Philadelphia, PA
Location of the Constitutional Convention
George Washington
leader of the Constitutional Convention
James Madison
Father of the Constitution
Edmund Randolph
proposed the Virginia Plan with James Madison
William Paterson
proposed the New Jersey Plan
Roger Sherman
proposed the Great Compromise
Great Compromise
Compromise made at Constitutional Convention in which states would have equal representation in one house of the legislature and representation based on population in the other house
Virginia Plan
plan of government, in which states got a number of representatives in Congress based on their population; also called the large state plan
New Jersey Plan
proposal at the Constitutional Convention that called for equal representation of each state in Congress regardless of the state's population; also called the small state plan
3/5 Compromise
the decision at the Constitutional convention to count slaves as 3/5 of a person for the purpose of deciding the population and determining how many seats each state would have in Congress
Slave Trade Compromise
Slave trade would continue for 20 years until ending in 1808
Federalist Papers
A collection of 85 articles written by Alexander Hamilton, John Jay, and James Madison under the name "Publius" to defend the Constitution in detail; support ratificaion
Anti-Federalists
people who opposed the Constitution
Bill of Rights
The first ten amendments to the Constitution; Anti-Federalists wanted these added to the document as a deal to ratify
Delaware
first state to ratify the Constitution
Pennsylvania
second state to ratify the Constitution
Rhode Island
last state to ratify the Constitution
bicameral legislature
Two house legislature
Legislature
lawmaking body (often called Congress)
Federalists
supporters of the Constitution
Ratification
Formal approval