Drafting the Constitution Shays Rebellion After the Revolutionary

Drafting the Constitution

Shay’s Rebellion § After the Revolutionary War, many farmers struggled with high taxes and debt. Those that couldn’t pay would lose their farm to creditors who would auction off the property. § In Sept. , 1786, Daniel Shays led an army of angry farmers who closed several courts in Mass. In 1787, his army of 1200 marched to the Springfield arsenal. The Mass. Militia was able to subdue the rebellion.

Shays Rebellion Continued § Shay’s Rebellion demonstrated the need for a stronger national govt. § The combination of Shay’s Rebellion with concerns over developments in interstate trade (tariffs) caused leading colonial figures to call for a convention.

The Constitutional Convention § 55 delegates from 12 colonies (no rep from RI) met in Philadelphia in May, 1787. Most had a desire to strengthen the national government § Big States vs. Small States § Virginia Plan (large states) James Madison proposed a bicameral legislature (two houses) with membership based on population § New Jersey Plan (small states) single house legislature with equal representation for each state

• Great Compromise- Roger Sherman of Connecticut offered a compromise involving a bicameral legislature. Each state would have equal representation in the Senate while representation in the House of Representatives would be based on population. Voters would choose members of the House directly while senators would be chosen by each state’s legislature

Slavery • Should slaves count for representation – Southern states wanted slaves to count as people for determining representation in the House. Northern states opposed this idea – Three-fifths Compromise- each slave would count as three-fifths a person when determining population

Interstate Trade § Southern states were reluctant to allow the federal government to control interstate trade because they feared it would result in slavery being abolished § The compromise was to allow the federal government to regulate interstate trade, but Congress was prohibited from interfering with the slavery for 20 years.