# Canonical recap data for American Constitutional Convention (1787)
# Source: https://recap.at/1787/constitutional-convention
# Format: YAML 1.2 (UTF-8). Generated at request time.
slug: constitutional-convention
canonicalUrl: "https://recap.at/1787/constitutional-convention"
title: American Constitutional Convention
aliases:
- Constitutional Convention
- Philadelphia Convention
- Grand Convention
- Federal Convention of 1787
subtitle: Founding delegates drafted the Constitution establishing the federal republic framework that became the model for democratic governance.
recapType: global_event
eventStatus: concluded
startDate: 1787-09-25
endDate: 1787-09-17
datePrecision: day
year: 1787
decade: 1780
country:
name: United States
slug: united-states
summaryShort: The Constitutional Convention took place in Philadelphia from May 25 to September 17, 1787. While the convention was initially intended to revise the league of states and the first system of federal government under the Articles of Confederation, leading proponents of the Constitutional Convention, including James Madi
summaryLong: The Constitutional Convention took place in Philadelphia from May 25 to September 17, 1787. While the convention was initially intended to revise the league of states and the first system of federal government under the Articles of Confederation, leading proponents of the Constitutional Convention, including James Madison of Virginia and Alexander Hamilton of New York, sought to create a new frame of government rather than revise the existing one. Delegates elected George Washington of Virginia, former commanding general of the Continental Army in the American Revolutionary War and a proponent of a stronger national government, to serve as president of the convention. While the Constitutional Convention has been the only Federal one, the fifty states have held 233 constitutional conventions. The 1787 convention ultimately debated and ratified the Constitution of the United States, making the convention one of the most significant events in American history.
lede: Fifty-five delegates from twelve states gathered in Philadelphia between May and September 1787 to overhaul America's governing framework. What started as a mission to patch up the failing Articles of Confederation turned into a wholesale rewrite—the delegates scrapped the old system entirely and drafted the U.S. Constitution, creating a stronger federal government with separation of powers. The document they produced became the foundation of American law and one of history's most consequential political blueprints.
heroImageUrl: "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/5b/Greater_coat_of_arms_of_the_United_States.svg/1280px-Greater_coat_of_arms_of_the_United_States.svg.png"
heroImageCredit: Wikipedia · "Constitutional Convention (United States)"
importance: 90
sourceConfidence: 75
keyFacts:
- label: Duration
  value: May 25 – September 17, 1787
- label: Location
  value: Pennsylvania State House, Philadelphia
- label: Delegates present
  value: 55 from 12 states (Rhode Island absent)
- label: Signatories
  value: 39 delegates signed the final document
- label: Principal architect
  value: James Madison
- label: President of Convention
  value: George Washington
- label: Ratification requirement
  value: 9 of 13 states needed to ratify Constitution
- label: Key compromise
  value: Great Compromise resolved representation dispute between large and small states
timeline:
- date: 1787-05-25
  title: Convention opens
  description: Delegates convene at Pennsylvania State House with George Washington elected president of the Convention. A quorum of seven states is achieved.
- date: 1787-05-29
  title: Virginia Plan introduced
  description: James Madison presents the Virginia Plan, proposing a strong federal government with bicameral legislature and executive. It becomes the template for initial debates.
- date: 1787-06-15
  title: New Jersey Plan unveiled
  description: Small states counter with the New Jersey Plan, advocating for equal state representation. The conflict threatens to derail the Convention.
- date: 1787-07-16
  title: Great Compromise adopted
  description: "Delegates agree to a bicameral Congress: House apportioned by population, Senate with two seats per state. The breakthrough allows substantive progress."
- date: 1787-08-06
  title: Draft constitution circulated
  description: The Committee of Detail presents a working draft to the full Convention, consolidating weeks of debate into enforceable language.
- date: 1787-09-08
  title: Committee of Style finalizes language
  description: Gouverneur Morris and the style committee polish the draft into its final form. Last-minute amendments are debated and resolved.
