See You in Class - Madison and the Framing of the Constitution

See You in Class - Madison and the Framing of the Constitution

By John Ruston Pagan
May 2, 9, and 16, 2013   |   Time: 5:30–7 pm

James Madison played a crucial role at every stage of the framing of the United States Constitution (1787–88) and the Bill of Rights (1789–91). Our first class session will look at Madison's quest to replace the Articles of Confederation with a new Constitution and will explore the various positions he took as one of Virginia's delegates to the Federal Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia. The second session will focus on Madison's participation in the ratification campaign, especially his co-authorship of the Federalist Papers and his leadership of the pro-Constitution forces at Virginia's Ratification Convention. The third class will discuss Madison's sponsorship of the Bill of Rights, a set of amendments he steered through Congress as the representative from Virginia's Fifth District. John Ruston Pagan is a professor at the University of Richmond, where he teaches constitutional law, legal history, and early American history. He is the author of Anne Orthwood's Bastard: Sex and Law in Early Virginia (Oxford University Press, 2003).