The Constitutional Convention-The Virginia Plan (Wkipedia)

From May 25 to September 17, 1787, the Constitutional Convention gathered in Philadelphia to revise the Articles of Confederation, the first plan of government of the United States. The Articles were widely criticized for creating a weak central government—the Confederation Congress—that was powerless to solve the nation's problems.^[4] 

Under the Articles, Congress was unable to raise taxes to pay for a military or pay off foreign debts. It also lacked the authority to control foreign and interstate commerce.^[5] 

The Articles had no provision for executive and judicial branches, which meant the Confederation government lacked effective means to enforce its own laws and treaties against non-compliant states.

 Drafted by James Madison, and presented by Edmund Randolph to the Constitutional Convention on May 29, 1787, the Virginia Plan proposed a strong central government composed of three branches: legislative, executive, and judicial.

At the Constitutional Convention on May 29, 1787, Virginia delegate Edmund Randolph proposed what became known as "The Virginia Plan." Written primarily by fellow Virginian James Madison, the plan traced the broad outlines of what would become the U.S. Constitution: a national government consisting of three branches, with checks and balances to prevent the abuse of power. 
   
The Virginia Plan went through several revisions before it was finalized. The document shown here from June 13, 1787, is not the Virginia Plan as originally submitted by Randolph on May 29th (that original draft of the 15 resolutions has never been found). This document shows the resolutions "as Altered, Amended, and Agreed to in a Committee of the Whole House," a third of the way through the convention.

Large states supported this plan, and smaller states generally opposed it, preferring alternatives that guaranteed each state equal representation regardless of population.^[4

^] On June 15, 1787, the smaller states presented the New Jersey Plan, which proposed a single-chamber legislature where each state, regardless of population, would have one vote, as under the Articles of Confederation. In July, after the meeting of the First Committee of Eleven, the Convention settled on the Connecticut Compromise, creating a House of Representatives apportioned by population and a Senate in which each state is equally represented