Constitution.

The Confederate Constitution differed in several significant ways from its model, the United States Constitution. Most notably, the charter of government reflected a determination to prevent state sovereignty from giving way to consolidation of powers in the central government. Attempting to avoid the means by which centralization had increased since 1788, the Confederate Constitution omitted clauses authorizing Congress to levy taxes and make expenditures to promote the general welfare of the people. Appropriations for internal improvements were limited to projects in navigable waterways and were required to recoup government outlays. State legislatures could impeach some officers of the general government, and although the constitution authorized a Supreme Court none was created by Congress, leaving state courts to dominate the interpretation of the constitution. The amendment process enabled only three states to call a constitutional convention, as compared to the three-fourths of...