The United States Constitution was written at the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia, where delegates met to replace the weak Articles of Confederation. James Madison was the main architect of the plan, which divided power between three branches of government and between the federal and state governments, balancing large and small states through a two-chamber Congress. The convention's work was finished and signed in September, and it took effect after ratification by nine states, with the new government starting in 1789. The first ten amendments, the Bill of Rights, were added in 1791. The Constitution is the world's oldest written national constitution still in use, adapted through 27 amendments and judicial interpretation.
Before and after
- 11 January 1787Discovery of Titania
- 11 January 1787Discovery of Oberon
- from 13 August 1787 to 29 December 1791Seventh Russo-Turkish War
- from 13 September 1787 to 10 October 1787Prussian invasion of Holland
- 17 September 1787United States Constitution
- 25 September 1787Constitutional Convention
- 1788Auld Lang Syne
- from 1788 to 1789Sino-Nepalese War
- 1788James Hutton presents his Theory of the Earth
More in Wars, politics & history
- from 19 April 1775 to 3 September 1783American Revolutionary War
- 4 July 1776United States Declaration of Independence
- from 1803 to 1815Napoleonic Wars
- 1815Congress of Vienna
- from October 1853 to February 1856Crimean War
- from 19 July 1870 to 28 January 1871Franco-Prussian War
The era
This moment belongs to the Industrial era (1760 CE to 1914 CE), steam, factories and revolutions. You can also browse everything in the 18th century.