Constitutional Convention Met in Philadelphia Pennsylvania in 1787

Constitutional Convention Met in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in 1787 at Independence Hall Goal was to revise the Articles of Confederation. 55 men attended from 12 of the 13 states • Rhode Island didn’t send representatives • Thomas Jefferson, Thomas Paine, John Adams, and Patrick Henry did not attend • Benjamin Franklin was the oldest at 81. • George Washington presided over the meeting • James Madison v 1 st to arrive v. Made detailed plans for the convention v. Did research on forms of government v. Brought 1 st draft of framework for a new government v. Attended every meeting sat in the front, and took notes of what was said

Virginia Plan: • Madison’s Plan • Strong central (federal) government • Called for 3 branches of government v. Legislative v. Executive v. Judicial • Legislative Branch with two houses based on population v. Small states would have less representation o. Rhode Island, Delaware, Maryland, New Jersey • Took some power away from states v. Congress chooses the president and judges v. President and judges had the power to veto Congress

New Jersey Plan • Called for a 3 branch government • Legislative branch with one house, with each state getting one vote • Congress kept same powers it had under the Articles of Confederation v. Added powers to tax and regulate trade These plans led to a two week debate!!!

The Great Compromise • Called for a two house Congress (Virginia Plan) v. Upper house called the Senate o. Each state would have two senators (New Jersey Plan) v. Lower house called the House of Representatives o # of representatives is based on each state’s population (Virginia Plan) o. How do you count slaves into the population?

3/5 Compromise • The South wanted to count slaves for representation, but not for federal taxes • The North wanted to count slaves for taxes, but not for representation • Solution: Slaves count for both taxes and representation v. Every 5 slaves counted as 3 people • Also, the North agreed not to outlaw slavery for 20 years

Convention Conclusion • Lasted 4 months • 39 delegates signed • 3 refused to sign • 9 out the 13 states had to ratify for it to become law