Which document replaced the Articles of Confederation and shaped the government remembered by America’s 250th anniversary?

The United States Constitution replaced the Articles of Confederation and shaped the government remembered by America’s 250th anniversary.

Delegates met at the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia from May to September 1787. Although the convention was initially intended to revise the Articles of Confederation, the delegates produced an entirely new framework for the federal government.

The Constitution created separate legislative, executive, and judicial branches, divided powers between the federal government and the states, and established a process for amendment. It was signed on September 17, 1787, and took effect after New Hampshire became the ninth state to ratify it on June 21, 1788.

The Constitution is distinct from the Declaration of Independence, which announced separation from Britain in 1776. The Bill of Rights became the Constitution’s first ten amendments in 1791, while the Federalist Papers were essays supporting ratification rather than a governing charter.