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Benjamin Franklin

Compromise and the Constitution of the United States

As impasse threatened to derail the Constitutional Convention, Franklin worked to find common ground. In order to pass the proposed Constitution of the United States, the delegates agreed to several compromises—some tragic. On September 17, 1787, Franklin, who saw the new federal government as an experiment to be improved by successive generations, delivered a speech endorsing the Constitution.

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“An American” (1775-1790)
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1:54:59
Benjamin Franklin helps craft the Declaration of Independence and wins French support.
“Join or Die” (1706-1774)
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1:55:26
After success as a Philadelphia printer Benjamin Franklin earns worldwide fame in science.
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