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Read
to
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1. What ideas and documents shaped American beliefs about
government?
2. How did state constitutions contribute to the development
of representative government?
3. What powers did the central government have under the
Articles of Confederation?
4. What did the Northwest Ordinance accomplish?
.
constitution
. republicanism
. limited government
. suffrage
. ratification
EdeartE$y
.
Virginia Statute for Religious
Freedom
Many countries have modeled their political systems on
American and European ideas of representative govern-
ment. Use CSNIlri".rn or other current events sources
to learn abouf frow itbreign nation elects its leaders.
Record your f indings in your journal.
T&ae StCIryr
.
Articles of Confederation
.
.
Land Ordinance of 1785
Northwest Ordinance of 1187
o Northwest Territory
Cowt\ffia,res
Tn 1776 a short essay by an unknorvn author appeared.
IThe essay calied for the newly independent states to
take great.ur. *h.r, building their new governments.
"They fthe people] are now planting a seed," it stated.
The author predicted that the seed would grow into a
tree, whose branches would "shelter the liberty of
succeeding ages." ManyAmericans agreed with this
idea. They hoped that a strong republic couid be
formed in America.
The bald eagle is
one of the symbols of
the United Sfates.
X
ldeas about Government
The American colonies had taken a bold step in declaring their independence from Great Britain in July t776.Their next political goal was
to form new governments. To do so, the American people drew from a
wide range of political ideas.
I86
Chapter
S
One source of inspiration was English law. England had limited the
power of its kings and queens in rwo documents-Magna cartaand the
English Bill of Rights. Magna carta, signed by King ]ohn in i 2 1 5, required
the king to follow the rule of law like other Engtish people. The English
Bill of Rights, passed in 1689, kept the king or queen from passing new
taxes or changing laws without Parliament's approval.\s a result, the
people's representatives had a stronger voice in government.
Americans were also influenced by the Enlightenment, writers of
that period had called for the use of reason and expressed a belief in
human goodness. Enlightenment philosopher John Locke believed that
a social contract, or agreement, existed between political leaders and the
people they ruled. one side of this contract was the government's duty
to protect the people's unalienable rights. The rule of iaw, wrote Locke,
was more important than the authority of any individual.
66Whosoever in authority exceeds
the power given him by
the law , . . may be opposed as any other man who by force
invades the right of another.t?
The Enlightenment During the
E n i g hten ment, ph i loso p he rs
I
often discussed their ideas at
e ega nt soci a I gathe ri n gs.
I
British philosopher John Locke
was widely respected. How
does the painting suggest the
interest that the wealthy had
htenment ideas?
i n E n I ig
Analyzing Primary Sources
ldentifying Points of View
To whom does Locke
compare a ruler who breaks
-John Locke, Two Treatises on Government
the law?
Locke stated that leaders who broke the law or lost the approval of the
people should be replaced.
Naturally American leaders looked to their own political traditions,
such as the New England town meeting. At these meetings, townspeople
addressed important issues in their community. Americans also looked to
AS
IA
their own legislative assemblies, such as the virginia House of Burgesses.
of representative governments. christian traditions, such as the Great Awakening, may have also inspired colonists to
question existing political institutions and look for more local control.
These bodies offered models
Forming a Government 187
Americans also had written documents supporting the principles of
self-government. In 1620 the Pilgrims had agreed to govern themselr.es
at Plymouth colony b,v signing the Mayflower Compact. In 1639 the
people of Connecticut had dra.rvn up the Fundamental Orders of
Connecticut. This plan nas u,idely considered to be the first r,r,ritten
constitution in the English colonies. A constitution is a set of basic
principles and laws that state the powers and duties of the government.
Finallv, the Declaration of Independence clearl,v set forth the ideas on
n hich Americans thought go\rernment should be based.
#
Reading eElec[<: Summarizing What influenced American ideas of
government?
X
The State Constitutions
All of these political
Female
voters The only state
to give voting rights to women
was New Jersey, though it took
that right away in 1807. From
the way these women voters
are dressed, do you think that
they are property owners?
Why or why notT
put into practice after the United
States declared independence. During the American Revolution nearlr.
er,ery colon)/ \r'rote a ne\,r, state constitution. These constitutions showed
a belief in republicanism-that is, support for a s,vstem of government
called a republic. In such a system, citizens elect representatir.,es lvho are
responsible to the people. Most Americans r,r,anted to keep individual
leaders from gaining too much power. Thus, each state constitution
created a limited government. In a limited government all leaders have
to obey the lar,r,s and no one has total power. For example, man,v states
placed their courts outside of the governor's control.
