We last left off with the nationalists in Episode 341. In that episode, the Annapolis Convention in September, 1786 resulted in a poor showing of delegates and a report that they should try again the following year.
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| Independence Hall, as it looked in 1787 |
Another faction, however, disagreed. They saw the states slowly drifting apart, politically and economically. The war that had forced them to unite was over. People were returning to their parochial interests. To these men, this seemed like a huge mistake. The states themselves were fighting over issues of trade, borders, and other things.
Foreign powers in Europe were already trying to divide the states in order to gain more influence with them. For example, shortly after the war ended, Spain closed the Mississippi River to American navigation. Spain was willing to grant better trade deals with America if the US would agree to Spain’s control of the Mississippi River for 30 years. New England states were fine with that since they really wanted the trade and didn’t care about the Mississippi River. Southern and Western states cared much more about river to bring their goods to market, than they did did trade with Spain. The result was a deep political division that threatened to split the Union.
If the union failed, it would be far easier for foreign powers to prevail in their interests against America. Smaller states had much less negotiating power than a united nation would. Divide and conquer was the way tyrants operated. Americans needed a government that would keep them united.
The initial reasons for meeting in a national convention were over issues of trade and commerce. The Nationalists wanted free trade between the states, and to use their collective power to negotiate better trade agreements abroad. The other issue that stuck out for many was the repayment of debts from the war. For some, this was a fundamental issue of fairness. The country should repay those who helped to make independence a reality. But it was also a matter of interest. Failure to repay foreign powers would result in an even more restricted ability to trade abroad, and could even result in another war. Some states had made great efforts to pay off their war debts, while others had barely done anything. This also created resentment among states over nationalizing the remainder of the war debt.
Over the course of late 1786 and early 1787, events swung opinion in favor of a stronger government. The riots in New England, the worst being Shays Rebellion, which we discussed last week, convinced many that the current confederation of states would not be strong enough to maintain law and order. The example of democracy run amok in Rhode Island also convinced many wealthier men that greater protection of private property and a government that would protect such rights, was a necessity.
State Delegations
The report from Annapolis Convention recommended that the states try again by meeting in Philadelphia in May 1787. Each state legislature would need to appoint a delegation to attend the Convention.
New Jersey was the first to appoint a delegation in November, 1786. It included William Paterson, former attorney general of the state, Chief Justice David Brearley, and former governor William Livingston.
In December, Virginia appointed a nine member delegation to the Convention. Most prominent on that list was George Washington. They also appointed James Madison, the legislator who seemed to most strongly back a stronger national government. Edmund Randolph, who had been Attorney General when he attended the Annapolis Convention, had since won election as governor, would also go to Philadelphia as governor of the state. George Mason, famous for having authored the Virginia Bill of Rights and who had also been at the Mount Vernon Conference, also received an appointment, despite the fact that he had retired from the legislature.
The state also appointed two former governors: Patrick Henry and Thomas Nelson. Henry declined to go, saying later he supported states rights and opposed the goals of the convention. Nelson also begged out, citing health issues. The state also appointed Richard Henry Lee, who also declined. He cited his recent appointment to the Confederation Congress and the difficulty of traveling between New York and Philadelphia to try to do both.
Pennsylvania also appointed a seven member delegation around the same time as Virginia. Its delegation included president of the state, Benjamin Franklin, as well as top financial leaders, Robert Morris and Gouverneur Morris.
Some states, even larger ones, appointed smaller delegations. New York appointed only three members. One was Alexander Hamilton. Governor George Clinton, who was skeptical of a stronger federal government also appointed two close political supporters who wanted power to remain with the states, mostly to keep Hamilton in check. Massachusetts appointed only four delegates, while tiny Delaware appointed five, including John Dickinson.
Maryland did not get around to appointing delegates until near the end of April, 1787. After those appointments, all five of the appointees declined to serve. As a result, the state had to appoint a second round of delegates, which it only did on May 26, the day after the convention began in Philadelphia.
New Hampshire had appointed a delegation in January, but did not authorize any travel expenses. When none of the delegates went, the state appointed another four person delegation in June, more than a month after the convention began, but again refused to pay any expenses. One of the delegates, John Langdon, finally agreed to pick up expenses for the delegation, which allowed him and Nicholas Gilman to go to Philadelphia. They arrived in late July, meaning New Hampshire did not participate in most of the debates.
