Yesterday we talked about Alexander Hamilton and how he was one of the primary architects of the Constitution. The Constitution, as originally written, could never have been approved. I suppose that’s understandable, considering that we had just fought a revolution over “taxation without representation” — I guess I’d have been a little cautious about the new document.
As you know from your history classes, the Constitution was ratified by all thirteen states by 1790, but only after the addition of ten amendments to the document — known as the Bill of Rights. The states cherished their new freedom from British control and the Constitution couldn’t be ratified until the citizens’ rights and freedoms were guaranteed — the Bill of Rights was designed to do just that.
The debate over the original Constitution polarized the nation. Those that supported the Constitution were known as federalists and those that opposed its ratification were called antifederalists. The federalists supported a strong national government — to preserve order. The antifederalists favored strong state governments and believed that the national government created by the Constitution was too strong.
It’s basically the same argument we hear today about the proper balance between order and liberty. Alexander Hamilton, James Madison and John Jay wrote a series of essays making a compelling argument in favor of ratification — those essay became known as the Federalist Papers. At the time, there were probably more antifederalists in America, but the federalists were better organized and controlled more newspapers and were generally in greater positions of power. The two sides finally reached an acceptable compromise when they agreed to add some amendments to the Constitution that protected individual liberties and rights.
James Madison submitted twelve amendments to Congress. His intention was to answer the criticisms of the antifederalists. The states ratified all but two of the twelve amendments — one to authorize the enlargement of the House of Representatives and one to prevent members of the House from raising their own salaries until after an election had taken place. The other ten amendments made up the Bill of Rights and were ratified in 1791.
The compromise that created the Bill of Rights pretty much defined what Americans would come to cherish. Together with the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution, the Bill of Rights helps define the American political system and the government’s relationship to its citizens.
I do find it interesting that the original Bill of Rights would have kept federal politicians from raising their own salaries…. if that amendment had been ratified, I wonder how it would have played out over the years……
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