The Union
The United States as one joined political community of states. In founding-era writing, "the Union" means the states bound together under a common government, first under the Articles of Confederation and then under the Constitution.
The United States as one joined political community of states. In founding-era writing, “the Union” means the states bound together under a common government, first under the Articles of Confederation and then under the Constitution.
Example: The Constitution’s Preamble begins with the purpose “to form a more perfect Union.” In his First Inaugural Address (1861), Abraham Lincoln argued that “The Union is much older than the Constitution.”
Common misconception: “The Union” is not only a Civil War term for the Northern states. The Federalist Papers used it constantly in 1787–88; the first essays argue for keeping the states in one Union instead of splitting into separate confederacies.
Sources: National Archives, The Constitution of the United States: A Transcription; National Archives, Articles of Confederation (1777); Abraham Lincoln, First Inaugural Address (March 4, 1861), Avalon Project