In 1787, George Washington was persuaded to attend the Constitutional Convention and subsequently was unanimously elected its president. The Convention (also known as the Philadelphia Convention, the Federal Convention, or the Grand Convention at Philadelphia) met in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania from May 14 to September 17. Delegates gathered to correct the various problems that had arisen while the newly-independent nation was operating under the Articles of Confederation following independence from Great Britain. The historic result of the Convention was the crafting of the United States Constitution and its subsequent ratification, which created a centralized federal government.
Washington’s Support for the Constitutional Convention
Although in support of a revision of the national government, Washington had to be convinced even to attend the Convention. After the War of Independence, Washington retired to Mount Vernon, but his retirement was short. At Mount Vernon, he hosted many political visitors, and in doing so remained involved in national politics. Additionally, his 1784 visit to his lands in the Ohio River Valley prompted his concerns about needing a stronger federal government to oversee the physical expansion of the country.
When learning about the call for a Constitutional Convention, he believed “That a thorough reform of the present system is indispensable, none who have capacities to judge will deny—and with hand and heart I hope the business will be essayed in a full Convention.”1 Contemporaries such as James Madison and General Henry Knox, persuaded Washington to attend the Convention. As strong advocates for a national system of government, each believed that Washington needed to play a central role because of the great trust and respect he had accumulated during the war.
The Constitutional Convention
The Convention met in Independence Hall through a typically hot and steamy Philadelphia summer. The delegates' sweltering was heightened by their decision to meet in secret and to seal the windows shut. As the delegates argued Washington observed, while sitting on a tall wooden chair on an elevated platform in front. Wearing his old military uniform, Washington participated little in the debates, seeing his function as nonpartisan, to maintain or restore order when debate became too boisterous. He described the creation of the document as a composition for a “diversity of interest which were to be reconciled.”2
Washington intervened infrequently, and mostly to vote for or against the various proposed articles. Delegates debated on matters such as representation, the status of slavery in the young nation, and how a revised legislative body should function. Various delegates put forth plans to guiding representation. William Patterson called for a plan that created a unicameral legislature with equal representation for every state, regardless of population. James Madison outlined the Virginia Plan, which structured representation based on population for a bicameral legislature. The “Great Compromise,” or the Connecticut Compromise, combined these ideas for a bicameral legislature with a Senate with equal representation for each state and a House of Representatives based on population.
One vigorous debate surrounded ideas concerning an executive branch of government. Delegates argued whether the government's executive should be a single person or a board of three. Eventually, a clear majority voted for a single executive based on the knowledge that Washington would probably be the first President. As a result, the presidency was written with Washington's honor and patriotism in mind, permitting him to define the office more clearly once he was elected.
Ratification of the Constitution
Although a Constitution was drafted, people remained anxious about the future of the young nation. Washington calmed these anxieties with his attendance, and he often received answered for other’s fears about the future of the government. During the Convention, Alexander Hamilton wrote to Washington, the he was in “fear that we shall let slip the golden opportunity of rescuing the American empire from disunion anarchy and misery.”3 Washington addressed his worries by emphasizing, “The apprehension expressed by them that the people will not accede to the form proposed is the ostensible, not the real cause of the opposition.”4 Washington believed in the need for a stronger federal government to the benefit the American people, and he was satisfied with the idea of the Constitution as a document that could be amended overtime to fit the needs of the nation.
While the Convention was intended to revise the Articles of Confederation, the objective of its leaders was to create a new government. After the Convention, Washington sent copies of the document to Thomas Jefferson and the Marquis de Lafayette, to gain their support. In Virginia, he sent copies to the three most recent governors, Benjamin Harrison, Patrick Henry, and Edmund Randolph. Once back home at Mount Vernon, Washington worked tirelessly writing letters to garner support for ratification. After the Convention, Washington's strong support convinced many to vote in favor of ratification in the months to follow. By June of 1789, the nine out of thirteen states needed for ratification voted to ratify the Constitution. Every state ratified the Constitution by May 29, 1790.
William P. Kladky, Ph.D., revised by Zoie Horecny, Ph.D., 10 April 2025
Notes:
1. “From George Washington to James Madison, 31 March 1787,” Founders Online, National Archives.
2. “From George Washington to David Humphreys, 10 October 1787,” Founders Online, National Archives.
3. “From Alexander Hamilton to George Washington, [3 July 1787],” Founders Online, National Archives.
4. “To Alexander Hamilton from George Washington, 10 July 1787,” Founders Online, National Archives,
Bibliography:
Bilder, Mary Sarah. Madison’s Hand: Revision the Constitutional Convention. Harvard University Press, 2017.
Chernow, Ron. Washington: A Life. New York, NY: Penguin, 2010.
Beeman, Richard. Plain, Honest Men: The Making of the American Constitution. New York, NY: Random House, 2009.
Ferling, John. The Ascent of George Washington: The Hidden Political Genius of an American Icon. New York, NY: Bloomsbury, 2009.
Maier, Pauline. Ratification: The People Debate the Constitution, 1787-1788. New York: Simon & Schuster, 2010.