Most state constitutions protected the individual rights of citizens. For
example, George Mason wrote the \,rirginia Declaration of fughts. Some of
the rights it defended were trial by lur,v, freedom of the press, and private
ou,nership of propertp In1786 Thomas lefferson's support for freedom of
religion was included in the Virginia Statute for Religious Freedom. This
law promoted the separation of church and state in Virginia. Other states
soon followed, and by 1833 there were no state governideas were quickl,v
ments that supported an official church.
In addition,
many state constitutions expanded
suffrage, or voting rights. As one Virginian wrote, "The
Some states allowed any white man who was a taxpaying
citizen to vote. Other states gave the vote only to
't,
,,i.
white ..i
men who owned property. In most states people had to
;:
own property to hold an elected office. Seven of the first t
state constitutions gave voting rights to free African .;*
American men. However, by the 1860s these rights had ,$
been taken away or greatly limited by high property or :!;
residency requirements.
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Reading C!'eeck: Analyzing lnformation How did the
first state constitutions promote the growth of democracy?
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Western Land
Claims, 1791-1g}z
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i. ceded to Ny
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lnterpreting Maps Many of the
in 1786>-:.
l r
i,
&d
7e?
-{\':
origlnal
13 states had claims
to
western lands that dated back
to
their colonial charters. tt took sev_
eral years for all the states to cede
these lands to the United States.
1. Places and Regions What states
claimed land within the bound_
f-l originat
I I 13 states
l-_-l Western lands
,J^i-
'-
I
r-r
Disputed with
SDain untti 1795
r1
:
200
aries of what became the
Northwest Territory?
2. Summarizing Which states had
no land claims?
claimed by states
Date claims
trnally ceded to
United States
Boundary of
Northwest
Territory
400 Mrte<
o
u
2oo 400
tio Kilomete6
vt^^-,^..
200
\3C i,r, AlbeR Equat,Area pioj€(ion
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%' Forming a Union
To many members of the Second
Continental congress, it w.as not
enough for each state to have its own
government. The1, belier.ed that a
national government was n...rrr.r"
in order ;" h;i; the country
together. Some leaders of the Revorution
disagreed. Th.i;.;;;ffiri
a ne\r/ central government wourd
be too polverfur. After alr, they were
rebelling against Great Britain in part
be.ause of pariiament,s abuse of
authoritr,..
on |une
12, 1776., the Congress appointed
a committee of Thirteen,
made up of one member from each.otnr.
This group was assigned to cre_
ate a national
constitution. committee memb.., *.i
for a month to dis_
nel' document, cailed the Articres of confederation.
Under theArticles of Confbderation,
a ne\v Corf.Jffi
become the centrar nationai government.
Each state wourd have one vote
in the congress. The nationur gor,.rn*ent
did not have a president or a
court system
The confederation congress had only
iimited powers. It could
make coins and borrow mone,v.
It could negotiate
treaties
with other countries and with American
".rd -uk.
Indians. congress
aiso could
settle conflicts between the states
and couid ask states-for mone'and
soidiers. However, congress
courd not force the states to provide money
or troops, even in an emergenc,y.
cuss and draft the
ARTICLES
OF
Confederarion
AND
Ferpetual Union
!Ei.wEEN
TgE
STATES
N.q-&,,d,r,, r.,","1*,-,.r^,.
[r^r! rrD horro.t.; p.^rarrr.r+ **-co:_
,!.r'.0r, Nr,-yor& Nia-Jrr.ry. ftr..".H^ry!rr,, vrrou,r
&!ri.crorrra err cr"r:::rr.cr4r.^:
L n N CA J
! xr
Pr_,xrE, r, F R INC 'rS !A I LE r.
ulEtf,Ein
The Articles of Confederatian
created a central government
with limited powers.
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;
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I
,
Forming a Goyernment l 89
t
I
Iohn Dickinson headed the committee of Thirtee,.
He cared the
Articres "a firm reague-of friendship."
But man'peopre rater criticized
the Articles for having forrned u ,r,.uk
central government,
Analyzing Primary $ourees
66cong,es
must have the same power to enact
[pass] laws
and compel [force] obedience
tfrrougtroui the continent, as
the legislatures of the States hav^e^in-their
Drawing lnferences and
Conclusions Whv miqht
Webster have held thr:s view?
-
jurisdictions [areas of
authorityJ.t,
N o a h we bste r, q u ote
d n, n o,. * r:
i
"
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,"rp".tir"
fffi :;#:i;: ffi :# :l :J;:,["ffi;
The second tr."-rtl::yr congress
passed the Arricres of confederation on No'ember 15, r777.Thenlt
,.rrt th.- to each state iegisiature for
ratification, or ofhciar appro'al.
