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Articles of Confederation ratified
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Daniel Shays leads a march on the federal arsenal in Springfield, Massachusetts.
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Constitutional Convention officially begins.
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Governor Edmund Randolph of Virginia presents the Virginia Plan at the convention.
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Roger Sherman of Connecticut presents the Great Compromise.
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Thirty-nine delegates sign the U.S. Constitution.
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Delaware is the first state to ratify the Constitution.
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James Madison had become convinced that the document needed a Bill of Rights. His support helps get the amendments through Congress.
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New Hampshire is the ninth state to ratify the Constitution, and it officially goes into effect.
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Madison proposes 12 amendments at the first session of the First Congress under the new Constitution.
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Congress approves 12 amendments to the new Constitution.
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Rhode Island is the last state to ratify the Constitution.
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Ten of Madison’s 12 amendments are ratified by the states. These become known as the Bill of Rights.
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