Of the many debates during the Constitutional Convention in 1787 in creating the U.S. Constitution, one issue loomed over the delegates: the issue of slavery. At the convention, there were early abolitionist movements in the north and growing demand for slaves in the south, leading to a collision course of the debate over how the government would address slavery in the new government. Though the word “slave” or “slavery” is not used in the text of the U.S. Constitution, the three-fifths compromise and the clause it creates solidifies the system of enslavement in the United States. What does the three-fifths compromise mean? Who benefitted from the compromise? And what were the ramifications of the three-fifths compromise?
Background of the Three-Fifths Compromise
Regional differences over slavery between the northern and southern states had been much less pronounced in the early colonial era. In the first decades after the American colonies were founded in the early 1600s, northern colonies had as many slaves as southern ones, and neither had very many. But the situation changed dramatically over time. The longer growing season in the South enabled export crops such as tobacco, rice, and indigo cultivation. The demand for nearly year-round labor to produce such crops made slavery more profitable in the South.
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The Three-Fifths Compromise
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Slavery was controversial at the Constitutional Convention, not because any of the delegates seriously considered abolishing it in the Constitution- though some vocal opponents saw the institution as aberrant- but rather because northern and southern states had conflicting interests on a variety of issues influenced by their very different levels of investment in the institution of slavery.
Fig. 1 – Charles Pinckney of South Carolina, depicted here, was the delegate who first suggested the 3/5 fraction be used in the Constitution.
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In the 1780s, the southern economy was based on producing agricultural staples for export. The south had few manufacturers and imported goods and hired merchants to import and export goods. The agricultural economy made the southern states more inclined toward free trade policies. The north had a diversified economy, with many merchants and manufacturers, making them prone to more restrictive mercantile policies.
Types of States that Benefitted from the Three-Fifths Compromise
Most delegates at the Constitutional Convention thought of the union as consisting of five southern states and eight northern states; the northern border of Maryland was the dividing line. In 1787, those five southern states had almost precisely the same population as the eight northern states- if enslaved peoples were counted. Therefore, if slaves were counted the same as free persons to apportion representation in the House of Representatives, the North and South would have equal power within that branch of the national government. If slaves counted for less, the southern states would be vastly outnumbered in the House- at least for the short term, as southern states wanted to maintain the practice of importing enslaved labor.
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