Isabella Carter
The drafting of the United States Constitution began on May 25, 1787, when the Constitutional Convention first met at the Pennsylvania State House in Philadelphia. The convention was called to revise the Articles of Confederation, which gave the Confederation Congress the power to make rules and request funds from the states, but it lacked enforcement powers, couldn't regulate commerce, and couldn't print money. The delegates ended up drafting a new Constitution with a stronger central government, which was signed and adopted on September 17, 1787. The ratification process then began, with nine of the thirteen states needing to approve for it to go into effect. The final state, Rhode Island, ratified the Constitution on May 29, 1790.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Date of first draft | May 25, 1787 |
| Location of first draft | Pennsylvania State House, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania |
| Number of signatories | 39 |
| Date of signing | September 17, 1787 |
| Date of ratification | May 29, 1790 |
| Ratifying state | Rhode Island |
| Number of states required for ratification | 9 of 13 |
| Date of first elections | December 15, 1788 |
| Date new government began | March 4, 1789 |
| First President | George Washington |
| First Vice President | John Adams |
| Date of adoption of the Bill of Rights | December 15, 1791 |
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What You'll Learn
The Constitutional Convention
The drafting of the United States Constitution began on May 25, 1787, when the Constitutional Convention first met at the Pennsylvania State House (now Independence Hall) in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The Constitutional Convention was called to revise the Articles of Confederation, which was America's first constitution. The Articles of Confederation 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.
On July 26, 1787, after two months of fierce debate, the convention appointed a "committee of detail" to draft a written constitution. The committee included John Rutledge, Edmund Randolph, Nathaniel Gorham, Oliver Ellsworth, and James Wilson. The committee studied the convention's resolutions, state constitutions, the Articles of Confederation, and other applicable reports and documents. Edmund Randolph wrote an initial rough draft, which James Wilson revised. After further revisions by the committee, a clean copy was sent to Philadelphia printers John Dunlap and David Claypoole for printing.
On September 17, 1787, the Constitutional Convention voted in favor of the final draft of the constitution. Thirty-nine delegates from twelve states signed the document, with three delegates declining to sign. The constitution required ratification by nine of the thirteen states to go into effect. The first state to ratify the Constitution was Delaware on December 7, 1787, followed by Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Georgia, and Connecticut. On July 2, 1788, New Hampshire became the ninth state to ratify the Constitution, making it the official framework of the government. On May 29, 1790, Rhode Island became the final state to ratify the Constitution, concluding the ratification process.
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Drafting the Constitution
The drafting of the United States Constitution began on May 25, 1787, when the Constitutional Convention met for the first time at the Pennsylvania State House in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The convention was called to revise the Articles of Confederation, which gave the Confederation Congress the power to make rules and request funds from the states, but lacked enforcement powers and the ability to regulate commerce or print money.
The Constitutional Convention was attended by delegates from multiple states, including notable figures such as George Washington, James Madison, Alexander Hamilton, Benjamin Franklin, and James Wilson. The convention was tasked with amending the Articles of Confederation, but the delegates ultimately proposed and created a new form of government with a stronger central government.
On July 26, 1787, after two months of fierce debate, the convention appointed a Committee of Detail, composed of John Rutledge, Edmund Randolph, Nathaniel Gorham, Oliver Ellsworth, and James Wilson, to draft a written constitution. The committee studied the convention's resolutions, state constitutions, the Articles of Confederation, and other relevant documents before producing a draft. On August 6, 1787, the convention accepted the first draft of the Constitution, which was then discussed and revised over the next five weeks.
A Committee of Eleven, composed of representatives from different states, was then selected to address outstanding issues, such as the method of choosing the president and the powers of the executive branch. The committee's reports helped shape the final draft of the Constitution. On August 21, the debate over commerce became closely linked to another contentious issue: slavery.
Finally, a Committee of Style and Arrangement, including Alexander Hamilton, James Madison, and Gouverneur Morris, was chosen to distill a final draft constitution. This committee reorganized the articles into a cohesive document, and on September 17, 1787, the Constitutional Convention voted in favor of the Constitution. The document was signed by 39 delegates from 12 states, with three delegates declining to sign. The Constitution then entered the ratification process, which will be discussed in the next section.
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Ratification
The drafting of the United States Constitution began on May 25, 1787, when the Constitutional Convention first met at the Pennsylvania State House in Philadelphia. The Constitutional Convention was called to revise the Articles of Confederation, which was America's first constitution. However, the convention soon abandoned the Articles, drafting a new Constitution with a much stronger national government.
