Articles of Confederation to Constitution

The Articles of Confederation was created because they needed some form of government. They created it so the government was weak and the states got most of the power because they just got out under British rule.

On July 1778 the prepared copy of the articles was ready so they dated it and began the signing it.

The Articles of Confederation was ratified and became the ruling document of the new nation.

In Massachusetts, there was an armed uprising and was named after one of the rebel leaders, Daniel Shays. They rebelled because of crushing debt and heavy taxation on the farmers. On February 1787 after a surprise attack in Sheffield 30 rebels were wounded in a skirmish with government troops. This convinced the Articles of Confederation needed a stronger government.

At the request of Virginia this meeting of the states aimed to improve the government. Only 12 delegates came so they called a second meeting in May 1787.

This was to discuss changing the Articles of Confederation at Independence Hall in Philadelphia.

Final version of the constitution is written and taken up at the Convention's final session. A committee of five was appointed to write the constitution.

The constitution was signed by 38 out of 41 delegates present. There was an argument over signing it between the federalists and the anti-federalists. The anti-federalists wanted to add things to the constitution which the federalist agreed to except for the slave issue.

Two parties developed during the convention, the federalists and the anti-federalists. They soon came to an agreement and the constitution was ratified.