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Lesson 8.2: The Constitutional Convention

Essential Question What lead to the Constitutional Conventional, and what compromises were reached regarding slavery and trade?

Vocabulary Constitutional Convention – meeting held to consider changes to the Articles of Confederation. James Madison – delegate to the Constitutional Convention and father of the Constitution Virginia Plan – proposed a government with 3 branches and a 2 house legislature based upon state population

Vocabulary New Jersey Plan – Proposed a government with 1 house legislature in which each state would have 1 vote Great Compromise – Agreement with a 2 house legislature. All states have equal number of representatives in one house and the other house representatives based upon population 3/5’s Compromise – a portion of the slave population would be counted for taxation and representation in the legislature

Ch. 8.2 Focus Questions Why did 5 states send delegates to the Annapolis Convention? Why was it necessary to call a new convention after Annapolis? What challenges did the state delegates face at the Constitutional Convention? What contributions did: George Washington, Edmund Randolph, James Madison, and William Paterson make at the convention? What was the Virginia Plan?

Ch. 8.2 Focus Questions 6. What were the conditions of the New Jersey Plan? What aspects of the Virginia Plan and New Jersey Plan were included in the Great Compromise? Why did Southern states want slaves counted as part of the general population? Explain the Three-Fifths Compromise. How did the Constitutional Convention reach a compromise on the issue of slavery?

What We Already Know Americans had just fought a war against a government that was so strong that it threatened their rights. The Articles of Confederation therefore were intentionally enacted to establish a weak federal (central) government that could not threaten the rights of the people.

The Annapolis Convention By 1787, America was in a tough time trying to grow the economy. One problem was trade between the states. If a barrel maker in Connecticut wanted to sell his barrels in New York, he would have to pay a tax, or tariff. This was true for all products shipped between the states. It was one way states made money.

The Annapolis Convention These tariffs, discouraged trade and raised prices. In 1786, a convention was called for ways to promote interstate trade in order to help the economies of all the states.

The Annapolis Convention The convention was held at Mann’s Tavern in Annapolis, Maryland. Only five states had delegates able to attend.

The Annapolis Convention Changes in interstate trade required amending the Articles of Confederation, because the national government had been granted no power to regulate trade among the states.

The Annapolis Convention At the Annapolis Convention, delegates, lead by Alexander Hamilton, urged representatives to go to Philadelphia to discuss the need for changes to the Articles of Confederation.

The Constitutional Convention Many people opposed making any changes to the Articles of Confederation, but recalling how quickly Shay’s rebellion spread and fearing the occurrence of a similar uprising, twelve states sent delegates to Philadelphia in 1787.

The Convention Delegates Fifty-five delegates came to the Constitutional Convention. About three-fourths also had been delegates to the Continental Congress.

The Convention Delegates Many of the delegates had been members of their state legislatures and had helped write their state constitutions. Along with other leaders of the time, these delegates are called “The Founding Fathers” of the United States.

The Convention Delegates Three men who were to have a large role in the Constitutional Convention were George Washington, Benjamin Franklin and James Madison.

The Convention Delegates As you will see, James Madison known as “The Father of the Constitution” played a major role at Constitutional Convention. Not only did he come well prepared for the meeting having read over one hundred books on government; much of what we know about the convention is because Mr. Madison took detailed notes of the convention.

Where Are We? Lexington and Concord 1775 Articles of Confederation 1777 Annapolis Convention 1786 Constitutional Convention 1787 1774 1778 1782 1786 1790 American Revolution Declaration of Independence 1776 Treaty of Paris 1783 Shays’ Rebellion 1787

The Constitutional Convention In 1787, delegates from 12 states met in Philadelphia. The first order of business was to elect a president for the convention. George Washington was unanimously elected president of the convention. His quiet and dignified leadership set a solemn and serious tone for the convention

The Constitutional Convention The delegates to the Convention wanted to be able to consider all ideas and to be able to change sides in any debate without being pressured by the politics of the day.

The Constitutional Convention The delegates also knew that many Americans were fearful of a strong government. If the public knew they were trying to create a new, stronger government, there might be protests or even violence.

