Week 1: The Constitution Flashcards
When was the American Constitution ratified?
1788 when New Hampshire became the 9th state to vote in favour
When was the Declaration of Independence?
4 July 1776
When were the Articles of Confederation written?
1781
What did the Articles of Confederation establish?
A new system of government, established Congress but not the Judiciary or Executive
When did the English government grant a monopoly on tea to east India merchants?
1773
When was the Boston Tea Party?
1773
How many Founding Fathers were there?
55 delegates
When was the Treaty of Paris signed?
1783
What did the Treaty of Paris recognise?
Ended the American Revolution and formally recognised the US as an independent nation
What were the weaknesses of the Articles of Confederation?
Members were chosen and paid by states- corrupt
Regardless of size, each state only had one vote
To create law all states had to agree- very little achieved
No national army, state militia were the armed forces- kind of like UN today
Why did the Declaration of Independence need to be redrafted?
Global insecurity, states small and surrounded by greater forces
Fear British would come back, they did in 1812
Economic difficulties and domestic strife, the elite felt threatened by radical ideas
What happened in the Constitutional Convention 1787?
New states sat down at est. the new constitution
What was the Virginia Plan?
Constitutional convention 1787
Established that larger states would have more votes
What was the New Jersey Plan?
Constitutional convention 1787
Smaller states didn’t like the Virginia Plan so proposed this plan that proposed equal representation
What was established in the Great Compromise?
Constitutional convention 1787
Days of debate after New Jersey Plan was proposed
Idea of Bicameral legislature
Idea of Three-Fifths compromise
