 With the passage of time, weaknesses in the Articles of Confederation became apparent; Congress commanded little respect and no support from state governments anxious to maintain their power. Congress could not raise funds, regulate trade, or conduct foreign policy without the voluntary agreement of the states. Recognizing the need to improve the government, Congress tried to strengthen the Articles, but problems persisted. Show
Congress Can Not Improve Poor Attendance by DelegatesIn November 1783, American diplomats sent Congress the final version of the Treaty of Paris, which formally ended America's war with Great Britain. A quorum of nine states had to be present for Congress to ratify the treaty, yet throughout December, scarcely that number was present. Weeks passed, the treaty sat, and Congress remained unable to act upon it. Some desperate congressmen went so far as to contemplate holding Congress in the sickroom of an ailing delegate, to add him to their numbers. After years of experiencing frustrating delays due to lackadaisical attendance, delegate James Wilson of Pennsylvania expected this predicament. In anticipation of the crisis, he voiced the need to "devise means for procuring a full representation in Congress." The displayed report, produced by a committee appointed to address the problem, does little more than agree with Wilson; Congress lacked the authority to do much more. Although some statesmen, like Secretary Charles Thomson, took their congressional responsibilities seriously, the weakness of Congress under the Articles of Confederation encouraged many delegates to pay far more attention to politics in their home states and to their personal affairs than to the nation's legislative body. Congress Pleads with the States to Contribute Money to the National TreasuryBy the end of the war, the new nation had a large debt. Although Congress proposed a number of ways for the states to raise revenue towards the national debt, the states almost never complied with Congress's suggestions. By June of 1786, the situation was desperate. The Board of Treasury submitted a report, warning that unless the states immediately adopted the measures recommended by Congress in 1783, "...nothing...can rescue us from Bankruptcy, or preserve the Union of the several States from Dissolution." Congress agreed with the board's findings, and prepared to address the states on the subject. William Samuel Johnson of Connecticut, whose copy of the document is included in the collection, chaired the committee in charge of drafting the address; friends warned him, however, that "Your Address to the States will (I fear) prove like Water spilled upon the Ground and have no Influence to awake us from our Stupor." Eventually, after much revision and argument, Congress decided not to send any address at all. Congress is Unable to Control Commerce Between America and Foreign NationsUnder the Articles of Confederation, Congress lacked the authority to regulate commerce, making it unable to protect or standardize trade between foreign nations and the various states. In 1784, Congress requested that the states grant it limited power over commerce for a period of fifteen years, but many of the states did not comply. In 1785, twenty-seven-year-old delegate James Monroe again stressed the need for increased congressional power over commerce. Congress appointed a committee, chaired by Monroe, to investigate the problem. On February 16, 1785, the committee recommended amending the Articles of Confederation so that Congress would have power over commerce. Although Congress sent the proposed amendment to the state legislatures, along with a letter urging immediate action, few states responded. Monroe later concluded that the issue was so crucial, and potentially granted so much power to Congress, that the states were afraid to act. The Articles of Confederation established the first governmental structure unifying the 13 colonies that had fought in the American Revolution. This document created the structure for the confederation of these newly minted 13 states. After many attempts by several delegates to the Continental Congress, a draft by John Dickinson of Pennsylvania was the basis for the final document, which was adopted in 1777. The Articles went into effect on March 1, 1781, after each of the 13 states had ratified them. The Articles of Confederation lasted until March 4, 1789, when they were replaced by the U.S. Constitution. They had lasted for just eight years. Weak National GovernmentIn response to widespread antipathy toward a strong central government, the Articles of Confederation kept national government weak and allowed for the states to be as independent as possible. But almost soon as the Articles took effect, problems with this approach became apparent. Strong States, Weak Central GovernmentThe purpose of the Articles of Confederation was to create a confederation of states whereby each state retained "its sovereignty, freedom, and independence, and every power, jurisdiction, and right...not...expressly delegated to the United States in Congress assembled." Every state was as independent as possible within the central government of the United States, which was only responsible for the common defense, the security of liberties, and the general welfare. Congress could make treaties with foreign nations, declare war, maintain an army and navy, establish a postal service, manage Indigenous affairs, and coin money. But Congress could not levy taxes or regulate commerce. Because of widespread fear of a strong central government at the time they were written and strong loyalties among Americans to their own state as opposed to any national government during the American Revolution, the Articles of Confederation purposely kept the national government as weak as possible and the states as independent as possible. However, this led to many of the problems that became apparent once the Articles took effect. AchievementsDespite their significant weaknesses, under the Articles of Confederation the new United States won the American Revolution against the British and secured its independence; successfully negotiated an end to the Revolutionary War with the Treaty of Paris in 1783; and established the national departments of foreign affairs, war, marine, and treasury. The Continental Congress also made a treaty with France in 1778, after the Articles of Confederation had been adopted by the Congress but before they had been ratified by all the states. WeaknessesThe weaknesses of the Articles would quickly lead to problems that the Founding Fathers realized would not be fixable under the current form of government. Many of these issues were brought up during the Annapolis convention of 1786. These included:
Under the Articles of Confederation, each state viewed its own sovereignty and power as paramount to the national good. This led to frequent arguments between the states. In addition, the states would not willingly give money to financially support the national government. The national government was powerless to enforce any acts that Congress passed. Further, some states began to make separate agreements with foreign governments. Almost every state had its own military, called a militia. Each state printed its own money. This, along with issues with trade, meant that there was no stable national economy. In 1786, Shays' Rebellion occurred in western Massachusetts as a protest against rising debt and economic chaos. However, the national government was unable to gather a combined military force among the states to help put down the rebellion, making clear a serious weakness in the structure of the Articles. Gathering of the Philadelphia ConventionAs the economic and military weaknesses became apparent, especially after Shays' Rebellion, Americans began asking for changes to the Articles. Their hope was to create a stronger national government. Initially, some states met to deal with their trade and economic problems together. However, as more states became interested in changing the Articles, and as national feeling strengthened, a meeting was set in Philadelphia on May 25, 1787. This became the Constitutional Convention. The gathered delegates realized that changes would not work, and instead, the entire Articles of Confederation needed to be replaced with a new U.S. Constitution that would dictate the structure of the national government. What weakness did the Articles of Confederation not have?Weaknesses of the Articles of Confederation
Congress did not have the power to regulate foreign and interstate commerce.
What are the 3 weaknesses of the Articles of Confederation?The Articles of Confederation were weak because: The central government did not have enough power and did not have a judicial or executive branch. Congress did not have the power to regulate commerce. Representative government was not proportioned based on population.
Which was a weakness of the Articles of Confederation?The weakness of the Articles of Confederation was that Congress was not strong enough to enforce laws or raise taxes, making it difficult for the new nation to repay their debts from the Revolutionary War.
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What was not a weakness of the articles of confederation
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