People
Was elected to serve as the head of the Constitutional Convention; he was a delegate from Virginia.
George Washington
A loose association or league of states.
Confederation
Met for the purpose of revising the Articles of Confederation, but instead formulated a new government governed by a constitution. Held in Philadelphia.
Constitutional Convention
The upper house of Congress with each state is represented by two elected people.
Senate
The name of the first 10 amendments to the Constitution.
Bill of Rights
Was the oldest member of the convention; he was a delegate from Pennsylvania.
Ben Franklin
Presented to congress in July 1776, adopted in Nov. 1777. Under this plan, there was one governing body called a congress, whose members were elected yearly.
Articles of Confederation
A document that describes how a government is to work.
Constitution
The lower house of Congress in which representation is based on population.
House of Representatives.
Newspaper essays written by A. Hamilton, J. Madison, and J. Jay in order to gain support for the Constitution.
Federalist Papers
Was a very influential member of the convention and took extensive notes in his diary about the discussions during it.
James Madison
Revolt in Mass to prevent farmers losing their property, forcing courts to close & magnifying the weakness of the Articles of Confederation.
Shay's Rebellion
A government in which elected representatives govern the people
Republic
System that keeps each branch of government from exercising too much power by limiting the powers of the other branches.
Checks and Balances.
The introduction to the Constitution.
The Preamble
Was an important leader from NY who advocated for the adoption of the new Constitution and who favored a strong central government.
Alexander Hamilton
A meeting held in Maryland in Sept. 1786 to discuss interstate trade. Only 5 states sent representatives. At this convention, it was requested they meet again to revise the Articles of Confederation.
Annapolis Convention
Proposed that the US government have a bicameral (2 legislative houses) system based on the state's population.
Virginia Plan
A principle attempting to ensure that no branch of the government has too much power.
Separation of Powers
Division of the government's powers between the national government and the states.
Federal System
Introduced the Connecticut, or The Great Compromise, which called for a bicameral legislative system.
Roger Sherman
Proposed that the US government have a unicameral (only one legislative house) system in which each state had only one vote.
New Jersey Plan
The agreement that the US government would have a bicameral Congress consisting of a House of Representatives and a Senate.
The Great Compromise, also known as the Connecticut Compromise.
The body established by the Constitution to elect the president.
Electoral College