Constitutional Convention Dbq Analysis

In 1786 an incident in Massachusetts caused many Americans to question the national government. The rebellion led by Daniel Shay worried many Americans especially the wealthy, the nation's leaders realized there was a need for a stronger central government. In May of 1787 delegates from 12 states met in Philadelphia with the purpose to revise the Articles of the Confederation. The Articles had many weaknesses one of its main weaknesses was the power that each individual state had, along with each states representation in Congress. This would be known as the Constitutional Convention, the delegates present were all came from the upper class of American Society they were well educated and wealthy. These men came together with the mission of making
changes to the Articles of Confederation, but they later realized that there a need for a whole new Constitution. This new basic charter of the United States would be known as "A Bundle of Compromises" as a result for all the conflicts that had developed. State representation was an issue at the Convention because of the conflict between the large and small states.
In order to assuage this issue a representative of a large and small state presented proposals that of what they believed the representation should be. The Virginia Plan or large states plan was proposed by Edmund Randolph, and written by James Madison. This document recommended a bicameral legislature whose membership was determined by the size of that states free population. The lower house would be elected by the people and the upper house was to be chosen by the members of the lower house. An executive would be chosen by the legislature for an unspecified term and would not be reelected. A judiciary branch would consist of supreme courts and lower courts implemented by the legislature. The Virginia Plan put more power into the hands of the larger states. Each government would make specific powers to check and balance the other, making the branches
equal. William Paterson of New Jersey developed the small state plan; this plan was an attempt to take most of the power out of the larger states because there would be a constant majority ruling in the votes. The New Jersey Plan called for a unicameral legislature with each state having one vote. Two new powers were given to the legislature, the power to tax and to regulate commerce. There would be an executive branch without the power to veto and they had to subject to state control. This plan also stated that the decisions of the national government would be "the supreme law of the land." State representation was now the major area of debate in Congress. Roger Sherman of Connecticut offered a compromise plan which would integrate both the Virginia and New Jersey Plans. This Great Compromise called for a bicameral legislature. Congress would be separated into two houses Senate and the House of Representatives. The lower house would be filled according to the states population one member for every 40,000 residents. Whereas, the upper house would be filled with equal representation of the states, with each state having two members. There was now more power in the hands of the federal government. With the system of checks and balances there is an required interaction between the three branches that prevent the abuse of power. The states had reserved powers in the government. The Constitutional Convention also addressed the concern of slaves counting in as apart of the population.
The conflict derived from the fact that many states had a large population of slaves, counting these slaves would greatly effect a states population. States with large slave populations wanted all of their slaves to count in the population in contrast the states with low to no slaves wanted only the free population counted. The proposal that was adopted was the three-fifths compromise. With this every three out of five slaves would be counted for representation and taxation. The method for counting the population would be by a census every ten
years. With the Articles of Confederation the states had the power to tax and regulate commerce between the states and other nations. Congress had no power to set up its own system of taxes on goods, and had to rely on the states to collect and forward taxes. The fugitive slave clause declared that run away slaves who escaped would be returned to their rightful owners. Slave Trade compromise was now taxed ten dollars per slave. Congress would pass no law prohibiting the importance of slaves for twenty years, and the importation of slaves would become illegal after 1808. Congress was granted the right to tax on imports but not on exports, and the right to regulate interstate and international trade. The Virginia Plan supported a strong executive on the other hand The New Jersey Plan desired a weak executive. James Wilson's proposal stated that the states choose presidential electors who choose the president. These presidential electors are known as the Electoral College. The Electoral College's vote usually is determined by the popular vote, which is made by the people of that state during an election. The Constitutional Convention brought about many conflicts along proposals and compromises. These "Bundles of Compromises" brought us the foundation for our Constitution. With the Great Compromise, Three-Fifths, and the Slave Trade Compromise many of the issues facing America were resolved.