Madison and delegates from 12 of the 13 states came to the Assembly Room in the state house in Philadelphia, now known as Independence Hall. They struggled through the summer of 1787 to write a Constitution that would create a viable federal government and that would be acceptable to the people who would choose delegates to ratifying conventions. The document's most conspicuous flaw was the lack of a bill of rights. It would create serious problems for supporters of the Constitution during ratification. (Photo by author)
James Madison was born in 1751 in Port Conway, Virginia. He died in 1836, having lived to the age of eighty-five. Although Madison worried constantly about his health and mortality, he survived all others who attended the Virginia Constitutional Convention of 1776 and the Philadelphia Convention of 1787. (National Portrait Gallery, Independence Mall)
James Madison and
the Constitutional Convention
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| Governor Edmund Randolph of Virginia | George Mason of Virginia | Elbridge Gerry of Massachusetts |
Because they were influential political figures, both in Virginia and around the nation, their refusal to sign the Constitution made ratification more difficult. At the Virginia Ratifying Convention in June 1788, the major issues surrounding the proposed Constitution would be discussed passionately and in great detail. If Virginia -- the largest state and one of the most politically important -- did not ratify the Constitution, George Washington could not become the first president and support for the new government would quickly erode. |
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