Thirteen Independent States:
British not obeying Treaty of Paris, troops at frontier posts in American territory-they believed the U.S. gov. was week
Americans need to establish their own political institutions
State Constitutions:
Continental Congress ask colonies to org. gov.(may 1776)
Constitution-a plan of government
End of 1776-eight states had drafted constitutions
NY and GA followed suit in 1777, and MA in 1780
CT and RI retained their colonial charters as state constitutions
The states adopted constitutions that limited the power of the government because of the British rule
PN replaced the office of governor with an elected council of 12 members
Limiting Power:
The states divided government functions between the governor (or PN’s council) and the legislator
Most states established two house legislatures to divide the power even further
Bicameral-two house
The writers of the constitution not only wanted to prevent abuses of power in the states, but they also wanted to keep power in the hands of the people
State legislatures were popularly elected, and elections were frequent
In most states only white males that were 21 could vote-these people had to own their own a certain amount of property or pay a certain amount of taxes. Some states allowed male African Americans to vote
The legislatures were the most powerful branch of gov. over governors
State legislatures struggled to make taxes more fair, but there were disagreements
Self-government states brought challenges
Forming a Republic:
It was hard to create a central gov. for the colonies
They agreed that their gov. should be republic
Republic-a government in which citizens rule through elected representatives
The colonies could not agree on the organization and powers of their own new republic
Planning a Government:
In 1776 the SCC