The Articles of Confederation served as which of the following?

The Articles of Confederation served as the first constitutional framework for the United States, which established a loose alliance among the thirteen states following their independence from Britain. This framework created a decentralized government that granted most powers to the states while establishing a weak central authority. Critically, it aimed to provide a system for mutual cooperation among the states, thereby uniting them under a common cause after the Revolutionary War.

The Articles of Confederation were significant because they presented the first attempt to govern the new nation and reflected the prevailing apprehension about a strong central government, rooted in the colonies' experience with British rule. As a result, the Articles provided basic provisions for governance, including a Congress made up of delegates from each state, but limited the powers of the national government regarding taxation and regulation of commerce.

The other answer choices pertain to different historical documents or agreements. A declaration of independence denotes the formal statement by which the colonies declared their separation from British rule, not a framework for governance. A treaty to end the Revolutionary War refers to the Treaty of Paris, which formally concluded the conflict between Great Britain and the colonies. Guidelines for state constitutions is not accurate, as the Articles were not designed to provide specific instructions for state governance; rather, they were a