Simone Lawson
The United States Constitution, the supreme law of the United States of America, was signed by 39 delegates on September 17, 1787. The Constitutional Convention, which assembled in Philadelphia in May 1787, was attended by 55 delegates, including George Washington, James Madison, Alexander Hamilton, John Jay, William Paterson, James Wilson, and George Mason. The delegates, who represented a wide range of interests and views, crafted a powerful central government and made compromises on issues such as congressional representation and slavery. The Constitution superseded the Articles of Confederation, the nation's first constitution, on March 4, 1789, and has endured as one of the longest-lived and most emulated constitutions in the world.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Number of people involved in creating the Constitution | 55 delegates attended the sessions, but only 39 signed the Constitution |
| Age range of the delegates | 26 to 81 |
| Key players | George Washington, James Madison, Alexander Hamilton, George Mason, William Paterson, James Wilson, John Jay, Roger Sherman |
| Aim | To revise the Articles of Confederation, which 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 |
| Outcome | A completely new form of government with a powerful central government and a bill of rights |
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What You'll Learn
Key players at the Constitutional Convention
The Constitutional Convention of 1787 was attended by 55 delegates, but only 39 signed the Constitution. The delegates represented a wide range of interests and views, and the final document incorporated elements of many of their individual ideas. Here are some of the key players at the Constitutional Convention:
George Washington was one of the key figures who feared that the young American nation was on the brink of collapse due to the weaknesses of the Articles of Confederation. He oversaw the proceedings of the Constitutional Convention, which ultimately produced a new form of government.
James Madison was another key figure who shared Washington's concerns about the Articles of Confederation. After the Constitution was signed, he wrote the Federalist Papers with Alexander Hamilton and John Jay to explain its significance and persuade states to ratify it. He also contributed to the Bill of Rights by writing the first ten amendments.
William Paterson proposed that each state should have equal representation in Congress, a position known as the Connecticut Compromise or the Great Compromise. He opposed proportional representation, fearing that the interests of small states would be ignored. Aspects of his proposal were included in the final Constitution.
James Wilson advocated for a single executive with absolute veto power, rather than a committee, and for this executive to be directly elected by the people of the United States. He was part of the Committee of Detail that was elected to draft a detailed constitution.
George Mason was concerned about the amount of power given to the federal government and the lack of protection for citizens' rights in the Constitution. He refused to sign it, famously saying that he would "sooner chop off my right hand" than do so without a Bill of Rights. His desire for a Bill of Rights was eventually realised, and he is considered to have had a unique and important role in the creation of the Constitution.
Other notable attendees at the Convention included Benjamin Franklin, the oldest delegate at 81 years old, and Roger Sherman, who proposed the Connecticut Compromise.
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The Federalists and Anti-Federalists
The Anti-Federalists, on the other hand, vehemently opposed the ratification of the Constitution. They argued that it created a powerful central government that resembled the one they had recently overthrown in the Revolutionary War. Anti-Federalists, including figures like George Mason, believed that the Constitution would lead to a loss of individual liberties, a weakening of state sovereignty, and the potential rise of tyranny. They advocated for a more decentralised form of government, with greater protections for individual rights and stronger representation for the states.
Despite their efforts, the Anti-Federalists were unable to organise effectively across all thirteen states. They fought the ratification process at every state convention, and their success came in forcing the first Congress under the new Constitution to establish a Bill of Rights to ensure the liberties they felt were violated. The Federalists, meanwhile, wrote the Federalist Papers—85 essays explaining the significance of the Constitution to persuade states to ratify it.
The debate between Federalists and Anti-Federalists shaped the early political landscape of the United States and continues to influence political thought and discourse in the country today.
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The Connecticut Compromise
The Compromise retained the bicameral legislature, with proportional representation of the states in the lower house or House of Representatives, and equal representation from each state in the upper house or Senate. The large states, like Virginia, advocated for legislative voting based solely on proportional representation, while smaller states demanded equal representation of each state in the new Congress.
Sherman's proposal stated that "the proportion of suffrage in the 1st. Branch [house] should be according to the respective numbers of free inhabitants; and that in the second branch or Senate, each State should have one vote and no more." This dual system of representation aimed to address the dispute between small and large states over representation in the new federal government.
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The Articles of Confederation
Under the Articles of Confederation, the presiding officer of Congress, often referred to as the "President of the United States in Congress Assembled," performed administrative functions when Congress was in recess. However, this position was not an executive role, as all functions were executed under the direct control of Congress. The Articles also provided for the blanket acceptance of the Province of Quebec (referred to as "Canada" in the Articles) into the United States if it chose to do so, but this did not occur.
Despite being the first constitution, the Articles of Confederation had significant limitations. The Confederation Congress had the power to make rules and request funds from the states, but it lacked enforcement powers, could not regulate commerce, and could not print money. Disputes between states over territory, war pensions, taxation, and trade threatened to tear the young nation apart. The central government had little power to settle these quarrels, and the states acted with considerable autonomy.
As a result, a few years after the Revolutionary War, prominent figures like James Madison, Alexander Hamilton, and George Washington feared the country was on the brink of collapse. They helped convince Congress to organize a Grand Convention of state delegates to revise the Articles. In May 1787, the Constitutional Convention assembled in Philadelphia, and after a summer of heated debates, a new Constitution was signed, which remains in effect today.
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The ratification process
On September 17, 1787, 38 out of 41 delegates signed the new US Constitution. Under Article VII, it was agreed that the document would not be binding until ratified by nine of the 13 existing states. Hamilton and James Madison led the lobbying efforts for votes in favour of ratification, producing 85 essays known as "The Federalist Papers" to explain and defend the proposed new government.
The first state to ratify the Constitution was Delaware on December 7, 1787, followed by Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Georgia, and Connecticut. The process was not without opposition, with some states voicing concerns over the lack of protection for rights such as freedom of speech, religion, and press. The terms of the Massachusetts Compromise, reached in February 1788, stipulated that amendments would be made to include what became the Bill of Rights. This helped secure victory in Massachusetts and eventually in the final holdout states of Maryland, South Carolina, and New Hampshire, which became the ninth and final state needed to ratify the Constitution on June 21, 1788.
The Constitution officially superseded the Articles of Confederation on March 4, 1789, becoming the supreme law of the land. The first ten amendments, known as the Bill of Rights, offered protections for individual liberties and justice and placed restrictions on the powers of the government. The ratification process played a crucial role in shaping the framework of the US government and ensuring the protection of fundamental rights.
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Frequently asked questions
55 delegates attended the Constitutional Convention sessions, but only 39 signed the Constitution. Some of the key figures include George Washington, James Madison, Alexander Hamilton, John Jay, and George Mason.
George Washington oversaw the proceedings and was one of the key figures who feared that the young country was on the brink of collapse. James Madison wrote the first 10 amendments to the Constitution and, along with Hamilton and Jay, wrote the Federalist Papers to explain the significance of the Constitution. George Mason pushed for the inclusion of a Bill of Rights, and Roger Sherman proposed the "Connecticut Compromise" or "Great Compromise" to balance the interests of large and small states.
One of the fiercest arguments was over congressional representation and whether it should be based on population or divided equally among the states. Another contentious issue was slavery, with delegates agreeing to a compromise that enslaved Africans would be counted as three-fifths of a person, and that the slave trade could continue until 1808.
