In Order To Form A More Perfect Union Dbq

“We the people of the United States, in Order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defence, promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessing of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America.” (Greenholt 185). This is the preamble to the beloved Constitution of the United States. In this one sentence, the Constitution gives a sense of hope and nostalgia to the American reader. Looking at the first line, you will see that it says, “…in Order to form a more perfect Union…” (Greenholt 185). That implies that there was a union before that they were planning to improve upon with this document. What union are they

It declared our official name, laid out the powers of the states and congress, and how all affairs would be managed, and who would be managing them. Under the Articles, the states, at the time there were only 13, remained sovereign and dealt with taxes, commerce, and other similar issues themselves. Their federal government, which was made up by the congress, dealt with foreign affairs, war the postal service, appoint military officers, control Indian affairs, borrow money, determine the value of coin, and deal with issues of bill credit. These issues would be decided by a vote. Each states’ citizens would annually elect a certain amount of legislators (depending on the state) to represent them in congress. Each state was allowed one vote which would be determined by the majority of its legislators. This is similar to our current congress, only the former had more power. So, who wrote this and why was it

By 1779 all of the states had accepted the Articles, except one, Maryland. Maryland, being a small state, was afraid that the southern states with all of their claims to western territory, would have more representation than it in congress. It took two more years and Virginia giving up all claims to western land for Maryland to finally accept the Articles. And in 1781, the Articles of the Confederation were ratified by all 13 states. But being accepted did not mean that there weren’t changes to be made. Over the next three years, 3 land ordinances were proposed, the Ordinance of 1784, the Land Ordinance of 1785, and the Northwest Ordinance of 1787, and one Indian policy in 1786. The Ordinance of 1784 was proposed by Thomas Jefferson. It explained how the trans-Appalachian West was to be divided into 16 new states that would come into the Union equal to the original 13 states. The Land Ordinance of 1785 was sort of a revision of the Ordinance of 1784. It broke up the west into thirty-six 640 acre sections, townships, to be auctioned off at two dollars an acre. The Northwest Ordinance of 1787lays out how territories can seek and receive statehood. It also declared that there would be no slave states north of the Ohio River. The Indian policy in 1786 gave Indians the rights to their land, and Indian commissioners were appointed to deal in treaties with the Indians. These were