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Articles of
Confederation To all to whom these Presents shall come,
we the undersigned Delegates of the States affixed to our Names send
greeting. Articles of Confederation and perpetual
Union between the states of New Hampshire, Massachusetts-bay Rhode
Island and Providence Plantations, Connecticut, New York, New Jersey,
Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, North Carolina, South
Carolina and Georgia. I.
The Stile of this Confederacy shall be "The II.
Each state retains its sovereignty,
freedom, and independence, and every power, jurisdiction, and right,
which is not by this Confederation expressly delegated to the III.
The said States hereby severally enter into
a firm league of friendship with each other, for their common defense,
the security of their liberties, and their mutual and general welfare,
binding themselves to as IV.
The better to secure and perpetuate mutual
friendship and intercourse among the people of the different States in
this Union, the free inhabitants of each of these States, paupers,
vagabonds, and fugitives from justice excepted, shall be entitled to all
privileges and immunities of free citizens in the several States; and
the people of each State shall free ingress and regress to and from any
other State, and shall enjoy therein all the privileges of trade and
commerce, subject to the same duties, impositions, and restrictions as
the inhabitants thereof respectively, provided that such restrictions
shall not extend so far as to prevent the removal of property imported
into any State, to any other State, of which the owner is an inhabitant;
provided also that no imposition, duties or restriction shall be laid by
any State, on the property of the United States, or either of them. If any person guilty of, or charged with,
treason, felony, or other high misdemeanor in any State, shall flee from
justice, and be found in any of the United States, he shall, upon demand
of the Governor or executive power of the State from which he fled, be
delivered up and removed to the State having jurisdiction of his
offense. Full faith and credit shall be given in
each of these States to the records, acts, and judicial proceedings of
the courts and magistrates of every other State. V.
For the most convenient management of the
general interests of the United States, delegates shall be annually
appointed in such manner as the legislatures of each State shall direct,
to meet in Congress on the first Monday in November, in every year, with
a powerreserved to each State to recall its delegates, or any of them,
at any time within the year, and to send others in their stead for the
remainder of the year. No State shall be represented in Congress
by less than two, nor more than seven members; and no person shall be
capable of being a delegate for more than three years in any term of six
years; nor shall any person, being a delegate, be capable of holding any
office under the United States, for which he, or another for his
benefit, receives any salary, fees or emolument of any kind. Each State shall maintain its own delegates
in a meeting of the States, and while they act as members of the
committee of the States. In determining questions in the Freedom of speech and debate in Congress
shall not be impeached or questioned in any court or place out of
Congress, and the members of Congress shall be protected in their
persons from arrests or imprisonments, during the time of their going to
and from, and attendence on Congress, except for treason, felony, or
breach of the peace. VI.
No State, without the consent of the United
States in Congress assembled, shall send any embassy to, or receive any
embassy from, or enter into any conference, agreement, alliance or
treaty with any King, Prince or State; nor shall any person holding any
office of profit or trust under the United States, or any of them,
accept any present, emolument, office or title of any kind whatever from
any King, Prince or foreign State; nor shall the United States in
Congress assembled, or any of them, grant any title of nobility. No two or more States shall enter into any
treaty, confederation or alliance whatever between them, without the
consent of the United States in Congress assembled, specifying
accurately the purposes for which the same is to be entered into, and
how long it shall continue. No State shall lay any imposts or duties,
which may interfere with any stipulations in treaties, entered into by
the No vessel of war shall be kept up in time
of peace by any State, except such number only, as shall be deemed
necessary by the United States in Congress assembled, for the defense of
such State, or its trade; nor shall any body of forces be kept up by any
State in time of peace, except such number only, as in the judgement of
the United States in Congress assembled, shall be deemed requisite to
garrison the forts necessary for the defense of such State; but every
State shall always keep up a well-regulated and disciplined militia,
sufficiently armed and accoutered, and shall provide and constantly have
ready for use, in public stores, a due number of filed pieces and tents,
and a proper quantity of arms, ammunition and camp equipage. No State shall engage in any war without
the consent of the United States in Congress assembled, unless such
State be actually invaded by enemies, or shall have received certain
advice of a resolution being formed by some nation of Indians to invade
such State, and the danger is so imminent as not to admit of a delay
till the United States in Congress assembled can be consulted; nor shall
any State grant commissions to any ships or vessels of war, nor letters
of marque or reprisal, except it be after a declaration of war by the
United States in Congress assembled, and then only against the Kingdom
or State and the subjects thereof, against which war has been so
declared, and under such regulations as shall be established by the
United States in Congress assembled, unless such State be infested by
pirates, in which case vessels of war may be fitted out for that
occasion, and kept so long as the danger shall continue, or until the
United States in Congress assembled shall determine otherwise. VII.
When land forces are raised by any State
for the common defense, all officers of or under the rank of colonel,
shall be appointed by the legislature of each State respectively, by
whom such forces shall be raised, or in such manner as such State shall
direct, and all vacancies shall be filled up by the State which first
made the appointment. VIII.
