The Constitutional Convention, also referred to as the Grand or Federalist Convention, that took place in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania from May to September 1787 is touted as one of the most memorable, monumental and important events in the United States history after gaining independence from Britain. This is mainly because it revised and updated the initial Articles of Confederation, which formed the precursor to the modern liberal and lofty Constitution of the United States of America. The major aim of the Convention was to revise the Articles of Confederation and to create a new strong form, structure of system of governance by modifying the Articles. The Articles of Confederation represent the first primary Constitutional document of the United States that was adopted by the Continental Congress in November 1777 and ratified by states in 1781. This document established the roles of the US national government following the declaration of independence from the Great Britain. During this Great Convention, a number of issues arose for discussion among the delegates and as would be expected, divisions arose among delegates representing various states on certain thorny issues like the slave trade, representation and composition of government.
The ‘Experience’ at the Grand Convention
The Need for a New Constitution of the US
A new constitution of the US was needed in spite of the existence of the Articles of Confederation mainly because, first, the system of central government created or suggested under the Articles was too weak, simplistic, ambiguous and weak to enable effective functioning of the new state. Moreover, under the Articles of Confederation, the concept of sovereignty of states was too vague and almost undefined in clear terms, hence raising doubt as to whether or not the central (now federal) government could control how the states carried out their functions. There was also the need and concern among the attending delegates like James Wilson, Madison, John Jay and Alexander Hamilton to strengthen the federal government of the US. Further, the excesses of the state government under the Articles of Confederation such as high taxation on land, economic depression and high legal costs after the American Depression necessitated the need to modify or revise the Articles and give the Central or federal government some powers over taxes and Commerce. Moreover, Shay’s rebellion and protests between 1786 and 1787 also played an important role in necessitating the need for a new Constitution in lieu of the Articles of the Confederation. These were protests staged by the American farmers demanding a reduction in the amount of tax collected from their income by the state governments. They protested particularly against the local and state enforcement of tax collection laws and the arbitrary or unfair nature of judicial judgments for debt. They also took up arms protesting against poor harvest, high or oppressive and excessive taxes and economic depression. These series of rebellions against state authorities have been named after a Continental Army Captain, Daniel Shays who led the protests. This Shays rebellion was thereafter used by those politicians who advocated for Constitutional reforms to justify replacement or revision of the Articles of Confederation (Foner & Garratty 111).
The Great Architects of the Constitutional Document
As alluded to and mentioned earlier, James Madison and Alexander Hamilton played instrumental roles both before and during the constitutional Convention in Philadelphia as the main architects of the Constitutional document. They not only pushed and proposed for the need to rectify the loopholes in the Articles of Confederation through a Constitutional document, but also rallied states and delegates involving governors, senators and legal scholars to attend and contribute to the Convention. Another leader who played a leading role at the Convention was George Washington who was elected at the Convention to preside over the debate. I think the document suggests that assumptions of the period vested in the enlightenment thought were important in unifying the various states of the US and to create a system that would extend the views of the enlightenment period. If I were at the Convention, I would have suggested that a Bill of Rights that was absent then be added plus a provision that would create a strong and independent judicial system. According to Bilder, of these scholars, it is James Madison who is normally credited with and remembered for his monumental role in the Constitutional Convention (46).
The Contentious Issues, Virginia and New Jersey Plans
Further afield, it is noteworthy that during the Convention, a number of arguments on the various issues were canvassed and compromises put forth or reached in order to come up with the final agreeable draft of the current Constitution of the United States of America from the Confederate Articles. In a nutshell, the arguments made during the Convention revolved around issues to do with the election and reelection of the US President, division of executive powers, composition and structure of the legislature, the election of the Senate, representation of states, consideration of slavery in determining proportional representation and taxation of the states, abolition of the slave trade; appointment of judges (Morton 8). One of the propositions was contained in the Virginia Plan drafted by delegates from Virginia led by James Madison. The plan, also known as the Randolph plan named after Virginia Governor, proposed a bicameral Parliament of the legislative arm of US government composed of the House of Representatives and Senate. The Virginia Plan also sought for the revision of the powers and structures of the national government besides recall and rotation principles to apply to the lower house. Under this plan, it was proposed that large states have more representatives than smaller states based on the number of free inhabitants in each state or the quotas of contribution.
In addition, there was also the New Jersey Plan drafted by delegates from the New Jersey. It made a plethora of proposals, the most ambitious one being a unicameral legislature in which each state would have only one vote. Further, the plan also proposed that the US Congress be given more powers to raise funds through tariffs, collect taxes from the states and regulate interstate and foreign commerce. It also proposed a system whereby it is the Congress to elect the members of the federal executive, that interstate criminal jurisdiction be established, the Articles of Confederation be made the supreme laws of the land together with treaties and finally for a policy to be adopted on the admission criteria for new states into the union. However, the delegates rejected the New Jersey Plan and largely adopted some of the provisions of the Virginia Plan.
