1. The Constitutional Convention
May 25, 1787 – September 17, 1787
CICERO © 2011

2. Convention Facts The convention began on May 25.
55 men from 12 states attended.
Rhode Island was the only state that did not send delegates to the convention.
It was held in the Pennsylvania State House, known today as Independence Hall.
Eight of the delegates had signed the Declaration of Independence in the very same building.
CICERO © 2011

3. Convention Facts
42 had been delegates at the Continental Congress – others had served in the Continental Army.
26 were college graduates (9 from Princeton).
81-year-old Benjamin Franklin was often carried to and from the convention in a sedan chair.
John Adams, Thomas Jefferson, John Jay, Patrick Henry, and John Hancock did not attend.
John Adams (left) and Thomas Jefferson (right) were unable to attend because they were serving as United States ambassadors in England and France, respectively.
CICERO © 2011

4. Issues and Compromises
From the start, the delegates were in agreement on a number of key issues:
The Articles of Confederation were flawed and those flaws had contributed to the current economic crises;
The national government needed to be granted the power to deal with matters that affected the nation as a whole;
Power should be divided (separation of powers) and each segment of government should have the ability to check the power of another (a system of checks and balances).
Other issues, however, were more contentious.
CICERO © 2011

5. How should the states be represented in Congress?
Issue #1
How should the states be represented in Congress?
Under the Articles of Confederation, each state, regardless of size, had only one vote in Congress.
While smaller states favored this system, larger states believed it was unfair.
CICERO © 2011

6. The Virginia Plan
On May 29, Governor Edmund Randolph presented what became known as the Virginia Plan.
Rather than amend the Articles, this plan would create a completely new national government.
The Convention spent the next two weeks debating the plan.
Edmund Randolph
CICERO © 2011

7. The Virginia Plan
The plan called for a legislative branch with two separate chambers. (bicameral)
In one chamber, population would determine the number of each state’s representatives.
The members of that chamber would elect members to the other legislative body.
Larger states supported the plan, but smaller states believed it was unfair.
Although the Virginia Plan was presented by Randolph, it was drafted by James Madison.
CICERO © 2011

8. The New Jersey Plan
This plan was proposed on June 15 by William Patterson in response to the Virginia Plan.
It called for a single chamber (unicameral) legislature in which each state would have equal representation.
For the most part, the New Jersey Plan proposed to amend and not replace the Articles of Confederation.
Smaller states supported the plan, but larger states objected because they would be underrepresented.
CICERO © 2011

9. Hamilton’s Plan
Alexander Hamilton was not happy with either the Virginia or New Jersey plans.:
He created his own plan, which was almost an exact replica of the British system.
It called for a bicameral legislature and an executive that served for life.
The plan was immediately rejected as a new form of government.
CICERO © 2011

10. The Great Compromise (The Connecticut Compromise)
Roger Sherman and Oliver Ellsworth of Connecticut played a key role in the development of a compromise, which called for the creation of an upper and lower house of Congress.
Lower house:
representatives would be elected by the citizens
the number of representatives would be based on population
Upper house:
Equal representation
Chosen by state legislatures
Roger Sherman (left) and Oliver Ellsworth.
CICERO © 2011

11. Should slaves be included in the population count?
Issue #2
Should slaves be included in the population count?
The Southern states argued slaves should be included in the population count to determine how many representatives the state would have in the House of Representatives.
Since the Southern states viewed slaves as property, Northern states argued that slaves should not be included when determining representation.
After Southern states threatened to leave the convention, 2 delegates proposed a compromise they hoped would solve the representation problem.
CICERO © 2011

12. The Three-fifths Clause
The plan called for three-fifths of the total number of slaves to be included in the population count.
The word slave, however, does not appear in the United States Constitution.
Instead, the clause stated “all other persons” be counted as three-fifths for determining representation.
The Three-fifths Clause remained in effect until the end of the Civil War.
Delegates James Wilson and Roger Sherman proposed the three-fifths compromise.
CICERO © 2011

13. Issue #3
Which powers, specifically, should be granted to the national government?
The delegates had already agreed on a federal system, which means that power would be divided between the national government and the states.
They now had to decide exactly which powers would be granted to the national government.
Southern states were reluctant to give Congress complete control over trade:
They were afraid that the national government might tax – or ban – the importation of slaves from Africa.
They also did not want the government to have the power to tax exports such as tobacco, indigo, and rice.
CICERO © 2011

14. Issue #3 Two important compromises appeased the Southern states:
Congress could not tax exports;
The national government could make no amendments to the constitution that would affect the importation of slaves until 1808.
Those powers that were granted to the national government are known as delegated powers.
Those powers granted to the states were reserved powers.
Powers shared by both were called concurrent powers.
CICERO © 2011

15. The National Government delegated powers
control foreign and interstate commerce
coin money
raise and maintain an army and a navy
declare war
create federal courts that are subordinate to the Supreme Court
engage in foreign relations
use powers that are implied from the enumerated powers
CICERO © 2011

16. The State Government reserved powers
CICERO © 2011

17. National & State Government concurrent powers
CICERO © 2011

18. The Outcome
Over the next few months, more issues were debated and more compromises were reached.
On September 17, the final document was read aloud.
Some delegates were not happy with the final version; some even refused to sign it.
Nevertheless, 38 delegates did sign the document, and Congress approved it.
George Mason refused to sign the Constitution unless a bill of rights was added to it.
CICERO © 2011

19. The Outcome
Although a new constitution was created, there was no guarantee the states would approve it.
There was a lively debate in the newspapers and on the streets between those who supported ratification (federalists) and those who did not (anti-federalists).*
In the end, the federalists were able to achieve victories in enough states to ratify the Constitution.
For their part, anti-federalists were able to convince legislators to adopt a Bill of Rights.
*For more detail, see the PowerPoint presentation, “The Debate Over Ratification.”
END
CICERO © 2011