The Constitutional
Convention
Who, What, Where, When,
and Why?
When: May 25, 1787
O Where: Independence Hall – Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
O What Purpose: To revise the Articles of Confederation
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The Delegates
O All the states in the new country sent
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delegates except Rhode Island
In attendance were some of the countries
most important leaders
In attendance were some of the new country’s
most distinguished leaders. All were white
men. Among them were former soldiers,
governors, and members of Congress.
Their average age was 42.
There were 55 total delegates.
The main author and father of
the Constitution
O James Madison 36 years old
O He was a serious student of politics and
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democratic theory.
Perhaps the most profound political thinker
and best prepared of all the delegates
Took detailed notes of the discussions during
the convention
Major writer of the Virginia
Click Madison for a fun Video!
Other Notable Members
Present
O Alexander Hamilton brought intellectual
brilliance.
O Roger Sherman contributed legal and
business experience.
O James Madison – the Father of the
Constitution
Decisions made before he
discussion
O Two Major Things had to be done before
discussions began:
O Elected George Washington to be the
president of the Constitutional Convention
O Adopted rules of procedure, including:
O Each delegate took a vow of secrecy
O In order for the Constitution to be ratified, 9
of 13 states had to approve it.
O Click George Washington for a video!
Major Leaders not Present
O Thomas Jefferson and John Adams were
serving as diplomats in Europe.
O Samuel Adams and Patrick Henry were
suspicious of efforts to strengthen the
central government.
THE BIG ISSUES!!
O There were several issues that needed to be
debated and discussed before a final document
was written.
O How should our U.S. government be structured?
O How should slaves be counted within a state’s
population?
O Should Congress be allowed to regulate trade?
O What should the executive branch look like, and
how should the president be chosen?
Structuring the Government
O Should we add an executive and judicial branch?
O What should determine how many
representatives each state gets in U.S. Congress
O population or equal representation?
O There were two competing plans for the
structure of our government:
O The Virginia Plan – was designed to completely
replace the Articles of Confederation (video on the
state)
O The New Jersey Plan – proposed a series of
amendments to the Articles of
Confederation(Click the state for a video)
The Connecticut Compromise
O The compromise between the New Jersey
and Virginia Plan was called the
Connecticut Compromise. It was later
called The Great Compromise.
O The Great Compromise was adopted on
July16, 1787.
O It called for a bicameral legislature
More Compromise
O One house would be based on population. It would
be called the House of Representatives. The people
would directly elect its members. This satisfied the
large states.
O One house would be based on equal representation.
It would be called the Senate. There will be 2
Senators per state. The state legislatures would
select its members. This satisfied the smaller states.
O Both houses would have to pass a bill before it
became a law.
The Current U.S. Congress
The Elephant in
the room
O Southern states wanted slaves to be counted
within their populations. Delegates from the
North thought if slaves did not have rights then
they should not be counted as a part of the
population.
O The 3/5’s Compromise settled this issue.
O This said that slaves would be counted but they
would be 3/5’s of a white male.
How to regulate trade
O This issue was a Northern and Southern state issue.
Southerners were afraid that Congress would use
its legislative powers to ban the importing of slaves
and also tax exports.
O The Commerce and Slave Trade Compromise
settled these issues.
O This said that Congress could not ban the
importing of slaves for 20 years and could not tax
goods being exported.
How do you make an
executive branch? How do
you elect it?
O Some delegates wanted a single executive to lead
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our government while others wanted an executive
committee made up of at least two members.
The delegates eventually decided on a single
president.
The next decision was how the president will be
chosen. Some delegates thought the average
citizen was not smart enough to chose such an
important position.
They decided on the Electoral College.
This was a group of electors from each state that
would cast their votes to elect the president and
vice president. (Click the photo for a video)
Finalizing the Constitution!
O The delegates finished their work on the
Constitution in August 1787.
O On September 17, 1787, the Constitution passed
the convention.
O The document was ready to go to each state for
approval.