The event that most clearly illustrated the weaknesses of the Articles of Confederation was Shays' Rebellion (1786–1787). This uprising involved indebted farmers in Massachusetts, led by Daniel Shays, who protested economic injustices and demanded debt relief. The rebellion exposed the inability of the national government under the Articles to maintain public order or provide effective military response because it lacked the power to raise a national army and had no authority to enforce tax laws or regulate commerce. When Massachusetts requested federal assistance to suppress the rebellion, the national government could not respond effectively, and the uprising was eventually quelled only by a privately funded militia. This crisis highlighted the Articles' failure to provide a strong central government capable of managing internal conflicts and protecting citizens, which spurred calls for a new Constitution to create a more robust federal system

. In summary, Shays' Rebellion demonstrated the critical weaknesses of the Articles of Confederation, particularly its lack of centralized military power, inability to enforce laws, and ineffective governance, leading directly to the Constitutional Convention of 1787 where the current U.S. Constitution was drafted