The Founding and the Constitution: The Constitutional Convention

Delegates from eleven of the thirteen colonies gathered in Philadelphia in May 1787 to revise the Articles. Instead, however, delegates at the Constitutional Convention (sometimes called the Philadelphia Convention) quickly decided to scrap the Articles and write a document that created an entirely new, stronger national government.

The Cincinnati

As the delegates gathered to change the government, a group of disgruntled veteran officers also met in Philadelphia. Calling themselves “the Cincinnati” (after a public-minded Roman hero), the veterans hoped that George Washington would join them and take control of the government. Washington’s refusal to attend the meeting, let alone lead a rebellion, was an important moment: Washington carried a lot of influence, so his support legitimized the Constitutional Convention and delegitimized splinter groups such as the Cincinnati.

The Framers of the Constitution

The group that met during the Constitutional Convention included some of the most prominent men of the revolutionary and post-revolutionary era. George Washington attended the convention (and was elected its president), along with Benjamin Franklin, Alexander Hamilton, James Madison, and Roger Sherman, among others. The framers of the Constitution were wealthier and better educated than the average American. Nearly all of them had experience in state and national governments, and many of them had fought in the revolution.

The Missing Founders

Although the Constitutional Convention included many luminaries, several famous figures from the revolutionary era did not attend. Patrick Henry and Samuel Adams, for example, were not there, and both expressed serious reservations about the final document. Thomas Jefferson was also absent because he was serving as the American ambassador to France at the time.