The Articles of Confederation was a written agreement, uniting the thirteen founding states, and serving as the states’ first constitution, or set of principles by which the states was governed. Formerly named the Articles of Confederation and Perpetual Union, the set of fundamental principles provided the first step in creating a government for the states as a nation. It provided the Continental Congress domestic and international power to oversee the American Revolutionary War, and to execute diplomacy in dealing with Europe, Native American relations, and territorial issues.

http://avalon.law.yale.edu/18th_century/artconf.asp