Articles of Confederation
This document created the first national government for the United States.
What is the Articles of Confederation?
This state constitution, drafted by John Adams, established government branches and a system of checks and balances.
What is the Massachusetts Constitution?
Small states wanted this type of representation in the new government.
What is equal representation for all states?
This founding father is known for keeping detailed records of the debates at the Constitutional Convention.
Who is James Madison?
This rebellion made American leaders realize the United States needed a stronger national government.
What is Shay's Rebellion?
This is how national laws were enforced under the Articles of Confederation.
What is: The states decided whether or not to enforce them?
This early abolitionist used the influence of the Massachusetts Constitution to file a lawsuit for freedom and win.
Who is Elizabeth Freeman?
This term describes a legislature with two separate chambers or houses.
What is bicameral?
This founding father was unanimously elected as the leader of the Constitutional Convention.
Who is George Washington?
This term describes the government structure where powers are divided between the federal government and the states.
What is federalism?
The Articles of Confederation reflected colonists' desire for independence by doing these three things.
What is:
A) Encouraging democracy;
C) Unifying the thirteen states and creating a common legislature; D) Creating a system for resolving land claims and governing new territory?
This state constitution, first issued in 1776, was considered the most radical and democratic of all the first state constitutions and there was no governor.
What is the Pennsylvania Constitution?
This compromise resolved the debate between large and small states over representation.
What is the Great Compromise?
This early abolitionist wrote an autobiography that was used as a tool by other abolitionists to help end slavery.
Who is Olaudah Equiano?
The Virginia Plan favored large states because representation was based on this.
What is population?
This was a major weakness of the government created by the Articles of Confederation.
What is: It lacked the power to tax or enforce national laws?
This state constitution, first issued in 1776, gave women the right to vote, though the reasoning had more to do with property rights.
What is the New Jersey Constitution?
Southern states wanted enslaved people to count toward representation; northern states disagreed. This compromise resolved the debate.
What is the Three-Fifths Compromise?
This founding father was known for being a statesman and believed the national government was too weak.
Who is Benjamin Franklin?
Based on the Commerce Clause, Indian Tribes were viewed as this by the U.S. government.
What is their own separate nation that the U.S. government could enter into trade with?
The goal of the Constitutional Convention was to revise the Articles, but delegates decided to do this instead.
What is create a new plan for the United States government?
The U.S. Constitution was based on this state's constitution, written by this founding father
What is Virginia's state constitution, written by George Mason?
This is why the U.S. Constitution included a bicameral legislature.
What is having two houses allowed small and large states to reach a compromise on representation?
This abolitionist sent a letter to Thomas Jefferson quoting from the Declaration of Independence to argue for the abolition of slavery.
Who is Benjamin Banneker?
This is the main message of the political cartoon "Rough Sailing Ahead."
The United States faced major problems because the national government was too weak?