The Constitutional Convention For these reasons, it was decided that their discussions would remain secret. For these reasons, they decided that their discussions would remain secret. Guards were posted outside the door to keep away the curious.

The Constitutional Convention With a secrecy agreement in place, the second order of business was to decide whether to amend or replace the Articles of Confederation and form a new government.

The Constitutional Convention Fresh on the minds of the delegates was Shays’ Rebellion, an armed uprising of common farmers which nearly meant disaster for the nation.

The Constitutional Convention It became obvious that what was needed was a new federal government that was strong enough to protect people’s rights, but not too strong (limited) so it could still be controlled by the people.

The Virginia Plan The Virginia Plan was crafted mostly by James Madison and presented by Edmund Randolph, the Governor of Virginia at that time.

The Virginia Plan called for three branches of government. Legislative Branch which made the laws. Executive Branch which enforced the laws. Judicial Branch which interpret the laws.

The Virginia Plan The Virginia Plan proposed a legislature with two houses. In both houses, the number of representatives from each state would be based on the state’s population or its wealth. A legislature divided into two houses is called a bicameral legislature.

The Constitutional Convention Unlike the government under the Articles of Confederation, the Virginia Plan proposed Congress would have the power to levy taxes, regulate Commerce (trade), and make laws.

The New Jersey Plan Small states objected to the Virginia Plan. Their concern was that the larger states would end up ruling the other states. William Paterson of New Jersey proposed the New Jersey plan, a plan with a one house legislature with each state getting one vote.

The New Jersey Plan The Virginia Plan led to weeks of debate. States with larger populations supported the plan since it would give them greater representation in the legislature.

The New Jersey Plan There were several parts of the New Jersey Plan. The most significant and controversial: laws of the Federal Government would be the supreme law of the land no state law could supersede (take the place of) the federal government wipe

The Great Compromise During the sweltering months of June the delegates argued and debated over representation in the legislative branch of the government. In desperation, they selected a committee of one delegate from each state to work out a compromise.

The Great Compromise By June 29 of 1787 an agreement was reached between the larger and smaller states. The compromise was originally referred to as the Connecticut Compromise, because Roger Sherman and Oliver Ellsworth, both delegates from Connecticut, played a major role in bringing the two sides together.

The Great Compromise More commonly known as the Great Compromise the Legislative branch was divided into two houses (bicameral). The first house would be called the Senate in which two delegates from each state would be elected.

The Great Compromise The second house would be the House of Representatives. The number of representatives elected to the House of Representatives would be decided by population of each state. One representative for every 40,000 inhabitants. The two houses together are called Congress.

Did you know? The Great Compromise has worked for the past 200 years. Like every state, California has only two Senators. But because of our large population we have the most members in the House of Representatives (55). Texas is 2nd with 34 and New York is 3rd with 31.

Question of Slaves Because representation in the House of Representatives would be based on the population of each state, the delegates had to decide who would be counted in that population.

Question of Slaves Southern states wanted the slaves to be counted as part of the general population for representation, but not for taxation.

Question of Slaves The Northern states argued just the opposite. They believed that slaves were property, not citizens, and should not be counted for representation, but should be counted for taxation

The Three Fifths Compromise Under this compromise, three-fifths of the slave population would be counted when setting direct taxes on the states. This three-fifths ratio also would be used to determine representation in the House of Representatives

The Three Fifths Compromise The Three-Fifths Compromise did not outlaw slavery. By 1787 many states had banned the import of new slaves from Africa. While many Northerners wanted to see this ban extended to the rest of the nation, Southern slaveholders strongly disagreed.

The Three Fifths Compromise The delegates from South Carolina and Georgia stated that they would never accept any plan “unless their right to import slaves be untouched.”

The Three Fifths Compromise Again, a compromise was reached. On August 29. It was agreed that Congress could not ban the slave trade until 1808.

The Three Fifths Compromise This ban on laws limiting the slave trade was the only limit placed on Congress’ power to regulate trade.

Place the following in each box in the correct order Constitutional Convention Virginia Plan New Jersey Plan Great Compromise Annapolis Convention The Three-Fifths Compromise

Copy into your notebook Annapolis Convention Constitutional Convention The Virginia Plan The Three-Fifths Compromise The New Jersey Plan The Great