All charges of war, and all other expenses
that shall be incurred for the common defense or general welfare, and
allowed by the United States in Congress assembled, shall be defrayed
out of a common treasury, which shall be supplied by the several States
in proportion to the value of all land within each State, granted or
surveyed for any person, as such land and the buildings and improvements
thereon shall be estimated according to such mode as the United States
in Congress assembled, shall from time to time direct and appoint. The taxes for paying that proportion shall
be laid and levied by the authority and direction of the legislatures of
the several States within the time agreed upon by the IX.
The United States in Congress assembled,
shall have the sole and exclusive right and power of determining on
peace and war, except in the cases mentioned in the sixth article -- of
sending and receiving ambassadors -- entering into treaties and
alliances, provided that no treaty of commerce shall be made whereby the
legislative power of the respective States shall be restrained from
imposing such imposts and duties on foreigners, as their own people are
subjected to, or from prohibiting the exportation or importation of any
species of goods or commodities whatsoever -- of establishing rules for
deciding in all cases, what captures on land or water shall be legal,
and in what manner prizes taken by land or naval forces in the service
of the United States shall be divided or appropriated -- of granting
letters of marque and reprisal in times of peace -- appointing courts
for the trial of piracies and felonies commited on the high seas and
establishing courts for receiving and determining finally appeals in all
cases of captures, provided that no member of Congress shall be
appointed a judge of any of the said courts. The United States in Congress assembled
shall also be the last resort on appeal in all disputes and differences
now sub All controversies concerning the private
right of soil claimed under different grants of two or more States,
whose jurisdictions as they may respect such lands, and the States which
passed such grants are adjusted, the said grants or either of them being
at the same time claimed to have originated antecedent to such
settlement of jurisdiction, shall on the petition of either party to the
Congress of the United States, be finally determined as near as may be
in the same manner as is before presecribed for deciding disputes
respecting territorial jurisdiction between different States. The United States in Congress assembled
shall also have the sole and exclusive right and power of regulating the
alloy and value of coin struck by their own authority, or by that of the
respective States -- fixing the standards of weights and measures
throughout the United States -- regulating the trade and managing all
affairs with the Indians, not members of any of the States, provided
that the legislative right of any State within its own limits be not
infringed or violated -- establishing or regulating post offices from
one State to another, throughout all the United States, and exacting
such postage on the papers passing through the same as may be requisite
to defray the expenses of the said office -- appointing all officers of
the land forces, in the service of the United States, excepting
regimental officers -- appointing all the officers of the naval forces,
and commissioning all officers whatever in the service of the United
States -- making rules for the government and regulation of the said
land and naval forces, and directing their operations. The United States in Congress assembled
shall have authority to appoint a committee, to sit in the recess of
Congress, to be denominated 'A Committee of the States', and to con The United States in Congress assembled
shall never engage in a war, nor grant letters of marque or reprisal in
time of peace, nor enter into any treaties or alliances, nor coin money,
nor regulate the value thereof, nor ascertain the sums and expenses
necessary for the defense and welfare of the United States, or any of
them, nor emit bills, nor borrow money on the credit of the United
States, nor appropriate money, nor agree upon the number of vessels of
war, to be built or purchased, or the number of land or sea forces to be
raised, nor appoint a commander in chief of the army or navy, unless
nine States assent to the same: nor shall a question on any other point,
except for adjourning from day to day be determined, unless by the votes
of the majority of the United States in Congress assembled. The Congress of the United States shall
have power to adjourn to any time within the year, and to any place
within the United States, so that no period of adjournment be for a
longer duration than the space of six months, and shall publish the
journal of their proceedings monthly, except such parts thereof relating
to treaties, alliances or military operations, as in their judgement
require secrecy; and the yeas and nays of the delegates of each State on
any question shall be entered on the journal, when it is desired by any
delegates of a State, or any of them, at his or their request shall be
furnished with a transcript of the said journal, except such parts as
are above excepted, to lay before the legislatures of the several
States. X.
The Committee of the States, or any nine of
them, shall be authorized to execute, in the recess of Congress, such of
the powers of Congress as the United States in Congress assembled, by
the consent of the nine States, shall from time to time think expedient
to vest them with; provided that no power be delegated to the said
Committee, for the exercise of which, by the Articles of Confederation,
the voice of nine States in the Congress of the United States assembled
be requisite. XI.
Canada acceding to this confederation, and
adjoining in the measures of the United States, shall be admitted into,
and entitled to all the advantages of this Union; but no other colony
shall be admitted into the same, unless such admission be agreed to by
nine States. XII.
All bills of credit emitted, monies
borrowed, and debts contracted by, or under the authority of Congress,
before the assembling of the XIII.
Every State shall abide by the
determination of the And Whereas it hath pleased the Great
Governor of the World to incline the hearts of the legislatures we
respectively represent in Congress, to approve of, and to authorize us
to ratify the said Articles of Confederation and perpetual In Witness whereof we have hereunto set our
hands in Congress. Done at Agreed to by Congress 15 November 1777 In
force after ratification by |
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