Essential Question

• What were the major challenges facing the delegates at the Constitutional Convention?

Challenges of the Convention

Chapter 8 Section 2 (Pt II)

The Convention Opens• On May 25, 1787 the Const.

Convention opened– The 1st order of business was to

nominate a President– Every delegate voted to

nominate GW• Delegates did not want

outside pressure to affect the amendment process– They decided that their debates

would remain secret• No members of the public would

be allowed to attend• Delegates were sworn not to

discuss the content of the sessions

The “Father of the Constitution”

• Most of what is known about this “secret” meeting comes from the writings of James Madison– Through these writings

we know that Madison made huge contributions to the convention• Therefore, he is popularly

known as “The Father of the Constitution”

The Virginia Plan• As the Convention began, 2 rival plans

emerged regarding the structure of the new govt.– The first proposal, written by James

Madison, was known as the Virginia Plan• This proposal, introduced by

Edmund Randolph, involved 3 branches of govt:

1. Executive – would enforce the nation’s laws

2. Legislative – would create the nation’s laws

3. Judicial – would interpret the nation’s laws

Checks & BalancesThe VA plan called for the legislature to have two houses: An Upper House & a Lower House

Representation in each house would be based on a state’s pop.B/c of this, the VA Plan was favored by the larger states

The final part of the VA Plan was a proposed system of “Checks & Balances”

This system would allow each branch to “check” the power of the other two, which would ensure a balance of power btwn the 3 branches

The New Jersey Plan

• Delegates from the smaller states strongly objected to parts of the VA Plan– They especially objected to representation being

based on pop.• This gave an inherent advantage to the larger states

– In response, delegates from the smaller states made their own proposal, the New Jersey Plan• This plan, presented by William Paterson of NJ, included

3 branches of govt., but proposed a single-house legislature w/ 1 vote per state

• This idea of “equal representation” caused the small states to back the NJ Plan

Summary/Test Question

• The smaller states wanted to base the national government on the ________?a. Virginia Planb. New Jersey Planc. Articles of Confederationd. Three-Fifths Compromise

The Great Compromise

• Emotions ran high as debates over the two rival plans continued– The major problem was the issue of representation in

the legislature– In early July, a committee led by Roger Sherman

proposed a deal– They offered a compromise involving a two house

legislature:– Senate – based on equal representation (2 votes per state)– House of Representatives – representation based on population

– Both sides accepted this proposal, so the “Great Compromise” was passed on July 16, 1787

Slavery Issues

• Representation based on pop. raised the question of whether slaves should be counted – Southerners wanted the slaves

to be counted for purposes of representation, but not taxation• Northerners argued that slaves

were not citizens and should not count for representation, but should be taxed

• This disagreement, also called for a compromise in order to push the Constitution forward

The 3/5 Compromise

– The solution became known as the 3/5 Compromise• This agreement entailed

several decisions1. 3/5 of the slave pop. would

count for representation & tax

2. Congress would not ban the slave trade until at least 1808

• After this series of compromises, the delegates finally passed the Constitution on Sept. 17, 1787– All but 3 delegates signed the

Const., then it was sent to the states for approval