Forming a New Government
Define 'Articles of Confederation'
The plan for a new government.
Define 'legislative branch'
The part of government that makes the laws
Define 'inflation'
The price of goods increased while the value of money decreased
Define 'ordinances'
Laws
What present-day states were once part of the Northwest Territory? (6)
Indiana, Illinois, Ohio, Wisconsin, Michigan, part of Minnesota
How did the Second Continental Congress act as a national Government?
They printed money and created their own army.
How many votes did each state have for a law?
One
Why did the new central government have no power to tax?
One of the main reasons the Patriots fought for freedom was over unjust taxes and they didn't want this to happen again.
Where did Shays and his men retreat to?
Vermont
Where was the Northwest Territory?
North of the Ohio River
Why did delegates create a government with limited power?
They had just fought against the British king, so they were wary of giving a new government too much power.
What was the role of the executive AND judicial branch? (2 answers)
Executive: carries out the laws passed by the legislative branch
Judicial: decides what each laws mean
How did the central government’s inability to raise money affect the war?
It could not pay soldiers, which led to the risk of an uprising.
How do you know that Shays was not the only farmer who was having trouble with paying his debts?
He was able to gather many others to join the rebellion.
What was NOT permitted in the Northwest Territory?
Slavery
Why did the Second Continental Congress need the power to print money and create a Continental Army?
It needed to print money to help the economy because having different states print money made it difficult to run the economy. It needed to raise an army to fight the British.
What did the government need to be able to regulate?
Trade between states and other countries
About how much did a bushel of potatoes increase between 1775 and 1779?
About 7 dollars
What was the cause of Shays' Rebellion?
Massachusetts increased property taxes and poor farmers began to lose their homes.
What is the difference between the Land Ordinance of 1785 and the Northwest Ordinance of 1787?
The Land Ordinance of 1785 explained how land would be divided into towns and provided for public schools. The Northwest Ordinance of 1787 described how lands could become states.
What can you infer from the fact that even though the Second Continental Congress had no legal authority, it still printed money and created an army?
They were planning on being independent and they were willing to fight if they had to.
What were the weaknesses of the Articles of Confederation?
There was no executive branch or judicial branch; Congress could not make laws about trade or taxes, which made it difficult for the government to raise money to run the government; the states controlled most of the laws
Why was the practice of states printing their own money a problem for helping out Congress?
Because having all different kinds of money floating around made it difficult to know how much each state's money was really worth.
How did Shays’ Rebellion contribute to the decision to revise the Articles of Confederation?
The rebellion called attention to the problems that the government had in raising taxes and paying its soldiers. Leaders did not want citizens taking the law into their own hands. They started to believe that they needed a stronger central government.
How did the Northwest Ordinance affect Native Americans?
Although the law stated that Native Americans' land should not be taken from them, the expansion into the new territory led settlers to move onto lands that belonged to Native Americans. The resulting conflict led to the loss of life and land for many Indigenous people.