HIST 1301 Part Two 6: The Republican Experiment
The States and the Confederation 1776-1788
During the Revolution, state Governments formed first. 2 min. 40 sec. Each state had a written constitution. Each state had a republican form of government with an elected assembly, a governor, and a system of courts. Most states had a bill of rights. Each state gave the right to vote to free, white, adult male property-owners.
The Articles of Confederation (Adopted 1781) Formed the first national government 2 min. 49 sec. 5 min. 50 sec. Congress was the U.S. government There was no President of the U.S. No national courts. One state=one vote Congress had no power to tax or regulate interstate commerce States contributed money according to population size
The Northwest Territory Ordinances, 1784, 1785, 1787 5 States No Slavery Land survey system A revenue source for Congress (land sold at auction) 2 min. 04 sec.
Public Land Survey System 1 section=640 acres $1 per acre min. bid 2 min. 08 sec.
Making a New Government Annapolis & Philadelphia
The Annapolis Convention (September 11 14, 1786) to remedy defects of the federal government, was attended by 12 delegates from 5 states New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Delaware, and Virginia but they only talked.
A Convention to amend the Articles of Confederation convened at Independence Hall, Philadelphia, on May 25, 1787 6 min. 19 sec.
George Washington presided over the Convention. There were 55 delegates from 12 states (Rhode Island did not participate).
At age 81, Franklin was the oldest and most experienced of the Founding Fathers.
Jefferson and Adams were conspicuously absent. Minister to France Minister to Great Britain
Father of the Constitution James Madison s Virginia Plan, the blueprint for a new government, was introduced on May 29, 1787 by Governor Edmund Randolph of Virginia.
The Virginia Plan called for 3 branches of government and a bicameral (2 house) legislature. The Virginia Plan also called for proportional representation in Congress based on population.
On June 15, William Paterson introduced the New Jersey Plan. Unicameral legislature chosen by the people. Equal representation: one state=one vote.
On July 16, Roger Sherman s Great or Connecticut Compromise was adopted. Bi-cameral legislature Proportional representation in the House of Representatives Equal representation (2 per state) in the Senate
On July 12, The 3/5 Compromise was adopted. Article I, Section 2: Representatives shall be apportioned among the several states according to their respective Numbers, which shall be determined by adding to the whole number of free Persons, including those bound to service for a Term of Years, and excluding Indians not taxed, three-fifths of all other persons. The words Slaves and Slavery do not appear in the Constitution.
The Parts of the Constitution
The Preamble of the Constitution states the 6 purposes for which it was written. 2 min. 50 sec. To form a more perfect union To establish justice To insure domestic tranquility To provide for the common defense To promote the general welfare Secure the blessings of liberty to ourselves and our posterity
Article I. Legislative Branch Qualifications for Representatives Qualifications for Senators Things Congress can do Things Congress cannot do Things states cannot do
Article II. Executive Branch Qualifications for President How President is elected Presidential oath of office Things President can do Things President must do
Article III. Judicial Branch Qualifications for Supreme Court Establishes federal court system Defines treason
Article IV. Relationship between states, citizens, and federal government
Article V. How to amend Constitution
Article VI. Constitution the Supreme Law of the Land No religious test for federal office
Article VII. Ratification Process
The Ratification Process Sept. 17, 1787-June 21, 1788
The Constitution was approved and signed by the delegates on Sept. 17, 1787.
Before the Constitution could take effect, nine states had to ratify it.
People who opposed ratification, such as Patrick Henry of Virginia, were called Anti-Federalists. You ought to be extremely cautious, watchful, jealous of your liberty; for instead of securing your rights you may lose them forever. If this new Government will not come up to the expectation of the people, and they should be disappointed - their liberty will be lost, and tyranny must and will arise.
James Madison, Alexander Hamilton, and John Jay wrote the Federalist Papers in support of ratification. The proposed Constitution, so far from implying an abolition of the State governments, makes them constituent parts of the national sovereignty, by allowing them a direct representation in the Senate, and leaves in their possession certain exclusive and very important portions of sovereign power. This fully corresponds, in every rational import of the terms, with the idea of a federal government.
By June 21, 1788 the Constitution was ratified. 9 min. 27 sec.
The Bill of Rights The First Ten Amendments
After Congress began meeting in 1789, twelve amendments to the Constitution were proposed.
9 min. 27 sec. Ten of those amendments (3 through 12) were ratified by Dec. 15, 1791 and became the Bill of Rights. The Constitution has been amended 27 times (most recently in 1992, when the original 2nd amendment was ratified).
A Secular Document The Non-Religious Nature of the U.S. Constitution
When the U.S. was founded, most countries had established religions to which all citizens were expected to conform.
In the 1780s even most U.S. states had an established religion and freedom of religion was limited to Christians or in some cases to only Protestant Christians.
The founders could have established a similar sort of government for the United States, but they didn t.
Modern-day Iraq is a good example of a country with a non-secular constitution. The first line of the Preamble reads: In the name of God, the Most merciful, the Most compassionate The preamble also acknowledges God's right over us Although Article 2 of the Iraqi Constitution guarantees freedom of religion for its non-muslim population, it also says Islam is the official religion of the State and is a foundation source of legislation and No law may be enacted that contradicts the established provisions of Islam. Article 10 reads: The holy shrines and religious sites in Iraq are religious and civilizational entities. The State is committed to assuring and maintaining their sanctity, and to guaranteeing the free practice of rituals in them. Article 11 reads A law shall regulate honors, official holidays, religious and national occasions and the Hijri and Gregorian calendar.
The Secular U.S. Constitution The U.S. Constitution has no religious references (does not mention God, Jesus, Christianity or any other religion) The U.S. Constitution does not establish an official religion nor does it say that the U.S. government or its laws must be based on the Bible (or any other religious text) The U.S. Constitution does not require the federal government to support or maintain any religious shrines The U.S. Constitution does not require the federal government to pass laws regarding the observance of religious holidays The words So help me God are not a part of the presidential oath, nor is it required to take the oath with hand on Bible. (Article II, Section 1, eighth paragraph).
The U.S. Constitution also says in Article VI that no religious Test shall ever be required as a Qualification to any Office or public Trust under the United States. Proposed by John Dickenson, this was unanimously adopted, without any debate, by the Constitutional Convention on August 30, 1787. John Dickinson