Confederate Constitution
| Confederate States Constitution | |
|---|---|
Page one of the original copy of the Constitution
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| Created | March 11, 1861 |
| Ratified | February 22, 1862 |
| Location | University of Georgia |
| Author(s) | Provisional Congress |
| Signatories | 43 of the 50 deputies |
| Purpose | To replace the Provisional Constitution (1861) |
The Confederate States Constitution, formally the Constitution of the Confederate States of America, was the supreme law of the Confederate States, as adopted on March 11, 1861, and in effect from February 22, 1862, through the conclusion of the American Civil War. The Confederacy also operated under a Provisional Constitution from February 8, 1861, to February 22, 1862. The original Provisional Constitution is currently located at the American Civil War Museum in Richmond, Virginia, and differs slightly from the version later adopted. The final, hand-written document is currently located in the University of Georgia archives at Athens, Georgia. In regard to most articles of the Constitution, the document is a word-for-word duplicate of the United States Constitution. However, there are crucial differences between the two documents, in tone and legal content, primarily regarding slavery.
The Confederate Constitution followed the U.S. Constitution for the most part in the main body of the text with some changes.
Article I Differences:
Article I Section 8(3) adds quite a bit to the U.S. Constitution in an attempt to block the Confederate Congress from passing law to "facilitate commerce" with some exceptions allowing for safety and improvement to waterways.
Then in Section 10:
Changes to Article II:
Changes to Article III
Changes to Article IV
Other states may be admitted into this Confederacy by a vote of two-thirds of the whole House of Representatives, and two-thirds of the Senate, the Senate voting by states; but no new state shall be formed or erected within the jurisdiction of any other state; nor any state be formed by the junction of two or more states, or parts of states, without the consent of the legislatures of the states concerned as well as of the Congress.
Changes to Article V
Changes to Article VI
Article VI Section 1(1)
Changes to Article VII
When five states shall have ratified this Constitution, in the manner before specified, the Congress under the Provisional Constitution, shall prescribe the time for holding the election of President and Vice President; and, for the meeting of the Electoral College; and, for counting the votes, and inaugurating the President. They shall, also, prescribe the time for holding the first election of members of Congress under this Constitution, and the time for assembling the same. Until the assembling of such Congress, the Congress under the Provisional Constitution shall continue to exercise the legislative powers granted them; not extending beyond the time limited by the Constitution of the Provisional Government.
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