Act I: What Were the Various Plans at the Constitutional Convention?

This short video highlights the four plans discussed during the first two weeks of the Convention: Madison’s Virginia Plan; Sherman’s New Jersey Plan; Hamilton’s “monarchical” plan; and, finally, Madison’s amended Virginia Plan. Each plan attempted to reconcile the potential conflicts between a strong national government and strong state governments. Professor Gordon Lloyd notes that an inability to compromise resulted in a stalemate after the first two weeks.