The Confederation Period lasted from 1783 to 1789. Following the end of the American Revolution in 1783, the newly independent states retained their sovereignty but were part of a confederation of states with a weak federal government. After it became clear that the confederation could not handle the challenges facing the states, a convention was held in Philadelphia which produced a constitution that created a new nation with a stronger federal government. Episode Six explains that the delegates to the constitutional convention had disagreed over a number of issues, but had finally accepted a lower house with directly elected representatives and an upper house where each state had two members. The entire convention had lasted for four months, and a sizeable number of delegates had failed to make it to the end but the remaining delegates had finally hammered out a constitution that would create a new nation, The United States of America.
Cast of Characters:
George Washington- former Commander in Chief of the Continental Army, former delegate to the Continental Congress
Edmund Randolph-Governor of Virginia, former delegate to the Continental Congress
James Madison-delegate to the Confederation Congress
George Mason-member of the Virginia General Assembly, author of the Virginia Declaration of Rights
Benjamin Franklin-President of Pennsylvania, former minister to France, former Postmaster General, signer of the Declaration of Independence
Luther Martin-lawyer
Roger Sherman-former delegate to the Confederation Congress, former delegate to the Continental Congress, one of the drafters of the Declaration of Independence
Gouverneur Morris-businessman, former Assistant Superintendent of Finance and former delegate to the Continental Congress
James Wilson-lawyer, former delegate to the Continental Congress and signer of the Declaration of Independence
Alexander Hamilton-member of the New York State Legislature, former aide to General George Washington, commander of the Continental Army
John Rutledge-former governor of South Carolina and former delegate to the Continental Congress
Charles Pinckney-delegate to the Confederation Congress
Sources:
Plain, Honest Men: The Making of The American Constitution-Richard Beeman
The Summer of 1787: The Men Who Invented the Constitution-David O. Stewart
Franklin & Washington: The Founding Partnership-Edward J. Larson
Founding Finance: How Debt, Speculation, Foreclosures, Protests, and Crackdowns Made Us a Nation-William Hogeland
The Age of Federalism: The Early American Republic, 1788-1800-Stanley Elkins & Eric McKitrick
The Quartet: Orchestrating the Second American Revolution, 1783-1789-Joseph J. Ellis
American Creation-Joseph J. Ellis
The Framers' Coup: The Making of the United States Constitution-Michael J. Klarman
Unruly Americans and the Origins of the Constitution-Woody Holton
The Return of George Washington: Uniting the States, 1783-1789-Edward J. Larson
Washington: A Life-Ron Chernow
His Excellency: George Washington-Joseph J. Ellis
George Washington: A Life-Willard Sterne Randall
Radical Hamilton: Economic Lessons from a Misunderstood Founder-Christian Parenti
Alexander Hamilton-Ron Chernow
Alexander Hamilton: A Life-Willard Sterne Randall
James Madison: A Biography-Ralph Ketcham
Robert Morris: Financier of the American Revolution-Charles Rappleye
Gentleman Revolutionary: Gouverneur Morris-The Rake Who Wrote the Constitution-Richard Brookhiser
The Glorious Cause: The American Revolution, 1763-1789-Robert Middlekauff
The Forging of the Union 1781-1789-Richard B. Morris
Image Credit:
Scene at the Signing of the Constitution of the United States, by Howard Chandler Christy (1940) - The Indian Reporter, Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=662340
The Mexican-American War (1846-1848): Part IX-The Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo
The Mexican-American War (1846-48): Part VIII-Vera Cruz and Mexico City
The Mexican-American War (1846-48): Part VII-New Mexico and California
The Mexican-American War (1846-48): Part VI-Vera Cruz and Polkas
The Mexican-American War (1846-48): Part V-The Return of Santa Anna
The Mexican-American War (1846-48): Part IV-54:40 or Fight!
The Mexican-American War (1846-48): Part III-Who Is James Polk?
The Mexican-American War (1846-48): Part II-The Republic of Texas
The Mexican-American War (1846-48): Part I-The Texan Revolution
The Mexican-American War (1846-1848)-Introduction
The Formation of the United States: Part VIII-Ratification Part Two
The Formation of the United States: Part VII-Ratification of the Constitution
The Formation of the United States: Part V-Compromises, Compromises and More Compromises
The Formation of the United States: Part IV-The Constitutional Convention
The Formation of the United States: Part III-Shays’ Rebellion
The Formation of the United States: Part II-A Meeting of Commissioners to Remedy Defects of the Federal Government
The Formation of the United States: Part I-These United States
The Fomation of the United States of America-Introduction
The Mexican Revolution: Part XIV-The Headless Rebellion and the end of Obregon
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