Final answer:
The Articles of Confederation's most fundamental weakness was its design for a weak central government, which made the federal system incapable of enforcing laws or managing international relations and economic stability effectively.
Step-by-step explanation:
Among the options listed, the most fundamental weakness of the Articles of Confederation, which factored greatly into their replacement by the Constitution, was
Option 4: Weak central government.
This is because the Articles gave the majority of power to the states, leaving the federal government incapable of enforcing laws, managing international relations effectively, or stabilizing the economy. The limited power to tax (Option 3) was a symptom of this fundamental issue. Unlike the strong executive branch foreseen in the Constitution (Option 1), there was no similar office in the Articles. As for Option 2, the lack of a federal judicial branch was also a result of the weak central government design.
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