Why did the Articles of Confederation fail to provide strong government?
Camilla Burkot Intro/Background Info: • – Articles of Confederation – drafted by the Continental Congress in 1777 as the first national constitution (while each new state was writing its own constitution) • – However, once the Articles were sent to the colonies for ratification, it soon became clear that this was an ineffectual approach to governing the nation • – The Articles did not allow the federal government to impose taxes or tariffs or to raise an army. There was no national executive and no federal court system. Any changes to the articles had to be made unanimously (meaning that changing the Articles was near impossible) Thesis: After finally winning independence from a powerful, dominating nation, the new United States hoped to design a new, less intrusive government to mimic the ideal of freedom and democracy. Yet, in its attempt to avoid governing with too strong a hand, as most Americans felt England had, the Articles of Confederation restricted the federal government to t
