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Difficulty: MediumThe Revolutionary War: Military and Diplomacy

Source: Alexander Hamilton, letter to James Duane, a member of the Continental Congress, September 1780.

'The fundamental defect is a want of power in Congress. . . . The Confederation itself is defective and requires to be altered; it is neither fit for war, nor peace. . . . The system of cash requisitions on the states has failed to supply the treasury, and the army is left unpaid, unclothed, and frequently unfed. Without a central authority capable of funding the war, our military efforts must depend on the voluntary compliance of thirteen separate sovereignties.'

Which of the following factors was the primary cause of the military supply and funding difficulties described in the excerpt?

  1. A
    The economic devastation caused by the British Parliament's passage of the Townshend Acts during the conflict
  2. The lack of authority under the national government to levy taxes and compel state complianceAnswer
  3. C
    The enforcement of direct federal taxation policies under the newly ratified United States Constitution
  4. D
    The adoption of a mercantilist trade system by the Continental Congress that banned alliance with France

Answer

The lack of authority under the national government to levy taxes and compel state compliance
The correct answer is correct because the wartime American government operated under the Second Continental Congress and, later, the Articles of Confederation. Neither system possessed the authority to compel states to pay taxes or supply resources. Because of this decentralized structure, the national government had to rely on state requisitions, which were routinely ignored or underfunded, resulting in severe supply and financial shortages for the Continental Army.

Step-by-Step Solution

1
Identify the core argument and historical context of the primary source document.
The source is a 1780 letter by Alexander Hamilton criticizing the weakness of the central government (Congress) and its inability to raise funds directly, relying instead on voluntary state requisitions.
Analyzing the source allows us to determine that the army's supply shortages were directly tied to the political limits of the national government.
2
Connect the identified political limitation to the government structures in place during the American Revolution.
Under the Second Continental Congress and the Articles of Confederation, the national government had no power to tax directly and could only request money from states.
This establishes why the financial requisition system failed to reliably support the Continental Army.
3
Assess and eliminate the distractors based on chronology and historical accuracy.
The correct option is identified by recognizing that the Constitution post-dates the war, the Townshend Acts pre-date the war, and mercantilism was a British policy rather than a colonial trade restriction.
This confirms that the other options contain chronological or conceptual errors, leaving the primary lack of taxation authority as the correct choice.

Key Concept

Military Mobilization and Governance Weakness during the Revolutionary War
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Topics

The Revolutionary War: Military and Diplomacy

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