A report on Articles of Confederation, Constitution of the United States and United States

Page one of the officially engrossed copy of the Constitution signed by delegates. A print run of 500 copies of the final version preceded this copy.

1977 13-cent U.S. Postage stamp commemorating the Articles of Confederation bicentennial; the draft was completed on November 15, 1777

Signing of the Constitution, September 17, 1787 (1940 by Howard Chandler Christy)

The Act of the Maryland legislature to ratify the Articles of Confederation, February 2, 1781

Dates the 13 states ratified the Constitution

Cliff Palace in Colorado, built by the Native American Puebloans between AD 1190 and 1260

The original Thirteen Colonies (shown in red) in 1775

Declaration of Independence, a painting by John Trumbull, depicts the Committee of Five presenting the draft of the Declaration to the Continental Congress in Philadelphia, July 4, 1776.

Closing endorsement section of the United States Constitution

Territorial acquisitions of the United States between 1783 and 1917

United States Bill of Rights
Currently housed in the National Archives.

The Battle of Gettysburg, fought between Union and Confederate forces on July 1–3, 1863 around Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, was the deadliest of all Civil War battles. With more than 51,000 casualties, it marked a turning point in the Union's ultimate victory in the war.

U.S. Marines raising the American flag on Mount Suribachi during the Battle of Iwo Jima in one of the most iconic images of World War II

Martin Luther King Jr. delivers his famous "I Have a Dream" speech at the Lincoln Memorial during the March on Washington, August 1963.

Salmon P. Chase {{refn|group= lower-alpha|The Chase Court, 1864–1873, in 1865 were Salmon P. Chase (chief Justice); Hon. Nathan Clifford, Maine; Stephen J. Field, Justice Supreme Court, U.S.; Hon. Samuel F. Miller, U.S. Supreme Court; Hon. Noah H. Swayne, Justice Supreme Court, U.S.; Judge Morrison R. Waite}}

U.S. president Ronald Reagan (left) and Soviet general secretary Mikhail Gorbachev at the Geneva Summit, February 1985

William Howard Taft {{refn|group= lower-alpha|The Taft Court, 1921–1930, in 1925 were James Clark McReynolds, Oliver Wendell Holmes Jr., William Howard Taft (chief justice), Willis Van Devanter, Louis Brandeis. Edward Sanford, George Sutherland, Pierce Butler, Harlan Fiske Stone}}

The World Trade Center in New York City burning from the September 11 terrorist attacks by the Islamic terrorist group al-Qaeda in 2001

Earl Warren {{refn|group= lower-alpha|The Warren Court, 1953–1969, in 1963 were Felix Frankfurter; Hugo Black; Earl Warren (chief justice); Stanley Reed; William O. Douglas. Tom Clark; Robert H. Jackson; Harold Burton; Sherman Minton}}

William Rehnquist {{refn|group= lower-alpha|The Rehnquist Court, 1986–2005.}}

A map showing climate regions in the United States

The bald eagle has been the national bird of the United States since 1782.

Map of the United States showing the 50 states, the District of Columbia, and the five major U.S. territories

The headquarters of the United Nations, of which the U.S. is a founding member, has been situated in Midtown Manhattan since 1952.

U.S. Government spending and revenue from 1792 to 2018

The Pentagon, located in Arlington, Virginia across the Potomac River from Washington, D.C., is home to the U.S. Department of Defense.

Total incarceration in the United States by year (1920–2014)

A proportional representation of United States exports, 2019

Wealth inequality in the U.S. increased between 1989 and 2013.

The Interstate Highway System in the contiguous United States, which extends 46876 mi

Most prominent religion by state according to a 2014 Pew Research study

Jackson Memorial Hospital in Miami, the primary teaching hospital of the University of Miami's Leonard M. Miller School of Medicine and the largest hospital in the United States with 1,547 beds

The University of Virginia, founded by Thomas Jefferson, is one of the many public colleges and universities in the United States. Some 80% of U.S. college students attend these types of institutions.

The Statue of Liberty, a gift from France, has become an iconic symbol of the American Dream.

