Creating the Constitution

Constitution is a "living document"

Definition and Significance to American History:A living Constitution is one that evolves, changes over time, and adapts to new circumstances, without being formally amended. The Constitution is a document that explains our nation's guiding principles and the rights guaranteed to all U.S. citizens. But our Constitution is the oldest written national constitution in existence. Because it has passed the test of time, many countries have used it as a model for their constitutions.

Electoral College

Definition: A body of people representing the states of the US who formally cast votes for the election of the president and the vice president. This body would be made up of electors from each state who would cast votes to elect the president and vice president. Each state would have as many electors as the number of senators and representatives it sent to Congress. Significance to American History: The Electoral College is made up of 538 electors who cast votes to decide the President and Vice-President of the United States. When voters go to the polls on Tuesday, they will be choosing which candidate receives their state' selectors.

Constitution of the United States

Definition: A document that embodies the fundamental laws and principles of the United States. It was drafted by the Constitutional Convention and later added to the Bill of Rights and other amendments. Frustrated by weaknesses of the confederation, delegates met in Philadelphia in 1787 for the Constitutional Convention. Instead of revising the Articles, they wrote a new constitution that established a national government with three branches. Significance to American History: The U.S. Constitution established America's national government and fundamental laws, and guaranteed certain basic rights for its citizens.

Northwest Ordinance

Definition: A law passed in 1787 to regulate the settlement of the Northwest Territory which eventually was divided into several states of the Middle West. The US was governed under the Articles of Confederation at the time. This land policy established rules for the creation of governments in the Northwest Territory and the eventual admission of western states. Significance to American History: The Northwest Ordinance of 1787, the most important of the three acts, laid the basis for the government of the Northwest Territory and for the admission of its constituent parts as states into the union.

Patriots

Definition: A second group was the Patriots, who opposed British rule and believed the colonists should separate from Britain immediately and by any means necessary. Significance to American History: Patriots were people who wanted the American colonies to gain their independence from Britain.

Loyalists

Definition: Colonists who opposed independence from Britain were known as Loyalists. Significance to American History: Many Americans fought for the British cause in the American Revolution. These men were Loyalists and they were Americans who remained loyal to Great Britain and the British Crown during the conflict.

Amendment Process

Definition: Framers didn't want to make it too easy for Americans to change the Constitution. An amendment may be proposed by 2/3 of both the House and the Senate. An amendment may be approved by the legislatures of 3/4 of the states. In its more than two hundred year history, the Constitution has been amended twenty-seven times, a remarkably small number given the complexity of American government and the fact that the first ten (and the twenty-seventh) amendments were proposed during the First Congress. Every amendment to the Constitution except the Twenty-First Amendment has been ratified by voting in state legislatures. In the case of the 21st Amendment, which repealed the Eighteenth Amendment, the Congress instructed the states to call for ratification by convention rather than by state legislatures. The choice of method may have been decisive. The "wets" in Congress, i.e. those in favor of repealing the 18th Amendment, believed that the repeal amendment would fare better in state conventions than in the conservative dominated state legislatures. Significance to American History: Because it gives us the opportunity to make changes to our Constitution when circumstances change and the current Constitution doesn't fit with those new circumstances. For example, when it was ultimately decided that we should not have slavery anymore in the U.S. we needed to have a way to make that change in the Constitution. The key is making the process sufficiently difficult so that we can't do it all the time anytime someone has an idea about how things should be different, but not so difficult that we can't make the change when we need to. Given that we've only done it 27 times in the last 200+ years, it looks like we've found a pretty good balance.

Constitutional Convention

Definition: It was intended to revise the Articles of Confederation, but instead the founders created a new government- the United States Constitution. Significance to American History: The result of the Convention was the creation of the United States Constitution, placing the Convention among the most significant events in the history of the United States.

