What did the Constitutional Convention decide to do about the Articles of Confederation?
1 Answer
They decided to replace them with a new Constitution.
Explanation:
The Articles of Confederation were adopted during the Revolutionary War as a sort of makeshift government of the new United States. It was very limited in it's scope, allowing each state to continue to govern themselves, and not including a viable method to collect taxes for the national government.
When the war had ended, the Articles of Confederation continued to govern the new country loosely, leading to a few different problems. Southern states (using income drawn from slave-based plantations) had been successful in repaying smaller war debts, while Northern States had far more difficulty. The army dwindled significantly after the war, and stayed mostly around northern cities, leaving Southern states to complain of lack of protection on the frontier, and leaving U.S. trading ships prone to capture from British Ships.
In addition, there was no federal income to pay veterans for their service during the Revolutionary War. Most of the veterans lived in New England, adding to their financial stress. Eventually, a group of veterans rebelled (called Shay's Rebellion) highlighting the weak national government. In response, leaders from the U.S. called the Constitutional Convention to "amend the Articles of Confederation."
However, a few of the delegates (namely Alexander Hamilton and James Madison) intended to replace them entirely before the Convention. The Constitutional Convention consisted of frequent arguments between the Federalists and Anti-Federalists (as they are known today). The Federalists wanted a strong government, and the Anti-Federalists tended to lean towards retaining state and individual rights.
During the convention, the Federalists usually had the upper hand, coming out with a new Constitution (that is still in use today). However, the battle continued with many Anti-Federalists campaigning for states to refuse to ratify it.
