The Great Compromise

The Great Compromise was an agreement during the U.S. Constitutional Convention of 1787 that resolved disagreements over how states would be represented in Congress. Larger states wanted representation based on population, while smaller states preferred equal representation. The compromise established a two-chamber legislature: the House of Representatives, with seats allocated by population, and the Senate, with two senators per state regardless of size. This balanced the interests of both large and small states, leading to the formation of the U.S. Congress as it exists today.