Omar Bennett
The Three-Fifths Compromise was an agreement between delegates from the Northern and Southern states at the 1787 Constitutional Convention, which formed part of Article 1, Section 2, Clause 3 of the US Constitution. This compromise allowed each slave-holding state to count three-fifths of its slave population when it came to apportioning representatives to Congress, which resulted in an increased political power for these states. However, this ratio was also used to determine the federal tax contribution required of each state, increasing the direct federal tax burden of slave-holding states.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Part of the US Constitution | Article 1, Section 2, Clause 3 |
| Date | 1787 |
| Purpose | To preserve the union of the United States and confront the moral and systemic evils of slavery |
| Outcome | Allowed Southern states to count three-fifths of their enslaved population for taxation and representation purposes |
| Impact | Perpetuated overrepresentation of Southern states in national politics |
| Repeal | Superseded and explicitly repealed by Section 2 of the Fourteenth Amendment in 1868 |
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What You'll Learn
- The Three-Fifths Compromise was an agreement between delegates from the Northern and Southern states
- It allowed slaveholding states to count three-fifths of enslaved people when apportioning representatives
- This resulted in the perpetual overrepresentation of slaveholding states in national politics
- The compromise was proposed by delegate James Wilson and seconded by Charles Pinckney
- Section 2 of the Fourteenth Amendment (1868) superseded the Three-Fifths Compromise
The Three-Fifths Compromise was an agreement between delegates from the Northern and Southern states
The Compromise was proposed by delegate James Wilson and seconded by Charles Pinckney. It was a result of the deadlock between delegates from small and large states on the issue of the apportionment of legislative representation. The Virginia, or large state, plan provided for a bicameral legislature with representation of each state based on its population or wealth. On the other hand, the New Jersey, or small state, plan proposed equal representation for each state in Congress. The Three-Fifths Compromise was a compromise that called for representation in the House of Representatives to be apportioned based on a state's free population plus three-fifths of its enslaved population.
The Southern delegates threatened to abandon the convention if enslaved individuals were not counted. The Compromise allowed the Southern states to include enslaved people in their population counts, which gave them more seats in the House of Representatives and thus more political power. However, the delegates from the Northern states objected on the grounds that enslaved people could not vote, own property, or enjoy the privileges that White men had.
The Three-Fifths Compromise was an imperfect attempt to preserve the union of the nascent United States while confronting the moral and systemic evils of slavery. It was repealed by the 13th and 14th Amendments, with Section 2 of the Fourteenth Amendment superseding Article 1, Section 2, Clause 3 and explicitly repealing the compromise.
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It allowed slaveholding states to count three-fifths of enslaved people when apportioning representatives
The Three-Fifths Compromise was an agreement reached by state delegates at the 1787 Constitutional Convention. It allowed slaveholding states to count three-fifths of their enslaved population when apportioning representatives to Congress. This meant that those states were perpetually overrepresented in national politics.
The compromise was proposed by delegate James Wilson and seconded by Charles Pinckney. It was part of Article 1, Section 2, Clause 3 of the U.S. Constitution, which stated: "Representatives and direct Taxes shall be apportioned among the several States which may be included within this Union, according to their respective Numbers, which shall be determined by adding to the whole Number of free Persons, including those bound to Service for a Term of Years, and excluding Indians not taxed, three fifths of all other Persons."
The Three-Fifths Compromise was an attempt to preserve the union and confront the moral and systemic evils of slavery. It was a compromise between delegates from the Northern and Southern states, with the Northern delegates objecting to the inclusion of enslaved people in population counts as they could not vote, own property, or enjoy the privileges that White men had. The Southern delegates, on the other hand, threatened to abandon the convention if enslaved individuals were not counted.
The Three-Fifths Compromise was later repealed by the 13th and 14th Amendments, with Section 2 of the 14th Amendment explicitly superseding Article 1, Section 2, Clause 3.
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This resulted in the perpetual overrepresentation of slaveholding states in national politics
The Three-Fifths Compromise was an agreement reached by state delegates at the 1787 Constitutional Convention. It was an attempt to resolve disagreements over slavery and preserve the unity of the newly formed United States. The compromise allowed for the preservation of the republic while confronting the moral and systemic evils of slavery.
The compromise stated that "Representatives and direct Taxes shall be apportioned among the several States which may be included within this Union, according to their respective Numbers." The respective numbers were determined by adding to the whole number of free persons, including those bound to service for a term of years, and excluding untaxed Native Americans, three-fifths of all other persons. In other words, every enslaved person would be counted as three-fifths of a person for taxation and representation purposes.
