The Constitutional Convention 1787 The Constitutional Convention Drafting a New Nation

The Call for a Convention The Articles of Confederation was a disaster Without the power to levy taxes, the federal government was broke Massive inflation lead to anger and rebellion

The Call for Convention cont… Representatives from each state met in Philadelphia to revise the Articles 55 delegates from 13 states attended

Key Delegates James Madison (Virginia) George Washington (Virginia) Known as the “Father of the Constitution” George Washington (Virginia) His presence gave the convention legitimacy. Alexander Hamilton (New York) George Mason (Virginia) John Dickinson (Delaware) Benjamin Franklin (Pennsylvania)

Notable Absences Patrick Henry Thomas Jefferson John Adams Refused to attend, saying he “smelt a rat” Thomas Jefferson Was serving as a Foreign Diplomat in Paris John Adams Was serving as a Foreign Diplomat in London

The Virginia Plan Proposed a government made up of three branches The Legislative Branch would make the laws The Executive Branch would enforce the laws The Judicial Branch would interpret the laws

The Virginia Plan The legislative branch would have two houses A state’s population would determine its number of representatives in both houses. Called for a strong national government The small states were not happy This was “the rat” many of them had feared

The New Jersey Plan In response to the Virginia Plan, small states offered the New Jersey Plan Called for a legislative branch with only one house In it, each state would have equal representation (1 vote) This plan called for a weaker national government

Virginia vs. New Jersey Virginia Plan New Jersey Plan Legislative branch with two houses Legislative Branch with one house Representation determined by population (proportional representation) Each state would have one vote (equal representation) Strong national government Weak national government

The Great Compromise Cont… To satisfy the smaller states, each state would have an equal number of votes in the Senate To satisfy the larger states, representation in the House of Representative would be based on a state’s total population

3/5 Compromise The delegates had to decide who would be counted when determining representation in the House of Reps The South had more slaves and thought that they should be counted towards a state’s population The Northern states contended that slaves were not citizens, so they should not be counted.

3/5 Compromise 3/5 Compromise 3/5 of the slave population would be counted to determine representation in the House of Representatives

Finished? On September 15, 1787, the delegates voted to approve the new Constitution It was then sent to the states for ratification 9 of the 13 states had to ratify the Constitution before it would become law The fight was far from over Ratification- The act of approval or confirmation of policy or amendments

Ratification As state conventions opened to determine the fate of the Constitution, debate swirled The country was split into two camps: Federalists supported ratification of the constitution Antifederalists opposed the new constitution, claiming it took too much power away from the states and the people Ratification- The act of approval or confirmation of policy or amendments

Federalists vs Antifederalists Supported a strong national government Favored stronger state governments Wanted power divided into three separate branches Were fearful of a strong president James Madison, Alexander Hamilton, John Jay Wanted a Bill of Rights included to protect people’s rights George Mason, Patrick Henry

The Federalist Papers The Federalists had a key ally: the press The Federalists argued their points with essays printed in newspapers The best known of these essays were called The Federalist Papers

The Bill of Rights Even with the majority of support, there was still strong opposition in several key states In order to ratify the constitution, these states demanded that a Bill of Rights be included

The Bill of Rights Supporters of a Bill of Rights believed it was necessary in order to protect the people from the power of the national government James Madison was charged with writing the Bill of Rights When he was finished, Congress edited the list and sent it back to the states for ratification With Virginia casting the deciding vote in 1791, ten of these amendments were ratified and became law. These ten amendments became known as the Bill of Rights

The Virginia Plan proposed how many branches of government? The Virginia Plan wanted representation based on (Population of states/equal between states)? What was the first Constitution called? The New Jersey Plan wanted a (Strong/Weak) federal Government? The New Jersey Plan wanted representation based on (Population of states/ equal between states) What Compromise dealt with representation in the legislative branch? Virginia plan wanted a (strong/weak) federal government? What Compromise dealt with how to count slaves in representation? T/F The Anti-federalists supported the ratification of the constitution and a strong federal government. What are two rights that the first amendment gives to citizens? What does the fourth amendment do? What does the tenth amendment set up?