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    Virginia Plan VS New Jersey Plan

    Tadashi

    Written by Tadashi

    Modified & Updated: 21 Sep 2024

    Sherman Smith

    Reviewed by Sherman Smith

    Expert Verified Editorial Guidelines
    Virginia Plan VS New Jersey Plan

    Today, the US Constitution is one of the most important legal documents in the USA. It basically outlines not just the US government, but the nation as a whole. However, the authors of the US Constitution didn’t simply make it up on the spot. Both Virginia and New Jersey Plans served as drafts that eventually led to the final document. Learn more about those two historic documents with these 40 facts about the Virginia Plan VS New Jersey Plan.

    Quick Facts
    Essential Facts
    Interesting Facts
    1. 01The Virginia Plan actually set the agenda for the US Constitutional Convention of 1787.
    2. 02Only 11 out of the USA’s then-13 states fully participated in the convention.
    3. 03Rhode Island did not send delegates to the convention.
    4. 04Most of New York State’s delegates left the convention early.
    5. 05Only one of New York state’s delegates, Alexander Hamilton, stayed for the whole convention.
    1. 01The Articles of Confederation from 1777 defined the US government prior to the Constitutional Convention of 1787.
    2. 02The Constitutional Convention took place between May 25 and September 17, 1787.
    3. 03It took place in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
    4. 04The convention first considered the Virginia Plan as the basis for a new US government going forward.
    5. 05The New Jersey Plan later emerged as an alternative to the Virginia Plan.
    6. 06Many delegates also considered amending the Articles of Confederation instead of replacing them.
    7. 07The convention rejected the New Jersey Plan on June 19.
    8. 08The delegates included parts of the plan in the succeeding debates, however.
    9. 09They eventually agreed on the Connecticut Compromise on July 16.
    10. 10This included elements of both the Virginia and New Jersey Plans.
    1. 01Plans for the Constitutional Convention of 1787 go back to the Annapolis Convention of 1786.
    2. 02George Washington stayed neutral over the debate between the Virginia and New Jersey Plans.
    3. 03Only four states voted in favor of the New Jersey Plan: Connecticut, Delaware, New Jersey, and New York.
    4. 04Massachusetts’ delegates found themselves divided over the New Jersey Plan and failed to cast a yes or no vote.
    5. 05The original draft of the Virginia Plan currently rests in the US National Archives.
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