The Department of State is Created

The Department of State is Created

The Department of State is Created
Reading Level

	edHelper's suggested reading level:	grades 5 to 7
	Flesch-Kincaid grade level:	9.02

Vocabulary

	challenging words:		correspond, happening, diplomatic, provides, dealing, embassy, power, dealt, responsibility, assistance, public, wherever, freedom, member, powerful, leader
	content words:		George Washington, Foreign Affairs, While Washington, Thomas Jefferson, United States, Unites States, When Jefferson, State Department, John Marshall, Chief Justice

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The Department of State is Created
By Sharon Fabian

¹     George Washington was the president. He had the power and the responsibility to make agreements with foreign countries when necessary. The members of Congress had the power to declare war. This was a lot of power and a lot of responsibility for a few people, and it was also a lot of work. Before the president or Congress could make important decisions about dealings with foreign countries, they needed lots of information. They needed to correspond with people in foreign countries and maybe travel there too. They couldn't do all of this by themselves.

²     Fortunately, there was another group of people who could help them. The Department of Foreign Affairs had already been in operation since the days of the Articles of Confederation. The Head of this Department was the Secretary of Foreign Affairs. While Washington was president, the name of this group was changed to the Department of State, and its leader became known as the Secretary of State.

³     Washington appointed Thomas Jefferson as his first Secretary of State. At the time, Jefferson was in France representing the United States there. He returned in 1790 to take on his new role. His experience in dealing with foreign countries made him well qualified for the job.

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