Introduction to This Site

Part 1: The Constitutional Convention and the Absence of a Bill of Rights (September 1787 to January 1788)

Near the end of the Constitutional Convention, the delegates discussed whether a Bill of Rights ought to be included at the beginning of the Constitution, as was done in several state Constitutions. The idea was rejected becuase the Constitution itself was designed to secure rights. As the first five states ratified the Constitution, the debate began over the need for a Bill of Rights.

Rights Secured in the Constitution
    by Gordon Lloyd

Documentary History of the Bill of Rights –
Constitutional Convention and Early Ratification

Part 2: The Ratification Debate and the Call for a Bill of Rights (February 1788 to July 1788)

Massachusetts became the sixth state to ratify the Constitution and the first to recommend a set of amendments to the Constitution. From that point forward, all of the states proposed amendments to accompany their ratification. Virginia, the 10th state to ratify, was the first to propose a Bill of Rights in addition to a series of amendments, and the precedent set by Virginia set the stage for what would ultimately become the U.S. Bill of Rights.

Documentary History of the Bill of Rights –
Ratification of the Constitution

Part 3: Proposing a Bill of Rights (? to June 1789)

James Madison opposed the inclusion of a Bill of Rights during the Constitutional Convention, but he later went on to introduce the Bill of Rights in the First Congress. The documentary history section below helps show the reasons why Madison came to support a Bill of Rights, and the sources table helps show the documents and events he drew upon to draft the Bill of Rights.

Introduction

Documentary History of the Bill of Rights – James Madison

Sources of the Bill of Rights
    by Gordon Lloyd

[This new table will incorprate the charts in The State Ratifying Conventions and Their Impact on James Madison’s Proposals in the First Congress, The English and Colonial Roots of the U.S. Bill of Rights, The State Constitution Origins of the U.S. Bill of Rights, and The Fate of Madison’s Proposals for the Bill of Rights.]

Part 4: The Bill of Rights in Congress and Its Adoption by the States (July 1789 to December 1791)

Following Madison’s proposal of a Bill of Rights in the First Congress, the House of Representatives and the Senate debated and made many changes to the proposed amendments. Twelve amendments were sent to the states for their approval, ten of which were ratified and became known as the U.S. Bill of Rights.

Documentary History of the Bill of Rights – First Congress

The Four Stages of Approval of the Bill of Rights in Congress and the States
    by Gordon Lloyd and Roger Beckett

Approval of the Bill of Rights by the States

Appendix

The Origins of the Bill of Rights in English, Colonial, and Early American History by Amendment
    by Gordon Lloyd

Selected Papers of George Mason

Excerpts of the Correspondence between Madison and Jefferson

Timeline of the Bill of Rights
    by Gordon Lloyd

Individual Biographies of the Members of the First Congress of the United States
    by Gordon Lloyd

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