Study Guide: The U.S. Constitution in 60 Flashcards, from the Articles of Confederation to Ratification
Study the U.S. Constitution with 60 flashcards: Virginia Plan, Great Compromise, Federalists, ratification dates, Preamble and Locke, plus 3 card fixes.
Studying. But it's also a video game. 🎮
Flashcards, quizzes and games that make you actually remember.
Posted by
FLIP IT TeamRelated reading
Study Guide to the Gilded Age: 60 Flashcards on Railroads, Robber Barons and Labor Strikes
Study the Gilded Age with 60 real flashcards: railroads, Rockefeller and Carnegie, Haymarket, Pullman, wages and wealth stats, plus the Progressive Era gaps.
Latin American History Study Guide: 78 Flashcards from the Olmec to Pope Francis
Study Latin American history with 78 flashcards: conquest, independence, Mexican and Cuban revolutions, Cold War coups, plus a six-era plan and card fixes.
How to Learn the American Civil War: 78 Flashcards from Fort Sumter to Appomattox
Study the American Civil War with 78 real flashcards: Fort Sumter, Anaconda Plan, ironclads, draft riots, casualty figures, and the Reconstruction cards you must add.
Most people can recite "We the People" but stall when asked who wrote it, how many states had to say yes, or why the first national charter failed. The Flip It deck American Constitution & Early Republic (code TB6856, 60 cards) answers exactly those questions — from the Articles of Confederation to the first presidential election.
Study this deck: American Constitution & Early Republic
1 / 10When was the U.S. Constitution signed?
Tap the card for the answer · swipe right if you knew it, left if not
Know what you are actually studying
Despite the title, this is a Constitution deck, not an Early Republic survey: 59 of 60 cards cover 1777-1789 (plus two outliers, the 1808 slave-trade ban and the 1913 income-tax amendment). Washington's cabinet, Hamilton's financial plan and Marbury v. Madison never appear. Study it in four blocks:
- Why a new charter (cards 14-18): Articles of Confederation, "no money", Shays' Rebellion.
- The Convention (19-30): plans, compromises, committees, signing.
- Ratification (31-37): Federalists, Delaware first, New Hampshire ninth.
- Text and influences (38-59): Preamble, Article I clauses, Locke, Montesquieu, Blackstone.
Cards 1-13 are a fact sheet that repeats the blocks — keep them for review day.
Sample cards
| Front | Back |
|---|---|
| When was the U.S. Constitution signed? | September 17, 1787 |
| What was the main problem with the Articles of Confederation? | Little power for the central government, no enforcement powers |
| What was the Virginia Plan? | Bicameral Congress proportional to population, favoring populous states |
| What was the Connecticut Compromise? | Proportional House, equal Senate |
| Which state was first to ratify? | Delaware, unanimously 30-0 |
| Which state was the ninth to ratify? | New Hampshire, June 21, 1788 |
| What is judicial review? | Courts declaring laws unconstitutional, not expressly in the text |
| What are Amendments 13-15 known as? | The Reconstruction Amendments |
Everything the deck covers
Independence Hall, Articles of Confederation (1777/1781), Shays' Rebellion, Virginia Plan, New Jersey Plan (rejected June 19, 1787), Great Compromise, Three-Fifths Compromise, 20-year slave-trade protection, Committee of Detail, Committee of Style, Gouverneur Morris, Jacob Shallus, Franklin's signing speech, "unanimous consent of the States present", Federalists vs Anti-Federalists, The Federalist Papers, North Carolina and Rhode Island holdouts, John Jay, John Marshall, Judiciary Act of 1789, Bill of Rights, 27 amendments, Magna Carta, English Bill of Rights (1689), Locke's life, liberty and property, separation of powers, the six goals of the Preamble, General Welfare and Necessary and Proper clauses.
Three cards to fix before you drill
- Card 51 says Morris chaired the Committee of Style. He wrote the final text and the "We the People" line, but the chair was William Samuel Johnson of Connecticut — card 26 already lists Johnson. Rewrite 51 as "Who drafted the Preamble?"
- Card 12 calls nine of 13 states "a two-thirds majority". Article VII simply required nine states; 9/13 is 69 %, so drop the parenthesis.
- Card 13 asks "What was the first permanent constitution?" but answers a different question (oldest codified constitution still in force). Change the front to match.
Study tip: one timeline, five dates
The deck scatters its dates across 60 cards. Build a single anchor card and drill it daily: Feb 21, 1787 (Convention called) → Sept 17, 1787 (signed) → June 21, 1788 (9th state) → Feb 4, 1789 (electors vote) → Mar 4, 1789 (government operational). Every other date in the deck hangs off one of these five.
The story continues in our American Revolution guide, which leads straight into the Convention.
Find American Constitution & Early Republic (code TB6856) in the Flip It library once you are signed in.
Ready to learn faster? 🚀
Join FLIP IT for free and turn studying into a game.