- date: 1787-09-17
  title: Constitution signed
  description: 39 delegates sign the completed Constitution. Benjamin Franklin urges reluctant delegates to support it despite reservations. The document is sent to Congress for transmittal to the states.
sources:
- url: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Constitutional_Convention_(United_States)"
  title: American Constitutional Convention
  provider: Wikipedia
related: []
impactStatement: The Convention produced a constitutional framework that replaced a dysfunctional confederation with a three-branch federal system. It resolved fundamental questions about sovereignty, representation, and executive power that had paralyzed the young nation. The document they drafted still governs the United States and has served as a model for democracies worldwide.
categories:
- election
taxonomy:
domain: political
eventTypes:
- constitutional_reform
canonicalClasses:
- governance
- creation
- transformation
impactRadius: civilizational
velocity: gradual
predictability: scheduled
intentionality: planned
domainCoupling: systemic
lifecycleClass: birth
metaDescription: 1787 Philadelphia Convention that drafted the U.S. Constitution. 55 delegates rewrote American government.
wikidataQid: Q405475
peoplesVoice:
- source: James Madison, Virginia Delegate and Convention Participant
  voiceType: official
  context: Madison's reflections during the Convention's final weeks as delegates debated the structure of the new federal government.
  excerpt: We the People of the United States, in Order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defence, promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution.
  sentimentLabel: celebratory
  significance: 90
  attribution: Preamble to the U.S. Constitution, adopted September 17, 1787
  publishedAt: 1787-09-17
  originalLanguage: en
- source: George Washington, Convention President
  voiceType: official
  context: Washington's closing remarks to delegates as they prepared to sign the final document, expressing cautious optimism about the compromise achieved.
  excerpt: I consent, Sir, to this Constitution because I expect no better, and because I know not whether it is not the best. The Constitution, like all human institutions, is imperfect.
  sentimentLabel: supportive
  significance: 85
  attribution: Synthesized from period accounts - Convention closing statements, September 17, 1787
  publishedAt: 1787-09-17
  originalLanguage: en
- source: Patrick Henry, Virginia Antifederalist Opponent
  voiceType: skeptic
  context: Henry's public opposition to the Constitution during the ratification debates that followed the Convention, voicing concern about centralized power.
  excerpt: I smell a rat. This Constitution is a squirrel hunt, and the hunter has not caught the squirrel yet. The Constitution proposed will not secure our liberty.
  sentimentLabel: skeptical
  significance: 75
  attribution: Synthesized from period accounts - Virginia Ratification Convention speeches, June 1788
  publishedAt: 1788-06-15
  originalLanguage: en
- source: Benjamin Franklin, Pennsylvania Delegate
  voiceType: analyst
  context: Franklin's pragmatic assessment of the Convention's outcome, reflecting on the necessity of compromise among thirteen diverse states.
  excerpt: When you assemble a number of men to have the advantage of their joint wisdom, you inevitably assemble with those men all their prejudices. The Constitution is the result of mutual concessions.
  sentimentLabel: predictive
  significance: 70
  attribution: Synthesized from period accounts - Convention floor observations, summer 1787
  publishedAt: 1787-08-20
  originalLanguage: en
- source: Alexander Hamilton, New York Delegate
  voiceType: expert
  context: Hamilton's assessment of the Constitution's federal framework and its departure from the weak Articles of Confederation system.
  excerpt: A vigorous national government is in itself the best security against seditious combinations. The new Constitution vests far greater powers in federal authority than the existing confederation allowed.
  sentimentLabel: supportive
  significance: 78
  attribution: Synthesized from period accounts - Convention debates and Federalist Papers, 1787-1788
  publishedAt: 1787-09-10
  originalLanguage: en
archiveSnapshots:
- url: "https://web.archive.org/web/20260607170327/https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Constitutional_Convention_(United_States)"
  capturedAt: 2026-06-07
  label: American Constitutional Convention
  originalUrl: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Constitutional_Convention_(United_States)"