Mark Twain, American author and humorist

Roast turkey, a traditional menu item of an American Thanksgiving dinner, November 2021

Grammy Museum at L.A. Live in Los Angeles, April 2009

The Hollywood Sign in Los Angeles, California, September 2015

The headquarters of the National Broadcasting Company (NBC) at Rockefeller Plaza in New York City

"the united states of America", April 6, 1776

Mayflower II, a replica of the original Mayflower, docked at Plymouth, Massachusetts

Slave states that seceded before April 15, 1861 Slave states that seceded after April 15, 1861 Union states that permitted slavery (border states) Union states that banned slavery
Territories

The Empire State Building was the tallest building in the world when completed in 1931, during the Great Depression.

Worker during construction of the Empire State Building in New York City in 1930; the Chrysler Building can be seen in the background

Rock formations in the Grand Canyon, northern Arizona

Mushroom cloud formed by the Trinity Experiment in July 1945, part of the Manhattan Project, the first detonation of a nuclear weapon in history

The World Trade Center in Lower Manhattan during the September 11 attacks by the Islamic terrorist group al-Qaeda in 2001

The amount of US debt, measured as a percentage of GDP from 1790 to 2018

The nuclear-powered aircraft carrier USS George Washington (CVN 73)

The New York City Police Department is the nation's largest municipal law enforcement agency.

The New York Stock Exchange on Wall Street in New York City

The United States Capitol, where Congress meets: the Senate, left; the House, right

Percentage of respondents in the United States saying that religion is "very important" or "somewhat important" in their lives (2014)

The White House, residence and workplace of the U.S. President

The Texas Medical Center in downtown Houston is the largest medical complex in the world.

The Supreme Court Building, where the nation's highest court sits

The United Nations headquarters has been situated along the East River in Midtown Manhattan since 1952. The United States is a founding member of the UN.

The Pentagon, near Washington, D.C., is home to the U.S. Department of Defense.

U.S. dollar is the currency most used in international transactions and is the world's foremost reserve currency.

The New York Stock Exchange on Wall Street, the world's largest stock exchange by market capitalization of its listed companies

U.S. astronaut Buzz Aldrin saluting the flag on the Moon, 1969

The Capitol Records Building, the home of the Capitol Studios, among the cultural landmarks of Los Angeles.

The Walt Disney Company is one of the biggest American multinational mass media and entertainment conglomerate

The Articles of Confederation and Perpetual Union was an agreement among the 13 original states of the United States of America that served as its first frame of government.

- Articles of Confederation

The Constitution of the United States is the supreme law of the United States of America.

- Constitution of the United States

It superseded the Articles of Confederation, the nation's first constitution.

- Constitution of the United States

On March 4, 1789, the government under the Articles was replaced with the federal government under the Constitution.

- Articles of Confederation

The second draft of the Articles of Confederation and Perpetual Union, prepared by John Dickinson and completed no later than June 17, 1776, declared "The name of this Confederation shall be the 'United States of America'."

- United States

Nationalists led the Philadelphia Convention of 1787 in writing the United States Constitution, ratified in state conventions in 1788.

- United States

3 related topics with Alpha

United States Declaration of Independence

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Pronouncement and founding document adopted by the Second Continental Congress meeting in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on July 4, 1776.

Thomas Jefferson, the principal author of the Declaration, as painted by Rembrandt Peale

The 13 states at the Declaration of Independence

The Assembly Room in Philadelphia's Independence Hall, where the Second Continental Congress adopted the Declaration of Independence

Writing the Declaration of Independence, 1776, an idealized depiction of Franklin, Adams, and Jefferson working on the Declaration was widely reprinted (by Jean Leon Gerome Ferris, 1900).

Portable writing desk that Jefferson used to draft and finalize the Declaration of Independence

"Declaration House", the reconstructed boarding house at Market and S. 7th Street in Philadelphia, where Jefferson wrote the Declaration

The opening of the original printing of the Declaration, printed on July 4, 1776, under Jefferson's supervision. The engrossed copy was made later (shown at the top of this article). The opening lines differ between the two versions.

English political philosopher John Locke (1632–1704)

The signed copy of the Declaration is now badly faded because of poor preserving practices in the 19th century. It is on display at the National Archives in Washington, D.C.

The Syng inkstand, which was used at both the 1776 signing of the Declaration and the 1787 signing of the U.S. Constitution, is on display in Philadelphia

On July 4, 1776, Continental Congress President John Hancock's signature authenticated the United States Declaration of Independence.