The Arguments and Compromises
However, the most important compromise that was reached among the delegates representing the various states was the Connecticut, Sherman’s or Great Compromise. This adopted the Virginia Plan and established a bicameral Parliament consisting of the Senate and the House of Representatives. There was a division between the large and small states regarding representation and this almost jeopardized the Convection due to different views of delegates from each side of the divide (Morton 3).Here, the large and small states reached a mutual agreements to the manner of representation and voting. Further, an argument arose among delegates from the Southern and Northern states concerning the question as to whether slaves were to be considered as part of the population while determining representation or not. This would later lead to another compromise, known as the Three Fifths Compromise. Through this compromise, the delegates agreed that “all other persons” representing three fifths of the total population of including slaves would be factored in when determining whether or not slaves could be counted in a total population of states for taxation and legislative representation. This was finally reflected in Article 1 section 2 at paragraph 3 of the Constitution of the US. According to Morton (23), there also arose an argument about the need for checks and balances among the various arms of the US government as proposed under the Virginia Plan. An agreement was then reached to the effect that the executive arm would have powers to veto acts of the legislator while the legislative branch would have to pass and approve Presidential or executive nominees to the Judiciary and other positions.
Federalism: The Federalists versus Anti-Federalists
One of the most contentious issues after the Constitutional Convention in which states were required to ratify and sign the Constitutional document was the issue of Federalism. This means the creation of a central or national system of government that would have power over the states. On the one hand, there were those like tradesmen, local politicians and farmers who opposed such a system and called themselves the Anti-Federalists, while on the other hand, there were those like the elites and wealthy class of plantation owners and rich merchants that supported the idea of having a federal system of government. The main argument according to Frohnen (97) advanced by the Anti-Federalists was that there was a need for every state to be an independent sovereign government in order to avoid too much control by the central government on states. They feared that since the new form of government created by the Constitution was untested, it would be dangerous for the nation’s future, such as the creation of a tyrannical aristocrat or monarch. They favored the status quo under the Articles of Confederation and were of the view that the Constitution vested on the President and Congress too much power that was susceptible to abuse given that it lacked a Bill of Rights that spelt people’ rights and extent of governmental power. On the other hand, the Federalists argued that the creation of a strong federal government would ensure unity among states under one continental large state. Some of the most outstanding national figures representing the Anti-Federalists included Edmund Randolph, George Mason and Patrick Henry. Examples of Federalists include James Madison, George Washington, Alexander Hamilton and Benjamin Franklin. These pro-Federalism also argued that the federal government would help promote commerce among states and with foreign nations. They published their views in a collection of papers or essays written by James Madison, Alexander Hamilton and John Jay. These essays in the Federalist Papers have become an important part of the American political and Constitutional philosophy besides acting as authoritative commentaries on the US Constitution. It is what most Judges of the US Supreme Court now rely upon when a question arises that need the determination of the intent of the drafter some the Constitution (Willis 102). In these Federalist Papers, Federalists like James Madison talks about the effectiveness of the republican government that the constitution created in the protection of civil liberties of individuals.
Conclusion
In summary, it may be argued that the Constitutional Convention of 1787 remains a significant event in the history and memory of many US citizens given that it helped expound on the Articles of Confederation and create a strong system of government based on compromise. However, critically, it may also be argued that given the many amendments to the Constitutional document that followed, the delegates and drafters of this document may have left out important provisions, particularly those on a comprehensive Bill of Rights that was necessary to check on the powers of the central government.
Works Cited
Bilder, Mary Sarah. Madison's hand: Revising the Constitutional Convention. Harvard & New York: Harvard University Press, 2015. Print.
Foner, Eric and John A Garratty. The reader's companion to American history. Houghton: Milton Harcourt Publishing Co., 1991. Print.
Frohnen, Bruce. The anti-Federalists: Selcted writings and speeches. Washinton, DC: Ragney Publishers, 1999. Print.
Morton, Joseph C. Shapers of the great debate at the Constitutional Convention of 1787: A biographical dictionary. Westport, Connecticut & London: Greenwood Press, 2006. Print.
Vile, John R. The Constitutional Convebntion of 1787: A comprehensive encyclopaedia of America's founding volume one A-M. Santa Barbara, Caifornia: ABC-CLIO, n.d. Print.
Willis, Gary. Explaining America: The Federalists. New York: Penguin Books, 2001. Print.
