Background History of the
DIRECTIONS: During this unit, we will discuss
basic concepts surrounding the historical backgrounds of the “United States
Constitution”. Complete the essential
questions for each topic using classroom discussions, class notes, your text
book, and www.mrgigliotti.com. This
guide through the material can be used to help you compose your History Journal
short essay questions, study for tests and quizzes and answer questions during
classroom review sessions.
A.
Important Terms:
1. The Federal
Government is: ________________________________________________.
2. State
Governments are: ___________________________________________________.
B.
A Nation in Turmoil:
1. Both during and after the American Revolution,
the nation was governed by a document called
the
_______________.
2. During the “Critical Period” the nation
experienced many _______________ under the Articles
of Confederation.
C.
The Constitutional Convention:
1. In 1787, a meeting to fix the problems with
the Articles of Confederation was
held in
_______________. This meeting was attended by 12 of the 13
states and would later be
referred to as
the _______________.
2. List FOUR notable delegates to the
Constitutional Convention below. Be sure
to also indicate
their home state.
1. 2. 3. 4.
3. List FOUR people who were noticeably
missing to the Constitutional Convention below.
1. 2. 3. 4.
4. The purpose of the convention was to allow
the federal government to _______________ their
bills, maintain a
stable _______________, and control _______________.
5. Although the purpose of the convention was to
fix the Articles of Confederation,
the first thing
the delegates
decided to do was to _______________ the Articles and write a new plan of
government or
constitution.
D.
Foundations and Influences:
1. The Founding Fathers at the Constitutional
Convention had many historical, political, and
philosophical
___________________ to base their work on at the convention.
2. Every state had already written a
Constitution which included provisions for a
_______________ which
made laws, a _______________ to enforce laws, and a Bill of
__________________ to
ensure the rights of citizens.
3. The Founding Fathers were also influenced by
the Ancient Greek _______________ and the
Roman ____________.
4. The philosopher John _______________
suggested that people are entitled to
___________________,
liberty, and property.
5. The _______________ was an English document
that limited the power of the king which also
influenced the
delegates at the Constitutional Convention.
E.
The Debate over Congress:
1. Most of the delegates agreed that the new
federal government should have a
_______________ or
a legislature to make laws for the nation; however they disagreed on
how each state
should be represented within the Congress.
2. The large states, with the biggest
populations, wanted to base representation in congress on
the state’s
____________ meaning that the more people a state had, the more representation
it received. This plan largely created by
3. The small states, with smaller populations,
wanted to give each state _______________
representation
within the congress. This plan was known
as the _______________ Plan.
4. Delegates ______________ over which plan to
use for the new congress throughout the long
hot summer.
F.
The Great Compromise:
1. Finally, the delegates agreed to combine both
the Virginia and the New Jersey Plans to create
the new
congress. This compromise was known as
the “______________ Compromise”.
2. The congress would be made up of
______________ parts. The
_______________ would
have
representation based on _______________, while in the “Senate” each state would
receive
_______________ representation and ______________ senators.
G.
The 3/5’s Compromise:
1. Southern states wanted to count their
_______________ as population in order to receive
more
representation in the House of Representatives.
2. Northern states who did not have as many
slaves did not want to let the south count their
slaves, instead
they compromised and decided to count each slave as _______________ of a
person.
H.
Results of the Constitutional Convention:
1. The Founding Fathers created a unique
_______________ never before seen in the history of
the world.
2. Although 39 delegates at the convention
signed the document, the Constitution needed to be
_______________ by
_______________ of the 13 states to become official.
3. Ratify means:
____________________________________________________________.
I.
The Great Ratification Debate:
1. Many states refused to ratify the
Constitution until a _______________ was added to ensure
the rights of
citizens.
2. Men such as Patrick _______________ of
called for more
States’ _______________.
3. States’
Rights are: _________________________________________________________.
4. People who were opposed to the Constitution
were known as _______________.
5.
new Constitution
in what became known as the _______________.
6. People who supported the Constitution were
known as _______________.
7. Finally, after much debate, the Constitution
was finally _______________ and became the
supreme law of the land and the official plan of government.
8. In 1791, a _______________ was added to the
Constitution to ensure the rights of the people.