-
When the Articles of Confederation kick in.
During the American Revolution, the Second Continental Congress was the provisional government of the United States of America. They had finally come to grips with the fact that a more permanent government would be highly necessary and from there they had agreed to develop the Articles of Confederation. In order for the Articles to take effect, they needed approval from all 13 states. -
The Newburgh Conspiracy.
During this time, soldiers had been refusing to fight because they hadn't been recieving pay for their labor. The states had believed that a standing army was a big threat to individual security and they wouldn't pay for such things, and they had also preffered to rely on their state militia. To show their displeasure, the soliders in Newburgh, NY had threatened to walk away. -
The United States were unpermitted to ship through the Gulf of Mexico.
In a letter to the Second Continental Congress, John Jay had written that it was irresponsible for the United States to think that Spain would permit shipping from them, and he had also discussed the closure of the Mississippi River and the Gulf of Mexico to continue this shipping. However, Article 8 of the Treaty of Paris stated that the United States was allowed to use this river; the U.S. had no respect internationally, nor was their a diplomatic, economic, or military solution for them. -
Hardships with trade and shipping.
In a letter to George Washington, James McHenry had argued for the creation of a Navy to protect certain exports. Although a Navy would prevent the British from taking U.S. goods and selling them as their own, this would now allow the U.S. to export more goods than they had imported in the first place. That being said, some states opposed this because they believed that restrictions should be put on their imports and exports, while others in the South completely rejected this. -
Congress Meets to Discuss Raising Revenue and Paying War Debts.
During this time, the Congress was trying to discuss how to restore public credit and to pay back all of their debts from the Revolution. Congress had wanted to put a tax on imported goods but not all of the states had agreed with this decision, because the states had realized that the prices for imported goods would rise even more so due to the merchants passing along the prices to their buyers. -
Congress Seeks to Make Amendments to the Articles of Confederation.
One of the amendments had suggested that the Congress should be the only group that had the right to regulate trade. While another amendment had said that states had to pay taxes in a reasonable time in order to pass their laws. Also, another amendment had stated that each state had to have at least one representative in the Congress; they did not pass.
