For the first eleven years of its existence, the United States was a _____.
To find out what the United States was during the first eleven years of its existence, we need to look back at history. The United States was formed after the American Revolutionary War, which ended in 1783. The country's first governing document was the Articles of Confederation, which established a confederation among the thirteen original colonies.
However, the Articles of Confederation did not work effectively as the central government had limited power and lacked the ability to enforce laws or regulate commerce. This led to many challenges and difficulties in governing the new nation.
In 1787, after recognizing the need for a stronger central government, a Constitutional Convention was convened, resulting in the drafting of the United States Constitution. However, the Constitution was not ratified until 1788 and went into effect in 1789.
Therefore, the United States was a confederation under the Articles of Confederation for the first eleven years of its existence.