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US History: Colonial Era to the Present · Module 3 of 15

Forming a New Government

From a failed first attempt at national government to the Constitution that replaced it.

In this module
  1. The Articles of Confederation
  2. The Constitutional Convention & Great Compromise
  3. Federalists vs. Anti-Federalists & the Bill of Rights
  4. Structure of the Constitution
  5. Check yourself

The Articles of Confederation

  • The Articles of Confederation — the US's first government (1781) — created a weak central government with no power to tax, regulate trade, or enforce laws, leaving most power with the states.
  • Shays' Rebellion (1786–87), an uprising of indebted farmers in Massachusetts, exposed the national government's inability to respond effectively, spurring calls for a stronger government.
Worked example

Why did Shays' Rebellion convince many leaders that the Articles of Confederation needed to be replaced?

Solution. The weak national government had no army or power to help suppress the rebellion effectively, showing it couldn't maintain order or respond to crises — pushing leaders to call for a stronger central government.

The Constitutional Convention & Great Compromise

  • Delegates met in Philadelphia in 1787 intending to revise the Articles, but instead wrote an entirely new Constitution.
  • The Great (Connecticut) Compromise resolved the dispute over representation: a bicameral legislature with the House based on population and the Senate with equal representation per state.
Worked example

Why was the Great Compromise necessary at the Constitutional Convention?

Solution. Large states wanted representation based on population, while small states wanted equal representation for each state; the Great Compromise combined both approaches into a two-house legislature to satisfy both sides.

Federalists vs. Anti-Federalists & the Bill of Rights

  • Federalists supported ratifying the Constitution and a stronger national government; Anti-Federalists feared it would create too powerful a central government and threaten individual liberties.
  • To secure ratification, Federalists promised to add a Bill of Rights — the first ten amendments, ratified 1791 — protecting individual freedoms.
Worked example

Why did the promise of a Bill of Rights help secure the Constitution's ratification?

Solution. It addressed Anti-Federalists' main concern — that the new federal government could threaten individual liberties — by explicitly guaranteeing protections like freedom of speech and religion.

Structure of the Constitution

  • The Constitution divides power among three branches (legislative, executive, judicial) with checks and balances so no branch dominates.
  • Federalism divides power between the national government and the states.
Worked example

How do checks and balances prevent any one branch of government from becoming too powerful?

Solution. Each branch has specific powers that let it limit the other two — for example, Congress passes laws, but the president can veto them, and the courts can rule them unconstitutional.

Check yourself

2 of this module's 5 quiz questions. Pick your answers, then check them in the app, with an explanation for every question.

1. What was the main weakness of the Articles of Confederation?

2. What event exposed the weaknesses of the Articles of Confederation and spurred calls for a new government?

Check my answers, free