Founders' Tools For Shaping The Us Constitution

The US Constitution was signed by 38 delegates on September 17, 1787, with one additional signature by George Reed on behalf of John Dickinson of Delaware, bringing the total to 39 signatures. The Founding Fathers, which included George Washington, Benjamin Franklin, Alexander Hamilton, John Adams, Thomas Jefferson, and James Madison, wanted to establish a fair and balanced government with three independent branches, thus limiting the powers of the federal government. The US Constitution was influenced by the constitutions of New York and Massachusetts, which were drafted by John Jay and John Adams, respectively. The Federalist Papers, advocating for the ratification of the Constitution, were written by Alexander Hamilton, James Madison, and John Jay.

Explore related products

The Constitutional Convention: A Narrative History from the Notes of James Madison (Modern Library Classics)

$13.65 $22

Miracle At Philadelphia: The Story of the Constitutional Convention May - September 1787

$10.55 $19.99

The Anti-Federalist Papers and the Constitutional Convention Debates (Signet Classics)

$8.32 $8.95

The Constitutional Convention: A History Just for Kids

$13.99 $13.99

The Constitution of the United States and The Declaration of Independence

$1.99 $6.95

The Constitutional Convention of 1787: Constructing the American Republic (Reacting to the Past™)

$28.49 $32.5

The Articles of Confederation

The final draft of the Articles of Confederation was completed on November 15, 1777, and was submitted to the states for ratification in late November 1777. The first state to ratify was Virginia on December 16, 1777. 12 states had ratified the Articles by February 1779, 14 months into the process. Maryland was the last state to ratify the Articles on February 2, 1781, and Congress was informed of Maryland's assent on March 1, officially proclaiming the Articles of Confederation to be the law of the land.

The influence of state constitutions

The US Constitution was influenced by the constitutions of individual states, which had been developed during the English Civil War when the Crown lost control of the colonies. By the time of the Stuart Restoration, these state constitutions were well-established. For example, Pennsylvania's and North Carolina's constitutions created governments that could be described as popular democracies. The Pennsylvania constitution allowed voters to veto acts of the legislature and write off debts.

The constitutions of New York and Massachusetts, drafted by John Jay and John Adams respectively, also proved influential in the language used in developing the US Constitution. The state constitutions provided a legal foundation and limits on royal power that did not exist in Britain.

The US Constitution was also influenced by the weaknesses of the Articles of Confederation, which was America's first constitution. The Articles gave the Confederation Congress the power to make rules and request funds from the states, but it had no enforcement powers, couldn't regulate commerce, or print money. The states’ disputes over territory, war pensions, taxation, and trade threatened to tear the young country apart.

The US Constitution was conceived to limit the powers of the federal government by creating three independent branches of government, reflecting the founders' concerns about King George III's unfettered executive power. The federal government was given sufficient authority to achieve its assigned powers, but it was also subject to severe limitations to prevent it from impeding on the member state governments or the rights of individual citizens.

The Virginia Plan

The US Constitution, one of the Charters of Freedom, was signed by 38 delegates on September 17, 1787, with one additional signature by George Reed on behalf of John Dickinson of Delaware, bringing the total number of signatures to 39. The delegates were tasked with revising the existing government, but they ended up creating a new one with a powerful central government.

One of the two major proposals for the framework of the US government presented at the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia in 1787 was the Virginia Plan, also known as the Randolph Plan or the Large-State Plan. The Virginia Plan was drafted by James Madison and Edmund Randolph and presented by the latter on May 29, 1787. It was called the Large-State Plan because its provisions favoured more populous states such as Virginia. The plan called for the creation of a supreme national government with three branches: executive, legislative, and judicial. The legislative branch was to consist of two houses, with the number of representatives per state based on population or "quotas of contribution" (a state's wealth as reflected in its taxes). This was in contrast to the New Jersey Plan, which advocated for a single legislative body with an equal number of representatives per state.

Explore related products

Constitution of the United States and The Declaration of Independence: Senator Rand Paul, Delegates of The Constitutional Convention

$2.99 $2.99

Notes of Debates in the Federal Convention of 1787

$35 $34.99

Decision in Philadelphia: The Constitutional Convention of 1787

$18 $18

The Selling of the Constitutional Convention: A History of News Coverage (Culture)

$44.73 $52

Madison’s Hand: Revising the Constitutional Convention

$26 $26

The Summer of 1787: The Men Who Invented the Constitution (The Simon & Schuster America Collection)

$11.29 $19.99

The Federalist Papers

The primary purpose of The Federalist Papers was to promote and urge the ratification of the United States Constitution. At the time, the young nation was facing significant challenges, with disputes among the states over territory, war pensions, taxation, and trade threatening to tear the country apart. The existing governing document, the Articles of Confederation, had limited power and was inadequate in addressing these issues.

Hamilton, Madison, and Jay, who were all deeply involved in the political affairs of the nation, recognized the need for a stronger central government. They used The Federalist Papers to explain and promote the provisions of the proposed Constitution, which had been drafted in Philadelphia in the summer of 1787. The essays detailed the intentions and reasoning behind the Constitution, providing a comprehensive defence of the document.

The ratification process

The US Constitution superseded the Articles of Confederation, the nation's first constitution, on March 4, 1789. The Articles of Confederation served as the nation's governing document until the US Constitution was ratified.

The delegates adopted and signed the new US Constitution on September 17, 1787. Under Article VII, the document would not be binding until ratified by nine of the thirteen existing states. The state legislatures were bypassed in the ratification process, with special ratifying conventions in each state taking their place. This was because the delegates were concerned that the members of the state legislatures would be reluctant to give up power to a national government.

The first state to ratify the Constitution was Delaware on December 7, 1787, followed by Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Georgia, and Connecticut. Some states voiced opposition to the Constitution, arguing that it did not provide protection for rights such as freedom of speech, religion, and the press. The terms of the Massachusetts Compromise, reached in February 1788, stipulated that amendments would be made to include a Bill of Rights. Following this, Massachusetts, Maryland, and South Carolina ratified the Constitution.

On June 21, 1788, New Hampshire became the ninth and final state needed to ratify the Constitution, and it became the official framework of the US government. After ratification, Congress set dates for the first federal elections, which were held from December 15, 1788, to January 10, 1789, and the new government began on March 4, 1789.

Frequently asked questions