The Articles of Confederation was the first form of government that united the colonies and served as the first Constitution of the United States of America.
After much debate, it was approved, November 15, 1777, and sent to the states for ratification. Ratification would take four more years when Maryland would sign in 1781 but would become the de facto government during the American Revolution.
It would be replaced by the Constitution, but it served its purpose by united the colonies and implementing a government throughout the war.
Timeline
May 1775: The Second Continental Congress meets to discuss colonial problems with Great Britain. This Congress would appoint George Washington as commander-in-chief of the Continental Army.
January 1776: Benjamin Franklin drafts a plan of union that based representation in congress and contribution to the common treasury on the number of males 16 - 60 years of age that was called the Articles of Confederation and Perpetual Union.
June 7, 1776: Richard Henry Lee delivers his famous speech that argues for independence from Great Britain. Lee being a delegate of Virginia swayed the many southern colonies to the cause of independence.
July 4, 1776: America declared its independence from Great Britain when the Declaration of Independence was released to the public.
November 15, 1777: After much debate, the Articles of Confederation were put into place to create a central government. The individual states still retained most power, but with a central government, they were able to unify each of the states.
December 16, 1777: Virginia ratified the Articles of Confederation.
February 5, 1778: South Carolina ratified the Articles of Confederation.
February 6, 1778: New York ratified the Articles of Confederation.
February 9, 1778: Rhode Island ratified the Articles of Confederation
February 12, 1778: Connecticut ratified the Articles of Confederation
February 26, 1778: Georgia ratified the Articles of Confederation
March 4, 1778: New Hampshire ratified the Articles of Confederation
March 5, 1778: Pennsylvania ratified the Articles of Confederation
March 10, 1778: Massachusetts ratified the Articles of Confederation
April 5, 1778: North Carolina ratified the Articles of Confederation
November 19, 1778: New Jersey ratified the Articles of Confederation
February 1, 1779: Delaware ratified the Articles of Confederation
January 2, 1781: Virginia cedes a portion of its land west of the Appalachian Mountains to Congress.
February 2, 1781: Maryland ratified the Articles of Confederation
March 1, 1781: The Articles of Confederation officially became the ruling government in the United States, although it had been the de facto government prior to Maryland's ratification.
March 2, 1781: Samuel Huntington becomes 1st President of the United States under the Articles of Confederation.
July 10, 1781: Huntington resigns and Thomas McKean finishes the term and becomes 2nd President during the Articles of Confederation.
November 5, 1781: John Hanson becomes the 3rd President of the United States under the Articles of Confederation.
1782: Secretary of Finance, Robert Morris, founds the Bank of North America. This bank helped to stabilize the commerce of the United States.
November 4, 1782: Elias Boudinot becomes the 4th President of the United States under the Articles of Confederation
March 1783: The army stationed at Newburgh threatened mutiny because they had not received their pay and were only stopped by George Washington's effective persuasion to remain loyal to the patriotic cause.
June 1783: A mutinous group of Pennsylvania troops, demanding pay, forced Congress to leave Philadelphia. President of Pennsylvania John Dickinson refused the assistance of the state militia, as he feared they were not reliable. Congress retreated to Princeton.
November 3, 1783: Thomas Mifflin becomes the 5th President of the United States under the Articles of Confederation.
March 1784: Congress officially acquires the land ceded by Virginia north and west of the Ohio River. It became known as the Northwest Territory.
April 23, 1784: Thomas Jefferson drafts that Land Ordinance that would be accepted by Congress, this ordinance is the first to establish the process to administer newly acquired lands.
November 30, 1784: Richard Henry Lee becomes the 6th President of the United States under the Articles of Confederation.
March 25, 1785: Representatives of Maryland and Virginia met at George Washington's plantation in Mount Vernon to resolve conflicts over the navigation of the Potomac and Pocomoke Rivers.
November 23, 1785: John Hancock becomes the 7th President of the United States under the Articles of Confederation.
June 5, 1786: Hancock resigns and Nathaniel Gorham finishes the term and becomes 8th President during the Articles of Confederation.
September 11, 1786: New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware and Virginia, meet to discuss uniform trade regulations, but agree to appeal to all states to meet again to discuss broader reforms. It would be known as the Annapolis Convention.
January 25, 1787: Daniel Shays and other armed farmers from western Massachusetts are defeated in their attempt to conquer an arsenal of weapons in Springfield, Massachusetts. It became known as the Shay's Rebellion and prompted many to re-evaluate the Articles of Confederation.
February 2, 1787: Arthur St. Clair becomes 9th President of the United States under the Articles of Confederation.
May 25, 1787: Delegates from all states except Rhode Island meet in Philadelphia for the purpose of revising the Articles of Confederation. This would be the first meeting of the Constitutional Convention.
July 13, 1787: The Northwest Ordinance is passed and serves as a revision of the earlier ordinance. One of its provisions abolished slavery from the new region.
November 4, 1787: Arthur St. Clair resigns and nobody finishes his term.
September 17, 1787: The Constitutional Convention sends its draft of the U.S. Constitution to the states for ratification.
January 22, 1788: Cyrus Griffin becomes the 10th President of the United States under the Articles of Confederation.
November 2, 1788: Congress adjourned and Griffin completes term.
December 15, 1788 - January 10, 1789: The first Presidential election under the United States Constitution is held. this ends the government under the Articles of Confederation.