The process of drafting the Constitution involved several committees, including the Committee of Detail, composed of John Rutledge, Edmund Randolph, Nathaniel Gorham, Oliver Ellsworth, and James Wilson, which was tasked with writing a first draft constitution. The Committee of Detail proposed a twenty-three-article (plus a preamble) constitution, which was then distilled into a final draft by the Committee of Style and Arrangement, composed of Alexander Hamilton, William Johnson, Rufus King, James Madison, and Gouverneur Morris.
The final draft of the Constitution was presented to the convention for its consideration on September 17, 1787, and was signed by thirty-nine delegates from twelve states. The ratification process then began, with the Constitution needing to be ratified by nine of the thirteen states to go into effect. The first state to ratify the Constitution was Delaware on December 7, 1787, followed by Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Georgia, and Connecticut. The ratification campaign was hard-fought, with Federalists and Anti-Federalists battling over the future of the nation. The Federalists, who supported the Constitution, believed that a strong central government was necessary to face the nation's challenges, while the Anti-Federalists opposed it because it reminded them of the monarchy they had just overthrown and because it lacked a bill of rights.
On June 21, 1788, the Constitution became the official framework of the government of the United States when New Hampshire became the ninth state to ratify it. The remaining states gradually ratified the Constitution, with the final state, Rhode Island, approving it on May 29, 1790. Even after the Constitution’s ratification, the U.S. did not begin to look and function as it does today until several years later.
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The Bill of Rights
The drafting of the United States Constitution began on May 25, 1787, when the Constitutional Convention met for the first time at the Pennsylvania State House in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The Constitutional Convention was called to revise 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.
After two months of fierce debate over the structure and powers of a new federal government, a "committee of detail" was appointed to draft a written constitution. The committee first studied the Convention's resolutions, state constitutions, the Articles of Confederation, and other applicable reports and documents. Edmund Randolph of Virginia wrote an initial rough draft of the constitution, which was then revised by James Wilson. A clean copy was sent to Philadelphia printers John Dunlap and David Claypoole, who printed secret copies for the delegates.
On September 17, 1787, after several days of further revision, the Constitutional Convention voted in favor of the Constitution. The final draft of the Constitution was prepared by the "Committee of Style and Arrangement", with Gouverneur Morris doing most of the work. The twenty-three articles drafted by the Committee of Detail were reorganized into a cohesive document containing seven articles, a preamble, and a closing endorsement. The draft Constitution received the unanimous approval of the state delegations, and 39 delegates from twelve states signed it.
The Constitution, however, faced opposition from the Anti-Federalists because it created a powerful central government and lacked a bill of rights. The Federalists, on the other hand, believed that a strong central government was necessary to face the nation's challenges. The ratification campaign was a close contest, and the “vote now, amend later” compromise helped secure victory in Massachusetts and the final holdout states. On July 2, 1788, New Hampshire became the ninth of 13 states to ratify the Constitution, making it the law of the land.
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The Articles of Confederation
A few years after the Revolutionary War, James Madison, Alexander Hamilton, and George Washington feared that their young country was on the brink of collapse. Alexander Hamilton helped convince Congress to organize a Grand Convention of state delegates to work on revising the Articles of Confederation.
On May 25, 1787, the Constitutional Convention met for the first time at the Pennsylvania State House in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, to revise the Articles of Confederation. The convention was initially called to amend the Articles of Confederation, but the delegates ultimately proposed and created a new form of government.
On August 6, 1787, the convention accepted the first draft of the Constitution. The delegates debated various sections of the draft for five weeks, after which a committee of style was appointed to prepare a final version. On September 17, 1787, the Constitutional Convention voted in favor of the Constitution, and the document was signed by 38 out of 41 delegates present. The Constitution was not ratified by all states until May 29, 1790, when Rhode Island finally approved the document.
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Frequently asked questions
The drafting of the US Constitution began on May 25, 1787, when the Constitutional Convention met for the first time at the Pennsylvania State House in Philadelphia.
The US Constitution was adopted on September 17, 1787, when it was signed by 38 out of 41 delegates.
The US Constitution created a powerful central government, replacing the Articles of Confederation, which lacked enforcement powers.
The US Constitution was ratified on May 29, 1790, when Rhode Island became the final state to approve the document.