Rhode Island never appointed a delegation at all. The pro-paper money faction was still in charge there. They did not trust the convention. They believed monied interests from other states would try to reign in their economic policies, which were benefiting small farmers and debtors.
Many states that did send delegates also provided instructions on just how far the delegates could go. Delaware, for example, instructed its delegates that they could not agree to any changes that would eliminate the one-state one-vote system that existed under the Articles of Confederation. Massachusetts required that there be no change to the annual election of members of Congress and the right of states to recall them at any time. It also instructed its delegates to maintain term limits on members of Congress.
There were also some notable absences of founding fathers from the list. John Adams and Thomas Jefferson were away in Europe in diplomatic posts. Samuel Adams was in a political fight with John Hancock at the time and did not receive an appointment. Adams was also highly skeptical of a stronger federal government, but Hancock did appoint others who shared Adams’ skepticism.
The Confederation Congress gave its own approval to the Convention in February, 1787 after letting it sit in committee for about four months. The convention would be “for the sole and express purpose of revising the Articles of Confederation and reporting [the proposed revisions] to Congress and to the several legislatures.”
George Washington Hesitates
George Washington was particularly hesitant to attend the convention. His initial concern was that it would violate the public pledge he had made in 1783 when he resigned from the Continental Army never to meddle in public matters again. As I’ve said before, he considered himself retired. He was more than happy to spend the rest of his life living on his comfortable plantation. He especially did not want to lend his name to an effort that would be controversial. He worried that the convention might be seen as an extralegal effort to overthrow the existing republican government. He did think changes needed to be made, but if he lent his name to this effort and it went off the rails and failed, it could ruin his good name.
Another reason for skipping the convention was the Society of the Cincinnati. Washington had agreed years earlier to be the national leader of this group of veteran officers. The Society had become controversial. At its first meeting in 1784, Washington had called on its members to make significant reforms in some of its more controversial practices. The members had largely ignored Washington. The group was set to have its second triennial meeting in Philadelphia at the same time as the Convention.
Washington did not want to attend the meeting of the Cincinnati because of the Society’s controversy. At the same time, he did not want to look like he was protesting this group of some of his closest friends by his refusal to attend. He wrote to the Society’s other leaders that he no longer wished to serve as president of the Society when his term ended in 1787, and that he would not attend the national meeting in Philadelphia because he was retired from public life. He cited his poor health and busy schedule as reasons.
If Washington then attended the Constitutional Convention, which met at the same time in the same place, his excuses for skipping the meeting of the Cincinnati would look, well, insincere - to put it politely. For these reasons, Washington sent his regrets to Governor Randolph and said he would not attend the Constitutional Convention.
Randolph and Madison, however, refused to take no for an answer. The nationalists were relying on Washington’s reputation as a way to encourage other states to attend this convention. He was the most well respected figure on the Continent. His attendance lent immediate credibility to the Convention.
Randolph responded to Washington’s letter declining the appointment by saying he would hold Washington’s spot open for the time being, hoping that circumstances might change his mind, noting that he could always replace Washington on the delegation later if needed. Randolph, Madison, and others in the Virginia delegation then began a pressure campaign to convince Washington to attend.
As time passed, word spread across the continent that Washington would attend the Convention as part of the Virginia delegation. This put Washington on the spot. If he went, he looked like he supported the convention. If he did not go, he looked as if he opposed it. There was no good way for him to look neutral. Madison and the other delegates also put personal pressure on Washington to attend, impressing on him that the United States could fall apart if this convention was not a success and that everything they had worked and fought for could die along with it.
Many states remained reluctant even to name delegates to the Convention. Washington’s name was a big draw for many states who might have skipped the convention, just as they did the one at Annapolis the year before.
Others began to pressure Washington to go. Henry Knox, who was putting down Shays Rebellion in Massachusetts, took time to write to Washington about the chaos and about the need to have a stronger government. Knox had been Washington’s chief of artillery during the war and had a close relationship with the commander.
