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Unlock This CourseIn September 1787 the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia finished writing a new Constitution, the basic set of rules for governing the United States. It replaced the weak Articles of Confederation with a much stronger national government. But the delegates had only written it. The Constitution had to be ratified, which means formally approved. Its own rules said that nine of the thirteen states had to approve it, and each state held a special meeting, called a convention, to vote on it.
The Founding Fathers, the leaders who helped to create the new nation, were now split into two groups. Their divisions mattered because they showed a question that ran through the whole option: how much power should the national government have compared with the separate states?
Key terms:
Led by Alexander Hamilton and James Madison. They argued that the Articles had failed and that the nation needed a government strong enough to raise taxes, keep order and pay its debts. Washington backed the Constitution too. Many Federalists were merchants, lawyers and town-dwellers.
Included Patrick Henry and George Mason of Virginia. They feared that a strong central government would become a tyranny, like the British rule they had just thrown off. They wanted power to stay with the states, which were closer to ordinary people. Many came from farming areas.
The Anti-Federalists had several particular fears:
George Mason was one of the delegates in Philadelphia, but he refused to sign the Constitution mainly because it had no bill of rights.
To win the argument, Alexander Hamilton, James Madison and John Jay wrote 85 essays in New York newspapers in 1787-88. They signed them "Publius" rather than with their own names. Together they are known as the Federalist Papers. They explained how the Constitution would work, and argued that a stronger national government was needed to protect the nation and its liberty. In one essay Madison argued that a large republic, with many different groups, would make it hard for any single group to take control. The essays were written for New York, where opposition was strong, but they were also read elsewhere and are still studied today.
Ratification was not easy. In some states the vote was close.
North Carolina joined in 1789 and Rhode Island in 1790. So the Federalists won, but narrowly, and many states ratified on the understanding that a list of rights would follow.
Madison had at first thought a bill of rights was not needed. But he saw that keeping the promise to the doubtful states would win over critics and calm fears. In 1789, at the first Congress under the new Constitution, he proposed a set of amendments. Congress approved twelve, and ten were ratified by the states by December 1791. These ten are the Bill of Rights. Among other things they protect:
The Tenth Amendment spoke directly to the Anti-Federalists' fear of losing state power.
What changed, and what stayed the same? The nation now had a strong government, a written Constitution and protected rights, which was a big change from the Articles. But the argument over the power of the national government against the states did not end. It came back again and again, and slavery, which the Bill of Rights did not touch, stayed legal.
This is a Paper 2 Section B (b) question. You need two causes, each with precise knowledge and an explanation of how it led to the outcome. One cause alone cannot score more than half marks.
Explain TWO causes of the Bill of Rights being added to the Constitution in 1791. [8 marks]
One cause was the opposition of the Anti-Federalists. Leaders such as Patrick Henry and George Mason feared that a strong national government would threaten the freedom of ordinary people, and Mason refused to sign the Constitution in 1787 because it contained no list of rights. Anti-Federalist feeling was strong in states such as Virginia and New York, where the vote to ratify was very close. This pressure made it clear that the Constitution would not be accepted everywhere unless the government protected rights such as freedom of speech and religion.
A second cause was the promise made by Federalists to win ratification. In states such as Massachusetts, Virginia and New York, the vote was narrow and supporters agreed that amendments would be proposed. James Madison, who had at first thought a bill of rights was not needed, accepted that this promise had to be kept. In 1789 he put amendments before the first Congress, which approved twelve, and ten were ratified by the states in 1791. The promise therefore led directly to the Bill of Rights.
What lifts it to the top level: two different causes, each backed by accurate facts and an explanation of how it led to the Bill of Rights.
Write two paragraphs, one per cause. Start each with the cause, add a precise fact such as a name, a state or a date, then finish by saying how it led to the Bill of Rights.