Confederation?The Articles of Confederation and Perpetual Union was the first written constitution of the United States. Written in 1777 and stemming from wartime urgency, its progress was slowed by fears of central authority and extensive land claims by states. It was not ratified until March 1, 1781.
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