Shay's Rebellion

Definition: Shays' Rebellion is the name given to a series of protests in 1786 and 1787 by American farmers against state and local enforcement of tax collections and judgments for debt. Farmers were among those who suffered most from the economic depression. Falling crop prices and the loss of foreign markets left many farmers with crippling debts they could not repay. Farmers in western Massachusetts were hit especially hard. Some had their property auctioned off by local courts for nonpayment of debts and taxes. Others were sent to debtors' prison when they could not pay their debts. Significance to American History: The rebellion is important because it is seen as one of the major factors that led to the writing of the new Constitution. When the United States first became independent, its constitution was called the Articles of Confederation.

Anti-Federalists

Definition: The Constitution gave too much power to the national government. Significance to American History: After the Revolution, the states first formed a loose confederation. However, many Americans thought this arrangement did not satisfy the need for a strong central authority. Delegates from the various states came together to write a new constitution that would provide the basis for a durable and balanced government.

President

Definition: The elected head of a republican state. Significance to American History: The president is also a central figure in forging international relations. The United States is a highly developed nation with extensive international relations. This makes the president one of the most crucial figures in keeping the peace. Although the judicial and legislative branches of the government have assigned powers as well, they are comprised of many people working together, which limits the power of any one individual. As the single person in the nation with the most power, the president has a great deal of importance.

Bill of Rights

Definition: The first ten amendments to the US Constitution, ratified in 1791 and guaranteeing such rights as the freedoms of speech, assembly, and worship. After the Constitution was completed in September 1787, it was sent to the states for ratification. During the debate over ratification, supporters agreed to add amendments to guarantee basic freedoms. With this assurance, the Constitution was ratified in 1788 and became law. The first 10 amendments, known as the Bill of Rights, were ratified in 1791. Significance to American History: The Bill of Rights, incorporated in the U.S. Constitution, is very important to the citizens to protect their rights and prevent the federal government from misusing its powers against the citizens. This would also apply to other countries with similar documents.

Supreme Court

Definition: The highest federal court in the US, consisting of nine justices and taking judicial precedence over all other courts in the nation. Significance to American History: The Supreme Court is the final judge in all cases involving laws of Congress, and the highest law of all — the Constitution. The Supreme Court, however, is far from all-powerful. Its power is limited by the other two branches of government. The President nominates justices to the court.

Articles of Confederation:

Definition: The nation's first constitution established a governing framework that gave the states more power than the national government. This lack of central authority contributed to various problems, including a poor economy and weak national defense. Significance to American History: The Articles of Confederation is an important document in American history because it united the individual states and established the federal government. It defined the law of the United States from 1781 until the ratification of the U.S. Constitution in 1789.

Congress

Definition: The national legislative body of a country. Significance to American History: Through legislative debate and compromise, the U.S. Congress makes laws that influence our daily lives. It holds hearings to inform the legislative process, conducts investigations to oversee the executive branch, and serves as the voice of the people and the states in the federal government.

Federalists

Definition: The people who supported the ratification of the Constitution Significance to American History: On the issue of central power, for example, Madison explained how the system of checks and balances would ensure that no one branch of government would have control over the other two.Their adopted name implied a commitment to a loose, decentralized system of government.

State legislatures

Definition: a deliberative body of persons, usually elective, who are empowered to make, change, or repeal the laws of a country or state; the branch of government having the power to make laws, as distinguished from the executive and judicial branches of government. Significance to American History: The legislature could write a constitution and form a government.

Great Compromise

Definition: an agreement that large and small states reached during the Constitutional Convention of 1781, that defined the legislative structure and representation that each state would have under the US Constitution. They decided on a bicameral legislature, In the Senate, the states would have equal representation. In the House of Representatives, states would have representation based on their populations. Significance to American History: The Great Compromise saved the Constitutional Convention, and, probably, the Union. Authored by Connecticut delegate Roger Sherman, it called for proportional representation in the House, and two representatives per state in the Senate.

Moderates

Definition:The Moderates were unhappy with aspects of British rule, but they were cautious about the possible effects of severing ties with Britain. They hoped that the problems could be resolved peacefully. Significance to American History: The moderate delegates like John Dickinson during the pre-revolution years: they wished to promote the cause of the colonies against these oversteps on their property and rights, but not to the point of fighting a war with the powerful British empire and eventually declaring independence.