At the outbreak of the American Revolution, the Continental Congress created the Articles of Confederation and Perpetual Union in 1777 in order to keep all thirteen states united. However, the Articles of Confederation proved to be weak in the long term, as Congress had almost no power and could not enforce any decisions, as states had supreme power. Because the nation was in danger of collapse, delegates from five states attended the Annapolis Convention in order to discuss trade issues between states. The Constitutional Convention was called to revise the Articles of Confederation in the hopes of overhauling the national government. The main conflict at this convention was the concept of representation. The Virginia Plan proposed that there
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Rhode Island, a small state that was content with the current system of representation, felt that the Constitutional Convention was a conspiracy meant to overthrow the government. Like Rhode Island, "Patrick Henry, well-known for his leadership during the Revolution and for his speeches, refused to attend the convention because he believed it would result in the creation of a strong central government. Henry felt that the state governments needed to be stronger than the central government so that citizens' individual liberties could be protected" ("The Constitution of the United States). In addition, seventy-four delegates were appointed, but only fifty-five attended ("The Constitution of the United States"). Both Patrick Henry and other cases of absent delegates show that large divide between those who supported the current governmental representation system and those that did not. States such as Rhode Island did not participate in the convention at all, and people such as Patrick Henry did not involve themselves in the proceedings whatsoever. Only fifty-five out of seventy-four delegates attended the convention. On the other hand, Ben Franklin believed so much in changing the Articles of Confederation that he attended the convention at the age of 81, riddled with gout. There are, however, other reasons to support the idea that issues of representation were most prevalent during the Constitutional
Rhode Island, a small state that was content with the current system of representation, felt that the Constitutional Convention was a conspiracy meant to overthrow the government. Like Rhode Island, "Patrick Henry, well-known for his leadership during the Revolution and for his speeches, refused to attend the convention because he believed it would result in the creation of a strong central government. Henry felt that the state governments needed to be stronger than the central government so that citizens' individual liberties could be protected" ("The Constitution of the United States). In addition, seventy-four delegates were appointed, but only fifty-five attended ("The Constitution of the United States"). Both Patrick Henry and other cases of absent delegates show that large divide between those who supported the current governmental representation system and those that did not. States such as Rhode Island did not participate in the convention at all, and people such as Patrick Henry did not involve themselves in the proceedings whatsoever. Only fifty-five out of seventy-four delegates attended the convention. On the other hand, Ben Franklin believed so much in changing the Articles of Confederation that he attended the convention at the age of 81, riddled with gout. There are, however, other reasons to support the idea that issues of representation were most prevalent during the Constitutional