Omar Bennett
The US Constitution was ratified on 21 June 1788, when New Hampshire became the ninth of 13 states to ratify it. The journey to ratification was a long and arduous process. The final draft was submitted to the state legislatures in November 1777, and seven states ratified the Articles quickly, but it took three and a half years to ratify the Articles because of the requirement of the unanimous approval of the state legislatures.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Number of states required to ratify the Constitution | 9 of 13 |
| Date of ratification | 21 June 1788 |
| States that ratified the Constitution | Delaware, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Georgia, Connecticut, Massachusetts, Maryland, South Carolina, New Hampshire |
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What You'll Learn
- The US Constitution was ratified on 21 June 1788
- Nine of the 13 states had to ratify the document
- Five states ratified it in quick succession
- Massachusetts and other states ratified it after a compromise was reached
- The Articles of Confederation governed the country until the new Constitution was ratified
The US Constitution was ratified on 21 June 1788
The final draft was submitted to the state legislatures in November 1777 for their unanimous approval. Seven states ratified the Articles quickly while also submitting proposed amendments to the Articles. Congress rejected all of the proposed amendments. It took three and a half years to ratify the Articles because of the requirement of the unanimous approval of the state legislatures.
Between 1781 and 1787, Congress proposed and the states considered half a dozen amendments to the Articles to strengthen the powers of Congress. All of them had the support of a large majority of both the states and the people. On September 17, 1787, the delegates to the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia voted to approve the document they had drafted over the course of many months. Some did not support it, but the majority did. Before it could become the law of the land, however, the Constitution faced another hurdle. It had to be ratified by the states.
In February 1788, a compromise was reached under which Massachusetts and other states would agree to ratify the document with the assurance that amendments would be immediately proposed. The Constitution was thus narrowly ratified in Massachusetts, followed by Maryland and South Carolina.
The Constitution's Ratification: A Historical Perspective
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Nine of the 13 states had to ratify the document
The U.S. Constitution was ratified on June 21, 1788, when New Hampshire became the ninth of 13 states to ratify it. This was a long and arduous process, with the country being governed by the Articles of Confederation until the new Constitution was ratified. The Articles of Confederation were tailored to a newly formed nation made of states acting more like independent, sovereign countries. However, it became clear to some of America's leaders that future stability required a stronger, more centralised government.
Article VII, the final article of the Constitution, required that before the Constitution could become law and a new government could form, the document had to be ratified by nine of the 13 states. This was a compromise reached in February 1788, under which Massachusetts and other states would agree to ratify the document with the assurance that amendments would be immediately proposed. The Constitution was thus narrowly ratified in Massachusetts, followed by Maryland and South Carolina.
The final draft was submitted to the state legislatures in November 1777 for their unanimous approval. Seven states ratified the Articles quickly while also submitting proposed amendments to the Articles. Congress rejected all of the proposed amendments. It took three and a half years to ratify the Articles because of the requirement of the unanimous approval of the state legislatures.
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Five states ratified it in quick succession
The US Constitution required ratification by nine of the 13 states to become binding. Five states ratified it in quick succession: Delaware, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Georgia, and Connecticut. This was followed by Massachusetts, Maryland, and South Carolina. New Hampshire became the ninth state to ratify the Constitution on 21 June 1788, making it the official framework of the US government.
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Massachusetts and other states ratified it after a compromise was reached
The US Constitution required ratification by nine of the 13 states to become binding. Five states ratified it in quick succession: Delaware, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Georgia, and Connecticut. However, other states, especially Massachusetts, opposed the document as it failed to reserve undelegated powers to the states and lacked constitutional protection of basic political rights, such as freedom of speech, religion, and the press.
A compromise was reached in February 1788, under which Massachusetts and other states agreed to ratify the document with the assurance that amendments would be immediately proposed. The Constitution was then narrowly ratified in Massachusetts, followed by Maryland and South Carolina.
The journey to ratification was a long and arduous process. The final draft was submitted to the state legislatures in November 1777, and it took three and a half years to ratify the Articles due to the requirement of unanimous approval from the state legislatures. Between 1781 and 1787, Congress proposed and the states considered half a dozen amendments to strengthen the powers of Congress, all of which had the support of a large majority of both the states and the people.
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The Articles of Confederation governed the country until the new Constitution was ratified
The Constitution was ratified on June 21, 1788, when New Hampshire became the ninth of 13 states to ratify it. The journey to ratification was a long and arduous process. Before the Constitution could become law and a new government could form, the document had to be ratified by nine of the 13 states.
Five states—Delaware, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Georgia, and Connecticut—ratified it in quick succession. However, other states, especially Massachusetts, opposed the document as it failed to reserve undelegated powers to the states and lacked constitutional protection of basic political rights, such as freedom of speech, religion, and the press. In February 1788, a compromise was reached under which Massachusetts and other states would agree to ratify the document with the assurance that amendments would be immediately proposed. The Constitution was thus narrowly ratified in Massachusetts, followed by Maryland and South Carolina.
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Frequently asked questions
Nine of the 13 states.
Nine states ratified the U.S. Constitution.
Delaware, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Georgia, and Connecticut.
New Hampshire.