This agreement gave the Southern states more electoral power than they would have had if the enslaved population had been ignored entirely. By counting three-fifths of their enslaved population, the Southern states gained additional representation in the House of Representatives, resulting in their perpetual overrepresentation in national politics. This was a direct consequence of the compromise, as it increased the political power of slaveholding states.
The Three-Fifths Compromise has been criticised for its moral implications and its role in perpetuating slavery. Some have argued that it effectively counted enslaved individuals as only three-fifths of a human being, which has been used to defame the Constitution as a racist contract. However, it is important to understand the historical context and the complexities of the issues faced by the framers of the Constitution. The compromise was an attempt to balance the interests of the Northern and Southern states and address the realities of slavery at the time.
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The compromise was proposed by delegate James Wilson and seconded by Charles Pinckney
The Three-Fifths Compromise was a compromise between the Southern and Northern states during the Constitutional Convention in 1787. It was part of Article 1, Section 2, Clause 3 of the U.S. Constitution, which stated that three-fifths of the number of a state's slave population could be used to determine the state's wealth and, thus, its tax obligations and number of representatives in the House of Representatives.
The compromise was proposed by delegate James Wilson, a colonial American lawyer and political theorist who was the only person to sign the Declaration of Independence, the United States Constitution, and serve as a Supreme Court Justice. Wilson made several critical contributions to the new federal constitution, including the idea of a unitary executive, which formed the basis for the American presidency. Wilson initially argued that the executive and legislature should be elected by popular vote, but this proposal was rejected by the delegates, who believed it would give the president too much power and enable them to ignore the wishes of Congress. Wilson reworked his proposal and, on June 2, proposed the Electoral College, which would allow for the election of the executive through an electoral college system. This proposal was also initially rejected, but it eventually paved the way for the adoption of the Constitution.
The Three-Fifths Compromise was seconded by Charles Pinckney, an advocate of a stronger federal government. Pinckney served as a delegate to the 1787 Philadelphia Convention, which wrote a new federal constitution. Pinckney's influence helped ensure that South Carolina would ratify the United States Constitution. He declined George Washington's first offer to serve in his administration but later accepted the position of minister to France. Pinckney also served in the military during the American Revolutionary War and was nominated by the Federalists as their presidential candidate in 1804 and 1808.
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Section 2 of the Fourteenth Amendment (1868) superseded the Three-Fifths Compromise
The Three-Fifths Compromise was an agreement reached during the 1787 United States Constitutional Convention. It was an attempt to resolve the issue of how to include slaves in counting a state's total population. This count would determine the number of seats in the House of Representatives, the number of electoral votes each state would be allocated, and how much money the states would pay in taxes.
The Three-Fifths Compromise is part of Article 1, Section 2, Clause 3 of the United States Constitution. It states that "Representatives and direct Taxes shall be apportioned among the several States which may be included within this Union, according to their respective Numbers, which shall be determined by adding to the whole Number of free Persons, including those bound to Service for a Term of Years, and excluding Indians not taxed, three fifths of all other Persons." The "other Persons" referred to slaves.
The Compromise was an attempt to balance the interests of the Northern and Southern states. The Southern states, which had a larger slave population, wanted slaves to be included in the population count to increase their representation in Congress and reduce their tax burden. The Northern states, on the other hand, wanted to exclude slaves from the count, as slaves did not have the right to vote.
The Three-Fifths Compromise was a controversial agreement that has been interpreted as implying that enslaved people lacked full personhood. However, it is important to note that the Compromise was a result of the inability of the Founding Fathers to abolish slavery at the time.
In 1868, Section 2 of the Fourteenth Amendment superseded Article 1, Section 2, Clause 3 and explicitly repealed the Three-Fifths Compromise. This amendment likely ensured that slaves were considered as whole persons and not just three-fifths, finally addressing the moral and systemic evils of slavery.
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Frequently asked questions
The Three-Fifths Compromise was an agreement between delegates from the Northern and Southern states at the 1787 Constitutional Convention. It allowed the Southern states to count each slave as three-fifths of a person when it came to apportioning representatives to Congress. This gave the Southern states more representation in national politics. However, it also increased their federal tax burden.
The Three-Fifths Compromise was reached to resolve a deadlock between delegates from small and large states over the apportionment of legislative representation. The large states wanted representation in the legislature to be based on population or wealth, while the small states wanted equal representation for each state.
The Three-Fifths Compromise has been interpreted as a compromise that preserved the union while also confronting the moral and systemic evils of slavery. By counting slaves as three-fifths of a person, the political power of slaveholding states was reduced compared to if slaves were counted as zero-fifths of a person. Additionally, the federal tax burden on slaveholding states was increased.
The Three-Fifths Compromise was repealed in 1868 by Section 2 of the Fourteenth Amendment, which superseded Article 1, Section 2, Clause 3 of the US Constitution.
