The Ratification of the Constitution in Delaware: A Political Divide | Schemes and Mind Maps Swedish

Introduction to the Ratification of the Constitution in Delaware

The first state constitution named it “The Delaware State,” but before 1776 the future state was

commonly known as the “three lower counties” of Pennsylvania. Swedish colonists planted the first

settlements in 1638, the Dutch from New Amsterdam seized them in 1655, and after the English

capture of New Amsterdam in 1664, King Charles II gave the area to his brother, James, Duke of

York. In 1682 the Duke granted the land to William Penn, who united it with his proprietary

province of Pennsylvania. The three counties of New Castle, Kent, and Sussex at first sent delegates

to the Pennsylvania Assembly, but in 1701 Penn granted them a charter similar to the one he had

granted to Pennsylvania in 1683. Thereafter, Delaware had a unicameral legislature, with the

governor of Pennsylvania serving as its governor.

Until 1776, and for a time afterwards, some prominent people were, in effect, citizens of both

Pennsylvania and Delaware. Thus, before 1776 John Dickinson served at one time as Speaker of the

Delaware Assembly and at another as a Philadelphia representative in the Pennsylvania Assembly.

He was President of Delaware in 1783, when he was elected President of Pennsylvania. From 1776

to 1783, when the Delaware legislature ended the practice, non-residents often represented the state

in Congress. For instance, in 1782 three of the four men elected were residents of Pennsylvania,

including a former Delawarean, Thomas McKean, who had been Chief Justice of Pennsylvania since

1777.

Delaware welcomed independence from Pennsylvania in 1776, but divided sharply on the issue of

independence from Great Britain. Perhaps four-fifths of New Castle County favored independence,

but half of Kent and four-fifths of Sussex were opposed to it. The vote of the Delaware delegates in

Congress reflected the split in the colony and forecast future political divisions. On 1 July 1776

Thomas McKean voted for and George Read voted against independence. The tie was broken the

next day with the arrival of Caesar Rodney, who voted for independence.

Delaware remained divided for years, with two factions, commonly called Whigs and Tories, fighting

for control. The Whigs, sometimes called the “country,” “Presbyterian,” or “democratic” party, were

led by Caesar Rodney until his death in 1784. The Tories, sometimes called the “court,” “church,” or

“aristocratic” party, were led by George Read until his death in 1798.

Late in July 1776 the old colonial assembly, which had not been replaced by a revolutionary

congress, called an election to choose delegates to a convention to write the state’s first constitution.

The Tories won an overwhelming victory, defeating such leaders for independence as Caesar

Rodney. George Read was elected president of the convention. On 11 September the convention

adopted a declaration of rights which guaranteed, among other things, freedom of religion, freedom

of the press, trial by jury, and the right of petition. On 20 September the convention adopted a

constitution without submitting it to the voters. The constitution went into effect with the election

of the first state legislature in October. (For the texts of the constitution and the declaration of

rights, see Mfm:Del. 1.)

The constitution created a two-house legislature called “The General Assembly.” The “Legislative

Council” consisted of three delegates from each of the three counties who were elected for three-

year terms. Once the new government was established, one councillor from each county was elected

each year. The “House of Assembly” consisted of seven delegates elected annually from each of the

The Ratification of the Constitution in Delaware: A Political Divide, Schemes and Mind Maps of Swedish