The Constitutional Convention Unit Lesson 2 The Constitutional Convention

Objective SWUT delegates to the constitutional convention of 1787 had to compromise on key issues in order to complete a new constitution.

What exactly does Compromise mean? A settlement of differences by mutual concessions; an agreement reached by adjustment of conflicting or opposing claims, principles, etc., by reciprocal modification of demands.

The Constitutional Convention The goal of the convention was to revise the articles of confederation to make them stronger. The Constitutional Convention The convention opened May 25, 1787

The Constitutional Convention Delegates included men such as Benjamin Franklin, George Washington, Thomas Jefferson and James Madison. The Constitutional Convention The convention opened May 25, 1787

The Constitutional Convention George Washington was so well respected by the other delegates that they immediately appointed him President of the convention. The Constitutional Convention The convention opened May 25, 1787

The Constitutional Convention The delegates agreed to keep all their debates private so that they would be free to speak their minds without outside interference or influence. The Constitutional Convention The convention opened May 25, 1787

The Constitutional Convention In order to keep the debates secret they kept the windows closed which caused the room to get very hot in the summer. The Constitutional Convention The convention opened May 25, 1787

The Constitutional Convention Soon after the debates began James Madison convinced the other delegates that they needed to do more than just revise the articles of confederation. The Constitutional Convention The convention opened May 25, 1787

The Constitutional Convention James Madison proposed they scrap the Articles and write an entirely new Constitution. He had already created a plan for the new government that became known as the Virginia Plan. The Constitutional Convention The Virginia Plan

The Constitutional Convention This plan called for a strong national government with three branches, a strong bi- cameral legislature, a weaker chief executive and a judicial branch. The Constitutional Convention The Virginia Plan

The Constitutional Convention The legislature was to be the most powerful branch balanced by the other two and would be numbered according to the populations of the other states. The Constitutional Convention The Virginia Plan

The Constitutional Convention The smaller states objected to choosing legislatures based on population and instead wanted an equal number from each state in uni- cameral legislature. The Constitutional Convention The New Jersey Plan

The Constitutional Convention Roger Sherman of Connecticut proposed that the plans be merged so that one house of the legislature, the upper house called the senate, would receive two seats per state. The Constitutional Convention The Great Compromise

The Constitutional Convention The lower house of the legislature called the House of Representatives would receive seats based on population. This compromise narrowly passed. The Constitutional Convention The Great Compromise

The Constitutional Convention The delegates also fought over whether there should be one chief executive or three, finally settling with one. The Constitutional Convention The Chief Executive

The Constitutional Convention The most serious disagreement at the convention was over the issue of slavery. Would slaves be allowed to vote and would they be counted when deciding the number of representitives each state could send to congress. The Constitutional Convention The Three-Fifths Compromise

The Constitutional Convention The southern states wanted to count their slaves when apportioning seats in the House of Representatives but would not allow those slaves to vote. The Constitutional Convention The Three-Fifths Compromise

The Constitutional Convention The northern states insisted that the slaves either be allowed to vote or else not be counted in apportioning seats in the house. The Constitutional Convention The Three-Fifths Compromise

The Constitutional Convention They finally agreed that slaves would not be allowed to vote but that they would only count three out of every five slaves when apportioning seats in congress. The Constitutional Convention The Three-Fifths Compromise

The Constitutional Convention Some of the northern states also wished to ban the slave trade. The southern states believed that this would hurt the southern economy. The Constitutional Convention The Slave Trade

The Constitutional Convention They finally agreed that congress would not be allowed to ban the slave trade for 20 years. After that it would be free to act as it saw fit. The Constitutional Convention The Slave Trade

The Constitutional Convention The delegates debated all summer long. They argued over how long the terms of office for the various officials should be. The Constitutional Convention The Final Details

The Constitutional Convention They argued over how the courts should be organized. They even argued over whether and how much members of congress should be paid. The Constitutional Convention The Final Details

The Constitutional Convention Finally on September 17, 1787, 52 of the remaining 55 delegates signed the Constitution. The other three refused believing that it gave too much power to the national government. The Constitutional Convention Signing The Constitution

The Constitutional Convention The new Constitution called for each of the states to call a convention of their own. Once nine of the thirteen states had ratified the Constitution it would take effect. The Constitutional Convention Signing The Constitution

The End!!!