The Great Compromise and the Struggle to Preserve State Sovereignty
The first weeks of July, 1787 were full of fiery speeches, threats of disunion, and tenuous compromises. In other words, just an ordinary time at the Constitutional Convention of 1787. On July 16, 1787 after nearly two weeks of debate, the convention adopted what has...
Constitution: The Founders on the Limits of Parchment Barriers
The Founding Fathers understood that written laws alone cannot protect liberty. They warned that the Constitution could, like other documents before it, become a mere “parchment barrier,” easily ignored by those in power. Leading figures like Roger Sherman, John...
The Founders and the Constitution: The Connecticut Delegates
The other essays in the “Founders and the Constitution” series each covered one individual. This final essay covers three: the extraordinary group who served as Connecticut’s commissioners (delegates) to the 1787 Constitutional Convention. Early Connecticut was known...