Chapter Five: Section One: The Articles of Confederation

Chapter Five: Section One: The Articles of Confederation

• ​No longer wanting to pay these high taxes, the barons renounced their loyalty to King John and rebelled (May 1215)

• On May 17, the barons overtook London, forcing the King to listen to their demands

• In June of 1215, the barons and the King met at Runnymede and drafted the Magna Carta

• After doing so, the barons declared peace and reinstated their allegiance to King John

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​The Rebellion and the Creation of the Magna Carta

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• ​Within just three months of its creation, Pope Innocent III nullified the Magna Carta, plunging England into Civil War.

• Despite its short life, the Magna Carta set the foundation for other countries to declare basic human rights.

• The U.S. Constitution

  • Many articles of the Constitutio​n were inspired by the Magna Carta, such as the freedom of the people, the right to a fair trial, fair taxation, and separation of the church and state.

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​After the Magna Carta

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The Virginia Statute for Religious Freedom

Early settlers of North America left Europe so that they could be free to practice their own religion. It did not always work so well, and there was much disagreement between the colonists. But Thomas Jefferson believed in freedom of religion. He believed there should be a “wall between church and state.” He did not believe people should pay taxes to support any church. Jefferson worked to get rid of laws that kept the church in power in Virginia. He had the support of Virginia’s Quakers, Presbyterians and Baptists.​

The Virginia Statute for Religious Freedom

With the passing of the bill, Virginia became the first state to separate church and state. It is still part of Virginia’s constitution. It was used as a model for other state’s constitutions. It was also used as a model for the religious language in the Bill of Rights: “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof.”

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Both Thomas Jefferson and James Madison considered the Virginia Statute of Religious Freedom one of their great achievements.

The Articles of Confederation

While the Founding Fathers were united in their belief that the colonies needed to be free and independent from Great Britain, they disagreed on what the new nation's government should be. One of the most significant disagreements was on how strong the central government should be. They had just fought a war trying to free themselves from a strong central government (the Monarchy of Great Britain.).

The Articles of Confederation- Congress would become the single branch of the National Government, but it would have limited powers in order to protect the liberties of the people. This was the first National Constitution in the United States.

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