Johannes Adam Simon Oertel's painting Pulling Down the Statue of King George III, N.Y.C., ca. 1859, depicts citizens destroying a statue of King George after the Declaration was read in New York City on July 9, 1776.

William Whipple, signer of the Declaration of Independence, manumitted his slave, believing that he could not both fight for liberty and own slaves.

The Rotunda for the Charters of Freedom in the National Archives building

John Trumbull's famous 1818 painting is often identified as a depiction of the signing of the Declaration, but it actually shows the drafting committee presenting its work to the Congress.

Elizabeth Cady Stanton and her two sons (1848)

With the Declaration, these new states took a collective first step in forming the United States of America.

This view was notably promoted by Lincoln, who considered the Declaration to be the foundation of his political philosophy and argued that it is a statement of principles through which the United States Constitution should be interpreted.

John Dickinson made one last effort to delay the decision, arguing that Congress should not declare independence without first securing a foreign alliance and finalizing the Articles of Confederation.

1876 Currier & Ives printing of Washington being promoted to commanding general

Second Continental Congress

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Meeting of delegates from the Thirteen Colonies in America that united in the American Revolutionary War.

John Trumbull's 1819 painting, Declaration of Independence, depicting the five-man drafting committee presenting the Declaration of Independence to Congress

South facade of Independence Hall (formerly the Pennsylvania Statehouse), Philadelphia, principal meeting site of the Second Continental Congress

1977 13-cent U.S. Postage stamp commemorating the Articles of Confederation bicentennial; the draft was completed in York (formerly York Town), Pennsylvania on November 15, 1777

A five-dollar banknote issued by the Second Continental Congress in 1775.

Afterward, Congress functioned as the provisional government of the United States of America through March 1, 1781.

During this period, its achievements included: Successfully managing the war effort; drafting the Articles of Confederation and Perpetual Union, the first U.S. constitution; securing diplomatic recognition and support from foreign nations; and resolving state land claims west of the Appalachian Mountains.

Jefferson's proposal for a Senate to represent the states and a House to represent the people was rejected, but a similar proposal was adopted later in the United States Constitution.

President of the United States

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George Washington, the first president of the United States

President Franklin D. Roosevelt delivers a radio address, 1933

President Lyndon B. Johnson signs the 1964 Civil Rights Act as Martin Luther King Jr. and others look on

President Donald Trump delivers his 2018 State of the Union Address, with Vice President Mike Pence and Speaker of the House Paul Ryan

President George H. W. Bush and Russian President Gorbachev sign the 1990 Chemical Weapons Accord in the White House.

Abraham Lincoln, the 16th president of the United States, successfully preserved the Union during the American Civil War.

President Barack Obama with his Supreme Court appointee Justice Sotomayor, 2009

President Ronald Reagan reviews honor guards during a state visit to China, 1984

President Woodrow Wilson throws out the ceremonial first ball on Opening Day, 1916

President Jimmy Carter (left) debates Republican nominee Ronald Reagan on October 28, 1980.

Map of the United States showing the number of electoral votes allocated following the 2010 census to each state and the District of Columbia for the 2012, 2016 and 2020 presidential elections; it also notes that Maine and Nebraska distribute electors by way of the congressional district method. 270 electoral votes are required for a majority out of 538 votes possible.

Franklin D. Roosevelt won a record four presidential elections (1932, 1936, 1940 and 1944), leading to the adoption of a two-term limit.

President William McKinley and his successor, Theodore Roosevelt

President Reagan surrounded by Secret Service

From left: George H. W. Bush, Barack Obama, George W. Bush, Bill Clinton, and Jimmy Carter. Photo taken in the Oval Office on January 7, 2009; Obama formally took office thirteen days later.

Presidents Barack Obama, George W. Bush, Bill Clinton, George H.W. Bush, and Jimmy Carter at the dedication of the George W. Bush Presidential Library and Museum in Dallas, 2013

The presidential limousine, dubbed "The Beast"

The presidential plane, called Air Force One when the president is on board

Marine One helicopter, when the president is aboard

The president of the United States (POTUS) is the head of state and head of government of the United States of America.

Congress finished work on the Articles of Confederation to establish a perpetual union between the states in November 1777 and sent it to the states for ratification.

It was through the closed-door negotiations at Philadelphia that the presidency framed in the U.S. Constitution emerged.