Timeline
Timeline: Road to the Constitution
From the failures of the Articles of Confederation to the ratification of the Bill of Rights, this timeline traces the constitutional design process.
12 events spanning 1777-1791
Congress approves the Articles of Confederation
The Articles created a wartime union but left the central government too weak to tax, regulate commerce, or enforce its own decisions effectively.
View event pageThe Articles of Confederation take effect
Maryland's ratification finally made the Articles operative, exposing in practice both the value and the weakness of a loose confederation.
Annapolis Convention calls for a broader reform meeting
Delegates meeting over trade problems concluded that only a larger convention could repair the defects of the Confederation system.
View event pageShays' Rebellion alarms the political class
Armed unrest in Massachusetts convinced many leaders that the Union lacked the energy to preserve order or protect property.
View event pageThe Virginia Plan proposes a new frame of government
The plan shifted debate away from merely amending the Articles and toward building a stronger national structure with separate branches.
View event pageThe Great Compromise settles representation in Congress
Delegates accepted a House by population and a Senate with equal state votes, preserving both national and federal principles.
View event pageThe Constitution is signed in Philadelphia
The Convention completed a new charter that created a stronger federal republic, though not without sharp disagreement over its powers and omissions.
View event pageDelaware becomes the first state to ratify
The unanimous Delaware vote gave the ratification campaign momentum and showed that at least some states were ready to move quickly.
View event pageNew Hampshire becomes the ninth state to ratify
With New Hampshire's vote, the Constitution met the threshold required to go into effect among the ratifying states.
View event pageThe new constitutional government begins to operate
Congress assembled under the Constitution and began turning the paper framework drafted at Philadelphia into functioning institutions.
View event pageCongress sends the Bill of Rights amendments to the states
James Madison's amendments answered a leading Anti-Federalist demand by proposing explicit restraints on national power.
The Bill of Rights is ratified
The first ten amendments secured protections for speech, religion, arms, jury trial, and other liberties while reminding Americans that the Constitution limited government.