Arl 13 states had to ratifi. the Articres
before rhe ne*' national governmenr
over
claims to \'vestern rands srowed
the process. rt{anl,states claimed
territo^,
as far u'est as the Mississippi
River. virginia and Ne*.york
the largest land craims. states rrithout'rand
claims, such as Mary4and,
wanted these territories to belong
to the nerv nationar gorernment,
Ne*, York finallv gave up its land
claims in l igl- rirgiri, did the
same the following year. This
conr.inced lr,{arvland ,o ,urii] the
Articres
of confederation in-\4arch 17g 1,
thus f utting rhe first national govern_
ment of the United States into effect.
.""iJ;"k;#.;::rflicts
Research
on the
ffi&6ffi
Free Find:
Schooling
After reading about
pubiic schools on the
Holt Researcher CD_ROM,
imagine that you attend
a public school in the late
1780s, Write a short
account of your
experiences,
il ;#"|
#
meadEmg
e0'recE<: Finding the Main
tdea- what powers did the national
government have under the
Articles oi tonteOeration?
X
Surveyors used tools tike these
to help them determine
property boundaries.
The Northwest Territory
The.new centrar government had
to decide what to do with the western
lands now under its control. It
also had t ratse mone), to pay
war debts.
Tho r^-r^
) ^-^_: - a
The
Confederation
Congress hoped ,o ,"rr.
Loil;;o,#;ffi:;
western]andtothepublic.Itpassed.h.@,which
set up a system for surveying
and dividing tfr. pili.
ry First the
land was
split into t11nlhins of 36 square
m,es. Each township was
divided into 36 rots of 640 acres
.u.h. o.r. rot was set aside for a public
school, with another 4 rots saved
for Revorutionary war veterans. The
remaining lots were for sale to
the public.
To form a poriticar system for
the region north of the ohio River,
Congress passed ,n.
. The ordinance
created the North*est Ter.itoiillril
incruded the area that is now
Illin ois, maiilIlil.higan, Ohio,
and Wisconsin.
The Northwest ordinance also
created a system for bringing new
states into the Union. congress
agreed to divide the Northwest
Territory
into several smaller territo;ies,.J.h
of *hich had a governor appointed
by congress' when the popuration-of
a territory reached 60,000, its
settlers could draft their twn
constitution. The peopre courd then
ask
Congress for permission to join
the Urio, as a state.
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ry.
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In addition, the ordinance had a bill of rights. [t also required that
public education be provided for the citizens of the region. Finalir: tl.re
Northwest ordi.ance stated that "there shall be neiiher sla,u.ery nor
involuntarv servitude [fbrced labor] in the . . . territorv.,,This last condi_
tion, based on a proposal bv Thomas iefferson, bannecl slave^,in the
Northrvest Territor,v. Ho\r,ever, the question of slar..erv l'oulcl become
more contror,,ersial as other new territories r,r,ere fbrnred.
/
Moving West After the
Revolutionary War Americans
began heading west in
greater numbers. Thousands
of people settled in the lands
of the Northwest Territory.
Many of these people were
farmers from New England,
where good farmland was
scarce. As the population of
the Northwest Territory grew
and the region was divided
into states, more settlers
came from throughout the
nation and from overseas.
Why do you think settlers
would travel in a larEe group
as shown here?
meadE'lg eheek: summarizing How did the new Congress organize
the
nation's western lands?
K
see€EesB
$
,$gSHomework
Oefine and exptain:
o
fffi8ffi:""
m**e
constitution
@
, republicanism
. limited
govern ment
, suffrage
SumrnarizinE Copy the
graphic organizer below. Use it
to identify the ideas and documents that influenced the U.S.
state and national governments
, ratification
ft ldentify
.
and exptain:
" Northwest Ordinance
of
o
1787
a. In what ways did the f irst state
constitutions support the growth of
representative government?
b. Why did Congress
pass the
Northwest Ordinance, and what did
it achieve?
i:$ Wrlting and Critica!Thinking
Virginia Statute
for Religious Freedom
: Articles of Confederation
. Land Ordinance of 1785
@ r;naing the Main tdea
/
\
J-
:-
Analyzing lnformation lmagine
"\
rnlirht.nrunt
ldears
\
)*
Northwest Territory
,'o emetican \
lnstitutrons l-*
( -\
\ and Documents ,/
that you are a member of the
Committee of Thirteen. Write a
brief report for the states describing
the powers given to the central
government under the Articles of
Confederation.
Consider the following:
. the structure of the national gov_
ernment
a what the Confederation
Congress
could and could not do
i
E
e
t
!
E
Ir
Forming a Goyernment
l9l
ti
iI
rl
i