The Philadelphia Convention, held in 1787, aimed to address the issues of the Articles of Confederation. Delegates drafted a new government plan, the United States Constitution, which strengthened the federal government and preserved state laws. Compromises were made between those who wanted a stronger federal government and those who defended the rights of states. The Constitution remains the defining document of US law.
The Philadelphia Convention, now often referred to as the Constitutional Convention, was a meeting held in 1787 by delegates from the 13 states that then comprised the United States. At first, the purpose of the convention was to address the problems the federal government was having governing the states and remaining fiscally sound under the provisions of the Articles of Confederation, which had been the overriding code for government since 1777. the convention of Philadelphia was the formation of a new government plan, which was outlined in the newly drafted United States Constitution. Created from compromises reached by delegates proposing different plans, the Constitution strengthened the federal government and remains the defining document of US law to this day.
Seeking a way to address the problems inherent in the Articles of Confederation, the Continental Congress agreed to meet in Philadelphia at the Pennsylvania State House in May 1787. The Articles were adopted in 1777 just one year after the United States declared the independence from Great Britain, but they proved ineffective as the country grew. They gave the federal government little power to regulate the action of states, and without the ability to tax, the central government was essentially bankrupt by the mid-1880s. This left the United States vulnerable, as its ability to finance a army would have been seriously questioned if another major war had broken out.
On May 25, 1787, delegates from 12 of the 13 states arrived and immediately elected George Washington as president of the Philadelphia Convention. While the purpose of the convention was technically to address the issues of the Articles of Confederation, powerful delegates such as James Madison and Alexander Hamilton saw the convention as an opportunity to draft a document that would replace the Articles and strengthen the United States in the future. The delegates agreed that these deliberations would be held in absolute secrecy.
Madison drafted what would become known as the Virginia Plan, a plan that proposed strengthening the central government’s role and its power to govern states by creating a new legislative branch in which states would be represented based on their respective populations. The smaller states balked, and William Paterson of New Jersey devised a competing plan that kept the rights of the frontline states and merely strengthened the power of the Continental Congress. Throughout the summer of 1787 compromises were worked out between those who defended the rights of the states and those who wanted a stronger federal government.
A key element of the final document was the compromise proposed by Roger Sherman of Connecticut, which gave states equal representation in the US Senate while allocating seats in the House of Representatives based on population. The delegates ultimately agreed to give Congress the power to regulate the economy and national defense, but preserved the integrity of state laws. On September 17, 1787, delegates signed and ratified the United States Constitution to conclude the Philadelphia Convention.
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