After declaring their independence in 1776, the colonies set about writing new state constitutions to replace their old colonial charters. Most of the new state governments provided for a bicameral (two-house) legislature, a governor with limited authority, and a bill of rights. The Second Continental Congress drafted the Articles of Confederation. Adopted in 1781, the Articles of Confederation formed the first government of the United States. It established a loose alliance of state governments rather than a strong central government.
The Confederation Congress successfully settled western land issues after the end of the war. It could not, however, solve the new nation's problems with worthless money, debt, trade, economic depression, and citizen unrest. Americans called for a government better able to deal with important national issues.
In 1787, political leaders met at the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia. Instead of revising the Articles of Confederation, they wrote the United States Constitution-an entirely new plan of government. Under the new government, the states retained a number of important powers. The national government, however, became the supreme law of the land. Federalists and Anti-Federalists debated the Constitution for months. Federalists were people who favored the new Constitution and a strong central government. Anti-Federalists favored supremacy of state governments and opposed a strong central government. By June 1788, nine states had ratified the Constitution, allowing the new government to begin. One of its first acts, as promised during the ratification debate, was to add a bill of rights. These amendments guaranteed personal rights and freedoms.
