Encouraged by the results of the Mt. Vernon conference with Maryland, on 21 July 1786 the General Assembly of Virginia proposed a broader trade conclave to be held in Annapolis, Maryland the following year. Although all states were invited, only five; New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware and Virginia, deigned to send representatives. Interestingly, Maryland, which hosted the conference, did not attend.

With only five states in attendance, the conferees in Annapolis did not believe that they possessed a quorum to conduct substantive business. Instead the Annapolis Convention concluded with a resolution calling on the Continental Congress to authorize a national conference in Philadelphia to address weaknesses in the Articles of Confederation.

Attached Documents
The document is an excerpt from the resolution of the Annapolis Convention.
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Questions to Consider
1) What were some of the issues brought up in the convention?
2) What issues ended up in the final constitution?

After a series of preliminaries in which George Washington was elected president of the convention, talk quickly shifted from ways to modify the Articles of Confederation to ways to replace the Articles. Debate quickly came to center on a democratic plan offered by the Virginia delegation and a more constrained plan offered by the New Jersey delegation.

As the convention had only the authority to consider modification to the Articles of Confederation not the adoption of an entirely new system, secrecy was paramount to the delegates. Furthermore, operating in secrecy would insulate the delegates from political pressures. In order to maintain confidentiality, the doors and windows were sealed despite the summer heat and guards were posted at doors. Because of the inordinate attention to security, little is known about happened inside of the convention.

Attached Documents
The image is a current picture of Independence Hall in Philadelphia, where the Constitutional Convention was held.

Questions to Consider
1. Was it right for the Constitutional Convention to act so far outside of its authority? Why or why not.

Attached Documents
Known as the “Virginia Plan,” Madison’s plan envisioned a government far more democratic than that of the Articles which featured a bicameral legislature with both houses apportioned by population. The lower house, which would be popularly elected, would select the members of the upper house. The combined legislature would then elect a powerful executive.
Under the Articles of Confederation, each state was given equal representation in the legislature regardless of population and each state had a veto over any national action. This effectively gave tremendous power to the smaller states. The Virginia Plan, with a popularly apportioned legislature, however favored the large states, such as New York and Virginia at the expense of the smaller states.

As Madison came to the convention with a plan prepared, it became, by default the starting point for much of the debate.

Questions to Consider
1. What elements of the "Virginia Plan" were adopted in the final Constitution?

Attached Documents
Called the “New Jersey Plan,” Paterson’s plan maintained many aspects of the Articles of Confederation and gave equal representation in the legislature to all states regardless of population.

Questions to Consider
1. What elements of the New Jersey Plan were ultimately adopted in the final Constitution?

Connecticut delegate Roger Sherman eventually proposed a compromise that was acceptable to both factions. Sherman’s Plan, known as the Great Compromise, retained the bicameral legislature envisioned by Madison, but apportioned the lower house by population and granted equal representation to all states in the upper house. This compromise protected the interests of both the small and large states.

The lower house being apportioned by population raised another difficulty for the convention. Slave states wanted their slaves counted as population for the purposes of apportionment purposes despite having denied them all political rights. Such an arrangement was unacceptable to free states as, if slaves were counted as population, slave states would be able to dominate the congress.

Again, the delegates reached a compromise to avoid a possible deadlock. Pennsylvania delegate James Wilson, later a Supreme Court Justice, proposed that all unfree labor—slaves and indentured servants—should count as 3/5 of a person for apportionment purposes. This compromise again protected the interests of both factions and allowed the convention to continue.

Attached Documents
The first image is a painting of Roger Sherman.

The second image is a painting of James Wilson.

The document is a modern United States Senate document explaining “The Great Compromise.”

Questions to Consider
1. Should politicians compromise on core principals? Is compromise sometimes essential to effective government?

Attached Documents
The following document is a collection of notes taken by Hamilton during the drafting process.

Questions to Consider
1)In what ways are Hamilton's influences evident in the final draft of the Constitution?

The states were instructed to either ratify or reject the constitution as an entire document but not to offer provisional acceptance based upon any conditions. This would spare the constitution an endless ratification process with often contradictory demands. Contrary to the Articles of Confederation, which required unanimous consent from the states for any change in the national government, the constitution required only the consent of 9 states to be ratified.

Questions to Consider
1. Under the terms of the Articles of Confederation, the Constitution was illegal. Does this alter your perception of the Constitution? Would it have been possible to enact a strong constitution under the terms of the Articles?