Pros And Cons Of The Articles Of Confederation

First of all, before I talk about the Articles of Confederation, I would like to explain what a confederation is. When a group of people or nations form an alliance, it is called a confederation, allowing each member to govern itself but agreeing to work together for common causes. The best-known confederation was the South during the U.S. Civil War. The word confederation comes from the early 15th century, meaning “an agreement.” Confederation is similar to the word “federation”, but with significant differences. While a federation has a durable central government, a confederation is more of a compliance between separate bodies to collaborate with each other. The European alliance could be called a confederation, while the United States is …show more content…
After the colonies declared their independence in 1776, the leaders needed a government to over look the operation of the war and, if victorious, help the country settle the peace. Fundamental issues needed to be looked at and addressed: How much political power should be given to the central government when cooperation among the states was so significant? Would France gamble on aiding the apprentice nation if the United States appeared fragile and weak? How would the central government speak for all the states while each state maintained its sovereignty? In 1777, the “Articles of Confederation and Perpetual Union” were drafted and submitted to the states for approval, but the states didn’t accept the document until March of 1781. The Articles were formed after the colonial charters, with the legislative branch having power over the other branches. The Articles’ creators made sure that each state would remain sovereign and would retain all authority not expressly given to the national Congress. This would insure that all decisions made by the government were subject to discussion and debate and that the states would never face a distant dominant power as when they were colonies under …show more content…
Though Congress could advocate war and raise military forces, it couldn’t pay for them because it did not have the power to tax. Congress could request funds from the states, but congress did not have power to make them part with their money. Congress could borrow money, but had no way to raise funds to pay off the debt except to ask the states for funds. If a state disagreed with the way Congress spent the funds, it would refuse or delay payment. Congress could appoint a court to hear the debates between states, but it couldn’t enforce decisions the courts made. Thus, if a court ruled in agreement of one state over another, the losing state wouldn’t have to comply with the decision. After the war, the Treaty of Paris specified that British people still living in the former colonies would receive compensation for land or property seized. Nevertheless, individual states did not make their citizens to make such restitution and Congress had no authority to enforce the states to obey the treaty’s provisions. To pay off the debt from the war, Congress was authorized to print money; however, each of the states had the capability to print money as well. The resulting increase in currency, combined with a decline in the postwar economy, sent the country into a deep economic depression. Inflation went up so high that the Continental Dollar became virtually

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