Similarly, David Humphreys of Connecticut wrote to Washington about the need for him to attend. Humphries had been Washington’s closest aide in the final years of the war. Humphries had been with him when he resigned his command, and had traveled home to Mount Vernon with him at the end of the war. Soon an all out letter writing campaign began with Benjamin Franklin and Gouverneur Morris of Pennsylvania, William Livingston of New Jersey, and John Jay of New York all writing to Washington to convince him that his attendance was vital to the convention’s success.
Finally, by the end of March, just over a month before the convention was scheduled to begin, Washington wrote to Randolph, reluctantly agreeing to go.
Meeting in Philadelphia
The report from the Annapolis Convention has recommended the time and place for the Convention to meet. It had suggested May 14, 1787 in Philadelphia. You may recall that the Continental Congress left Philadelphia, or you might even say they fled the city, in 1783 at the end of the war. A bunch of soldiers had surrounded the State House, later called Independence Hall, and were demanding their promised benefits. When state officials refused to offer protection for Congress, they ended up leaving the city, first meeting in New Jersey and Maryland, before finally settling in New York City in 1785.
Despite the decision of Congress to leave, Philadelphia was still considered a good meeting place for national events. It was the largest city on the Continent, and was in a relatively central location. There were two other major conventions going on at the same time. The Society of the Cincinnati was meeting in Philadelphia, as was a national convention of Presbyterian ministers.
Madison’s Vices
James Madison was the first to arrive. He rode into Philadelphia on May 3, nearly two weeks before the Convention was scheduled to begin. He had come straight from New York where he was serving in the Continental Congress. In Philadelphia, he got a room at the boarding house across the street from the State House. Madison had been preparing for this convention for months. He wrote a paper called “Vices of the Political System of the United States” which laid out the problems with the current system.
Among the problems that Madison identified were the failure of the states to provide proper financing to the government. Many states simply ignored Congressional requisitions. States also interfered with Congress’ authority, such as making their own treaties with each other and Indian tribes, and often ignoring Congress’ treaties with Indians and with foreign countries.
States regularly acted in their own self interest and against the national interest. Issues regarding trade, naturalization, building infrastructure such as canals were all being blocked by parochial interests.
Madison noted the inability of states to protect basic rights of republican government. Powerful minorities might rise up and void the acts of elected governments, a reference to incidents such as Shays’ Rebellion. Governments did not always have the power to enforce their own laws. He also noted that slavery made a sham of republican government.
States had the power to ignore laws passed by Congress, and have their local courts enforce their actions. States were also passing all sorts of crazy laws, and often regularly changing their laws so frequently that it was hard to keep up with them. Many of the laws were just stupid, or as Mandison more politely put it “prove a want of wisdom.” Many state leaders acted only aout of personal ambition or interest rather than the public good. Even when laws were the will of the people, Madison often noted that the people were willing to violate basic rights out of personal interest. There needed to be checks and balances.
Virginia Plan
Madison also brought with him a draft Constitution, which came to be known as the Virginia Plan. It called for a bicameral legislature. One house would be elected by the people of each state based on the population of free inhabitants. The second house would be elected by the first house, chosen from nominations sent by the state legislatures.
It called also for a national Executive to be chosen by the legislature to ensure execution of the laws. The executive and members of a judiciary would have the power to review all laws and veto ones that they did not like.
The national government would have the power to admit new states to the union and ensure that all states maintain a republican form of government. States would be obligated to support the Union and its laws, but that there would be a way for the states to amend the Constitution.
The plan was clearly a draft, with many details to be determined by the Convention. But Madison was looking for a radical change from the Confederation. This would be a national government with three branches and with a connection directly to the people through voting, not just appointments by state officials. Madison would have more than a week before other delegates arrived. He did call on Benjamin Franklin, who lived only a block away and who was happy to discuss plans with the young delegate from Virginia.
Delegates Arrive
The next delegate to arrive in Philadelphia came on May 13, when George Washington rode into town. Of course, the entry of the admired former general got far more attention than Madison's arrival. As when he traveled anywhere, Washington made regular stops to attend parties and parades in his honor. The Philadelphia Light Horse met Washington and escorted him into town.
