<P> The Continental Congress , before the Articles were approved , had promised soldiers a pension of half pay for life . However Congress had no power to compel the states to fund this obligation , and as the war wound down after the victory at Yorktown the sense of urgency to support the military was no longer a factor . No progress was made in Congress during the winter of 1783 -- 84 . General Henry Knox , who would later become the first Secretary of War under the Constitution , blamed the weaknesses of the Articles for the inability of the government to fund the army . The army had long been supportive of a strong union . Knox wrote : </P>
<P> The Continental Congress , before the Articles were approved , had promised soldiers a pension of half pay for life . However Congress had no power to compel the states to fund this obligation , and as the war wound down after the victory at Yorktown the sense of urgency to support the military was no longer a factor . No progress was made in Congress during the winter of 1783 -- 84 . General Henry Knox , who would later become the first Secretary of War under the Constitution , blamed the weaknesses of the Articles for the inability of the government to fund the army . The army had long been supportive of a strong union . Knox wrote : </P>
who argued that the articles of confederation were too weak
who argued that the articles of confederation were too weak
General Henry Knox
General Henry Knox