The Articles of Confederation were an agreement among the 13 founding states, legally establishing the United States of America as a confederation of sovereign states and serving as its first constitution. Articles of Confederation: An agreement among the 13 colonies that established the United States of America as a confederation of sovereign states, and that served as its first constitution.At the Annapolis Convention in 1786, state delegates endorsed a motion calling for all states to meet at a Constitutional Convention in 1787 to revise the Articles.

Congress was denied power of taxation and could regulate neither foreign trade nor interstate commerce.

While influential even to this day, the Articles created a weak government.

The Articles, drafted and passed by Congress in 1777 and ratified in 1781, provided legitimacy for the Continental Congress to direct the Revolutionary War, conduct diplomacy with Europe, print money, and deal with territorial issues.

The Articles of Confederation legally established the United States of America as a confederation of sovereign states, and served as its first constitution.

Confederation of independent systems