Washington had made reservations at the same boarding house were Madison was staying. But Pennsylvania delegate Robert Morris insisted that Washington stay in his nearby mansion as his personal guest.
The next day, three more Virginia delegates arrived in town. The Virginia and Pennsylvania Delegations walked to the State House the following morning. But that was about it. No one else had arrived at the appointed time.
The members opened the Convention, meeting in the east room of the State House the same room where the Continental Congress had met. then immediately adjourned due to the lack of a quorum. Rather than getting down to business, the delegates would have to wait for more state delegations to arrive.
It took nearly two weeks for delegations from seven states to make it to Philadelphia to hold a quorum. Over that time, delegates dribbled in slowly. Poor weather was partly to blame. No one seemed to think it was a big deal if they showed up late.
Finally, on Friday May 25, the Convention had a quorum to do business.
Next week, we’ll discuss how the convention begins.
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Next Episode 346 Constitutional Convention Begins (coming soon)
Previous Episode 344 Northwest Ordinance of 1787
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Further Reading
Websites
Instructions to the Convention Delegates https://csac.history.wisc.edu/document-collections/the-constitutional-convention/convention-delegates
“From George Washington to Edmund Randolph, 28 March 1787,” Founders Online, National Archives, https://founders.archives.gov/documents/Washington/04-05-02-0110
“Vices of the Political System of the United States, April 1787,” Founders Online, National Archives, https://founders.archives.gov/documents/Madison/01-09-02-0187
The Virginia Plan: https://www.senate.gov/civics/common/generic/Virginia_Plan_item.htm
The Constitutional Convention of 1787: A Revolution in Government https://constitutioncenter.org/the-constitution/white-papers/the-constitutional-convention-of-1787-a-revolution-in-government
The Constitutional Convention of 1787: A Day by Day Account: https://www.nps.gov/inde/learn/historyculture/stories-constitutionalconvention.htm
Free eBooks
(from archive.org unless noted)
Adams, John A Defence of the Constitutions of Government of the United States, London: C. Dilly, 1787:
Brant, Irving James Madison: Father of the Constitution, 1787-1800. Bobbs-Merrill Co. 1950 (borrow only).
Donovan, Frank R. Mr. Madison’s Constitution: The Story Behind the Constitutional Convention, New York: Dodd, Mead & Co. 1965 (borrow only)
Farrand, Max (ed) The Records of the Federal Convention of 1781, Vol. 1, Vol. 2, and Vol 3, Yale Univ. Press, 1911.
Ford, Worthington, Chauncey The Federal Constitution in Virginia, 1787-1788. Cambridge: University Press, 1903.
Jameson, J. Franklin Studies in the History of the Federal Convention of 1787, Washington: Government Printing Office, 1903.
Madison, James Notes of Debates in the Federal Convention of 1787, Ohio Univ. Press, 1966.
McMaster, John Bach (ed) Pennsylvania and the Federal Constitution: 1787-1788, Historical Society of Pennsylvania, 1888.
Richardson, Hamilton P. The Journal of the Federal Convention of 1787 Analyzed, San Francisco: Murdock Press, 1899.
Scott, James B. James Madison's notes of debates in the Federal convention of 1787, New York: Oxford Univ. Press, 1918.
Books Worth Buying
(links to Amazon.com unless otherwise noted)*
Amar, Akhil Reed America’s Constitution: A Biography, Random House 2005.
Beeman, Richard R. Plain, Honest Men: The Making of the American Constitution, Random House, 2009.
Bowen, Catherine Drinker Miracle at Philadelphia: The Story of the Constitutional Convention, Little, Brown & Co. 1966 (borrow at archive.org).
Collier, Christopher Decision in Philadelphia: The Constitutional Convention of 1787, Random House, 1986 (borrow at archive.org).
Morris, Richard B. Witnesses at the Creation: Hamilton, Madison, Jay and the Constitution, Holt, Rinehart & Winston, 1985.
Rossiter, Clinton 1787: The Grand Convention, Macmillan Co. 1966 (borrow on archive.org).
Smith, Page The Constitution: A Documentary and Narrative History, Morrow Quill, 1978.
Stewart, David O. The Summer of 1787: The Men Who Invented the Constitution, Simon & Schuster, 2007.
* As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.
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