United States Constitutional Convention A few years after the American Revolution War ended and the United States gained their independence, the thirteen colonies went to work on establishing laws of the land. Major leaders of the thirteen colonies met at the Constitutional convention in Philadelphia in 1787, to establish the Constitution. At the 1787 Federal convention in Philadelphia they introduced three plans: the Virginia Plan, the New Jersey Plan, and the Connecticut plan otherwise known as the Great Compromise. The Constitution was not created over night; the people of the country created the laws of the land that we use today. This plan was well thought out and people were willing to compromise on things to make it work.
Several events led up to the Constitutional convention. At the town meeting in concord, Massachusetts, the Continental Congress passed a resolution to advise the colonies to form new governments. During Shay's Rebellion in 1786-1787 Daniel Shay led poor farmers into courtrooms complaining about the debts they had because of taxes that had been enacted.
English: stippling engraving of James Madison, Pre...
The Articles of Conferderation, ratified in 1781. ...
The front page of the Virginia Plan document.In late 1777 Congress adopted the Articles of Confederation mostly made up by John Dickinson. Americans were beginning to see the problems of Republican government, thus leading to the Constitutional convention to create a new form of government.
Fifty-five delegates met in Philadelphia in the summer of 1787 for the Constitutional Convention. Every state had delegates except for Rhode Island. The delegates were there to revise the Articles of Confederation. It did not take long to figure out they would need to do more than revise the Articles. The federalists were those who supported developing a constitution and the people against it were referred to as anti-federalists. The convention was set up to regain the unity that America had lost during the Revolutionary war. People with high...