Connecticut Compromise (The Great Compromise)
The Connecticut Compromise, also known as The Great Compromise, was a pivotal agreement reached during the Constitutional Convention of 1787 that addressed the contentious issue of state representation in the new federal government. Proposed by Connecticut delegates Roger Sherman and Oliver Ellsworth, the compromise established a bicameral legislature consisting of two houses: the Senate, which ensured equal representation for each state, and the House of Representatives, which allocated representation based on state population. This dual approach aimed to balance the interests of both large and small states, as prior proposals had sparked significant conflict between them.
The context for this compromise arose from the inadequacies of the Articles of Confederation, which had created a weak central government incapable of effectively governing the diverse and expanding nation. As delegates convened to revise these articles, they faced fierce debates over how power would be shared among varying populations and economic interests. The Connecticut Compromise was ultimately accepted on July 16, 1787, enabling the successful drafting of the U.S. Constitution.
Additionally, the compromise included a controversial agreement on how enslaved individuals would be counted for representation purposes, leading to the "three-fifths compromise." The framework established by the Connecticut Compromise laid the foundation for the American legislative system, which remains in place today, marking a significant moment in the evolution of U.S. governance.
Connecticut Compromise (The Great Compromise)
The Connecticut Compromise (The Great Compromise) was a political proposal set forth by Roger Sherman and Oliver Ellsworth, Connecticut delegates to the Constitutional Convention of 1787. The leaders who crafted the US Constitution and designed the new country's government had to overcome many disagreements. One of the main disagreements was over state representation in the federal government. The participating states varied greatly in population and wealth. The Connecticut Compromise found a fair way to balance state representation by proposing a two-house Congress. One house would feature equal representation for each state. The other house would have representation based on state population. Delegates accepted the Compromise on July 16, 1787, bridging a crucial disagreement and allowing the successful creation of the US Constitution.
Background
From 1775 to 1783, the American colonies fought in the Revolutionary War to win their independence from the British monarchy. The rebellious colonists, who would ultimately establish the United States, set out their ideals in the Declaration of Independence. This milestone document was based on the political and social belief that people had inborn rights that must be protected by their government.
During the war, American leaders attempted to create a system of government for their new country. By 1781, they ratified a constitution known as the Articles of Confederation. This document attempted to unite the thirteen colonies into a single country. The drafters of the articles agreed that they could not allow the new national government to be too strong. A government that was too strong could dominate the states and citizens and potentially become as tyrannical as the British monarchy.
The plan to create a relatively weak central government soon led to problems, however. The government under the articles would not be strong enough to enforce national laws among the states, which varied greatly in size, population, interests, and economics. The weak government also would not be able to thrive internationally and win respect from other nations.
Conflicts quickly arose between the states over matters of finances and government representation. Large states complained that they had to contribute more money to the federal government and therefore deserved more representation. Small states sought protections against domination by large states and pushed for equal government representation. Meanwhile, new territories in the West and Northwest needed help in organizing, funding, and defending themselves.
The Articles of Confederation were not sufficient as written to control the new government. By 1785, American leaders including George Washington, Alexander Hamilton, and James Madison agreed that the document was a failure and that the central government had to be redesigned with greater strength and influence. The challenge was to reach an agreement about how to make this change and temper increased government power with protections for states and citizens.
In 1785, state leaders began to experiment with changes to economic and political laws. Several states—including Virginia, Maryland, Pennsylvania, and Delaware—negotiated new trade agreements that helped to create unity and cooperation. Although the process was not entirely successful, it gave leaders hope that the articles could be peacefully revised to better represent the realities of the new United States.
Overview
In May of 1787, delegates from most states met at a Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Their goal was to revise the Articles of Confederation to make a stronger government with a balanced system of representation for the states. This task proved difficult as many delegates had dramatically different visions. Some felt the articles could be saved through a few careful revisions; others believed the document had to be discarded and rewritten.
One of the other main points of contention was the matter of state representation. Leaders questioned how the federal government would derive its authority and how it would relate with the states. Would large states—such as Pennsylvania, New York, and Virginia—have the same rights and responsibilities as smaller states, such as Delaware, Rhode Island, and New Jersey? Representatives of large and small states began taking sides and proposing different plans and demands to the assembly.
The perspective of the large states was best encapsulated in the Virginia Plan, as proposed by James Madison. This plan called for a Congress with two houses. The leaders in each house would represent the states according to their populations or the money they contributed to the federal government. The Virginia Plan would benefit larger states by giving them more power in the central workings of the country.
Meanwhile, William Paterson countered this plan with the New Jersey Plan. This plan represented the perspective of smaller states that wanted the Articles of Confederation largely preserved, with only small changes. Paterson felt that a one-house Congress should be sufficient, with states equally represented, regardless of population or economics. This plan would benefit small states by giving them disproportionately high representation in government.
The conflict between large and small states threatened to break apart the Constitutional Convention. Leaders scrambled to find a compromise. Two delegates from Connecticut, Roger Sherman and Oliver Ellsworth, found a promising balance between the conflicting sides. Their plan was called the Connecticut Compromise, or the Great Compromise. It proposed a two-house Congress. One house would be the Senate, which could have equal representation for each state. The other house, the House of Representatives, would include representation based on state population.
Delegates on both sides of the disagreement reluctantly agreed that the proposal was as fair a balance as could be achieved. However, several more obstacles remained before the compromise would be finalized and accepted.
The largest issue of contention involved the counting of enslaved people. Slavery was legal in many states, particularly in the South, where it formed the backbone of the agricultural economy. Southern delegates pushed to have slaves counted in the population figures to give their states a boost in government representation. Northern delegates disagreed with this notion. Ultimately, the sides agreed to observe an earlier agreement, reached in 1783, that would set the population value of an enslaved person at three-fifths that of a free citizen.
On July 16, 1787, delegates voted, by a narrow one-vote margin, to accept the compromise, a crucial step in continuing the convention and ultimately creating the Constitution of the United States. When the new government began on March 4, 1789, it featured the government structure still in use in the twenty-first century: a strong federal government with three branches, with its members elected or appointed, and state representation decided according to the rules set forth in the Connecticut Compromise.
Bibliography
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