Creation and Ratification of the Constitution

The Convention Convenes■ Meets in Philadelphia in

the Pennsylvania State House, now called Independence Hall■ Intended to revise

Articles of Confederation

■ Instead decided to scrap the Articles and start over

■ 75% of the men had been in the Continental Congress

■ 55 delegates in all attend

■ Meet in secrecy

The Convention Convenes■ George Washington elected

President of the Convention

■ James Madison (VA) kept notes and does much of the writing of the Constitution

■ “Father of the Constitution”

■ 81-year-old Ben Franklin (PA) attends

■ Thomas Jefferson and John Adams are notable absences from the conventions

■ Both are Europe representing the country as ambassadors

■ Jefferson is in France■ Adams is in England

Major Issues Addressed■ Government strong

enough to protect rights of the people but not too strong to be controlled

■ Structure of Government

■ Congressional Representation

■ Slavery and population

■ Regulation of Trade

Structure of Government

■ Convention agreed on creating Three Branches of Government

■ Executive: enforce the laws

■ Legislative: make the laws■ Judicial: interpret the laws

Structure of GovernmentTwo Plans

Virginia Plan

■ Bicameral Legislature

■ Number of representatives in each house would be based on states population and/or wealth

■ Legislature would have power to tax, regulate trade and make laws that states are unable to make

New Jersey Plan

■ Single house Legislature

■ Each state would have one vote

■ Similar to Articles of Confederation

■ Legislature would have power to tax, regulate trade and make laws that states are unable to make

Structure of GovernmentTwo Plans

Constitutional Compromise■ Great Compromise

■ Compromise between the Virginia and New Jersey plans for representation

■ 3 Branches of Government

■ Executive, Legislative and Judicial

■ Legislature would be Bicameral

■Senate – 2 representatives per state

■House of Representatives – representation based on population

Constitutional Compromise■ Commerce Compromise –

Regulation of Trade Congress would have the power to regulate trade with foreign nations, amongst the states and with Native Americans.

■ Congress can also tax imports■ Congress NOT allowed to tax

exports■ Southern economy is based on

exports of tobacco, cotton, etc.■ Congress would not be able to

regulate the slave trade for at least 20 years – until 1808.

Constitutional CompromiseCommerce Compromise – Regulation of Trade

■ Congress would have power to regulate trade with foreign nations, amongst the states and with Native Americans

■ Congress can tax imports

■ Congress NOT allowed to tax exports

■ Southern economy is based on exports of tobacco, cotton etc.

■ Congress would not regulate the slave trade for at least 20 years – until 1808

Slavery and Population■ Disagreement on how

to count slaves as part of population for the purpose of taxation and representation

■ South wanted slaves counted as population for representation but not taxation

■ North wanted slaves counted for taxation but not population

Slavery and Population

■ Three-Fifths Compromise■ Every 5 slaves

would count as 3 free persons when calculating population for taxation and for representation

Signing of the Constitution

■ September 17, 1787

■ Sent to states for ratification

■ Had to have ¾ of states approval to become law of the land

Preamble “We the People of the

United States, in Order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defence, promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America.”

Approving the Constitution

■ Article VII - Ratification The Ratification of the Conventions of nine States, shall be sufficient for the Establishment of this Constitution between the States so ratifying the Same.

Words we need to understand

■ Ratification – the act of giving formal approval or consent to

■ When we talk about ratification it implies that the issue requires a vote for approval

■ Convention – a meeting or formal assembly, as of representatives or delegates, for discussion of and action on particular matters of common concern.

Ratification in 1787 & early 1788

Ratification of the Constitution-- dates, states and votes --

 Date State

Votes

Yes No

1 December 7, 1787 Delaware 30 0

2 December 11, 1787 Pennsylvania 46 23

3 December 18, 1787 New Jersey 38 0

4 January 2, 1788 Georgia 26 0

5 January 9, 1788 Connecticut 128 40

6 February 6, 1788 Massachusetts 187 168

7 April 26, 1788 Maryland 63 11

8 May 23, 1788 South Carolina 149 73

Constitutional Crisis

■ New Hampshire ratifies June 21, 1788 making the Constitution officially the new government, but…

■ Big fight in both New York and Virginia, the 2 largest states (population), over ratification

■ Each convention has large groups of Antifederalist delegates

Pro Constitution - Federalists

Alexander HamiltonJames Madison

John Jay

The Federalist Papers

■ Published starting in October 1787

■ 85 total essays published anonymously under the name PUBLIUS in New York

■ Intended to gain support from ratification delegates to New York convention

The Federalist Papers

■ Book form published in 1788

■ Scholars believe that Hamilton wrote 52, Madison wrote 28, and Jay 5 of the essays

■ Still used today to explain what the writers of the Constitution meant

Ad for purchasing of copies of the Federalist Papers

Anti Constitution - Antifederalist■ Patrick Henry

■ Leading patriot from Revolution

■ He had refused to attend the Constitutional Convention

■ “I smell a rat”

■ Led the fight against ratification in Virginia

Patrick Henry

Anti Constitution

■ George Mason

■ Wrote the Virginia Declaration of Rights (Virginia’s version of the bill of rights) in 1776

■ Attended the Constitutional Convention but refused to sign the final document

Opposition to the Constitution

Conflict Comes to an EndRatification of the Constitution

-- dates, states and votes --

 

Date StateVotes

Yes No

9 June 21, 1788 New Hampshire 57 47

10 June 25, 1788 Virginia 89 79

11 July 26, 1788 New York 30 27

■ George Washington becomes the nation’s

1st president April 30, 1789

12 November 21, 1789 North Carolina 194 77

13 May 29, 1790 Rhode Island 34 32

The Bill of Rights■ Amendment process - Process to

make changes to the constitution as the needs of the country changed

■ 1791 – first ten amendments to the constitution were created as the “Bill of Rights”

■ Amendment Process■ Proposed in Congress■ 2/3 Congress vote yes■ ¾ state legislatures vote yes =

APPROVED