Great Compromise

The Great Compromise (Connecticut Compromise) was the 1787 Constitutional Convention agreement that created a bicameral Congress, with House representation based on state population and equal representation for every state in the Senate, settling the fight between large and small states.

What is the Great Compromise?

The Great Compromise, also called the Connecticut Compromise, broke the biggest deadlock at the Constitutional Convention of 1787. Large states backed the Virginia Plan, which based representation in Congress on population. Small states backed the New Jersey Plan, which gave every state one equal vote, just like under the Articles of Confederation. Neither side would budge, and the convention nearly fell apart over it.

The compromise, pushed by Connecticut delegates Roger Sherman and Oliver Ellsworth, split the difference by creating a bicameral legislature. The House of Representatives would be apportioned by population (a win for big states like Virginia), while the Senate would give every state two seats regardless of size (a win for small states like New Jersey and Delaware). This deal is the clearest example of what the CED means when it says the Constitution was built through "negotiation, collaboration, and compromise" (KC-3.2.II.C). It also opened the next fight, because counting population for the House raised the question of whether enslaved people would count, which led directly to the Three-Fifths Compromise.

Why the Great Compromise matters in APUSH

This term lives in Unit 3 (Independence and Nation-Building, 1754-1800), specifically Topics 3.8 and 3.9. It supports APUSH 3.8.A, explaining the differing ideological positions on the structure of the federal government, and APUSH 3.9.A, explaining continuities and changes in government with the ratification of the Constitution. The Great Compromise is your go-to evidence that the Constitution was a bundle of deals, not a single unified vision. It also shows change over time. Under the Articles of Confederation, every state had one equal vote. The Compromise kept that principle alive in the Senate (continuity) while adding population-based power in the House (change). That continuity-and-change framing is exactly what 3.9.A asks you to do.

How the Great Compromise connects across the course

Virginia Plan and New Jersey Plan (Unit 3)

The Great Compromise is literally these two plans stapled together. The House comes from the Virginia Plan's population-based representation, and the Senate comes from the New Jersey Plan's equal-vote model. If you can explain both plans, you've already explained the compromise.

Three-Fifths Compromise (Unit 3)

Once the House was tied to population, southern states wanted enslaved people counted to boost their seat totals. The Three-Fifths Compromise (counting three-fifths of the enslaved population) only mattered because the Great Compromise made population equal power. KC-3.2.II.D flags this slavery compromise as essential knowledge for Topic 3.8.

Article I and the Bicameral Legislature (Unit 3)

The deal got written directly into Article I of the Constitution, which lays out the two-chamber Congress. When a question asks why the U.S. has a bicameral legislature, the Great Compromise is the answer.

Anti-federalists and Ratification (Unit 3)

Compromise at the convention didn't end the debate. Anti-federalists still feared a powerful central government and demanded a Bill of Rights before ratification. The Great Compromise shows how deals got the document written; the ratification fight shows how more deals got it approved.

Is the Great Compromise on the APUSH exam?

This term shows up most often in multiple-choice questions about the Constitutional Convention. Typical stems ask what fundamental tension the compromise resolved (large-state vs. small-state representation) or why the U.S. adopted a bicameral legislature. Watch for trap answers that swap in the Three-Fifths Compromise or the slave trade clause; one practice question pairs the Great Compromise against the agreement that delayed prohibition of the international slave trade until 1808, and those are different deals. No released FRQ has used the term verbatim, but it's strong SAQ and LEQ evidence for prompts on the structure of the new government (3.8.A, 3.9.A) and for continuity-and-change arguments about how the Constitution kept some Articles-era principles (equal state voting in the Senate) while transforming others.

The Great Compromise vs Three-Fifths Compromise

Both happened at the 1787 convention, but they solved different fights. The Great Compromise settled HOW Congress would be structured (population-based House plus equal-vote Senate), resolving the large-state vs. small-state conflict. The Three-Fifths Compromise settled WHO would be counted for that population, resolving a North-South conflict by counting three-fifths of the enslaved population toward representation. Easy check on test day: states' size means Great Compromise; slavery and counting people means Three-Fifths.

Key things to remember about the Great Compromise

• The Great Compromise (Connecticut Compromise) was the 1787 deal that created a bicameral Congress with a population-based House and an equal-representation Senate.

• It merged the Virginia Plan (representation by population, favored by large states) with the New Jersey Plan (equal votes per state, favored by small states).

• It's the textbook example of KC-3.2.II.C, the idea that the Constitution emerged from negotiation, collaboration, and compromise rather than one unified vision.

• The compromise created the next problem, because tying House seats to population sparked the fight over counting enslaved people, leading to the Three-Fifths Compromise.

• For continuity-and-change questions, the Senate's equal state representation continued an Articles of Confederation principle, while the population-based House was a major change.

Frequently asked questions about the Great Compromise

What was the Great Compromise in APUSH?

It was the 1787 Constitutional Convention agreement that created a two-chamber Congress, with the House of Representatives based on state population and the Senate giving every state two seats. It resolved the deadlock between large and small states over representation.

Is the Great Compromise the same as the Connecticut Compromise?

Yes, they're two names for the same deal. It's called the Connecticut Compromise because Connecticut delegates Roger Sherman and Oliver Ellsworth proposed it. The exam can use either name, so know both.

How is the Great Compromise different from the Three-Fifths Compromise?

The Great Compromise settled the structure of Congress and the large-state vs. small-state fight. The Three-Fifths Compromise settled how enslaved people would be counted toward that representation, a North-South fight. They're separate deals from the same 1787 convention, and MCQs love to swap them.

Did the Great Compromise end the disagreements at the Constitutional Convention?

No. It solved the representation fight, but delegates still had to compromise over slavery, including the Three-Fifths Compromise and the agreement allowing Congress to ban the international slave trade only after 1808. Then the whole document still faced the Federalist vs. Anti-federalist ratification battle.

Why did the Great Compromise create a bicameral legislature?

Because neither side would accept the other's single-chamber plan. Two chambers let both sides win something. Large states got the population-based House, and small states got the equal-vote Senate, which kept the one-state-one-vote idea from the Articles of Confederation alive.