Declaration of Independence and Articles of Confederation - 12/12/14

Overall, why did the founding fathers choose a Confederation plan of government?

they feared having a strong central government and also feared of jeopardizing the peoples' rights

How many states attended the Constitutional Convention?

12 (Rhode Island didn't go)

What were the Articles of Confederation?

first type of Constitution of how our government would work and includes ideas that were given in the Declaration of Independance

What specific Enlightenment ideas were used in the Declaration of Independence?

humans had natural rights of life, liberty, and property; the government is meant to protect those rights; and if the government messed with those rights, the people had the right to overthrow the government

What did the Declaration of Natural Rights part of the Declaration of Independence talk about?

in a republic, the government's purpose is to protect the rights of the human and Jefferson described those rights as "Unalienable" (not able to be taken away)

What were examples within the List of Grievances?

taxing the colonists without representation, cutting of trade with the rest of the world, quartering British troops, and overall all the Acts the British put into place

What important document came after the Articles of Confederation?

the Constitution

Why did the founding fathers originally choose the Articles of Confederation?

they didn't want to have a strong central government because they didn't want it to be like England

Who was the first person to sign the Declaration of Independence?

John Hancock

Who created the Great Compromise?

Robert Sherman

What did the Preamble explain about in the Declaration of Independence?

why the Continental Congress wrote the Declaration of Independence

How long after the Great Compromise was slave trade banned?

20 years

What was the Virginia Plan of government?

3 branch government with a 2 house Legislature with membership based on state population (large states would get more power

How did slaves count in the Great Compromise?

3/5ths of the slave population would be counted for the purpose of taxes and representation

How did the government do "Separation of Power"?

Branches

How did the Great Compromise satisfy both large and small states?

Each state would have equal representation in the Senate Size of population of each state would determine reps in the House of Representatives

Who came up with the Virginia Plan of government?

James Madison

When was the Declaration of Independence adopted by the United States?

July 4, 1776

What were the principles of the government?

Limited government, popular sovereignty, federalism, separation of power, checks and balances, and judicial review?

What did the List of Grievances talk about in the Declaration of Independence?

List of the colonists' complaints with England and make sure to blame King George III

Who's Enlightenment ideas were used in the Declaration of Independence?

Locke

What were the parts of the Declaration of Independence? (in order)

Preamble, Declaration of Natural Rights, List of Grievances, and the Resolution of Independence.

Overall, why did the Founding Fathers believe the Articles of Confederation needed to be replaced by the US Constitution?

The Articles of Confederation had many flaws, the nation wasn't functioning as one UNITED country (there were 13 unorganized, independent states), and Shay's Rebellion proved the need of a stronger government.

What were the two ideas for the government presented during the Constitutional Convention?

The Virginia Plan and the New Jersey Plan

Who was the main author of the Declaration of Independence?

Thomas Jefferson

Who came up with the New Jersey plan of government?

William Paterson

What was the Great Compromise?

a 2 house Congress to satisfy both small and big states

What is the Constitutional Convention?

a convention where representatives will create a new and improved constitution

What is Judicial Review?

courts determine whether or not the actions the government takes are unconstitutional

What are the Pros of the Articles of Confederation?

declare war, make peace, sign treaties, borrow money, establish and Army and Navy, Organize a post office, No big central government

What did the states have the power to do with the Declaration of Independence?

declare war, trade with other countries, and form alliances.

What did the Resolution of Independence in the Declaration of Independence discuss?

declared the colonies "Free and Independent States" and included signatures

What are the Cons of the Articles of Confederation?

each state functioned independently, no president, states could refuse to send troops for war, laws needed approval from 9 out of 13 states, government could not tax citizens, no court system, changes to the laws (amendments) had to be approved by all 13 states, and couldn't get any money at the national level

What was the "Checks and Balances" system in the Constitution?

making every form of government have equal power

What was Shay's Rebellion?

named after Daniel Shay, farmers in Mass. suffered from high debt and the state government did not care, farmers were required to pay their debt, farmers who couldn't pay debts were put in prison, farmers became angry that federal government did not take action, and showed that the Articles of Confederation had problems and needed to get fixed

What is popular sovereignty?

people hold the power of the government

What is federalism?

power divided between state and federal government

What are the limited government principles?

powers given to government were expressed in Constitution

What was the purpose of the Declaration of Independence?

show why the colonies were going against the British and to declare America's independence

What impact does the AoC have on the American Government?

showed the founding fathers that we needed a better plan for our government and lead to the Constitutional Convention

What was the New Jersey plan of government?

single house plan where each state would get one vote

What were the war debts associated with the Articles of Confederation?

states had to raise taxes to pay off debt and led to farmers losing land to banks