Articles of Confederation
In November 1777, Congress adopted the Articles of Confederation and they did little more than confirm the weak, decentralized system already in operation. It provided for a national government much like the one already in place. Congress remained the central institution of national authority. However, it did not the authority to regulate trade, draft troops, or levy taxes directly on the people. There were broad disagreements in the process of ratifying the Articles of Confederation. The small states wanted equal state representation, but the larger states wanted representation to be based on population. The Articles finally went into effect in 1781.